Another win for the NRA

[Lunkerdog]

http://www.nraila.org/News/Read/New...x?ID=15189

OK I can't get the link to work, so here's the news.

Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Holds NRA Entitled to Attorneys’ Fees in Lawsuits Against Chicago and Oak Park, Illinois

Thursday, June 02, 2011

Fairfax, VA—Today, the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals conclusively and forcefully held, without need for oral argument, that the National Rifle Association has the right to recover attorneys’ fees in its lawsuits against the city of Chicago's and the village of Oak Park’s unconstitutional gun bans. The court held that the NRA was a prevailing party in the case of National Rifle Association v. City of Chicago and Village of Oak Park.
“This is a Second Amendment victory and a civil rights victory. The National Rifle Association and the Second Amendment prevailed against those who sought to deny the right to keep and bear arms in Chicago and Oak Park,” said Chris W. Cox, executive director of NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action. “The attempt to avoid paying the NRA’s attorneys’ fees was rightly found to be unjust by the Court."
After the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment guarantees a fundamental right to keep and bear arms for all Americans in the historic McDonald v. Chicago and NRA v. Chicago and Oak Park cases, it remanded them for the purpose of issuing an injunction against Chicago and Oak Park's unconstitutional gun ordinances. Before that injunction was issued, however, those ordinances were repealed. The City and the Village then argued that the NRA was not a prevailing party and should not be allowed to recover attorneys’ fees. The District Court, which originally ruled against the NRA, agreed and denied the fee award.
Today’s Seventh Circuit decision overturns that ruling, holding instead that the NRA is indeed a prevailing party and is entitled to receive reimbursement for attorneys’ fees. The amount to be recovered will be established by the District Court.
“This is a major victory for the NRA. While we are grateful to recover our attorneys’ fees, however, we remain steadfast in our belief that Chicago and Oak Park continue to circumvent the law of the land and deny their law-abiding residents the Second Amendment freedoms protected by the Constitution. We will continue to fight those efforts until the Second Amendment is fully respected," concluded Cox.

--NRA—

Established in 1871, the National Rifle Association is America’s oldest civil rights and sportsmen's group. Four million members strong, NRA continues its mission to uphold Second Amendment rights and to advocate enforcement of existing laws against violent offenders to reduce crime. The Association remains the nation's leader in firearm education and training for law-abiding gun owners, law enforcement and the military.

[sachiko]

Excellent!

[Champlain Islander]

Yup stuff like this always makes me glad I am a member.

[falcon]

Good on the court. i've been an NRA member for over 50 years.

[The Rev]

Excellent, I'm sure glad I'm a member.

[Alsatian]

I too am an NRA member. I would be happy about this outcome even if I were NOT an NRA member.

I like that these groups -- City of Chicago and City of Oak Park -- have to suffer positively for their aggressive and confrontational efforts to suppress a fundamental civil liberty. Maybe their constituents will vote some of those stupid #*%!~s out of office in consideration of the tax payer money they flushed down the toilet in their quixotic, ideological law making. Maybe it won't have any effect on Chicago, however, as they seem to be totally oblivious to the idea of husbanding public resources and funds. I have read somewhere that the City of Chicago has pension obligations somewhere on the order of $100 B? Is that even possible? Maybe I have that number wrong.

Yay! Great victory. Yes, we have a constitution. Yes, the words, though old, do mean something.