Tale of Two Cities: 20th Toledo bank robbery this year; Louisville robber killed

A man with dreadlocks yesterday robbed the National City Bank branch at 3890 Monroe St. of an undisclosed amount of money in Toledo's 20th holdup of a financial institution this year.

The man entered the bank about 10:20 a.m. and handed a teller a note demanding money. The teller gave him the cash, and then fled the branch in an easterly direction. No weapon was seen, and the robber didn't threaten the teller with one, authorities said.

It is the second time the bank has been robbed in just over a month. A man robbed the bank May 9.

Meanwhile, in a nearby state that allows its law-abiding citizens to a carry concealed handgun for self-defense, a similar story had a much different ending for this bank robber:

Click on the "Read More..." link below for more.

The Courier-Journal, Louisville, KY

The robber fraternity apparently has failed to spread the word among its members that hitting the Bank of Clarkson, Kentucky, when banker Clyde Bratcher is on duty can be a fatal mistake. Bratcher was in his office one Tuesday afternoon when a man vaulted over the bank counter and declared, "This is a robbery!" Bratcher charged to the rescue, firing twice with a handgun whose shots fatally struck the bandit in the chest. He had protected the bank's assets in a similar manner only three years earlier by dispatching yet another would-be crook who walked into the bank wielding a rifle and wearing a stocking on his head. Bratcher s grandfather also named Clyde Bratcher was a bank president when, in 1958, he ran off three bandits, pointing at them with a gun whose 35-year old cartridges failed to fire.

• Could the lifting of Ohio's unconstitutional ban on carrying a concealed weapon for self-defense have protected these 20 (and counting) Toledo banks, as this bank was protected in Virginia?

• Even if there were a right-to-carry law in Ohio, would Toledo's ban on the legal purchase or ownership of affordable handguns prevent these banker employees from protecting themselves?

Contact information for the area's elected officials is provided below:

State House of Representatives
• Rep. Edna Brown (D-48) - consistent anti-CCW voter
Phone: (614) 466-1401
Fax: (614) 644-9494

State Senate
• Sen. Teresa Fedor (D-11) - Senator Fedor sits on the Criminal Justice Committee, which is considering HB12
Phone: (614) 466-5204

Toledo City Council:
• Clerk of Council Michael Beazley
Phone: (419) 245-1060
Fax: (419) 245-1072

Council tied 6-6 on the vote to renew the ban on affordable handgun purchases in Lucas County.

Toledo Mayor's Office:
• Mayor Jack Ford
Phone: (419) 245-1001
Fax: (419) 245-1001

Mayor Ford has announced his opposition to concealed carry reform in Ohio, and broke the tie in city council to uphold the ban on affordable handguns for Toledoans.

Click here to read the entire story in the Toledo Blade.