Posted on 06/14/2012 4:15:22 AM PDT by marktwain
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Concealed handgun permit holders could legally have clips loaded with bullets next to their weapons in their cars under legislation approved Wednesday by the Ohio House.
House lawmakers voted, 57-26, for the measure, which also would lift other restrictions in the concealed carry law.
The legislation also would free permit holders who are up for a license renewal from going through a competency course in firearms. Current law already requires applicants to undergo a first round of training to obtain a permit.
In addition, the legislation would require the Ohio Attorney General to enter into reciprocity agreements with all other states that recognize Ohio concealed handgun license holders. Currently, other states need to have substantially similar concealed carry laws for the Attorney General's office to pursue reciprocity agreements.
The bill would change the definition of "unloaded" so that a gun with a loaded clip alongside it would be considered unloaded. Rep. Terry Johnson, a Scioto County Republican, said the current gun law, which says a gun is loaded if the bullets are in a clip or a speed loader anywhere in the vehicle, makes no sense.
"This defies common sense and causes confusion with out-of-state concealed carry permit holders," Johnson said. "No other state has a law this restrictive."
Speaking against the bill were several Democrats who noted the bill is opposed by law enforcement groups such as the Fraternal Order of Police and the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association.
"I'm against allowing more and more access to these guns that are killing people," said Rep. Bob Hagan, a Youngstown-area Democrat. "We have to rely on police and law enforcement people to tell us the dangers they are facing every day."
The definition of what is considered a loaded gun has evolved under Ohio law.
In 2008, Republican lawmakers passed language that allowed unloaded weapons to be in an unlocked case with ammunition near at hand, but not loaded into a clip anywhere in the vehicle. Before that, Ohio's law said the gun had to be unloaded and the ammunition had to be in a trunk or locked away in a glove box or purse for the driver to legally carry the weapon.
The bill -- which is supported by the National Rifle Association and the Buckeye Firearms Association -- now moves to the Ohio Senate for consideration. With state lawmakers headed home for summer break, the bill is likely to remain in the Senate until late in the year.
Obviously not written by a gun person. Clips??? Bullets???
How about magazines and cartridges? Why don't these people do a little research before writing these articles?
I imagine the bill has the proper terminology, but the reporter must figure people can't understand it so he translates it into proper Hollywood terms.
“We have to rely on police and law enforcement people to tell us the dangers they are facing every day.”
?!?!!?? Alternate universe...
Great to see this, but also treat it as a warning for people traveling with concealed guns. You really have to know each state’s laws to avoid felonies. For example, certain kinds of pepper spray in Michigan will land you jail for having a dangerous weapon, even though it’s allowed in nearly every other state.
In my state, a concealed weapons permit means you can carry a loaded or unloaded gun in pretty much any condition everywhere but a school, courthouse or bar. Keep it simple.
Agreed on the keep it simple as the carry restrictions you note are what I experience in my state. However, OH had significant challenges in passing CCW initially. Other posters noted the poison pills and the usual cast of suspects (FOP, etc.) up the thread. I don’t understand people that can’t simply look around at experiences in other states to clearly see that licensed carriers are not the problem and stop trying to make problems with dumb laws.
That is because you assume that they are honest. They lie all the time. As David Horowitz noted, on the left, the issue is never the issue. The issue is always "the revolution", or if you prefer, the agenda.
The long standing agenda to disarm the American people has never really been about crime or crime prevention. It has always been about taking power from the people and making the State more powerful.
INAL but as I understand: No, if you have a Concealed Handgun License you can carry your loaded gun in a car. If you do not have a Concealed Handgun License, then it is illegal to carry a loaded gun in a car.
“Further, if it is “unloaded” and the magazine is next to it, it is not considered unloaded?”
INAL but as I understand: Yep. Roughly speaking, if the gun is empty, no cartridges in the cylinder or chamber, none in the magazine in the gun, but there is a speed loader or magazine anywhere in the car that will work with the gun and has cartridges in it that are for the gun in question, the gun is considered to be loaded for purposes of the law.
I get tripped up by that ASS-U-ME rule sometimes but not usually when it comes to politicians because I don’t like them anyway. This time, however, I am guilty of giving them more credit than they deserve because of making the assumption of an easily-seen comparison/application rather than remembering the “dialectic”. Thanks for the reminder!
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