File Photo – Illinois State Police | Photo: Nick Rusin

State police conducted a firearms โ€œenforcement blitzโ€ in June and July and seized firearms from over 1,000 residents, the highest number since enforcement details started in 2019.

201 enforcement details were conducted in all 102 counties from June 16 to July 31 to ensure those who had their firearm rights revoked are in compliance with the state’s Firearms Owners Identification Card (FOID) Act, Illinois State Police (ISP) announced on Thursday.

The blitz consisted of 1,716 compliance checks.

Police seized firearms from 1,014 residents and their FOID cards were surrendered.

63 details, or nearly one-third, were conducted in the northern portion of Illinois, where 421 compliance checks resulted in firearms being seized from 223 residents.

“The ISP continues to aggressively enforce our laws to keep deadly weapons out of the hands of those posing a significant threat to themselves or others,” ISP Director Brendan Kelly said.

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“Through these enforcement details, our impact on this key factor in gun violence continues to strengthen.”

State police began conducting enforcement details yearly in May 2019.

203 details in 2019 resulted in firearms being seized from 515 residents, which increased to 250 details in 2020.

Last year, 595 residents had their firearms seized.

Officials say their efforts focused on residents “who are more likely to be a safety risk,” like if a local law enforcement agency submits a Clear and Present Danger report to state police.

Illinois State Police is also provided $2 million in grants to local law enforcement agencies for firearms enforcement through Public Act 102-0237.

“We commend the Illinois State Police for working to ensure that individuals whose FOID cards have been revoked are following the law and transferring their firearms,” Cook County Sheriff
Thomas Dart said.

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“I dedicated a unit to this important work nearly a decade ago, and we are committed to working with ISP to help to keep our communities safe,” Dart added.

“Once again, our ISP officers are making Illinois safer by getting dangerous firearms out of the wrong hands. Since 2019, ISP has executed hundreds of details โ€” placing thousands of individuals in compliance with the FOID Act,” Governor J.B. Pritzker said.

“Last monthโ€™s firearm enforcement blitz is another example of the ways that ISP is preventing gun violence and protecting our communities. I want to thank Director Kelly for his leadership and the rest of the ISP team for their hard work,” Pritzker added.