Background checks urged at Chicago gun hearing

CHICAGO (AP) — Representatives from government agencies have taken turns speaking at a hearing in Chicago about how Illinois should carry out a court-ordered law letting people carry concealed weapons.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle spoke Friday at the Illinois House Judiciary Committee hearing. She urged extensive background checks and said guns shouldn't be allowed in schools, nursing homes, churches and government-owned and operated buildings. Chicago Transit Authority President Forrest Claypool said allowing guns on crowded trains and buses would be a "recipe for disaster."

Friday's hearing follows another hearing held by the same committee earlier this week in Springfield.

Representatives from law enforcement and the National Rifle Association also are scheduled to speak.