I applied for, and received, my Firearm Owner Identification card. I live in Chicago. Suppose I want to buy and keep a gun, legally. It used to be you had to jump through a bunch of hoops to register it, but I guess that’s gone now. So can I just go to my favorite gun store (probably outside the city, because even though the city lost its case to ban gun shops, there aren’t very many yet inside city limits), buy a gun (wait the 24 or 72 hour waiting period for long guns and handguns, respectively), take it to my apartment, and be complying with the law?
How am I required to store it? I was planning on getting a trigger lock and a case. I can’t find any requirements on how it is stored in my home, but I did see that if someone under 14 gets it and hurts himself, I could be liable if I don’t have it locked up or with a trigger lock. Are there any rules for how ammunition must be stored?
For transporting, it looks like if it’s unloaded and in a case, I’m good.
What am I missing, either from a legal standpoint, or just a good practice standpoint?
For transporting without a CCW, a good rule of thumb is to have at least 3 steps between stopped at a traffic light with the wheel in your hands and stopped at a traffic light with a loaded firearm in one of your hands.
Unloaded, in a locked case, and in your trunk is generally legal everywhere. An unloaded magazine can be helpful too. Add a trigger lock and you’ll be conviction proof.
Non gun owner here. Take my comments with the assumption of ignorance on my part. So, what does it take to qualify for a FOID? Not already knowing the answers to any of your questions was not a problem?
It’s just to make sure that you’re eligible to own a gun: not a felon, not been a patient at a mental institution, not convicted of domestic battery, etc.
You fill out this form (PDF), send it in with a picture (which they don’t even use on your card: they just compare it to your state ID photo, then use your ID photo on the card), and ten bucks.
It lets the police do a background check on you, and then you have to carry the card with you whenever you have a gun. Makes it easy for the police to see whether the gun is legal: if you have the card, it’s legal for you to have the gun. If you don’t, it’s not.
It’s unique to Illinois: in most states you don’t really have to do anything just to own a gun. It’s not a conceal carry permit (that requires significantly more training, and more money), and it’s not a registration for your guns. I don’t think Illinois has ever required you to register your guns, but the city of Chicago did, until recently (there used to not be any conceal carry either, that’s very new too).
You even need the FOID card to buy ammo or handle a gun at a gun show or store. I’m in MO and when I go to a gun show in IL I need to show my MO drivers license in lieu of a FOID card to handle any guns.
From a California perspective:
Check that they aren’t already (mandatory) sold with trigger locks already before buying one.
In CA, must be kept in a locked case while traveling but the trunk counts as a locked case, your carrying case doesn’t need to be padlocked. Keep separate from ammo. Illinois seems less strict (pdf) and must either be in a case (locked not specified) or broken down, e.g. bolt removed.