Two Buckeye Firearms Assoc.-endorsed bills receive hearings
By Jim Irvine
SB247, a bill which will bring Ohio's restoration of rights in line with Federal law and United States Supreme Court ruling, received its first hearing on Wednesday in the Senate Judiciary on Criminal Justice Committee. The bill's primary sponsor, Sen. Jason Wilson, testified about the need for the bill and how his bill will correct the problem affecting many Ohio gun owners. (see below for transcript)
The committee also gave SB239 (Restaurant Carry & Car Carry Rules Fix) its third hearing. Three people testified in support of the bill, including Robert Kelley and Richard Clark who did a good job explaining their reason why current law is flawed and how SB239 will solve their problems.
The third person offering testimony, Texas state legislator Suzanna Gratia Hupp, came at the invitation of Buckeye Firearms Association.
Hupp testified about her experience in the Luby's cafeteria in Kileen, Texas, where a madman killed 22 innocent people. Suzanna was there with her parents, both of whom were murdered. Suzanna was one of multiple people in the room that day that had a handgun, but those guns were left in cars in compliance with state law. Of course Texas has changed their law to correct this fatal flaw, and SB239 will help Ohio correct a similar problem.
Hupp's story is well-known. It was the largest mass killing in the United States until the Virginia Tech massacres. But having her tell the story first-person makes an emotional connection in a way that a TV story simply can not. I have never seen a witness capture the attention of every person in the room the way Hupp did. We thank her for taking the time to travel to Ohio to help us reform our laws so that none of us will ever have to live through the experience of having people we loved gunned down in front of us while we watch helplessly.
For those who missed Suzanna Hupp's book signing at Gander Mountain Reynoldsburg, OH, you can get buy a copy of From Luby's to the Legislature - One Woman's Fight Against Gun Control by clicking here.
Editor's Note: Tennessean Nikki Goeser has made no less than three trips to Ohio to share her heartfelt story of having her husband murdered in front of her by a stalker in a "no-guns" restaurant, and to call for Ohio legislators to pass reforms to our law so that the same thing couldn't happen here. Now Nikki is asking us for a favor as well. She requests that BFA members please write, call or fax to The District Attorney in Nashville TN (Davidson County) and ask that he seek the death penalty for Hank Wise in the murder of Nikki's husband, Ben Goeser.
Washington Square, Suite 500
222 2nd Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37201 - 1649
Phone (615) 862-5500 | Fax (615) 862-5599
Following is sponsor testimony offered by Sen. Jason Wilson on SB247:
Thank you Chairman Grendell and Ranking Member Turner. Ladies and Gentlemen, I stand before you today to offer Sponsor Testimony on Senate Bill 247.
Senate Bill 247 will clarify that Ohio's restoration of firearm rights applies to all firearm rights. There are certain criminal convictions that will disqualify someone form owning a firearm. These convictions run from serious felonies such as murder down to minor misdemeanor possession of marijuana.
Many people under firearm disability may apply to common pleas court to have their firearm rights restored. This process includes filling out an application and then the court will have their probation department run a background check. In most cases the prosecution will not have an objection. If the probation department finds a significant criminal history or if the prosecution objects, the applicant is almost always denied. If the application is granted, the applicant is given a court order restoring their right to own firearms.
This bill is in response to U.S. vs Caron which was decided in June, 1998. That case held that unless a state court restoration of firearms was a COMPLETE restoration of firearm rights, that person is still under firearm disability. The federal government is not allowed to accept less than a complete restoration of gun ownership rights.
About 2 years ago, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives reviewed Ohio's restoration of rights statute after this decision was rendered. They concluded that Ohio's statute was not a COMPLETE restoration. The reason for this is that it specifically does not restore the right to own an extremely regulated and rare category of firearms known as "dangerous ordinance."
For an ordinary law abiding citizen to legally own this kind of item, the local law enforcement chief has to sign off on their application and then the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducts a thorough background check. This process takes roughly 6 months. This process is extremely rare.
However, since the Ohio restoration statute prohibits the person from even attempting the application process, the entire restoration is void in the eyes of the federal government.
The purpose of this bill is to remedy this situation is to take out language dealing with dangerous ordinance. The reality is that very few if any will even attempt to apply for dangerous ordinance but the change is necessary for Ohio to comply with federal law. My goal is to go back to what we were doing to restore gun ownership rights before BAFTE made this determination and that cannot be done without this change.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I would be happy to answer any questions you have at this time.
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