Bow hunters: Think it's safe not to carry concealed when you go afield?

by Chad D. Baus

WHIO-TV, Dayton's CBS affiliate, reported recently that A 48-year-old man, apparently under investigation for his possible involvement in sex crimes, forced authorities to close parts of Caesar Creek State Park on Thursday afternoon when he fled onto the property armed with a gun.

From the article:

Warren County sheriff's deputies saw the man, whose name was not released, park his car near Oregonia Road and flee into the park with a gun, sheriff's Maj. John Burke said.

The man had run into the park threatening suicide, News Center 7 was told.

Deputies called the Warren County Special Weapons and Tactical team and the Hamilton County sheriff's helicopter to assist in locating the man. The helicopter did locate him, and the SWAT team and a negotiator worked for about 90 minutes in coaxing him to put down his weapon and come out of the woods, Burke said.

Deputies were able to take the man into custody. News Center 7 was not able to immediately confirm whether he remained in jail Thursday night.

Burke said deputies wanted to talk with the man about his possible involvement in sex crimes. The major did not go into details about that investigation.

According to Ohio's hunting regulations, "a person possessing a valid Concealed Carry license may carry their concealed weapon while hunting, but it may not be used to shoot, shoot at, or kill any wild animal." There might not be many four-legged predators that present a threat in the woods, but this incident serves as a reminder you can't be certain you won't run into the two-legged kind.

Chad D. Baus is the Buckeye Firearms Association Vice Chairman.