Pro-Gun Punditry: Wednesday's Buckeye State Roundabout

There are more stories pertaining to our gun rights in Ohio then we can possibly draw attention to with individual daily commentary. But they are worthy of mention.

What follows is our weekly review of headlines from around the state though a pro-gun rights lens.

From details on what can only be described as an extremely violent week for defenseless victims, to news of another Congressional candidate with anti-gun backing, this article deserves be a part of your required reading!

Click on the "Read More..." link below for seven days of headlines accompanied by short, concise pro-gun analysis.

Thursday in Akron: Union endorses Capri Cafaro

Although Capri Cafaro has yet to declare as a Democratic candidate for the 13th Congressional District seat being vacated by Sherrod Brown, she nonetheless received a major union endorsement Tuesday. United Auto Workers Local 1714, out of Lordstown, stated its intention to strongly ``encourage'' Cafaro to seek Brown's seat. ``We know that Capri, if she chooses to seek this seat, will run an industrious campaign and will be the best representative for the interests of the 13th Congressional District,'' said Jim Kaster, president of Local 1714. In a news release, the chairman of the UAW's Community Action Program Council said he is ``keenly aware of Capri Cafaro's commitment to Ohio and America's working families... and we have taken this unprecedented action to demonstrate our show of support to encourage Capri to enter this race.'' Liberty Township businessman Vic Rubenstein, who is Cafaro's spokesman, said she has not decided whether to enter the race. He noted that Cafaro was out of town, but he had spoken to her and she was ``absolutely honored by the endorsement.'' Rubenstein said he didn't know which way she was leaning as far as entering the race was concerned. ``This endorsement will certainly weigh heavily upon her decision on whether or not she will run,'' he said. Cafaro, a shopping-center heiress from the Youngstown area, ran her first political race last year against U.S. Rep Steve LaTourette, R-Madison. Others who have declared for the 13th District seat include Wayne Jones, chairman of the Summit County Board of Elections; Tom Sawyer, former U.S. representative, Akron mayor and state legislator; Ted Kalo, Lorain County commissioner; and Betty Sutton, a former state representative. The 13th District includes parts of Summit, Medina, Lorain and Cuyahoga counties.

Cafaro's campaign funding comes from her family's shopping center empire, and it bears noting that all those shopping centers were posted with "no-guns" signs following passage of Ohio's concealed carry law in 2004.

Thursday in Dayton: Daytonian 'critical' after shooting

A 46-year-old man was in critical condition following surgery Wednesday night at Miami Valley Hospital after being shot in the alley behind his home in the 200 block of Wroe Avenue. Police were dispatched at 7:06 p.m., said Lt. John Bardun, where the man told investigators he was putting his minivan in the garage and was outside when a man tried to rob him. He described the shooter as a man in his late teens or early 20s, of medium build, wearing a black, puffy coat or parka.

Follow-up stories have discussed what a quiet neighborhood this victim lived in, and how no-one has ever had to worry about this type of thing happening there. The victim's mother-in-law told the newspaper "Lonnie wouldn't fight him. He's got too much at stake." We're not sure what more could have been at stake than his life, and not fighting back certainly didn't protect him. Getting a concealed handgun license and carrying it all the time is no different than buying fire insurance for your house - you hope you never have to use it, but you're not willing to take the risk either.

Friday in Dayton: Couple stabbed in home invasion

A man and a woman were stabbed Thursday at 1325 Chardon Court, after two masked people entered the house about 5:15 p.m. The attackers were described as a man and a woman. Dayton police Lt. Randy Beane said investigators were told a woman opened the door to throw some cleaning water outside when the attackers came into the house. Another male inside the house was not injured, but was robbed of some money, Beane said. The two injured were taken to Miami Valley Hospital and reported in good condition.

Know anyone who thinks banning guns will stop violent crime? Tell them to think again.

Friday in Springfield: 2 assaults may be by same men

Police have found connections between the assault of Springfield News-Sun Editor Paul Profeta in the Meijer parking lot early Tuesday and another beating late Monday. "Here we have people moving about our community, trying to work for their families and do what's right, and people are taking advantage of that with violent intentions," Springfield Police Chief Stephen Moody said. "They're just cowards." Three men in their 20s confronted a 26-year-old Springfield woman in the parking lot of Pizza Hut, 2501 E. Main St., at about 11:10 p.m. Monday, according to a police report. She told them she had no money, and one punched her in the mouth and struck her body several times with a bottle. The woman was able to escape and call police, Moody said. Profeta, 49, was brutally attacked about one hour later on his way into the north entrance of Meijer, 1500 Hillcrest Ave. Three men of a similar description charged Profeta from behind, and one of the men beat him over the head with a bottle while the others encouraged the assault. "Based on the information involved, the suspects, the vehicle descriptions and the method these men employed to attack the victims, we believe strongly that they're connected," Moody said.

Lots of reasons to remember the need for self-defense preparations in the Miami Valley this week.

