EXCLUSIVE: Must credit www.OhioCCW.org

For the past month, OFCC has been following an exclusive report that due to
Senate amendments to HB12 dealing with how one should carry a firearm, law
enforcement agencies in Ohio are not in agreement on Am. Sub. HB12.

On September 10, we reported that the Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) had
accepted the invitation to attend an Ohio Law Enforcement Summit Meeting with
the Ohio Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and the Buckeye State Sheriff
Association (BSSA).

The meeting was held yesterday, but without the OSHP bureaucracy, who
backed out less than 24 hours prior to the event.

When calling to explain, OSHP Major J. P. Allen said he would not attend unless the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) were invited. (No such request had been made by the OSHP in the 12 days since they had first agreed to attend the Summit). The BSSA, who organized the meeting, said they'd be glad to phone the OACP to invite them, and promptly did so. The OACP leadership (but not most individual, local chiefs of police!) holds a baseless, extreme opposition to ANY concealed carry bill, and thus did not accept the invitation. The BSSA then phoned OSHP Major J. P. Allen again, to say they had invited the OACP, but that they had elected not to attend. Allen stated* that unless the OACP was sitting at the table, they were not willing to attend the Summit meeting.

So now we've come full circle. Sen. Pres. Doug White refuses to appoint conferees to Am. Sub. HB12 because he claims he doesn't have enough votes to override a veto (we have counted votes, and believe otherwise). Gov. Bob Taft threatens a veto unless the OSHP is neutral on a bill. The OSHP is now refusing to meet to discuss the UNSAFE language which they forced into the Senate's amended language, because the OACP is not at the table. Due to the failed leadership of a few Republican politicians, they're now trying to place the fate of your right to self-defense on still another doorstep.

Senator Doug White's refusal to appoint conferees until all sides agree is shameful. How can all sides agree when the only group insisting on dangerous language refuses to discuss their position?

The OSHP's stance is indefensible. It is apparent they know this, because they will neither discuss their position nor answer questions about gross errors in their February anti-CCW form letter, which has been emailed to interested Ohioans who contact the OSHP about their stance against self-defense.

Many have asked why so much emphasis is being placed on the opinion of a few
unelected bureaucrats in the OSHP. The OSHP and Gov. Taft claim that the OSHP makes more traffic stops than other law enforcement organizations do. In fact, in his latest position statement concerning his opposition to concealed carry reform, OSHP Superintendent Paul McClellan says "There are few agencies in the country that interact more with motorists than the Ohio State
Highway Patrol." But the truth is, the sheriff's 88 county offices make twice as many traffic stops as the OSHP. And local municipalities combined make six times the number of stops the OSHP does.

The Ohio Law Enforcement Summit meeting DID occur, and was attended by Ohio's two largest and most powerful law enforcement agencies in our state. Both the BSSA and FOP conferred as follows:

• Ohio's affirmative defense language, which pertains to persons discovered to be carrying a concealed firearm, and which was upheld by the Ohio Supreme Court earlier this week, should NOT be removed from the law. Both organizations support and endorse the removal of this OSHP/Taft-inspired amendment, which not even one anti-CCW Senator (of which there are very
few) was asking for.

• Making citizens repeatedly handle, holster and unholster a loaded firearm is UNSAFE**. These unsafe practices would be mandated as a result of two OSHP/Taft-sponsored Senate amendments.

---> BSSA representatives offered the position that Gov. Taft's lockbox, or carjacker protection, provision should be removed, noting that they would prefer "that a license-holder retain the possession of the firearm on their person." The FOP agreed it would not oppose the removal of the lockbox provision in a conference committee.

---> BSSA representatives offered the position that Senate-introduced language requiring firearms to be stored "in plain view, off of their person in a motor vehicle" should be removed. The FOP agreed it would not oppose the removal of the lockbox provision in a conference committee.

**The OSHP stands alone as the only law enforcement agency in Ohio that has
endorsed these dangerous practices. And they cannot offer legitimate reasons as to why.

The OSHP's stated goal is to "enforce the traffic laws and promote safety on the highways". Since Ohio's major law enforcement agencies' critical safety concerns specifically deal with the language the OSHP demanded the Senate insert, the OSHP bureaucrats' refusal to come to the table to consider these agencies' concerns (whose combined forces make eight times the amount of traffic stops the OSHP troopers do) is negligence is of the worst kind.

The OSHP bureaucracy backed out of a law enforcement summit meeting it had agreed
to attend, and is now refusing to discuss their unsafe policies with Ohio's two largest law enforcement agencies, who represent all Ohioans, in all communities, all rural areas, all municipalities, all cities. As has been obvious from the start, the bureaucrats at the OSHP oppose this bill because of politics, and not facts.

So why IS Senate President White handing all legislative authority to the OSHP?
Rep. Jim Aslanides would like to know as well.

