Ohio Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Allow Concealed Carry Without Permit
A bill has been proposed in Ohio that would end the need to get a permit to carry a concealed weapon.
“You don’t need a government license to exercise First Amendment rights, you shouldn’t need one to exercise your Second Amendment rights,” Republican state Rep. Derek Merrin said, The Toledo Blade reported.
The so-called constitutional carry measure, known formally as HB 174, would eliminate the requirement that gun owners must take eight hours of gun safety and gun law training.
The bill also would wipe away the requirement that a driver carrying a concealed weapon must notify a police officer about that during a traffic stop.
It would apply to Ohio residents 21 and over without a felony record or a history of adjudicated mental illness.
Nearly half of Ohio House Republicans are pushing for passage of a bill that would allow all law-abiding Ohioans to carry a concealed weapon without obtaining a permit. https://t.co/jDAd2WLCHo
— Columbus Dispatch (@DispatchAlerts) March 28, 2019
“We need to get our constitutional rights back,” Republican state Rep. Tom Brinkman told The Cincinnati Enquirer. “The law-abiding citizens are under attack every day.”
Dan Tierney, a spokesman for Gov. Mike DeWine, said the governor’s office is monitoring the bill as it progresses.
“The governor is supportive of measures that protect Ohioans’ Second Amendment rights,” he said, without being definitive about whether DeWine would sign or veto the measure.
The bill has been proposed before but not approved.
Although the law has 27 Republican co-sponsors, some in law enforcement are skeptical.
“I certainly think we need to be using good judgment for who gets permission to carry weapons,” Lucas County Sheriff John Tharp told The Blade. “They need background checks. They should also have potential mental issues addressed if they want to conceal.”
Tharp said training is important when handling firearms.
“When we look at how complicated a nine-millimeter is for some, not all people have the same skills. Some people need more training. We should make sure it’s done so people safeguard that weapon and handle it properly,” he said.
Mike Navarre, police chief of Oregon, Ohio, said the proposal could be dangerous.
“Basically what they’re saying is you can buy a gun from Wal-Mart, stick it in the back of your pants, and go about your business without anyone showing you how to use it. It makes no sense whatsoever. It makes a very dangerous job of being a police officer even more so,” he said.
Kim Rodecker, the owner of Concealed Carry Courses LLC in Cleveland, said he supports the Second Amendment but the training he has provided is important, WEWS-TV reported.
“In my classes, we have about two hours on the gun law alone to keep you from going to jail and meeting … or worse, going to the morgue,” Rodecker said.
“I just don’t see anything wrong with that. That little bit of education can save somebody from going to jail or getting shot when it wasn’t necessary. That $100 that you would have spent for a class — whether it be through me or anybody else — that’s nothing. It’s just nothing to keep you better educated,” he said.
The group Ohio Gun Owners posted a video about the bill.
“Gun owners are law-abiding citizens who follow the rules and we need to let them be able to protect themselves. That’s what this is all about,” Brinkman said in the video.
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