Free Republic

On 27 December, 2018, the Ohio legislature voted with more than the two thirds majority required to override Governor Kasich' veto of HB 228.HB 228 strengthened Ohio's preemption law to prevent erosion of Second Amendment rights in Ohio. The right to own, possess, and carry weapons has been under attack by several cities in Ohio. The City of Columbus is attempting to block the new law with a lawsuit. The City of Columbus claims that it has home rule authority to pass ordinances pertaining to the ability to own or possess firearms and firearm accessories. The lawsuit can be...

The Ohio legislature has passed an override of Governor Kasich' veto of HB 228. There are several major reforms in Ohio's HB 228. One provision is to strengthen Ohio's preemption statute. Ohio, as with most states, has a law that reserves statutory authority about firearms to the legislature. Local governments and regulatory bodies are not allowed to make a crazy quilt of ordinances and regulations to prevent the exercise of Second Amendment rights in the State.Local governments refused to repeal ordinances that infringed on second amendment rights, producing a chilling effect on the exercise of those rights. A provision...

NORWOOD, OHIO — A Cincinnati-area police officer making a traffic stop Wednesday night on Interstate 71 discovered the driver had a kangaroo riding the back seat. The Norwood Police Department posted video Thursday about the animal encounter on its Facebook page. “Oh my gosh,” officer Phil Harvey said in the video as the kangaroo named Scooby Roo poked its head out from a blanket he was wrapped inside. The officer cautioned the driver about properly restraining the animal. Kangaroos are not classified as dangerous wild animals under Ohio law and are not illegal to own.

A group of Ohio religious leaders criticized lawmakersÂ’ efforts to pass protections for unborn babies Thursday during a pro-abortion protest at a church in downtown Columbus. The event at Trinity Episcopal Church, coordinated by the Ohio Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, included Christian and Jewish leaders who oppose a bill to prohibit abortions after unborn babies have a detectable heartbeat, about six weeks of pregnancy.The state House passed the bill in November, and the Senate is considering it this week. It is expected to pass the Republican-controlled legislature. HAPPENING NOW: Faith leaders organized by @OhioRCRC are speaking against bans on...

A simple molecule in the atmosphere that acts as a "detergent" to breakdown methane and other greenhouse gases has been found to recycle itself to maintain a steady global presence in the face of rising emissions, according to new NASA research. Understanding its role in the atmosphere is critical for determining the lifetime of methane, a powerful contributor to climate change. The hydroxyl (OH) radical, a molecule made up of one hydrogen atom, one oxygen atom with a free (or unpaired) electron is one of the most reactive gases in the atmosphere and regularly breaks down other gases, effectively ending...

Two more of President Donald Trump’s conservative judicial nominees may be confirmed to important U.S. circuit court positions soon. The U.S. Senate is considering Chad Readler and Eric Murphy for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals – a move that is setting off alarms for abortion activists. The pro-abortion website Mother Jones reports Readler and Murphy both have “strong” pro-life histories in the legal system. And the Sixth Circuit could soon hear several important cases involving abortion clinic regulations. Their nominations are “worrisome to pro-choice advocates who fear this may be the court that helps overturn Roe v. Wade,” according...

Buckeye Firearms has highlighted a case of judicial activism in Ohio. The Ohio Supreme Court is proposing to change the rules on the confiscation and return of firearms in Ohio, particularly in cases involving orders of protection.  Sean Maloney, a firearms attorney, has written an analysis of the proposed changes in the rules in Ohio.  Many of the rules make changes that the Ohio legislature specifically refused to implement.  From Sean Maloney's analysis: Accordingly, Appellate Courts have consistently held that, an order to surrender firearms to police absent a “sufficient nexus,” is an abuse of discretion when no evidence...

The new NBC News-Wall Street Journal survey, taken six weeks before Americans head to the polls, shows Democrats leading Republicans by 52 percent to 40 percent for control of Congress. If it holds, that 12 percentage point margin would suggest a "blue wave" large enough to switch control of not just the House but also the Senate.

On 1 August, 2018, Governor Kasich of Ohio abstained from his last chance to veto SB 81.  SB 81 requires sheriffs in Ohio to accept application for concealed handgun licenses from current and former military members, without a fee.  From legiscan.com: To amend section 2923.125 of the Revised Code to waive the concealed carry license fee for active members of the armed forces and retired and honorably discharged veterans, to accept military experience with firearms as proof of competency with firearms regardless of when the applicant for a license acquired the experience, to permit a licensee to renew a...

A Franklin County judge in Ohio has ruled the Columbus City Council ban on bump-stocks is invalid under Ohio law. The ban was passed in May of 2018, as part of an series of infringements aimed at gun owners. From ab6onyourside.com: COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Franklin County Judge has ruled Columbus' bump-stock ban as unconstitutional.The ban was passed by the Columbus City Council in May. The ban was part of a series of four ordinances aimed at reducing gun violence. On Friday, Franklin County Judge David E. Cain ruled the bump-stock ban violates state law and the city cannot...

