Buckeye Firearms Association blasts Sylvania Prosecutor's Office for illegal prosecution of gun owner
Buckeye Firearms Association (BFA) is calling on prosecutors in Sylvania, Ohio, to drop charges against Vontae Garrett, a U.S. Army veteran and former special-deputy sheriff, and to stop violating Ohio law and the civil rights of law-abiding citizens.
“This is the single most outrageous prosecution our organization has witnessed in more than 20 years,” said Dean Rieck, BFA's executive director. “The chilling effect for gun owners is obvious. If Mr. Garrett can be stripped of his constitutional rights on the whim of a sheriff or prosecutor, then so can any other lawful gun owner in Ohio.”
This outrageous situation began when Garrett was arrested during a traffic stop by a Lucas County Sheriff's deputy and then charged with felony improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle.
Court documents show a misunderstanding of Ohio law, arguing that Garrett's Indiana concealed carry license is not valid in Ohio and that Indiana, Garrett's home state, does not have reciprocity with Ohio. However, prosecutors are wrong on the law.
Ohio has automatic reciprocity with every other state — a fact stated on the Ohio Attorney General's website:
Effective March 23, 2015, Ohio recognizes the concealed handgun license of any non-resident who has a valid concealed handgun license from any other state, regardless of whether Ohio has entered into a reciprocity agreement with that state.
Indiana also has constitutional carry, meaning no license is required. Therefore, Garrett automatically has a “license” to carry:
On July 1, 2022, the State of Indiana will no longer require a handgun permit to legally carry, conceal or transport a handgun within the state.
But these arguments are not only improper; they are irrelevant because Ohio is a constitutional carry state allowing anyone who is not disqualified, resident or nonresident, to carry or transport a firearm. Reciprocity and licensing have no bearing on Garrett or anyone else carrying a handgun in the State of Ohio.
And given that there is no evidence Garrett is prohibited from possessing or carrying a handgun, there is no legal justification whatsoever for his arrest or prosecution.
Despite these facts, the Lucas County Sherriff’s Office and the Sylvania Prosecutor’s Office have refused to drop the charges and are deliberately ignoring Ohio law.
Worse, and perhaps most egregiously, according to court filings, the Sylvania Prosecutor’s Office has taken the extraordinary position that anyone — even those holding a valid concealed handgun license — may be arrested and charged simply for having a loaded firearm in their car. Under this absurd interpretation, Ohioans exercising their rights are subject to:
- arrest and criminal charges despite lawful possession;
- pretrial bond conditions that prohibit ownership or possession of any firearm while the case is pending; and
- no opportunity to dismiss the charges or prove lawful conduct until, and unless, an indictment is returned in common pleas court.
“Buckeye Firearms Association is outraged at the willfully illegal conduct of both the Lucas County Sheriff's Office and the Sylvania prosecutors,” Rieck said. “We urge Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and the Ohio General Assembly to intervene, uphold well-established Ohio law, and protect the Second Amendment rights of all gun owners.”
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