Firearms trainer arrested for falsification

We've long maintained that instructors and students under Ohio's new concealed handgun license law have an important responsiblity to act as ambassadors for ALL law-abiding gun owners. If guilty of the charges against him, this guy was clearly interested in representing only one person: himself.

April 9, 2004
Hamilton News Journal

MONROE — As scores of Butler County residents lined up to apply for concealed carry gun licenses Thursday, a Monroe firearms instructor was being arrested at a gun shop on falsification and weapons charges.

James Burgess, a National Rifle Association certified firearms instructor, is charged with felony carrying a concealed weapon and misdemeanor falsification.

An undercover investigation revealed Burgess, 68, of Karen Drive, Middletown issued training certificates to at least 27 students without requiring them to complete the mandated number of instruction hours, according to the Butler County Sheriff’s Office.

The students were administered less than half of the required 12 hours of training, rendering their training certificates invalid, said Maj. Anthony Dwyer. They will need to retake a training class if they want to apply for a handgun permit.

At the time of his arrest, Burgess also was carrying a concealed loaded gun for which he did not have a permit, according to authorities. The first day to apply for permits was Thursday. They take 45 days to process.

Criminal offenses such as Burgess is accused of has put local and state agencies on notice that some additional oversight and structure may be needed as Ohio’s new gun law progresses.

“One of the biggest issues we in law enforcement have (with Ohio’s concealed carry gun law) is that competent and ethical people are providing the training required by law,” Dwyer said.

He compared it to allowing a teenage driver to get a license after spending only half of the required hours behind the wheel.

“It’s a huge safety issue,” he said. “If they cut you loose without the proper training it’s dangerous. I’m sure Butler County isn’t the only county it has happened in.”

The sheriff’s office recently enrolled an undercover officer in one of Burgess’ classes after receiving complaints from former students who thought their training was inadequate.

Burgess made it clear to the students he knew what the requirements were and that the class was not meeting them, authorities said.

He was arrested Thursday afternoon at Gunrunner, a gun store at 642 S. Main St., Monroe. The business is located in the same Monroe strip mall where Burgess was renting office space for his class. Burgess was booked into the Middletown jail Thursday.

Gunrunner was receiving a $35 cut of each student’s $100 registration fee, said manager Larry Manns.

“He was paying for the registration book being here for people to sign up,” Manns said. Manns said his business had no involvement in Burgess’ training school.

The sheriff’s office conducted a search warrant at Gunrunner, seizing Burgess’ registration logs. It also retrieved additional records from Burgess’ home.

Additional falsification charges may be filed because Burgess may have offered firearms training classes to more than 100 students, Dwyer said.

“We’re not saying all those 100 permits are invalid, but we’re looking into this,” Dwyer said. It had not been determined whether any of Burgess’ students had attempted to apply for a concealed carry license Thursday.

Dwyer said it is possible that a former Burgess student who tries to apply for a permit knowing his or her training is inadequate could be charged with an falsification-related offense. Authorities urge anyone who has taken classes from Burgess that they believe were inadequate to contact authorities.

In the meantime, the sheriff’s office is working to obtain a master list of the NRA certified instructors. Dwyer said random undercover inquiries may be conducted at other firearms training schools.

“We hope this opens the eyes of trainers. We take this seriously and the Ohio Attorney General’s Office takes this seriously,” Dwyer said.