Travel from Houston to Chicago by air

[Danny White]

I routinely travel from Houston Hobby airport to Chicago Midway airport for business trips to northern Indiana. I understand I can legally transport my pistol on the airline as checked baggage, but what happens when I need to travel from Chicago to Indiana? I understand I'll be OK once I reach Indiana since they have reciprocity with Tx - but what about the drive in a rental car from Midway airport in Chicago to Indiana where I will stay in a hotel?

[seamusTX]

DON'T DO IT!

It is a felony offense to possess a handgun in Chicago. You would probably be arrested at the airport (which is inside the city limits).

- Jim

[jimlongley]

Midway Airport is within the city limits of Chicago, and there is no such thing as forgiveness for "illegal possession." FOPA is supposed to apply, and I have not heard horror stories like those out of NY about people declaring guns in checked bags, but I would not be surprised if they didn't do the same sort of thing.

IL requires a FOID for firearm possession and Chicago does not allow possession of handguns. There are no FOIDs for non-residents, even though the law implies there is one, and the firearms laws are a convoluted mess to try to understand.

[seamusTX]

P.S.: Don't bring any ammunition, either. It is a offense in Illinois to possess a single round of ammunition without a FOID.

Your only alternative is to fly into Indiana or Michigan. (I know Southwest is cheaper than the alternatives most of the time.)

- Jim

[joe817]

Do you HAVE TO fly into either Midway or O'hare? I'd seek another route if at all possible, and bypass both Chicago AND Illinois altogether. Surely Continental must fly to some destination in Indiana, without connecting to any Chicago airports.

[ELB]

The Federal FOPA pretty clearly makes it legal for you to travel from any US jurisdiction where your gun possession is legal to any other US jurisdiction where your gun possession is legal, regardless of any state or city jurisdiction you pass through in between, by any means of transportation. When you are traveling, this federal law pre-empts local statutes.

It is also pretty clear that states and cities can ignore this particular Federal law with impunity, and do so regularly, and have done so ever since it was passed in ...1986 if I recall correctly, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. It is a shame that in previous presidential administrations the DOJ chose not to enforce supporting elements of one particular right allegedly protected by the Bill of Rights, and you can be sure the present DOJ will, if anything, find ways to subvert certain rights.

The NRA is working through the judiciary to change this; I posted on this earlier in another thread, but you may be interested to read of the adventures of two men and a woman who tried to take their guns through a jurisdiction with laws similar to Chicago Midway -- namely, NYC JFK, and LaGuardia. Here is the brief asking the 2nd Court of Appeals to take overturn clearly illegal behavior by the NY Port Authority:
http://www.nraila.org/pdfs/torracovpany.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I doubt this case gets resolved in time to help you.

I cannot recommend that you run the risk of being arrested in Chicago, or more generally Illinois, but if you did fly in I do not see how (normally) they would know you have a gun anyway -- I have never had to declare a gun in my baggage flying INTO an airport. But I assume you return home by more or less the same route, and checking in at Midway is where you are likely to run into a problem (which is how people get tripped up in NYC). And of course if the Illinois police were to stop and search your rental car, legally or illegally, you can pretty much bet the Ill state police or whoever are not going to be versed in or pay any attention to the FOPA. It is going to take a SCOTUS club to the head to get the governments of the unfree states to pay attention...

Like Seamus says, if at all possible, fly into Indiana -- you would be safer in more ways than one, and Chicago does not need our money or support.

Good luck.

[stevie_d_64]

Continental flies to South Bend, Indiana which is 55 miles from Gary, Indiana...

For what its worth...

[Danny White]

Thanks for all the replies. What a frickin mess! When I drive along Garfield Ave from Midway I'd bet every other kid in the cars with the big chrome wheels are well armed - illegally of course!