Chicago Area Local News

WILMETTE, Ill. (CBS) ― Just one day after the U.S. Supreme Court decision shooting down a handgun ban in Washington, D.C., there was a major about-face for the northern Chicago suburb that prosecuted one of its residents for shooting a home invader.

In a 5-4 decision, the court struck down Washington, D.C.'s ban on handguns, a prohibition similar to those used in several major cities, including Chicago, and a handful of Chicago suburbs including Wilmette, Evanston, Winnetka and Oak Park.

Wilmette said Friday that it had suspended enforcement of its handgun ban. CBS 2 Chief Correspondent Jay Levine reports that the battle may be over, but strong feelings remain.

Wilmette hadn't used its ordinance since charging Hale DeMar with illegal possession of a firearm after he shot and wounded a home invader in late 2003. Officials in Wilmette probably won't use the ordinance again anytime soon.

Wilmette Corporation Counsel Tim Frenzer said, "Given the way the opinion was written, it's in the best for the protection of the village and the police officers that we suspend enforcement of the ordinance."

Frenzer said questions remain about how directly the court's decision will impact local gun laws in Wilmette and other parts of the country. Washington is not a state, and each state has its own legal language governing the right to bear arms.

"That aside, the opinion will require further review and discussion by the Village Board, but it's prudent at this point to suspend enforcement of it," Frenzer said.

Wilmette's law, enacted in 1989, levied fines of up to $750 for handgun possession and allowed the village to seek a judge's order to have seized weapons destroyed.

Frenzer said he did not know exactly how many times the law has been invoked, but said its use is rare.

Hale DeMar was the last person Frenzer could remember being prosecuted for violating Wilmette's ban and Friday evening, DeMar said, "I think this is enormous."

DeMar has always declined to be photographed, because of security concerns for him and his family, but he agreed to sit down with us to talk about a belief he holds dear: the right to bear arms for his own protection.

"I think it's the responsibility of the state to protect citizens and when you have someone who's arrested 30 times and is out to victimize families like myself, I think the state has failed to protect the citizenry and so we should be able to protect ourselves," DeMar said.

It's been four years since he began his battle with authorities over Wilmette's handgun ban and until Friday, he still would have been subject to arrest.

Asked if he still had a gun for home protection, DeMar said, "Absolutely. I have more than one for the protection of my family."

He remembers well that night in December 2003, facing the masked criminal, his kids asleep upstairs. He fired two shots at the robber, who got away. But DeMar was prosecuted for violating Wilmette's handgun ban.

DeMar said the only thing he regretted was "letting him get away to victimize another family. I thought he would have been behind bars and had I been a better shot, he wouldn't have gotten away."

Chicago will likely continue to enforce its ban on handgun possession, while a suit filed yesterday works its way through the courts.

But smaller communities with similar ordinances, already watered down by new state laws protecting homeowners from prosecution, are apt to follow Wilmette's lead, rather than face the legal expense of court battles that could take years to resolve.

DeMar's case mobilized state gun right groups and led to the passage of a law that gave gun owners a defense to local prohibitions if the weapon was used in self-defense.

Wilmette's charges against DeMar were eventually dropped.

The STNG Wire contributed to this report.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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