In a March 3 op-ed in
The (OSU) Sentinel, John Herrington describes a recent exchange with state Attorney General and gubernatorial-hopeful Jim Petro on several concealed carry issues.

From the story:

Jim Petro, Ohio’s Attorney General, spoke to the College Republicans Wednesday night to a crowd of about 50 or so. A couple of dedicated Columbus Townhallers sat in the back to keep an eye on things.

He started off by surprising me with a little tidbit: that he hasn’t formally announced his run for Governor. But it was no secret he said. I found it odd, since he has the most money out of the three major candidates…perhaps he can call it his “just in case” war chest.

After a discussion of the points Petro made in his speech, the writer turns his focus on a question and answer session that occurred next:

He then spent about 20 minutes on questions. The original format was supposed to be pre-submitted questions (which I had offered a couple). He decided that he wanted it to be an open format (perhaps he read the questions ahead of time??).

There are two issues from the question and answer session that I wanted to focus on. My (open format) question to him was “Do you support reforming the Concealed Carry law?” He went to great lengths to say that he supported the law but he used words like “examine the issue” when it comes to reform. He used those lawyer-ly words frequently when it came to reforming other laws as well.

To his credit, he did say that the provisions about carrying in a motor vehicle needed to be changed.

And then I asked a follow up question: “What about the Cleveland Plain Dealer publishing the names of permit holders?” His answer was disturbing. He (essentially) said that if it is a government record, it should be public. [See the soon-to-be-released video for his exact wording].

In the past year, at least 7, and probably several more, Ohio newspapers have abused the Media Access Loophole by publishing the names of thousands upon thousands of concealed handgun license-holders who have broken no laws, violated no other persons' rights, and who simply wish to exercise their constitutional right to self-defense.

Now that Rep. Bill Seitz has announced his intention to propose an amendment to an Ohio Newspaper Association and Jim Petro-backed 'open records' bill to close the Media Access Loophole, the issue of the right to privacy for CHL-holders is bound to take center stage in the early stages of the Republican gubernatorial primary between Petro, state Auditor Betty Montgomery, and Secretary of State Ken Blackwell.

Only Blackwell has voiced opposition to this privacy-invading portion of the Ohio Concealed Handgun Law.

Related Stories:
Lawmaker wants to close Media Access Loophole

GOP candidates for governor will speak at dinner

2nd Amendment among Betty’s website ''keywords'', but content nonexistent

State Sen. Joy Padgett endorses Jim Petro for Governor

Headline: "Blackwell poll shows he is pick of GOP"

The Findlay Courier published a story stating that residents from Hancock and surrounding counties “haven't exactly rushed to arm themselves” under Ohio's concealed handgun license la, and claiming that “in other counties around the state, the gun permits are more popular.”

But an analysis of the data from the 8 counties mentioned by the Findlay Courier proves otherwise.

Click on the “Read More…” link below for more.

From the story:

A total of 279 licenses were issued to local residents by the Hancock County Sheriff's Office in 2004, with most of them (191) approved within the first 90 days after the law went into effect April 8. Another 55 permits were issued here between July and September and only 33 were granted in the last quarter of the year.

"Actually, I'm a little surprised there weren't more requests for them," Hancock County Sheriff Mike Heldman said Wednesday. "We expected there to be an initial push and then a slowdown, but it's really leveled off here and pretty much around the state."

Sheriff's offices in surrounding counties, with the exception of Wood and Allen counties, granted even fewer licenses than Hancock County. Wood County issued 596 licenses and Allen County issued 449, but Seneca County approved just 179, Henry County 129, Wyandot County 111, Hardin County 80 and Putnam County 66.

45,562 licenses were issued to 0.398% of our population. This amounts to nearly 1 percent of eligible Ohioans.

A statewide statistical analysis completed by OFCC shows that counties where appointments schemes or day-limits are enforced deter applicants. That is certainly the case in the 8 counties addressed in this story.

Sheriffs in Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, Seneca and Wood counties either limit the days they will take
applications, or enforce an appointment scheme on applicants. The per-capita rate of licenses issued in
these counties is 0.323%.

Sheriffs in Allen, Henry, and Wyandot counties, on the other hand, take license applications 5 days per week, no appointments required. The per-capita rate of licenses issued in these counties is 0.447%.

So while the rates in the restrictive sets of counties is fairly representative of the rest of the state, Sheriffs in
counties where licenses are taken 5 days per week with no appointments are better serving their constituents.

Again, from the story:

Heldman said Wednesday he was not aware of any problems so far involving license holders. Sheriffs are required under the law to suspend a license if the licensee has been arrested or charged with certain crimes, or if the licensee is the subject of a protection order.

"We didn't anticipate problems with license holders," he said. "The people who go to the trouble of getting a license generally are going to be law-abiding people or else they won't even qualify."

Heldman said he expects the number of concealed carry license holders to grow in coming years, but only gradually.

"There may be some people waiting for changes in the law before they apply and probably some out there who believe there are too many restrictions to bother with getting one," he said.

Related Stories:
Evaluation: First 270 days with Ohio's Concealed Handgun License Law

The Cincinnati Enquirer is reporting that Amy Rezos, whose husband tried three times to kill her, including once from prison and once while out on bail, told Ohio lawmakers Wednesday, they should make it tougher for domestic-violence suspects to get out of jail on bond and prevent them from attacking their victims.

Known as Amy’s law, the bill would ensure that suspects charged in domestic-violence cases, even first-time offenders, go before a judge before they are released on bond.

