For months, CBS News Chicago has been pulling on a thread that many lawful gun owners, especially Black gun owners, have lived with for years. Now, an inside source has said the quiet part out loud.
According to the exclusive report, some Chicago police officers are arresting law-abiding gun owners with valid FOID cards and concealed carry licenses anyway. And there may be career and financial incentives to do it.
The source, a decorated veteran officer who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said bluntly that race plays a role and that arrests tied to firearms can boost an officer’s numbers, visibility, and chances for promotion.
“If you have really high numbers in terms of firearms recovered,” the source told CBS. “You will get the attention of supervisors. If you get promoted, then yeah—you’re financially better off.”
The station documented multiple cases where Black gun owners followed the law perfectly, disclosed their firearms during traffic stops, presented valid licenses, and were still arrested and charged with felonies.
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One of those cases involved Curtis Tarver, an Illinois state lawmaker. After being stopped for a minor traffic issue, Tarver immediately disclosed his firearm and showed police his FOID and concealed carry license.
Officers even acknowledged that everything appeared in order. Then they arrested him anyway after claiming his license was revoked in the system.
It wasn’t.
Tarver’s case was eventually dismissed. But not before he was booked, photographed, and publicly labeled a criminal. That mugshot still exists. The damage didn’t disappear when the charges did.
CBS Chicago also highlighted Louis McWilliams, a business owner who took the required classes, paid the fees, obtained his license, and carried legally. When police couldn’t immediately verify his CCL in the state database, he was arrested and charged with two felonies. Months later, prosecutors dropped the charges after confirming his license was valid all along.
And here’s the kicker: no one is tracking how often this happens.
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Neither the Chicago Police Department nor the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office tracks how many lawful gun owners are wrongly charged and later cleared. Yet CPD provided a database showing more than 52,000 firearms seized as “illegal” since 2019. That includes guns belonging to people whose cases were dismissed.
Legal experts said Illinois law is clear: if a license holder presents valid credentials, disclosure requirements are met. Period.
But as one expert warned, the “no harm, no foul” mindset ignores the real consequences: arrest, jail, legal bills, lost jobs, public shaming, and permanent records that don’t magically vanish.
For gun owners watching from the outside, the message is unsettling. Follow the law, do everything right, and you still might get cuffed.
As CBS Chicago’s reporting shows, the issue isn’t public safety. It’s accountability. And until the system starts tracking these cases, the scope of the problem may be far bigger than anyone wants to admit.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
Experience:
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– Concealed Carry Permit Holder (NYS & AZ) – Trained and licensed to carry in multiple states.
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No the answer is stay out of Chicago. I avoid Chicago at all cost. It’s a crime ridden city with crooked law enforcement and politicians.
This speaks of corruption in the Chicago justice system from the bottom to the top, the governors mansion. IMAGINE THAT. And we thought Al Capone was bad. At least we knew what he was.
I have never trusted law enforcement. I’ve known many personally and they tend to think that because they are police, rules don’t apply to them. Your rights simply don’t matter when they decide to arrest you. And if you are on one of their personal lists, even worse. As an old-school biker I can testify to police harassment policies.
Sounds like a class action lawsuit may be needed here. Maybe the victim’s can get organized and find a legit law firm to represent them against the Republic of Chicago! It’s just another one of the reasons folks are fleeing that state in mass.
Why aren’t these gun owners starting a class action lawsuit against the police department or doing it individually? It’s easy to prove that his permit was not revoked and he was arrested for no reason. Maybe this is what they need up there to start voting responsibly! Remember Chicago… That is how you voted!
The hatred ILL-Annoy politicians have for lawful gun owners and the 2A in general has no boundaries.
Until the CPD and politicians feel pain and fear, they will continue to ratchet up their attacks on the 2A.
Perhaps some enterprising victims of this scam can pool together a class action civil rights lawsuit and shed light on this.
Ok, so let’s look at the facts:
1. Crime is so out of control in Shi*cago that police often refuse to respond or to arrest even some felonies.
2. Police appear to prefer to arrest law-abiding citizens instead because it is easier.
3. The police are the criminals here because they are actively ignoring the law as written. On top of that, they are tying up the overburdened and backlogged legal system with illegitimate felony charges that are complete BS.
4. And yet, people still get butt-hurt when there are calls to defund the police.
Honestly, I really am not sure what good the Shi*cago PD and the ILLannoy State Police are actually doing or why they are needed.
What I’m going to say is going to chap some ass’s, but statistically it’s the truth, and “frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn”. The numbers don’t lie. The democratic blacks are the one’s that have been overplaying the race-card over the last few decades and taking advantage of tax payers. The socialist agenda, entitlements, and overall abuse of the system has pushed people to the brink, especially white tax payers that get it rubbed in their faces every time they turn on the TV.
The largest percentage of crimes committed in this country are done by blacks and black youth. I’ve even spoke to a couple of my black cop friends that admit when they stop blacks on traffic violations they are on a heightened alert and expect the worst.
