Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon in Illinois, charged under 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6, is a felony that applies when a person illegally carries or possesses a firearm and at least one aggravating factor from a statutory list is also present. A first offense is a Class 4 felony with a sentencing range of one to three years in prison, and penalties escalate quickly for a second conviction or when body armor is involved. Because Illinois courts have struck down parts of the statute as unconstitutional, the specific subsection charged matters as much as the underlying facts.
The official statutory name is “aggravated unlawful possession of a weapon,” but prosecutors, defense attorneys, and courts almost universally call it AUUW.
What Prosecutors Have to Prove
An AUUW conviction requires two elements. First, the person knowingly carried a firearm illegally: concealed on their person, in a vehicle, or on public land within city limits, while not in an exempt location such as their home, fixed place of business, or another person’s property with permission.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon Second, at least one aggravating factor from the statute’s list applied at the time.
Both pieces have to be there. Carrying a loaded handgun in your car without a Concealed Carry License hits both. Lacking a FOID Card while a gun sits in a safe at home does not, because possession inside your own home falls outside the carrying prohibition in the first place.
Aggravating Factors That Turn UUW Into AUUW
The statute lists roughly a dozen aggravating factors. Only one has to apply for the charge to stick. The factors seen most often in practice are:
- Possessing a handgun that is uncased, loaded, and accessible without a valid Concealed Carry License.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
- Possessing a firearm without a valid Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) Card, which Illinois requires of every resident who possesses a firearm or ammunition.2Illinois General Assembly. 430 ILCS 65/2 – Firearm Owner’s Identification Card Required; Exceptions
- Being under 21 and in possession of a handgun, unless engaged in lawful activities such as hunting under the Wildlife Code.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
- Having been adjudicated a delinquent minor for an act that would have been a felony if committed by an adult.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
- Possessing the weapon while simultaneously committing a misdemeanor violation of the Cannabis Control Act, the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, or the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
- Having had an order of protection issued against you within the previous two years.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
How the factors combine changes the sentence. When someone 18 or older is proven to have had a firearm uncased, loaded, and accessible (or, for a handgun, no CCL) and no valid FOID Card, the statute requires prison and takes probation off the table.3Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon That paired fact pattern is one of the most frequently charged versions of AUUW.
Penalties for an AUUW Conviction
First Offense
A first AUUW conviction is a Class 4 felony. The standard prison range is one to three years,4Illinois General Assembly. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-45 – Class 4 Felonies; Sentence and fines can reach $25,000.5Illinois General Assembly. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-50 – Fines Probation is available for some Class 4 felonies in principle, but the uncased-loaded-accessible plus no-FOID combination described above requires imprisonment.3Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon
Second or Subsequent Offense
A second AUUW conviction jumps to a Class 2 felony with a mandatory sentence of three to seven years in prison.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon Probation is not an option.6Illinois General Assembly. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-35 – Class 2 Felonies; Sentence
Body Armor Enhancement
The most severe version of AUUW applies when the offense is committed while wearing or possessing body armor and the person has no valid FOID Card. That combination is charged as a Class X felony, the highest felony classification in Illinois.1Illinois General Assembly. 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 – Aggravated Unlawful Possession of a Weapon Class X carries six to thirty years in prison,7Illinois General Assembly. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-25 – Class X Felonies; Sentence and probation is never available at this level.
Parts of the Statute the Courts Have Struck Down
Anyone facing an AUUW charge should look closely at which subsection is being used. In People v. Aguilar (2013), the Illinois Supreme Court held that the combination of sections 24-1.6(a)(1) and (a)(3)(A) violated the Second Amendment.8Justia Law. People v. Aguilar That provision made it a felony to carry any firearm other than a handgun that was uncased, loaded, and accessible outside the home, with no exception for people otherwise legally allowed to have the weapon. The court called it a blanket ban on carrying a ready-to-use firearm outside the home.
Two years later, in People v. Burns (2015), the Illinois Supreme Court clarified that section 24-1.6(a)(1), (a)(3)(A) is facially unconstitutional “without limitation,” meaning no one can be convicted under that specific provision.9Justia Law. People v. Burns The court reversed the defendant’s conviction even though a prior felony had elevated his offense class.
The rest of the AUUW statute remains enforceable. Factor (A-5), which targets handguns carried without a CCL, is structurally different because it does not amount to a blanket ban. Factors (C) through (I) were not challenged in either case. If the charged subsection matches the one the courts invalidated, that is a defense worth raising.
What an AUUW Conviction Does to Your Rights
AUUW is a felony, and a felony conviction carries firearm consequences that outlast the sentence itself. Under federal law, anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison is permanently prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition, and violating that ban is a separate federal felony.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts A single AUUW conviction can end your legal ability to own firearms for life.
At the state level, a felony conviction automatically revokes your FOID Card.11Illinois General Assembly. 430 ILCS 65/8 – Revocation of Firearm Owner’s Identification Cards Illinois allows some people to petition for restoration of firearm rights after completing their sentence, but the process is difficult and depends on the type of felony; a forcible felony conviction within the past 20 years generally blocks restoration. Starting January 1, 2026, individuals who successfully complete the First-Time Weapon Offender Diversion Program can apply for a FOID Card, opening a narrow path back for certain first-time offenders.
Beyond firearms, a felony record affects employment, professional licensing, housing, and eligibility for some government benefits. Those collateral effects often outlast any prison term and are the part of an AUUW conviction that catches people off guard.