As your Sheriff, I wanted to give citizens of Knox County an update on the recent passage of HB 5471, also known as the Protect Illinois Communities Act.

As your duly elected Sheriff my job and my office are sworn, in fact, to protect the citizens of Knox County.  This is a job and responsibility that I take with the utmost seriousness.

Part of my duties that I accepted upon being sworn into office was to protect the rights provided to all of us, in the Constitution.  One of those enumerated rights is the right of the people to keep and bear arms provided under the 2nd amendment.

The right to keep and bear arms for defense of life, liberty and property is regarded as an inalienable right by the people.

I, among many others, believe that HB 5471 is a clear violation of the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution.

Therefore, as the custodian of the jail and chief law enforcement official for Knox County, that neither myself nor my office will be checking to ensure that lawful gun owners register their weapons with the State, nor will we be arresting or housing law abiding individuals that have been arrested solely with non-compliance of this Act.

Jack C. Harlan JR.

Sheriff Knox County