CHICAGO (LN) — A federal judge has dismissed a wrongful termination suit by Joseph Loss Jr., a former quantitative developer at StoneX Group Inc., ruling that Illinois’ gun-carry law does not establish a clear public policy protecting employees from being fired for mistakenly carrying a concealed firearm into the office.
Loss entered the StoneX office building in downtown Chicago in mid-January 2024 with a valid Firearm Owner Identification Card and Concealed Carry License. Federal Reserve Police discovered the weapon during a security screening entrance, which houses the Federal Reserve. StoneX fired Loss on February 1, 2024, for violating its policy banning weapons at the workplace.
Loss argued that two provisions of the FCCA — one barring CCL holders from knowingly carrying firearms into certain spaces and another protecting holders traveling through prohibited areas — established a public policy protecting his right to carry. U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin rejected that framing, finding the provisions limit government enforcement authority rather than impose obligations on private employers.
“The purpose and effect of these two provisions is to delineate the areas where carrying a concealed firearm constitutes a violation of the statute,” Durkin wrote. “Insofar as the two provisions espouse any public policy in favor of CCL holders, it is a limit on the government’s ability to enforce the FCCA in certain circumstances. They do not impose any particular obligation on private employers with respect to CCL holder employees.”
The court granted Loss leave to amend his complaint. An amended filing is due June 26.