Deerfield village trustees unanimously approved a ban on certain types of assault weapons and high-capacity firearms on April 2, giving owners of such weapons until June 13 to remove the weapons from the village limits.
Not everyone is in favor of the new ordinance, and Blaine Wilhour, 35, a Beecher City Republican running the the 107th House District against Democrat David Seiler, doesn’t think that the decision by Deerfield's trustees is a good idea.
“Banning guns is impractical, unconstitutional, counter-productive and a serious violation of our constitutional liberties,” Wilhour said. “Most importantly, it is the wrong conversation.” He believes that young people today have derived their values and behavior from watching violent video games.
According to the Chicago Tribune, weapons named in the ban include semiautomatic rifles with a fixed magazine that can accommodate more than 10 rounds of ammunition and shotguns with a revolving cylinder. Other weapons with large-capacity magazines were also banned including semiautomatic pistols and rifles. Specific guns named included AR-15, AK-47 and Uzi.
Owners will face daily fines if the weapons are not removed from the village by June 13. Violations carry a fine of between $250 and $1,000 per day, according to Matthew Rose, the village attorney.
Deerfield High School senior Ariella Kharasch welcomed the ruling. “This is our fight,” Kharasch said. “We’re going to keep fighting, and this is part of it.”
Wilhour doesn’t agree. “We don’t have a gun problem in this country,” he said. “We have a culture and values problem. Just look at the absolute garbage we allow our kids to see. They play video games that encourage them to graphically blow people’s heads off. What is that teaching them about the value of life?”
Perhaps it’s all a matter of perception. Wilhour lives a small town of 463 in southern Illinois farm country. This area of low density in population may not face the same problems as Deerfield, located 25 miles north of Chicago, with a population of almost 20,000.
Wilhour continued his argument by saying, “The conversation that we should be having is how do we keep our kids safe at school? That is what gets lost every time the far-left pushes to ban guns at every opportunity. It’s a distraction and nothing ever gets done to solve the real issue of making sure we are taking steps to ensure that our kids are secure in school.”
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