McHenry County sheriff calls new gun bill unconstitutional, says office will not enforce registration provision

McHenry County Sheriff Robb Tadelman announced Wednesday that neither he nor his deputies will not enforce a new law that requires owners of certain guns register them.

The new bill, House Bill 5471, signed into law on Tuesday night, is effective immediately and bans a variety of semiautomatic weapons, along with attachments that strengthen the gun or can convert it into a semiautomatic.

It also strengthens the state’s firearm restraining orders and requires people who already own the newly banned guns to register them with the state.

Tadelman joins a number of other sheriff’s around the state, who said the newest bill is a violation of the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Sheriffs in Whiteside, Lee, Grundy and La Salle counties issued similar statements on Wednesday.

Most sent out similarly styled news releases saying neither they nor their deputies would be checking to ensure that “lawful gun owners” register their weapons with the state nor would they be arresting individuals solely for noncompliance with the act.

That registration process is not yet laid out, but the bill will give gun owners up to a year to register.

“Part of my duties that I accepted upon being sworn into office was to protect the rights provided to all of us in the Constitution,” Tadelman said in the statement. “The right to keep and bear arms for dense of life, liberty and property is regarded as an inalienable right by the people.”

Tadelman is a newly elected sheriff, who was sworn into office in December.