Letter to the Editor: Concealed-carry bill takes right approach

A pro-HB12 letter to the editor has been published in today's Columbus Dispatch.

The writer, Mike Place of Dublin, certainly knows something that Ohio Highway Patrol Superintendant Paul McClellan does not.

Click here to read the letter in the Columbus Dispatch (subscription site - paid access only). An archived version is available by clicking on the "Read More..." link below.

Friday, March 14, 2003

If readers believe, as I do, that crime will expand to the tolerance of the victims and their ability to resist, they must support any law that increases the peril, real or perceived, for society's predators.

House Bill 12, which would allow the concealed carry of handguns, presents an opportunity to shift some of the power of fear held by society's criminals to the very best of our citizens.

Restrictions imposed by the bill on prospective licensees prohibit all but the most law-abiding from receiving a permit to carry.

Further, the list of areas where carry is prohibited is so inclusive that some argue the law will not be an effective deterrent. As one might expect, considering the legal restrictions on who can carry and where, crime data from the nearly 90 percent of the other states with concealed-carry laws indicate an extraordinarily low crime rate involving those with permits.

Emotional arguments notwithstanding, House Bill 12 will act as a deterrent to criminals and has very little statistical downside.

MIKE PLACE
Dublin