Posted: Feb. 8, 2012 8:56 am Updated: Feb. 22, 2012 9:15 am

By DOUG WILSON

Herald-Whig Senior Writer

A lawsuit challenging the Illinois law that bars people from carrying loaded firearms in public was dismissed last week, but does not end the controversy over that or other state laws.

U.S. Judge Sue Myerscough issued her opinion Friday that dismissed Moore v Madigan. Moore had challenged whether a pair of Illinois laws violate the U.S. Constitution. In Myerscough's ruling she said "the United States Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit have recognized only a Second Amendment core individual right to bear arms inside the home."

State Rep. Jil Tracy, R-Quincy, does not agree with that narrow interpretation of the Second Amendment. Tracy, an attorney who attended law school with Myerscough, said there are lots of court rulings that recognize a broader view of Second Amendment rights.

"I was very disappointed with that decision, and I don't think it will end there," Tracy said.

The Second Amendment Foundation has filed an appeal of Myerscough's ruling.

"The Second Amendment does not say the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed except outside your home or that it only applies inside your house. We don't check our constitutional rights at the front door," Alan Gottlieb executive vice president of the Second Amendment Foundation said in a release.

Adams County State's Attorney Jon Barnard said his job is to enforce state law, but he uses prosecutorial discretion in cases where there was no intent to break the law. That flexibility often involves gun owners from Missouri who drive into Illinois with uncased guns.

"You have to look at the circumstances and decide whether someone is intentionally or inadvertently in violation of the law," Barnard said.

One example would be a Missouri resident who has just finished a hunting trip and drives into Illinois to drop somebody off. If it appears the gun violation was not intentional, there is flexibility, Barnard said.

"One thing I would add is that you should always assume that we are going to enforce state law. Coming in from (another state) does not always get you a free pass," Barnard said.

Tracy said firearms legislation comes up in the Legislature every year. A concealed carry bill was sent out of committee for action on the Illinois House floor this week. Tracy also is aware of a pair of bills that would ban assault weapons and one that would make failure to report a firearm theft a felony.

While Tracy agrees that gun thefts should be reported, she questions why the proposed legislation has no exceptions for people who legitimately don't realize a gun safe was entered or a hunting cabin was burglarized.

The National Rifle Association has a lawsuit pending in federal court that challenges the validity of state laws that appear to preempt the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment. Currently, 49 states have some provisions for citizens to carry concealed weapons. Only Illinois and the District of Columbia ban all concealed weapons.

--dwilson@whig.com/221-3372