Ohio bill HB 228 has passed out of the House Federalism and Interstate Relations Committe on a seven to three vote. The vote was along party lines, with seven Republicans voting for the bill and the three Democrats voting against the bill.The Ohio legislature is looking to reform Ohio law on self-defense. Currently, Ohio appears to be the only state where the burden of proof in a self-defense case rests with the defender. When a person claims self-defense in Ohio, the defender has to prove that they acted in self-defense. In nearly every other state, the burden of proof...

*Primary elections will take place Tuesday in Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia and North Carolina. *Voters will choose challengers to vulnerable Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin and Joe Donnelly in West Virginia and Indiana, respectively. *Parties will set their nominees for multiple competitive House races in Ohio and North Carolina. *In Ohio, both Republican and Democratic primaries for governor are competitive. A string of 2018 primary elections take place Tuesday, shaping elections that will help to determine which party holds the House and Senate after November's midterms. Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia will hold primaries Tuesday. Both West Virginia and...

But by the standards of the Trump era — where style and identity overshadow ideology and policy, and where the lengths you go to to present yourself as a Trump loyalist often matter more than your voting record — there are sharp differences between Anthony Gonzalez and Christina Hagan. Gonzalez, 33, was a star wide receiver at Ohio State and a first-round draft pick in the NFL, where he caught passes from Peyton Manning. He later earned an MBA from Stanford and worked as a top executive with an education technology company in Silicon Valley. His first television ad? Packed...

FULL TITLE: Transgender student, 15, is 'outed' after being made to change in ladies' locker room by wrestling coach who told the rest of the team he was a girl A transgender teenager has accused his wrestling coach of outing him in front of other boys on the team after he allegedly forced him to change in a ladies' locker room and insisted he was a girl. Aiden Pogue Krabacher, 15, quit the wrestling team at Wilmington High School, Ohio, over the incident. He is a freshman and started classes there in the fall. The teenager was born Aubry but...

Major League Baseball says the Cleveland Indians will stop using the Chief Wahoo logo on their uniforms starting in the 2019 season. The league says the logo, which features a smiling Native American, is not appropriate for field use. It has had discussions with the Indians in hopes that the franchise move away from the logo, which had been used in some capacity for the franchise since the 1947 season and was still prevalent on the team's baseball caps and on its uniforms. "Major League Baseball is committed to building a culture of diversity and inclusion throughout the game,” MLB...

Dayton Ohio cell phone store owner Adam Seaton used an AK-47 clone to defend himself and his store. It happened about five a.m. on Sunday, 19 November, 2017.Store video shows the thieves breaking the window at the front of the store, then trying various strategies to get through the security gate. Seaton was alerted on his cell phone by the security system. He was only a block and a half away.The store has been open since December last year. This was the fourth robbery attempt, the first that has been stopped.From wdtn.com:DAYTON — A 22-year-old Dayton business owner fired...

An Ohio sheriff says a judge fired back at a man who shot him outside a courthouse, killing him. One suspect has been killed and another is in custody, CBS Pittsburgh reports. The incident happened outside of the Jefferson County Courthouse around 8 a.m. along the Ohio River in Steubenville, roughly 30 miles west of Pittsburgh, according to WTRF-TV. Jefferson County Sheriff Fred Abdalla says courthouse video shows Judge Joseph Bruzzese Jr. firing about five shots at the gunman, who also fired about five shots. The gunman was then killed by a probation officer.

A bill being considered in the Ohio legislature would reform the penalties for someone carrying a concealed handgun in current "gun free" zones. Current penalties are extreme. A person who inadvertently enters such a zone in Ohio is subject to a felony charge, a maximum of 12 months in prison, and a $2,500 fine. A felony conviction removes the right to vote, or to own a fire arm under the Second Amendment.  People who have concealed carry permits are, statistically, some of the most law abiding people in the country. They are far more law abiding than the population...

On March 24 in 2015, in Cleveland, Brian Bridges shot a man in self defense. He had a concealed carry permit from Ohio, and was never charged with a crime.  But the accomplice of the man who was shot was charged.  From clevescene.com: That trial wasn't to be— the defendant pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in October 2015. But now, in 2017, Bridges still hasn't gotten his handgun and other items back, the complaint alleges. From courthousenews.com:  Bridges claims Cleveland police unlawfully seized his property, “including a Glock 21 semiautomatic handgun, ammunition, holsters and a redcherry piccolo,” to be...

A new course offering at (The) Ohio State University aims to teach students how Muslims actually had a hand in the founding of America, and a substantial role in shaping the nation to become a powerhouse on the global scale. Remember the Barbary Wars? Muslim pirates? The Daily Caller, citing the College Fix, reported a class due to make its debut at the Ohio campus this spring is called “Islam in the United States.” Taught by Sabra Webber, the class will underscore and explain how Muslims have been in America since the beginning and have, in fact, played a big...