Illinois House showdown on gun-purchasing restrictions looms

SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Democrats are gearing up for a showdown on gun-purchasing restrictions.

House leaders plan votes Wednesday on five measures to restrict firearms purchases and intervene on mental health issues.

The Judiciary-Criminal Committee endorsed each Tuesday evening on 8-5 partisan roll calls. Republicans and gun-rights advocates complain the proposals are rushed, poorly drafted and in some cases represent a constitutional overreach.

Democrats are responding to a massacre that killed 17 students at a Florida high school Feb. 14 and the fatal shooting a day earlier of Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer in downtown Chicago. They also sense the pressure of public frustration over continued killings as they prepare to face primary election voters in less than a month.