Crain's Cleveland Business publishes anti-self-defense editorial as ''news''

On March 24, 2003 Crain's Cleveland Business published an editorial opposing the reformation of concealed carry laws in Ohio. This editorial bore striking similarity to a letter printed in multiple Ohio papers, written by Lori O'Neill, president of the "Million" Mom March chapter of greater Cleveland. In that 2003 editorial, Crain's editors admitted that they were "a bit far afield" when they decided to take a position on HB12.

One year later, they've gone over the edge - bringing an extremely one-sided, anti-concealed-carry editorial into the news section of both their Cleveland and Detroit publications.

Get out your Rolaids, before you read the story...

OFCC's Jim Irvine was interviewed in preparation for this article, and refuted the ridiculous claims and fears expressed by many of the people quoted in this article. Unfortunately, Crain's elected not to publish most of his comments.

Businesses under the gun

March 29, 2004
Crain's Cleveland Business

The day comes when all employers must face unpleasant situations. Maybe an employee must be fired, or a customer becomes too demanding. Maybe the company is going out of business and workers are losing their jobs.

That's not the time to find out someone is packing a .38-caliber revolver under a sport coat or in a purse. Yet, that situation could arise after April 8, when Ohio's concealed weapons law gives adults with proper certification the right to carry a concealed weapon.

With the law about to go into effect, some Northeast Ohio business people are worried about workplace security and are wrestling with how best to address the prospect that someone in their office, plant or store might have a gun - and worse, would use it.

"I don't want to face someone carrying a gun," said Don Green, vice president and director of management services for Grubb & Ellis Management Services Inc., a building management company in Cleveland.

"It's scary, and it concerns me," Mr. Green said.

The so-called "concealed carry" law will enable citizens who are at least 21
years old, who are mentally competent and who have not been convicted of
drug-related felonies or certain other crimes, to carry a concealed weapon.
To carry a concealed weapon, a person must take a 12-hour certification
course and apply for a concealed weapon license with a local sheriff's
office.

Guns, concealed or not, may not be carried into police and government
offices, airports, universities, churches, schools and day care centers,
according to publications provided by the Ohio Attorney General's office.
The law allows employers and private property owners and managers to ban
weapons in workplaces. The Attorney General recommends businesses that don't
want handguns on their premises post signs to notify employees, tenants and
visitors that guns are not allowed.

Policy matters

Even so, Mr. Green said he's worried about loopholes in the law and the
potential liabilities it poses for Grubb & Ellis Management Services, which
among other properties manages the Leader Building, U.S. Bank Center and the
old May Co. building, all in downtown Cleveland.

The management company plans to post signs banning wea-pons on all its
properties, Mr. Green said.

"We are opposed to concealed weapons, and we are going to follow whatever
policy is written to ban weapons on our properties," Mr. Green said.

He isn't alone, said lawyers helping business clients prepare for the
fast-approaching day when an employee legally can come to work with a gun.

Brian Powers, CEO of consulting firm BakerER, which helps clients address
sensitive employer-employee relations, said he is helping clients craft
anti-handgun policies to address the issue with employees and customers. He
suggested that all companies have a detailed gun policy in place, especially
if they are about to make a difficult announcement, such as a layoff.

"You never know who might carry a gun to work," Mr. Powers said. "When you
have a situation where there is an obvious negative impact on your work
force, you want to remember your employees might be carrying a gun ... It's
just one more thing on a checklist for employers to consider."

Review time

Stephanie Trudeau, an attorney at the Cleveland firm Ulmer & Berne LLP, also
suggests employers have explicit language in their employee handbooks about
wea-pons. If they already have weapons policies, employers should review
them.

"Sometimes they include gratuitous language like `no unauthorized weapons,"'
Ms. Trudeau said. If a person secures a state-issued permit to carry a
weapon, it could be perceived that an employee has been authorized to carry
a weapon, she said.

John Susany, an attorney with the Akron firm Stark & Knoll LLP, is concerned
about the law's potential impact.