"It is the job of the Legislature to make law," said Aslanides. "The Senate needs to be pro-active in this matter. We, Ohio's elected representatives, are charged with getting the job done. It is time to make CCW the law."

Where are the pro-active Republican leaders in the Ohio Senate? When we informed Sen. White's office of the scheduling of an OH LEO Summit meeting, the communications director for the Ohio Senate Republican Caucus, Maggie Mitchell, told OFCC that Senate President White "supports any efforts that will get us a viable bill."

The LEO Summit meeting is an effort that could do just that. But will White call the OSHP Superintendent Paul McClellan, (the OSHP is 100% taxpayer funded - and the legislature writes the checks), and demand that they step to the table? A leader would.

Your continued voice of opinion to the OSHP, Taft, and your Senator may just
make the difference.

To express your own expectations to the OSHP (politely please!) as a taxpayer, call 1-877-7-PATROL. Emailing your thoughts to the Ohio Patrol Superintendent Col. Paul D. McClellan will only get you back a rhetoric-filled form letter. Finally, some may wish to to download an official OHP complaint form (.pdf file), which can be used to register an official complaint against troopers like Capt. John Born, who are putting lives at risk by telling persons that when attacked in their cars, they should just "drive off."

Click here for an official statement from Sen. Pres. Doug White, and for his contact information.

Click on the "Read More..." link below to read a letter from a retired law enforcement officer, who says anyone telling citizens that firearms are unnecessary in motor vehicles, apparently because they can be driven away from danger "is either completely tactically ignorant, lying, or both. In any case, they're certainly a danger to themselves, their fellow officers, and the public."

* Calls from OFCC to OSHP Major J. P. Allen for verification were not returned.

The Ohio University Second Amendment Club and Ohioans For Concealed Carry recently promoted an event at which John Lott, economist and author, spoke on that campus.

Lott's appearance was part of the OU Second Amendment Club's effort to raise awareness about the falsehoods and misrepresentations associated with Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine movie, which has been shown on campus television throughout the month of September.

After exhaustive but failed attempts to convince campus officials that director Michael Moore's "Bowling for Columbine" film - which is under investigation for rules violations in association with his Academy Award entry - did not belong on campus television, the Second Amendment Club at Ohio University decided to promote an event on campus to ensure that the truth had it's say as well. Thus Lott's appearance.

Curt Winzenreid, Club President, reported that the event was well-attended - Rep. Jim Aslanides and other pro-CCW elected officials were in attendance. But there were a few empty seats - NO media, from campus or otherwise, accepted invitations to attend the event.

So Club members were more than a little surprised, two days after the event, to read an editorial in The Post, OU's campus newspaper attacking John Lott and condemning statewide concealed carry reform efforts. (There was STILL no mention of Lott's appearance on that campus just two days previous.)

Winzenreid's response, in the form of a letter to the editor, has been published in the campus newspaper. Click here to read it on The Post Online website, or click on the "Read More..." link below for an archived version.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, September 24, 2003
CONTACT: Maggie Mitchell
(614) 995-1280

STATEMENT BY SENATE PRESIDENT DOUG WHITE

In regards to the Supreme Court's decision in the concealed handguns case, all or part of the following can be attributed to Senate President Doug White (R-Manchester).

COLUMBUS -The Supreme Court today reaffirmed what I have always believed --
that the right to bear arms is fundamental. In the same breath, the Court
affirmed the authority of the state legislature in regulating the manner in
which weapons can be carried.

It stands that the current ban on concealed weapons is constitutional; but in my opinion, is not consistent with the will of the people of Ohio.

In June, the Senate, through the leadership of Senate Judiciary Chairman Steve Austria, passed legislation that would allow Ohioans to carry concealed weapons, while addressing the concerns of law enforcement who have sworn to protect us.

In light of today's ruling, I encourage the Ohio House and the Governor to renew efforts to work out their differences on the issue of concealed weapons and to find common ground on a bill that can become law. The Senate is committed to any efforts that would produce a viable bill.

Commentary:
"Senate President Doug White (R – 14th District) speaking at a March 2003 US Sportsmen Alliance legislative reception said:

"I am a strong proponent of the right to carry. I do not own a gun. I served in Uncle Sam’s Army where I used a sidearm and the M-14. I understand the proper use of a firearm and the power of a firearm. I absolutely and totally, to the bottom of my soul, understand the rights of law-abiding citizens. I do not care how big a gun is or how fast it will fire; if it is in the hands of a law-abiding citizen it does not intimidate me. I cannot understand those in our society who are intimidated by law-abiding citizens. The Senate had a lot of work on the issue last year. If the House acts quickly, we will probably also act quickly and send a bill to conference."

