Aurora police program seeks to prevent another Henry Pratt shooting
AURORA, Ill. (CBS) -- It has been four years since the deadly mass shooting at the Henry Pratt Company in Aurora – after which it was discovered that the gunman's Firearm Owners Identification Card had been revoked, but he still had a gun.
Since October, Aurora police have been participating in a special program aimed at making sure that never happens again.
CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey got a behind-the-scenes look Friday.
In many cases, the procedures involved are as simple as a door knock. But the program is helping get guns out of the hands of residents who shouldn't have them.
Aurora police call the procedures "knock-and-talks." Illinois State Police give them a list of residents who have had their FOID cards revoked or suspended, but haven't yet gone through the process of turning over their cards and guns.
"It can be as simple as maybe going into rehab, or threatening to harm themselves or someone else," said Aurora police Special Operations Sgt. Thomas Maguire.
It sounds pretty simple. But in Aurora, a gun in the hands of a disgruntled manufacturing company employee resulted in the mass shooting of five fellow employees on Feb. 15, 2019.
Five Aurora police officers were also injured.
The shooter, Gary Martin, had his FOID card revoked five years prior. But he still had his gun. At the time, Aurora police didn't have the time or money to devote to those types of compliance checks.
But thanks to a grant from the state, Maguire said they now do have those funds.
"That money allows us to put in extra time outside of our regular duties to go out and conduct these knock-and-talks," Maguire said.
Sgt. Maguire's team visited nine Aurora residents on Friday. And while there were no dramatic surrender scenes or arsenals of illegal weapons confiscated, police say a slow day is a good day.
The Friday operation was their sixth detail since October — and according to data obtained by the CBS 2 Investigators, in that time, Aurora police have attempted 46 compliance checks and brought 19 subjects into compliance with state law.
"I think it's better than zero," Maguire said.
Aurora police say they are just glad to be doing their part to a make sure something like the Henry Pratt Company massacre doesn't happen again.
They also hope other police departments across the state apply for the grant next year.
"If we don't have to go through another Henry Pratt or business shooting due to something like that, I think that's a benefit to everybody," Maguire said.
Illinois State Police are now accepting applications from other police departments for 2024.
We discovered statewide, police departments have conducted more than 1,100 law enforcement checks and placed 472 people into compliance in just the first year.
