District of Columbia v. Heller 554 U.S. 570, 612-613 (2008) explained that the Second Amendment protects the "right to carry arms openly." New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, 142 S.Ct. 2111, 2135, 2156 (2022), holds that "the Second Amendment guarantees a general right to public carry" of arms, meaning ordinary, law-abiding citizens may "bear' arms in public for self-defense."

There are splits between the Third, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal, the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the Florida Supreme Court, and the Illinois Appellate Court as to whether open carry is conduct that falls within the plain language of the Second Amendment and therefore whether open carry is conduct that is protected by the Second Amendment.

The question presented in this Petition is:

Whether the plain language of the Second Amendment encompasses the open carry of firearms in public and if so, whether Illinois's criminal prohibition on open carry is consistent with our nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation.

Whether the plain language of the Second Amendment encompasses the open carry of firearms in public and whether Illinois's criminal prohibition on open carry is consistent with the nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation