Illinois State Rifle Association
1903
Illinois State Rifle Assn
PO Box 637
Chatsworth, IL 60921
(815) 635-3198
https://www.isra.org
The Daily Bullet – Richard Pearson – ISRA
Nov 12, 2020
About the Illinois State Rifle Association
The Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) is the oldest statewide gun rights and shooting sports organization in Illinois, active since 1903. According to longtime executive director Richard Pearson, the group began with ties to the U.S. Army, in the era when state rifle associations promoted civilian marksmanship. Today it combines lobbying in Springfield, legal action, firearms training and competitive shooting, and it works alongside the National Rifle Association and other Second Amendment groups. A 2021 profile reported roughly 29,000 members and more than 30,000 subscribers to its quarterly journal, Illinois Shooter. The association also runs the ISRA Range near Chatsworth, which has hosted an annual NRA Day event staffed by hundreds of volunteers.
For gun owners, ISRA matters most for its role in Illinois court fights. It was a co-plaintiff, with Mary Shepard, in Shepard v. Madigan, one of the two cases in which the Seventh Circuit struck down the state’s ban on public carry in December 2012, leading Illinois to adopt concealed carry in July 2013. In January 2023 ISRA joined a federal lawsuit challenging the Protect Illinois Communities Act, the state’s ban on so-called assault weapons and large-capacity magazines.
Key Facts
- 1903: Illinois State Rifle Association founded
- December 11, 2012: Seventh Circuit rules for the plaintiffs in Shepard v. Madigan, with ISRA as co-plaintiff, and Moore v. Madigan
- July 9, 2013: Illinois enacts concealed carry after the legislature overrides a veto
- 2021: Reports about 29,000 members, with Richard Pearson as executive director
- January 17, 2023: ISRA files a federal suit in the Southern District of Illinois against the state’s assault weapons and magazine ban
Sources
- The State of Illinois’ Gun Advocacy Networks – The Daily Egyptian
- Victory for Self-Defense and the Second Amendment – NRA-ILA
- Moore v. Madigan – Wikipedia
- ISRA and Gun Stores File Federal Lawsuit Challenging Assault Weapons Ban – Chicago Sun-Times
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