The Supreme Court announced on April 30, 2024 that it will be distributing the Harrel v. Raoul case for discussion in its May 16, 2024 conference. During this conference, the Court’s Justices will discuss and possibly vote on whether or not to accept the case for hearing. Sigale represents the Plaintiffs in Harrel, which include the Illinois State Rifle Association, Second Amendment Foundation, and Firearms Policy Coalition, as well as one individual and two firearms dealers. The Court will be conferencing on the case along with all five of the other cases that were consolidated back in November 2023 by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in their Bevis opinion. The Harrel docket number at the Court is 23-877.
The Bevis ruling by the Seventh Circuit Court wrongly held that because the firearms prohibited by PICA are to be considered “military” weapons, they do not enjoy Second Amendment protection.
“The Supreme Court set the rules of a historical and traditional Second Amendment analysis in its 2022 Bruen decision. Because the Bevis opinion is so against the Supreme Court’s ruling in Bruen, we are hopeful the Court will accept our Petition and reverse the Seventh Circuit’s egregiously erroneous decision.” said David Sigale, ISRA General Counsel as well as lead Plaintiffs’ counsel in Harrel.
At the same time, these cases are continuing in the Southern District of Illinois, where discovery and expert witness disclosures have been ongoing, and a trial date is expected to be set soon.
“We would like the Supreme Court to step in now and hopefully prevent us having to go to trial using the faulty legal standard imposed on us by Bevis,” Sigale stated. “But we, along with the counsel in the other three consolidated cases pending before the Court, will be ready to make our case that the PICA is unconstitutional either way.”
The Firm is working with its co-counsel Cooper & Kirk of Washington, D.C. in this effort.
The Law Firm of David G. Sigale, P.C. was founded to serve the legal needs of the Chicago metropolitan area. Mr. Sigale has counseled and represented corporate and individual clients across the United States and internationally. He believes in protecting Americans from improper attempts by the government to infringe upon their constitutional rights. His firm services clients in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall and Will Counties, and as well as reviews matters in other locations on a case-by-case basis. Contact the firm for a consultation.