While speaking at the same reception, Senator Steve Austria (R – 10th District) (who chairs the Criminal Justice Committee which amended HB12 so poorly), stated that "the Senate is expecting to act quickly. We want to have a bill that can become law and not die in a conference committee or be vetoed by the Governor. I expect we can get a bill out of the Senate."

TODAY: These Senate leaders' words about HB12 were far different than their deeds. Under Senator White's leadership, Senator Austria's committee filled the bill with poison pill amendments, the most egregious of which would prevent families from protecting their children in a personal vehicle, and would strip away affirmative defense rights (however flawed) that Ohioans currently have.

No where in Ohio legislative rules does it say that, after both chambers of the General Assembly work out a bill, one chamber should then do it's negotiating with the executive branch.

The rules call for the appointment of conferees from both chambers to a committee to work out differences in the two versions of the bill before sending the bill to the Governor for final consideration.

House Speaker Larry Householder appointed conferees on June 18, 2003. Senate President White is refusing to appoint conferees. He claims it is because there are not enough Republican Senators (including himself?) willing to vote to override a governor of their own party.

But the OFCC PAC has counted the votes, and we believe a veto override is possible. Perhaps Sen. White knows this, and thus continues his obstruction, unwilling to place Gov. Taft in the position of having to veto, or himself in the position of having to vote to override.

Like Bob Taft, certain Senate leaders have found it easier to claim they are proponents of the right to self-defense, rather than to act like it.

Related Stories:
Media Agrees: All Eyes on Senate President Doug White

Self-Defense Advocates Call on Legislature to Act in Wake of Ohio Supreme Court

New Report Shows Ohio Violent Crimes Could Have Been Prevented

Akron Beacon-Journal Editorial: Term limits have failed

Ohio General Assembly returns to Session: WILL SENATE ACT?

Words above Deeds? Sen. Doug White says ''I want a [CCW] bill.''

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INTERNET / WEB ONLY

OPEN CARRY SELF-DEFENSE WALK SCHEDULE FOR SUNDAY -- SPREAD THE WORD

Ohioans For Concealed Carry is making it's statewide members and supporters
aware of a grassroots event this Sunday in Cincinnati.

This "Self-Defense Walk" is intended to offer a "visual display" of the choice legislators and citizens - open carry, or concealed carry.

ARE YOU CONSIDERING ORGANIZING A FUTURE SELF-DEFENSE WALK IN YOUR AREA? IF SO, PLEASE EMAIL US -NOW- info@ofcc.net AND WE MAY HELP YOU WITH MEDIA RELATIONS

On Sunday, September 28, at 1:00 p.m., individual activists will gather at 4141 Florida Ave. in Cincinnati, for a peaceful demonstration of just what Ohio is going too look like as a result of the Ohio Supreme Court's recent ruling, and without a concealed carry law.

NOTE: If you are going to participate, and ONLY if you are going to participate, please call the event organizer, Vernon Ferrier to discuss logistical issues. PLEASE ONLY CALL IF YOU INTEND TO PARTICIPATE AS VERNON IS VERY BUSY. 513-310-8250.

These citizens, most of them choosing to carry a firearm holstered to their belt and openly visible, will practice what the Ohio Supreme Court has identified as the vehicle with which Ohioans can exercise their
constitutional right to bear arms for their defense and security.

This "Self-Defense Walk" will demonstrate to society, the legislature, gun control opponents, the news media, and our State Senate that the obstruction of HB12, the concealed carry reform bill, coupled with the Ohio Supreme Court ruling, will force defenseless Ohioans into choosing to
openly carry firearms - without any training requirements, background checks, or restrictive "victim" zone exclusions.

We will choose to carry our firearms openly on a daily basis if that is what Governor Bob Taft and Senate President Doug White envision for Ohio.

Activists who choose not to carry a firearm are welcome at the Walk as well.

Other than agreeing to help make Ohio aware of this grassroots event, Ohioans For Concealed Carry had absolutely no involvement with the organizers of this event, nor have we sponsored or endorsed it. The grassroots organizer is responsible for his event, and each individual participant is responsible for his or her actions.

A SAFETY MEETING WILL BE HELD PRIOR TO THE WALK AND SHALL BE CONDUCTED BY
THE ORGANIZER OF THE WALK ALONG WITH A RETIRED POLICE OFFICER.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Ohioans For Concealed Carry's CCW-TALK discussion mailing list can be used
for discussing/coordinating other such events. To join the list for free, visit this website:
http://www.OhioCCW.org/mailman/listinfo/ccw-talk (You must "subscribe" to the list to post to it.)

TO JOIN OHIOANS FOR CONCEALED CARRY:

Please visit https://www.OhioCCW.org/catalog to join online with a credit
card or paypal funds. We need your support and that of your friends and
family. It you appreciate the effort and countless hours the volunteers of
Ohioans For Concealed Carry contribute, please contribute to our organization so that we can continue to do what we care so deeply about. Donations are accepted, but not deductible.