Blacks make POS’s like George Floyd their martyr and savoir and erect statues of him, take down historic statues and put up statues of ‘ol George in their places, all in the name of BLM and DEI. Name streets after the POS and sing kumbaya at community BBQ’s over him … OH PLEASE! 🙄
Paint “BLM” all over city streets, paid for by white tax payers, then rub it in everyone faces and at the same time push to “defund” the police.
Then every time there’s a minor event in news, the liberal media turns it into a photo op and days and days and days of sound-bites while “The Reverend” crawls out from under his rock, flying in on his private jet, takes a picture waving his fist, then crawls BACK under his rock until the next leftist photo-op.
Don’t even get me started on Jasmine Crock-of-Shite and the other left-wing nut bags that think society owes them a life long lap of luxury. Shall we talk about the muslin terrorist that have infiltrated deeply into our political system? Naa … But have the fine folks of NYC already forgotten 9/11?
Every time you turn on the TV you see mega-racist assholes like Whoopi Cushion Goldturd, Joy Blohard, and all their cronies blaming everyone else for societies problems, especially if they are white conservatives, and never address the real problems. And you wonder why the liberal media promote such trash? Jerry Springer 2.0 …?
Then you have blacks and leftist politicians pushing for reparations for something that happened hundreds of years ago. My family came over from Europe in the early 1600’s and we never owned “slaves”. We were Southern sharecroppers that couldn’t afford to even buy food. We were cotton and tobacco pickers, then mill workers. Both of my grandparents died from brown lung after toiling in cotton mills for their whole lives. And that was after my granddad survived a four year stint in the Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor, loosing 4/5ths of his stomach after being wounded.
So you think I owe you reparations for something that happened 200 years ago? EFF YOU! I don’t owe you shite.
You blacks wonder why racism is so bad? Look around you. Look at the racist agenda YOU have been pushing over the decades. No wonder racism is so bad. Personally – I’m sick of hearing about it.
OK – I’m done venting …
LJ….. you are so correct. The, now proven biased, Main Stream Media are so out of touch with what is really going on in this country.
It is sad to say that most of the violent crime in this country IS black on black. After nearly 48 years in law enforcement…actually spent working the street….I can say that it is the liberal mindset that has destroyed law enforcement in America. Instead of just pointing out the fact that a lot, if not all, of supposed ” police violence ” is brought on by the person suspected of the crime. Like when a person is told that they are under arrest and they decide to not cooperate with the officers and end up getting in a fight or ?? with the officer. This is brought on by the suspect. If the suspect does not agree with the officer…there is a time after the arrest to disagree…file your complaint or whatever. The officer is doing what they are paid to do.
It’s when the suspect decides that they are not going to go along with the officer and get into a fight. The officer is going to ” win ” the fight.
Take a look at ANY of the incidents that involve an officer having to fight with a suspect or where a suspect is injured or killed. The one thing….THE ONE THING…that could have changed the outcome is for the suspect to have cooperated. File your complaint or lawsuit afterwards.d
So…LJ has it down to the facts. Stop playing the race card to get out of the trouble that so many have put themselves in. As the saying goes ” if you can’t do the time……don’t do the crime…”
There are so many people of color in America that have done so many great things….doctors; scientists; businessmen / women; sports celebrities and more that these people should be role models and give people ideals to try to strive for. NOT looking for ” reparations ” for something that happened centuries ago. For that matter….who is going to justify / prove it has anything to do with the person seeking the reparation?
SO….LJ it’s great that you have pointed out what so many Americans can see everyday but are to timid / shy to vocalize…!
Thank you. I just wish more people would speak up and tell the truth about racism and what propagates it in this country – the ultra-leftist, mostly black. They just won’t let the past stay in the past and move on. Whites have. I have. As an old Southern white dude, I have as many black friends as white. I cherish, love, and respect their friendships. These aren’t “uncle toms” as some other blacks call them, they are AMERICANS, as we all are. I don’t give two-shits about your skin color. GOD wrapped the same skin around everyone. It just looks different on different people!
The left-wing media is constantly harping on “racism” and just won’t let it die. The word is overplayed and over used. Just look at ABC – the absolute worst group of “harpies” you’ll ever see are on The View every day spewing that hate and discontent.
Illinannoy resident here: Illinois State Police are rather slow in renewing documents. I have seen some deeper analysis of some of these people’s issues. They are “pending” in the system. If they expected their CCL to be renewed one day before it expires… that ain’t going to happen. At one point it was either a 90 to 60 day return for renewals… I put mine in at the earliest, and it took damn near that long.
The pending must not show in the system for checks. Are they going to fix that any time soon? Probably not. A licensee can check their status on the ISP website at any time. Doing so at a traffic stop isn’t probably going to work.
We weren’t there! So everything is hearsay!
i’m sure blacks aren’t the only ones being arrested, just that they are in the majority for the area.