An excellent letter to the editor has been written and published by John A. Unruh of Brookfield, regarding the actions of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee members on HB12.

Click on the "Read More..." link below to read the letter.

NEWARK, Ohio — A Pataskala man walked out of a Licking County courtroom yesterday, his faith further shaken by a system he believes is too lenient on criminals.

Alan Abrams had monitored previous court proceedings for a band of robbers he said terrorized him and his wife during a home invasion last year.

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So far, he’s disappointed by the sentences.

Common Pleas Judge Thomas Marcelain yesterday sentenced Nathan S. Jago, 20, to six years in prison — three years for a mandatory gun penalty — for his role in the robbery.

"The police department did a great job in their investigation," Abrams said later. "They got the job done."

But the two judges who have overseen the cases, he said, have disappointed him.

In March 2002, five armed and masked robbers used duct tape to bind Abrams and his wife to chairs inside their home on Old Maid Lane.

One of them hit Abrams in the face with a gun. The men stole a $60,000 diamond ring, a $30,000 watch, a sport-utility vehicle and other items.

Click on the "Read More..." link below for more.

Cleveland Plain Dealer
07/29/03

Ohio's House and Senate spent the summer stalling like a teenager avoiding as signed reading, but they finally seem to have succumbed to reality.

Both chambers are to act next month on a measure that missed resolution before lawmakers scattered last month at the end of their regular session...

OFCC PAC Commentary:
Just when you thought they were going to do their duty to send HB12 to the governor...

The story is referring to the General Assembly's plans to return to finalize school accountability legislation that, if delayed, would result in the loss of $400 million in federal money.

Some are apparently less concerned with the loss of life which continues to mount due to delayed action on HB12.

Both houses have scheduled their meeting dates (Aug. 7 for the Senate; Aug. 12 for the House). Since we know they'll be in the office, perhaps a few reminders are in order that they left other business unfinished when they left for the summer.

OFCC PAC Chairman Jim Irvine, who is a major airline pilot, was quoted for a story concerning New York Mayor Bloomberg's comments that the NY City Hall shooter slipped past security the same way pilots and "stewardesses" do at airports.

The only disappointment in this very short story is how much of Irvine's comments were not printed. In the interview, he explained that these types of shootings are much more prevalent in areas where firearms are banned. The Post also recently printed an op-ed from John Lott, who addressed the same issue.

Once again we see that victim zones exclusions exacerbate the problem.

Aviators fuming over Bloomberg's remarks about security
New York Post
Jul 25, 2003
pg. 005

Mayor Bloomberg's off-the-cuff remark in defense of a hole in City Hall security - saying officials were allowed to bypass metal detectors just like airline pilots and flight crews do - had aviators fuming.

"He's 100 percent wrong," said Jim Irvine, a pilot flying out of La Guardia Airport yesterday. "He has no idea what he's talking about . . . He's ignorant!"

Pilots and flight attendants go through the same security as passengers, said Capt. Sam Mayer, chairman of the New York Allied Pilots Association.