According to the newspaper, advocates for battered women hailed the bill Wednesday, saying the more information judges can get about defendants, the better decisions they can make about releasing suspects on bond.

From the story:

The Ohio Domestic Violence Network, a statewide coalition of domestic-violence programs, agencies and others working to eliminate domestic violence, says there were 39,436 domestic-violence calls in 2003, compared with 22,486 in 2002. More domestic-violence civil protective orders also were taken out in 2003: 18,626 vs. 18,143.

In 2003 alone, there were more than 25,000 arrests on domestic-violence charges.

Sen. Gary Cates, R-West Chester Township, who is sponsoring the Senate version of Amy's Law, told the Enquirer he expects that every senator will support it. State Rep. Jim Raussen, R-Springdale, who first proposed Amy's Law last year, told the newspaper he is optimistic the bill will be signed into law by June.

After her testimony, committee member Sen. Marc Dann, D-Youngstown, told Ms. Rezos "I am so pleased that you have brought this forward. Time is of the essence. Every day, there could be another situation."

If they are so concerned about protecting the victims of domestic violence, shouldn’t Sen. Marc Dann and the rest of the Ohio Senate and House also act now to close the http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=22... ">Media Access Loophole,
so these men can’t find their wives via a newspaper that lists CHL-holders?

"I don't think we need to worry about journalists doing their job," state Sen. Marc Dann, a Youngstown area Democrat, once told Rep. Jim Aslanides, after the Republican warned reporters not to endanger CHL-holders by publishing lists of names in the newspaper.

Dann can be reached at:
Telephone: 614-466-7182
dann32@mailr.sen.state.oh.us

The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that a man’s three children, aged 15, 8 and 4, were witnesses to their father being shot in the back of the head in a brutal robbery outside their Columbus apartment.

From the story:

The family returned from a shopping trip about 9 p.m. Tuesday and parked beside their East Side apartment building. The gunman approached as Madero stepped from the van.

Madero’s wife ran into the building for help while the teenager, still inside the van with her 8-year-old sister and 4-year-old brother, locked the doors.

The Dispatch has chosen not to release the names of the three children or their mother for their protection.

Madero struggled with his attacker in the parking lot of the Woodland Meadows complex, where Madero, 40, and his family lived.

After the shot was fired, the gunman sped away in a car with two others inside, the teenager said. She opened the door and tried to help her father, who was lying on the ground.

"My dad was still alive." His mouth was moving, but words weren’t coming out, she said.

FLASHBACK: Reality Check for the Ohio Highway Patrol: Don't Get ''Borned''
In a Columbus Dispatch article about the expected progress of Ohio House Bill 12, Ohio Highway Patrol Capt. John Born reiterated the OHP's opposition to any bill that would allow citizens their right to self-defense in an automobile.

When presented with the fact that a firearm is useless in a pinch if it's locked up, Born responded: "If there's a dangerous situation and you're in your car, you can drive off.''

March 3, 2005
FOXNews.com

By John Lott, Jr.

A multiple victim public shooting last week outside the court house in Tyler, Texas, stemming from a custody dispute, resulted in the murder of two people and the wounding of four others.

Killings like this frequently make the news, and this story was carried by all the television networks and most major newspapers. ABC and NBC evening news coverage was fairly typical; they noted, respectively, that “David Hernandez Arroyo fired off more than 50 rounds. He killed two people before police shot him dead” and “A gunman killed his ex-wife and a bystander and wounded four others between--before being shot to death by police.”

Of the 71 unique news stories found by a computerized Nexis search of stories in the four days after the attack, 38 percent mention that an AK-47 or high-powered rifle was used by the attacker. As usual, gun control groups called for more gun control.

Eric Howard, with the Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence, said “These are military-style weapons that pose a significant risk to civilians and the police officers trying to protect the public.”

Only two stories mentioned that the AK-47 was a semi-automatic, not a machine gun, and, while it is understandable, none of the articles provided context by explaining that Arroyo’s weapon functioned the same as deer hunting rifles, firing the same caliber bullets, at the same rapidity, and doing the same damage.

Seems like pretty standard media coverage. But what makes this case different is that 21 percent of the news stories actually mentioned that a citizen licensed to carry a concealed weapon used his gun to try and help stop the attack.

The citizen, 50 year old Mark Wilson, was one of the two people murdered. As CNN reported, “Everyone here agrees, Wilson saved lives.” Fox News' website quoted the sheriff as saying "if it hadn't been for Mr. Wilson, [Arroyo's son] would be dead."

Wilson, a licensed concealed handgun permit holder, heard Arroyo’s shots and saw the commotion from his apartment window. He grabbed a handgun and headed toward the attacker.

Click here to read the entire op-ed at FOXNews.com.

Related Story:
Texas CHL-holder gives life, forces rampage shooter to flee

by Chad D. Baus

In late 2004, after a ten year debate on concealed carry reform in Ohio, the Ohio Newspaper Association (ONA) succeeded in getting a poison pill inserted into Ohio's concealed carry legislation on the eve of passage. Despite warnings not to abuse the privilege they had won, the ONA advised members to collect entire lists of CHL holders, as if they belonged on a registry like sex offenders simply for having exercised their human right to self-defense.

One year later, the tables have turned, and it is clear that members of the state's media elite hate the taste of their own medicine.

Hearings are now being held in a House Committee on House Bill 9, an "open records" bill backed by the ONA. Rep. Bill Seitz (R-Cincinnati), who chairs the committee, announced this week that he planned on amending the ONA bill to close the Media Access Loophole, and the reaction is as if water has been poured on the Wicked Witch.

ONA executive director Frank Deaner is screeching loudest: