Chuck's Gun Shop, linked to hundreds of Chicago gun crimes, closes "forever"

A controversial gun shop in Chicago's south suburbs has closed after decades in business.

Chuck's Gun Shop in Riverdale has faced harsh criticism and protests for decades, with gun control advocates saying it was a significant source of guns used in violent crimes in Chicago, and Second Amendment supporters standing by its owners.

The shop's owners could not be reached for comment on the closure, announced only by a sign on the front door indicating they are "going fishing forever."

Father Mike Pfleger, pastor of St. Sabina Church on Chicago's South Side, has railed against the gun shop for years, and has organized protest rallies in front of the business. He and Rev. Jesse Jackson were arrested for trespassing in 2007 while protesting outside the shop.

The reverend called the store's closure "an early Easter gift."

Pfleger said he heard rumors about two months ago that the controversial gun shop might be closing; a shop he has railed against for years.

"In 2014, Brady Campaign named Chuck's Gun Shop the worst in the nation," Pfleger said.

In 2015, as Pfleger, Jackson, and others again protested outside the gun shop, the store's supporters came out dressed in yellow as a counter-protest.

Two years later, the City of Chicago issued a gun trace report showing that, of nearly 1,500 guns recovered from crime scenes, 997 came from Chuck's Gun Shop – the single biggest source. The guns sold at Chuck's were most often found at crime scenes on the South Side; and of the guns found at crimes scenes, 60% had been purchased within the prior three years.  

"It's actually been a bad business and a dangerous business for Chicago for years," Pfleger said. "They did not care that they were making profits on the back of children dying in Chicago. No conscience about it at all."

Without their biggest target, Pleger said gun control advocates in Chicago remain committed to ending gun violence.

"We need wins. You know, we need wins in our life, and this is a win," he said.

It's unclear when exactly the gun shop closed, and what's next for the building, but opponents said they're watching for what happens there next.

"Hopefully, nobody else is going to try to all of a sudden prop up a store and try to fill in where Chuck's left off," Pfleger said. "We live in a capitalist society. Somebody is going to say, 'Oh, okay, Chuck's is gone, I'm going to open a business now. Well, a warning to them. We will come after you, and we will watch you just like we did Chuck's. I mean, I don't like or want anything to do with guns, but at least if you're going to sell guns, be a good business. Hold standards. Hold people to background checks. You know when there's somebody coming in there with fake IDs or no IDs. Run a business with integrity."