CIVIL RIGHTS UPDATE: Chicago Tribune: Concealed carry enters second year in the Southland.

Hayes, who previously opposed the law, also said he noticed suburbanites who now have concealed carry licenses seem to be less fearful of crime and more confident in community safety.

“Law enforcement has two goals: reduce crime and reduce fear of crime,” Hayes said. “This seems to have an impact on law-abiding citizens adjusting to their fear level by confidence and knowledge.”

Lutger said he liked having a gun on him because police don’t always arrive on time.

“It’s a great equalizer if you’re attacked or if you have a bunch of thugs that rob you or want to kill you,” Lutger said. “This is strictly for self protection of myself and my family.”

Well, yes. Plus:

In the year of concealed carry permits in Illinois, there have only been a couple incidents involving legal gun owners that have created headlines. In July, a concealed-carry permit holder in Crestwood tried shooting at a fleeing armed robber, hurting no one but forcing a police officer to duck for cover. In Chicago a member of the military who had a concealed carry permit shot and wounded an armed man who fired into a crowd on Chicago’s Far South Side.

Nevertheless, Hayes said he stopped opposing the concealed carry law when he realized that the past year has not resulted in the level of violence some anticipated.

Yeah, funny: The antigun folks always predict that the streets will run red with blood, and somehow they’re always wrong. But they never change their story.