This afternoon, Ohio House Republicans again capitulated to the Democrats and took a sledge-hammer to Constitutional Carry.
When it comes to gun rights legislation, it’s very important that we use language that makes sure anti-gun prosecutors and liberal judges can’t abuse gun-owners.
Just ask Kyle Rittenhouse.
That’s why we deliberately included this language when we drafted Constitutional Carry:
“(C) The mere carrying or possession of a handgun that is
not a restricted firearm pursuant to the right described in
divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section, with or without a
concealed handgun license, does not constitute grounds for any law enforcement officer or any agent of the state, a county, a municipal corporation, or a township to conduct any search, seizure, or detention, no matter how temporary in duration, of an otherwise law-abiding person.”
This language is very standard in other Constitutional Carry states.
OGO included it in our Constitutional Carry drafts because we know that gun owners need protection from anti-gun mayors like Nan Whaley or Andrew Ginther, who are very willing to order their police departments to target lawful gun owners.
As you’ll remember, the fight for Constitutional Carry started out this General Assembly as HB227 by Representatives Tom Brinkman and Kris Jordan.
After Republican House Majority Floor Leader Bill Seitz ran an amendment to gun major portions of HB227 last fall, OGO switched our Constitutional Carry focus to SB215.
One of the main reasons why we did that was because SB215 still had the protections against unlawful search and seizure mentioned above!
To be clear, the entire Ohio Senate has already voted SB215 out of the entire Ohio Senate with the robust protections I referenced.
All House Republicans had to do was leave the bill alone and pass it as it was.
But they didn’t.
Instead, as we confirmed today, House Republicans ran an amendment for the corrupt, anti-gun Ohio Fraternal Order of Police (who have testified against every single pro-gun bill since Ohio Gun Owners was founded in 2016), and gutted those protections out.
This is 100% unacceptable.
Without this very important paragraph in the bill, the only prohibition on rookie cops detaining a firearms carrier and searching them and seizing their firearm so that they can conduct an investigation is Ohio’s very loose Terry stop law.
And in an age where prosecutors and mayors have proven themselves capable of being corrupted and agents for a liberal agenda, that doesn’t cut it.
That’s why we are urging everyone to contact all of the numbers listed below immediately and demanding they FIX Constitutional Carry BEFORE it comes to the floor tomorrow!
Time is of essence, so please contact them quickly:
Speaker Bob Cupp: (419) 230-2668
Speaker Pro-Tem Tim Ginter: (330) 692-2049
Majority Floor Leader Bill Seitz: (513) 382-8281
Majority Whip Don Jones: (740) 391-5025
Assistant Majority Whip Cindy Abrams: (513) 266-2599
Of course, they’re trying to defend their willingness to cut a deal, but they should be ashamed of themselves.
The Senate already did the right thing, it’s high-time that House Republicans grow a pair of testicles and do the right thing themselves.
Contact them NOW!
For Freedom,
Chris Dorr
Executive Director
Ohio Gun Owners