Every so often, but especially in August before school starts, I like to see some evidence of my private-school tuition dollars at work. So I recently asked my sons what provoked the first gunshots in the American Revolutionary War.

“The Tea Act of 1773,” said the 12-year-old, apparently tossing out the first Colonial grievance that came to mind.

“King George’s Stamp Act!” screamed his younger brother, apparently mistaking our conversation for a televised game show with prizes.

“You're both wrong,” I said.

As many of you have heard, Ohioans For Concealed Carry coordinator Dave Milthaler has been working with Representative Uecker to introduce legislation that would allow a concealed handgun licensee to have a concealed handgun in their vehicle without fear of employer retribution.

The first draft of this bill has been introduced as Ohio House Bill 571 with THIRTY co-sponsoring members of the Ohio House of Representatives, or nearly 1/3rd of the Ohio House indicating support for this legislation at introduction.

You can read the bill in pdf format here or online in standard web HTML.   The underlined text is new, the crossed out text is removed, and everything else is existing law.   There are many areas of this legislation that OFCC has expressed some concerns over the language, but this bill's introduction is a testament to the power of grassroots activism.

Dave Milthaler spent quite a bit of his personal time shopping this OFCC legislation agenda item around among Ohio House members and has been quite successful.  The beauty of a bill that addresses a very narrow aspect of the law is that members of the House are not in a position to hide behind "some other aspect" of the bill as a means of not supporting the core purpose of the bill, but at any point in time a bill like this could be adopted or amended into other legislation, such as Senate Bill 239.

With the very narrow time left in this General Assembly this bill has a very short opportunity to have a hearing and be voted upon.  Its imperative that you call your House and Senate members and tell them that you want them to pass this legislation before the end of the year, even if it means amending it into another moving bill.

Just after 10:30 A.M. on August 20th 2010, a woman described as being in her mid-30s and wearing a white t-shirt, jeans and a red ball cap entered the Fifth Third Bank in Brunswick and gave the teller a note in which she stated she had a gun and demanded money (although it was later reported that nobody actually ever saw a gun). The teller complied, and the woman fled the scene in a blue Chrysler minivan driven by what witnesses say was another woman in her mid-20s.

Is it possible that the robbers knew that Ohio Fifth Third banks have been historically posted since the passage of CCW legislation here? It seems logical that criminals planning on robbing a bank would be more likely to choose one where there was less chance of an armed response to their activities. Bank robbers and other criminals are predators and its a known fact that predators don't choose victims that can defend themselves. They prey on the defenseless and avoid situations that could cause them harm. This encounter luckily didn't end in violence, but it very easily could have. Especially if the suspect actually did have a weapon.

If you have any information or leads on this case, please contact the Brunswick PD at 330-225-9111

With the passage of Concealed Carry legislation in the State of Ohio, a great many of our fellow citizens now have the option of defending themselves from violent crime. Unfortunately, there are still people that either don't see the need for effective self-defense, or erroneously believe that it's the duty of the police to protect them. Sadly, if these folks ever do realize that their thinking may be in error, it's usually as they stare down an armed criminal intent on making them his next victim.

As a licensed individual, I make sure I practice my right on a regular basis. I very rarely leave the house without a firearm, if ever. Navigating the ins and outs of our current law can be perilous at times, but I firmly believe that my safety and that of my family is worth any inconvenience I might need to deal with to accommodate our sometimes confusing statutes. Our current law is the best we have right now, and there are many folks working hard to constantly improve and clarify it so we don't inadvertently violate some nuance and wind up criminals ourselves. Rest assured, we are making progress.