Summit County Fair skirting Ohio law that prohibits gun bans on fairgrounds

If you thought you could bring your firearm to the Summit County Fair this year, think again.

Under Ohio law, state and county fairs are prohibited from banning the carry of firearms on fairgrounds. But the Summit County Fair thinks it has found a sneaky way around that law.

The fair, which runs July 8 to Aug. 2, is using what it sees as a loophole by forcing all guests through its new building, essentially banning firearms entirely.

Supposedly, it's in response to the parking lot shooting last year.

Related article: Guns allowed at Ohio State Fair but not in buildings; BFA's Rieck calls it 'ridiculous'

The fair's homepage, summitfair.com/fair, features an "Entrance Policies" link that lists "Weapons/firearms, except qualified law enforcement" among prohibited items, though that link points to 2024.

Howard Call, the fair’s director in charge of programming and facilities, told Fox 8 he knows the law prohibits fairs from banning guns but that the county fair has found a workaround.

From the Fox 8 article:

So, to get onto fair property this year, nearly 50,000 expected visitors will have to first pass through a brand new exhibit hall that will be dedicated on Tuesday (July 28).

“Everyone, as they enter the grounds, will go through a bag check and a mag meter. Just like if you were going to go to a Stadium. Dinner. And to ensure that we provide a safe environment here for all of our customers and all the people that work here,” said Call.

He explained to Fox 8 News that the new entrance passes a legal test that allows them to keep guns off the fairground property.

A year ago, then-Attorney General Dave Yost issued an opinion on whether county agricultural societies have the authority to restrict guns at county fairs, saying they do not.

Yost said a county ag society is "a creature of statute" that derives its existence, powers, responsibilities, and limitations from state law (ORC 1711 and 1711.13), pointing out that the ag societies are "hereby declared bodies corporate and politic."

This is a developing story, and we have heard that many other counties' fairs continue to prohibit firearms. Let us know what the fair in your county is doing.

Joe D. "Buck" Ruth, a pen name for Scott Hummel, is a longtime small-game hunter and gun owner who spent nearly three decades in the news industry. He is the website and social-media manager for Buckeye Firearms Association.