The Associated Press is reporting that legislators are ready to revisit the year-old Ohio concealed handgun license law to address complaints that rules about guns in cars are too strict and journalists should not have access to lists of permit-holders.

And according to the story, despite the fact that her first round of dire predictions have been proven 100% wrong, Ohio gun ban extremist Toby Hoover told the AP she fears the effort will lead to even more changes that would endanger public safety.

From the story:

Aslanides has met with representatives of the Buckeye State Sheriffs' Association, the Fraternal Order of Police and other law enforcement groups about carrying guns in cars, applying for licenses and clarifying the law concerning where off-duty officers can carry concealed guns. He expects to introduce legislation this summer.

He advocates elimination of the rule that [license] holders must either lock up their gun while in a car or keep it visible to others in the car and to police officers who approach the car. Some opponents of the restriction say removal of the gun from its holster increases the chance of an accidental shooting, but Aslanides feels the law is unevenly enforced.

"I'm more concerned with the way officers have the ability to arrest practically anyone because they say they can't see it clearly," Aslanides said.

[License] holders carrying guns in cars would still be required to tell approaching officers that they had permits and were armed, he said.

According to the AP report, the State Highway Patrol is showing early signs of resistance to fixing the "plain sight" provision as well, but in the process of addressing these proposals, the OSHP too is being forced to admit that it was wrong about its dire predictions regarding this now-successful program.

"We haven't seen any adverse problems on the side of permit holders at large, or dealing with weapons in vehicles," OSHP spokesman Lt. Rick Zwayer is quoted as saying. Yet Zwayer said the patrol sees no reason to remove the provision that guns must be locked or visible in cars.

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

By Ann Coulter
Townhall.com

How many people have to die before the country stops humoring feminists? Last week, a defendant in a rape case, Brian Nichols, wrested a gun from a female deputy in an Atlanta courthouse and went on a murderous rampage. Liberals have proffered every possible explanation for this breakdown in security except the giant elephant in the room – who undoubtedly has an eating disorder and would appreciate a little support vis-à-vis her negative body image.

The New York Times said the problem was not enough government spending on courthouse security ("Budgets Can Affect Safety Inside Many Courthouses"). Yes, it was tax-cuts-for-the-rich that somehow enabled a 200-pound former linebacker to take a gun from a 5-foot-tall grandmother.

Atlanta court officials dispensed with any spending issues the next time Nichols entered the courtroom when he was escorted by 17 guards and two police helicopters. He looked like P. Diddy showing up for a casual dinner party.

I think I have an idea that would save money and lives: Have large men escort violent criminals. Admittedly, this approach would risk another wave of nausea and vomiting by female professors at Harvard. But there are also advantages to not pretending women are as strong as men, such as fewer dead people. Even a female math professor at Harvard should be able to run the numbers on this one.

Skipping ahead to later in this excellent op-ed:

The inestimable economist John Lott has looked at the actual data. (And I'll give you the citation! John R. Lott Jr., "Does a Helping Hand Put Others at Risk? Affirmative Action, Police Departments and Crime," Economic Inquiry, April 1, 2000.)

It turns out that, far from "de-escalating force" through their superior listening skills, female law enforcement officers vastly are more likely to shoot civilians than their male counterparts. (Especially when perps won't reveal where they bought a particularly darling pair of shoes.)

Unable to use intermediate force, like a bop on the nose, female officers quickly go to fatal force. According to Lott's analysis, each 1 percent increase in the number of white female officers in a police force increases the number of shootings of civilians by 2.7 percent.

Adding males to a police force decreases the number of civilians accidentally shot by police. Adding black males decreases civilian shootings by police even more. By contrast, adding white female officers increases accidental shootings. (And for my Handgun Control Inc. readers: Private citizens are much less likely to accidentally shoot someone than are the police, presumably because they do not have to approach the suspect and make an arrest.)

Click here to read Ann Coulter's entire op-ed from Townhall.com.

The Cincinnati Post is reporting that Cincinnati officials are "reacting quickly" to help operators of a Head Start center in Over-the-Rhine improve safety after a teacher had a gun pointed at her head Tuesday afternoon in a robbery at a store across the street. Less than 10 minutes later, another Head Start staff member was mugged near the center.

The stories say the incidents are the latest in a series of escalating crimes that have prompted staff to put the center on lockdown and prohibit the 108 children served by the Green Street facility from playing outdoors to avoid being shot.

