Lake & Ashtabula Co. Sheriffs: Permit process now on target

October 7, 2004
Willoughby News-Herald

by Jeffrey Frischkorn

Concealed carry advocates believe few problems remain

With a number of the start-up bugs stomped flat, authorities responsible for issuing concealed carry permits say they believe the process is running smoothly.
However, concealed carry advocates believe a few problems remain six months into the process.

"We believe the process is going very smoothly even though there were bumps in the road in the beginning," said Bob Cornwell, executive director of the Buckeye Sheriffs' Association, the professional association comprised of the state's 88 sheriffs.

Daniel A. Dunlap, Lake County sheriff, said his agency debated the best way to serve prospective permit holders.

"What we wanted to do was avoid the long lines for applicants," Dunlap said. "People have been polite and reasonable about the experience, and the customers, if you will, have been satisfied with the process."

In Lake County, permits are being processed in as few as one or two business days, Dunlap said.

"One thing is the demand has been less than what we expected, though I did hear that many people went to adjacent counties to get their permits," Dunlap said.

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Part of the reason for this quick turn-around, Dunlap thinks, is that Lake County requires an applicant to make an appointment.

The slot times are designed to be as accommodating as possible, with appointments available even on Saturdays, Dunlap said. "A lot of people are happy
with the system because they didn't have to wait in a line. They had an appointment," Dunlap said.

The same is largely true in Ashtabula County, where Sheriff Bill Johnson said the process hasn't "gone badly."

"At first there were certainly some snafus, but we got over them pretty quickly. The problem was how much material we had
to process and for which the system wasn't ready for," Johnson said.

Ashtabula County's hours for receiving applications are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, Johnson said.

That's not to say the system is seamless.
This is not surprising, says Johnson, given that the law encompasses 169 pages of legal do's and don'ts.

"The law is not going to remain static, and I don't see this as the end," Johnson said.
For Johnson, one much-desired change would be to give the sheriff more discretion.
In some instances, Johnson said, he was uncomfortable issuing a permit though the applicant met all the requirements.

Johnson also would like the law changed so a person can obtain a permit only if he qualifies with the firearm intended to be carried.

Johnson believes a person likewise should obtain ongoing hands-on training with a weapon, noting this stipulation is required for police officers.

Dunlap, too, believes the state legislature will need to take another look at the law.
"I think it will take several years to see what is the final disposition or finding; how the whole thing plays out on this issue and what are the unintended and intended consequences," Dunlap said.

Concealed carry proponents also see the need for changes. Concerns exist that some departments are establishing limited and inconvenient application processing hours, concealed carry advocates say.

"Our position is that applications should be taken the same hours they are for drivers' licenses, marriage licenses or any other state-issued license," said Chad Baus, spokesman for the Ohioans for Concealed Carry, a right-to-carry advocacy group.
Baus adds that the law's vagueness as to what constitutes carrying in plain sight while in a motor vehicle is too subjective.

Also, Baus said, some sheriff's departments have released to
the media confidential information as it relates to the state's criminal history data base - a legal no-no.

"We already have two sheriffs who have done it wrong, including one where a special prosecutor is investigating," Baus said.

Such fears and concerns will no doubt be addressed in the next legislative session, Cornwell said. "I believe the two hotly contested issues will be how a person displays or carries a weapon in a motor vehicle as well as where you can carry it," Cornwell said.

Even so, Cornwell does not foresee the same fight that dominated the legislature earlier this year.

"That is because the fears that many people on both sides of the issue had never became evident," Cornwell said.