Sunay in Akron: Failure to fix term limits

Frustration with the effects of term limits on the state legislature continued this past year. What fizzled was a commitment to do something about it. Talk of a modest statewide ballot issue to extend legislative term limits from eight to 12 years collapsed, the uninspired effort failing to match the seriousness of the problem. When voters gave their approval in 1992, term limits were widely viewed as a big step toward more responsive government. Instead, the restrictions have cut short the institutional memory of the legislature, a critical element in grappling effectively with complex problems. Lobbyists, interest groups and local public officials all complain: Getting lawmakers to understand a problem is often a monumental task. Worse, term limits have heightened a preoccupation with fund-raising and hot-button issues, at the expense of steady progress. Bob Bennett, the Ohio Republican Party chairman, made a push to reconsider term limits, along with a handful of members of the minority Democratic caucus. Soon, their efforts became bogged down in a legislature focused on other matters. Richard Finan took up the torch. The former Ohio Senate president hasn't yet moved much beyond contemplating a voter-initiated ballot issue for the fall ballot next year. The legislature should summon the courage to put an issue on the ballot that would repeal term limits. Elections every two years for state representatives and every four years for state senators create ample accountability and a steady inflow of new blood. What term limits prevent is the formation of a core of veterans whose stature and experience give them the perspective to guide new members and see the state as a whole.

At the time, term limits were billed as a way to take the money and powerful out of politics. The next time they tout another gun control experiment, keep in mind that it was the establishment media that was wrong about the unintended consequences of this term-limits experiment, and wrong about the free-speech-infringing Federal campaign finance reform law.

Tuesday in Jefferson: Man accused of killing estranged wife, her boyfriend

A man is accused of shooting his estranged wife and her boyfriend to death in front of two of the married couple's children on Christmas Day, then kidnapping his 4-year-old son, authorities said. The couple's 7-year-old daughter called 911 to report the shooting, Ashtabula County Sheriff William Johnson said. The boy was recovered unharmed at his father's home. John Marsh, 32, was to be arraigned Tuesday on two counts of aggravated murder, one count of aggravated burglary and one count of aggravated kidnapping. Jennifer Marsh, 30, and David Beach, 32, were shot several times, the Ashtabula County coroner's office said. They were killed in the home Mrs. Marsh rented in Williamsfield Township in the northeast Ohio county. A 12-year-old son was away. Mrs. Marsh's father, Charles Mercer, said his daughter filed for divorce in September, accusing her husband of domestic violence and obtaining a court order for him to stay away. "There were threats, but not much we could do," Mercer said.

Yet another tragedy because someone chose to rely on a piece of paper for protection. There IS something Ohioans in these situations can do. Ohio law allows persons who have reason to fear for their lives to obtain a temporary emergency handgun license without having to take a class or wait 45 days for a license.

Wednesday in Columbus: OH Supreme Court Justice Reprimanded

A panel of state appellate judges publicly reprimanded Ohio Supreme Court Justice Alice Robie Resnick on Wednesday, saying her drunken driving conviction violated the state's judicial code of conduct. No other discipline was recommended. At least one other judge's law license was suspended following a third drunken driving conviction, the panel noted, but said Resnick's case differed. She has had no discipline against her since she was sworn in as an attorney in 1964, and quickly took responsibility for her conviction, the judges said. Resnick, 66, also acknowledged every allegation the same day an attorney discipline complaint was filed against her in November. The complaint said she violated the part of the code that says, "A judge shall respect and comply with the law and shall act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary." The high court usually handles attorney discipline cases, but the justices can't hear a case that involves one of their own.... Resnick was pulled over on Jan. 31 and at first drove away from state troopers who asked her to take a sobriety test at a gas station. Troopers then followed her and pulled her over when she committed a traffic violation. In a video shot by a patrol car camera, Resnick tells a sergeant questioning her that "I did have something to drink." She repeatedly asks to be let go and mentions her rulings as a judge, saying, "My God, you know I decide all these cases in your favor. And my golly, look what you're doing to me." She pleaded guilty to drunken driving in February, paid a $600 fine and had her driver's license suspended for six months.

In upholding the constitutionality of the (now defunct) concealed carry ban in 2003, Resnick and the majority found that the restriction on the right to bear arms for self-defense was necessary because it served "a compelling government interest'' - that of protecting the "public safety." Ironic, isn't it, that drunk drivers truly DO present a documented threat to public safety, while concealed handgun licenseholders have been proven to be some of the most law-abiding citizens in our society?

Wednesday in Bellefontaine: Police want boy charged as adult in rape-murder

Prosecutors want to charge a 16-year-old boy as an adult in the rape and fatal beating of a 72-year-old woman over the weekend, months after the boy was paroled in a 2003 rape case. Christopher Tindall was charged Tuesday with juvenile delinquency counts of burglary, aggravated burglary, aggravated murder, rape and abuse of a corpse, said Kim Martin, chief assistant Logan County prosecutor. A motion was filed seeking to transfer the case to adult court because of the boy's age and the severity of the charges. Police discovered the body of Joan Green on Saturday after noticing her home appeared to have been broken into. Officers had been investigating a break-in at a pizza parlor next door. Tindall is accused in that break-in, and police say items from the restaurant and a residence were found at his group home. Tindall was sent to the group home in August when he was paroled in the 2003 case, in which he entered the juvenile equivalent of a guilty plea to raping a girl who attended his school at a home near Indian Lake. Logan County Family Court Judge Michael Brady said he gave the then-13-year-old Tindall the maximum sentence, juvenile detention until age 21 with parole eligibility after one year. State officials paroled him after two years, and the Family Court sent him to the group home and added requirements for counseling and supervision. Tindall was not required to register as a sex offender because he was younger than 14 when the rape was committed, Brady said.

As if being registered as a sex-offender could have protected this victim? No, the truth is no-one else - not the justice system, not law enforcement, not neighbors - can protect you from evil - only you can protect you. As a reader of this website, you are more informed on matters of self-defense than most of your friends, family, etc. It is time to share your knowledge! It is time to tell those you love and care about to make a New Years' resolution to make their self-defense preparations before it is too late.