"It's a crazy time," Mr. Susany said. "Employers are worried about violence
in the workplace and employees assaulting one another without weapons. Now,
with the conceal carry law, you have the same employees who could be
carrying weapons, and a simple loss of temper that might have resulted in a
fist fight now could result in a shooting."

Shoppers, take note

If you're carrying a weapon, don't expect to be greeted favorably when
entering a store or mall.

Bob Giarda, retail marketing manager at Beachwood Place, said the upscale
mall always has had a policy banning weapons on the mall premises.

"That hasn't changed," Mr. Gi-arda said. "It's simply something we don't
tolerate."

At all entrances of the Beachwood mall are signs with rules stating that
guns are banned from the mall. Mall security does not check automobiles, but
guns also are banned in the parking lot.

Officials at Tower City Center in downtown Cleveland have not yet settled on
a handgun policy for the mall, said Lisa Kreiger, senior marketing director
for Tower City. The shopping center's management and its owner, Forest City
Enterprises Inc., have recommended a policy to their lawyers. However, the
policy has not yet been finalized, and Ms. Kreiger declined to say what the
policy will be.

Tenants get the lowdown

Marshall Landesman, general manager of real estate company Keyes Treuhaft
Co. in Pepper Pike, said weapons will not be allowed on any of the six
properties it owns and manages. Those properties include Landerwood Plaza
North and South, Solon Park Place and Parkland Terrace at Landerhaven
Corporate Center.

"We feel that safety is the primary issue," he said. "We don't feel comfortable with the arguments for carrying weapons."

By this week, a policy regarding weapons will be given to all Keyes Treuhaft
tenants, Mr. Landesman said. The policy will be included in new leases and
tenant rules. He does not expect tenants to disagree with the policy.

"I don't think this is going to be a major issues between tenants and
customers," Mr. Landesman said. "A customer is not going to stay away from
their favorite stores just because they're not allowed to carry a gun."

A dissenting view

Perhaps Mr. Landesman is correct. But Jim Irvine, a spokesman for Ohioans
For Concealed Carry, an organization that supports the new gun law, said
businesses that ban guns actually are inviting crime or, worse, violent
attacks on employees and customers. People who are likely to go on a
shooting spree know that in a workplace that bans concealed weapons,
employees aren't going to be able to shoot back.

"The criminal wants to be successful," said Mr. Irvine, who is a pilot for American Airlines and lives in Strongsville. "By disarming your employees, you're encouraging (the criminal) to do it on your property."

Guns are used five times as often to prevent a crime than in the commission
of a crime, Mr. Irvine said.

"You carry a gun not because you want to die or be attacked, but because
things can go wrong and it saves lives," Mr. Irvine said.

Shot in the arm

While some business people are fretting about guns coming into the
workplace, some businesses - gun dealers and shooting ranges, in particular
- see a definite upside to the conceal carry law going into effect.

Diane Donnett, president and general manager of Stonewall Ltd. gun shop in
Broadview Heights, said sales of guns, ammunition and gun accessories have
increased markedly in recent weeks because of the concealed weapons law. She
declined to quantify the increase in her business.

The gun shop offers certification classes for $175, Ms. Donnett said. So
far, about 70 people have completed the course, and 250 people have signed
up to take it. Among the students have been lawyers, doctors and an Akron
city councilman, Ms. Donnett said.

"Business has been phenomenal," she said.

To secure a permit to carry a weapon, an individual must attend a 12-hour
class, such as one taught by former U.S. Secret Service agent and retired
Geauga County Sheriff's deputy James Lengel. The class costs $149, and
includes 10 hours of classroom training and two hours on a shooting range.

Mr. Lengel said he covers issues such as how to carry and store weapons and
ammunition, the concealed weapons law, and liabilities people expose
themselves to if they carry a weapon.

"I want people to realize that this is a serious responsibility to carry a
firearm," he said. "If you are involved in a shooting, it will be the most
traumatic event of your life."

EMAIL: Crain's Cleveland Business