| Cleveland Loses Appeal in Gun Confiscation Case |
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| Written by Daniel White | |
| Thursday, 18 September 2008 | |
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The City of Cleveland has lost in their bid to keep a firearm confiscated from a man who was acquitted of all charges stemming from an April 2007 incident. On April 27, 2007, Antonio Fulton was charged with using weapons while intoxicated, failure to secure a dangerous ordnance, and endangering children. His handgun was confiscated. At his trial, Fulton was acquitted of the charges. Yet, the City refused to return his handgun. Fulton petitioned the Municipal Court to return the firearm, but the Court refused. Fulton appealed the ruling to the Eight Appellate District. Today, the Appellate Court ruled in his favor. "The trial court erred when it denied Mr. Fulton's post-acquittal motion for return of property that was taken from him as part of the investigation of a crime that he did not commit." Cleveland felt that since the gun was not registered in the City, they could keep it. The Court disagreed, in part because Fulton's concealed handgun license was seen as proof that he was not under any kind of legal disability from owning a handgun. The Court also found that the firearm was not subject to forfeiture because it was not contraband. Had Fulton been charged with unlawful discharge of a firearm, he might have been subject to losing the gun, but he was not. The Heller case was cited as part of the ruling, but the Court could also have easily used Ohio Revised Code, since HB347 invalidated local firearm laws, such as gun registration schemes. Not only was Cleveland ordered to return Mr. Fulton's gun, they were also ordered to pay court costs. |