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G-PAC ILLINOIS & GIFFORDS PAC RECOMMIT TO ILLINOIS’S NATIONAL ROLE IN CHAMPIONING GUN SAFETY MEASURES IN THE ABSENCE OF NEW WHITE HOUSE LEADERSHIP

For Immediate Release
Nov. 7, 2024

CHICAGO – The Gun Violence Prevention PAC of Illinois (G-PAC), the state’s leading gun violence advocacy organization, and GIFFORDS PAC, the nation’s leading gun safety organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, applaud the victories of gun safety champions to the Illinois General Assembly in Tuesday’s General Election and recommit to ensuring Illinois remains a leader in the national and state fight for gun safety initiatives. The Illinois General Assembly wins are critical to continuing the fight against gun violence, especially in the face of a President-elect who has shown only a commitment to protecting the gun lobby.  

G-PAC and GIFFORDS PAC lauded the victories of the legislative candidates who were jointly endorsed by the two organizations and will continue to expand support for gun safety reforms among members of the Illinois General Assembly, including Illinois Sen. Robert Martwick and Reps. Maura Hirschauer, Nabeela Syed, Nicolle Grasse, Anne Stava-Murray and Katie Stuart. Two races of challengers have not yet been called. 

“While we absorb the news of Tuesday’s election, we know that Illinois’s national role in championing gun safety is more important than ever,” said Kathleen Sances, G-PAC Illinois President and CEO. “We celebrate wins in Illinois that show us the voters in our state believe in common sense gun safety laws to protect their families and communities and we roll up our sleeves and get back to work. Our efforts over the last 11 years to pass significant gun reforms in Illinois is critical knowing there will be a lack of leadership on gun safety initiatives from a new White House administration. We will continue to enact real change and address the public health crisis of gun violence, working alongside a gun safety majority in the Illinois General Assembly that continues to grow.” 

“While I’m disappointed by the result of the election at the top of the ticket, I’m inspired by voters across Illinois who have spoken resoundingly, choosing leaders in other key contests who understand that strong gun laws save lives,” said Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. “These champions — old and new — have already helped make their state a model for commonsense gun safety legislation, and their continued leadership in Springfield will be crucial in building on the progress made in recent years, especially as our fight becomes even more important. While there is a long road ahead and so much still to do, our endorsed candidates’ wins reflect the determination and will of everyday Illinoisans. They made it clear they want representatives who will work tirelessly to address our nation’s gun violence crisis with courage and conviction no matter what. We look forward to continuing to work with all of our legislators, as well as our partners at G-PAC, to continue building safer communities for the children and families of the Land of Lincoln.”

Since G-PAC was founded, the organization has worked to enact five significant gun reforms in the Illinois General Assembly to hold corrupt gun dealers accountable, enact universal background checks on all gun sales, make untraceable homemade ghost guns illegal, ban military style weapons and high capacity magazines, and hold gun manufacturers accountable for the devastation their products inflict on our communities.

G-PAC’s currently working to push for Safe At Home legislation to strengthen state laws around safe weapons storage and reporting of lost and stolen weapons to collectively better prevent minors, at-risk individuals, and criminals from accessing deadly weapons, committing crime and inflicting tragedy. 

Founded in 2013 by gun violence survivors, G-PAC is committed to ending the gun violence epidemic by supporting the passage of a responsible, common sense gun safety agenda focused on illegal guns and gun trafficking. Learn more about G-PAC: https://gpacillinois.com/.

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Rick Ryan

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As the Lake County State’s Attorney, I am honored and humbled every day to lead the fight against crime, and to strive to ensure equal and just treatment under the law. I have been an attorney for twenty-two years – and each of those years has made me a stronger and smarter advocate for people, for ideas, and for the principles that unite us all.

I am so proud to lead an office of 140 dedicated colleagues who serve the public by prosecuting crime, advocating for victims, and planning crime prevention programs. I am also proud to work with hundreds of Lake County police officers on a daily basis to connect with every community and to develop comprehensive, holistic plans to respond to the mental health and economic crisis that arose from the COVID-19 pandemic.

On one particular day, July 4, 2022, I was saddened, inspired, and motivated by the bravery of so many people. We will always stand with the victims and honor the police and other first responders who ran toward the danger. Just as so many heroes that day thought only of themselves, I also witnessed the prosecutors in my office answer the call to serve survivors and their community – even on one of its darkest days.

Every moment that I have been your legal representative, I have worked tirelessly to oversee prosecutions and to implement policies that make my family and my neighbors safer in the short term and in the long term. That is the job of the State’s Attorney: to prosecute, to innovate, and to strategically plan.

I was raised in a small town. My parents are teachers, and from them, I learned that everyone must be treated equally and that America’s sacred mission is to provide a political, economic, and legal system that allows anyone to prosper regardless of the circumstances of their birth. After graduating from Knox College and the University of Chicago Law School, I spent two years at a first-rate civil law firm in Chicago where I learned that hard work and attention to detail on every case mean the difference between success and failure.

With my wonderful wife Stephanie, I am raising my two sons, Sam and Teddy, in Lake County. Nothing is more important to me than my family’s safety and I bring that passion and determination to protect all families with me to work every day.

I joined the Lake County Public Defender’s Office in 2003 and started my own law firm in 2009. From 2003 until 2020, I watched the Lake County legal system fail to prioritize violent crime, prevent wrongful prosecutions, or address racial disparities.

So, in 2019, I decided to run for State’s Attorney so that I could serve our community by improving a local legal system that cared more about covering up its mistakes and biases than uncovering new and innovative ways to help people.

I won the 2020 election, and became the first Democrat to hold this position in 40 years. Bringing in a new party wasn’t as important as ending 40 years of one mindset that had forgotten the people and that had failed to act urgently to develop new strategic plans to prevent crime while also ensuring that each prosecution is smart, moral, and just.

We have followed through on our promises. We have built the first-ever violent crimes unit, increased prosecutors in our domestic violence division, and vastly upgraded our cyber lab. Now, we have top-notch software and personnel to finally keep up with those who would exploit others.

We have been awarded a large federal grant to bring the first ever Human Trafficking Task Force to Lake County. We have deepened our investment in people by bringing in more victim specialists and raising the salaries of many of our prosecutors.

But the work goes on. We must expand our prevention efforts that are starting with the Gun Violence Prevention Initiative launched in 2022. And we know that the opioid crisis touches thousands of lives throughout this country.

I am proud to serve on the Executive Board of the Lake County Opioid Initiative which has been working tirelessly since its founding in 2012 to reverse a devastating trend of increased overdoses. In 2022, our office was part of a national settlement against opioid manufacturers and distributors.

As an attorney of 22 years, I have committed my life to helping people, and I have conducted over 70 jury trials in Lake County, and handled appeals that have culminated in over 20 oral arguments before the appellate court and Supreme Court of Illinois.

I see my time in this office as the next phase of helping a community that I love and where I have chosen to raise my family. In my first term, we have made Lake County safer and fairer through just prosecutions, constitutional policing, and innovative crime prevention policies.