Notably, the article states that the city's long-term strategy includes working with the development corporation -- known as 3CDC -- to dramatically increase lighting along several streets in Over-the-Rhine, and that among the 3CDC members is Joseph A. Pichler, chairman of the Kroger Co., which is headquartered a few blocks from the Head Start site.

Perhaps Pichler can advise city officials that the failed social experiment called gun control should not be among their choices, and share his company's brief experience of how posting "no-guns" signs did nothing but turn his stores into victim zones. Kroger removed discriminatory signs banning CHL-holders soon after the violent robbery of a 70-year old Kroger customer outside a posted store on May 23, 2004, and in the wake of a huge grassroots uprising.

WDTN-TV (NBC Dayton) is reporting that Fairborn residents are locking their doors as the search continues for a home invader who broke into a Rockdell Apartment and stabbed a woman in the stomach.

Once again criminals have proven that we are no longer safe in our own homes. The police again are asking for citizen support and help in catching a criminal. Citizens have an interest in cooperating with the police. However the story further illustrates that the police do not protect us - only clean up after the crime. Fortunately, the news station says this woman will be okay. The next person may not be so lucky.

Meanwhile, another home invader, working with three accomplices, found himself in the hospital when he met up with a homeowner who was prepared to defend himself:

Burlington, N.C.:
Home invasion suspect shot by resident faces charges

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The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that the city mayor's call for a moratorium on CCL-issuance in the wake of a rash of 22 murders in 9 days is being met with incredulity, even by gun control proponents.

From the story:

A leading gun-control lobbyist said yesterday that Mayor Street's proposal to impose a moratorium on concealed-weapon "carry permits" would not do much to reverse the sharp spike in homicides.

The same sentiment was voiced by city residents sitting in a crowded office awaiting the police interview required to obtain a carry permit.

"All the crime going on, none of those people have permits," said a 30-year-old North Philadelphia forklift driver, a father of two, who declined to give his name because he did not want neighbors or coworkers to know he was seeking a permit.

"I get up to go to work at 3 a.m... . I don't want my son to see me lying in a casket."

Street's potential moratorium would not prohibit anyone from purchasing a handgun or other weapon.
Rather, he is considering a 90-day moratorium on issuing the permits required to carry a concealed weapon.

The newspaper reports Mayor Street is expected to make a decision by next week. Surprisingly, this major urban newspaper has published the facts about CHL-holders, and about how many gun control laws already in place have failed to prevent these crimes:

Again, from the story:

About 28,000 Philadelphians already possess carry permits, according to Street. That is a relatively small proportion of the total number of people who own handguns. About 250,000 handguns a year are sold in Pennsylvania, according to state police data.

Police did not immediately respond to a request for data on how many people charged with murder had legal permission to carry a concealed weapon.

To obtain a carry permit, an applicant must be fingerprinted, photographed and interviewed, answer a detailed questionnaire, and submit the names of two references. Police also conduct a background investigation.

Only a questionnaire and criminal-record check are required to purchase a gun.
Many of the city's fatal shootings involve disputes between people with criminal records, which makes it illegal for them to own a gun, let alone possess a carry permit.

Diane Edbril, executive director of CeaseFire PA, told the Inquirer: "Any measure that reduces the absolute numbers of guns on the street is a good one, but... the folks who are using guns on the streets are not folks who are carrying them lawfully, with gun permits. They are not the kind of people shooting up their neighborhood at 2 a.m."

In a rare moment, the National Rifle Association found itself in agreement with a gun ban extremists, calling the potential moratorium "misguided."

Andrew Arulanandam, an NRA spokesman, is quoted as saying "the folks who apply for a permit go through rigorous background checks. They are vetted thoroughly by law enforcement... . It is very unlikely that a criminal would subject themselves to that."

The story concludes:

Yesterday, four people sitting together in a cramped Police Department office applying for handgun carry permits agreed that Street had it wrong.

They also declined to identify themselves. "I don't want my neighbors to know my business," said a woman who said she was a waitress.

The forklift operator said he lived in a violent neighborhood and wanted to protect his family.

"You ever go to bed at night and hear gunshots, and you have your kids in the bed in the next room?"
Another man, who described himself as a project manager from South Philadelphia, said he was applying to renew an existing carry permit. He owns two handguns, which he keeps permanently locked in a safe in his home.

So why seek a concealed-weapons permit? To cover all the bases, said the man, who is married and has a family. "It helps me sleep at night."

Click on the "Read More…" link below to read a press release on the subject from the Second Amendment Foundation.