[Ukraine Train]

http://www.cleveland.com/lorain/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/lorain/107479171077290.xml


Man buys gun on day of murder

01/22/04

Rachel Dissell
Plain Dealer Reporter


Lorain

George Kallas didn't have any trouble getting a gun.

He strode calmly into a gun shop Tuesday on Ohio 57 and breezed through an instant background check, before returning a short time later because his ammunition was too large for his gun.


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Then he shot and killed his wife of 40 years, police say.

Barbara Kallas, 57, was in the parking lot of Lorain library's main branch, where she worked, when she was shot five times. Lorain County Coroner Paul Matus said a bullet pierced her heart.

In the days before, the couple had argued about her job as a library assistant. George Kallas thought it was an unsafe place and wanted her to quit, according to a police report.

Lorain police confiscated three rifles and a .38-caliber Special from Kallas the day of the fight but did not charge him for pushing down his wife. She didn't want them to, according to police. Instead, she said she would stay with a relative

In Ohio, there is no wait to buy a gun for a person who has no criminal record.

Before 1998, a buyer had to wait up to five days, but the requirement disappeared when the federal government enabled a gun dealer to sell in as little as 30 seconds.

Under the law, part of the 1993 Brady Act, states do have the right to institute a waiting period if they choose.

Lorain Lt. Jim Rohner, who heads the city’s detective bureau, said a person should have a “cooling off” period before buying a gun — even if it’s only a few days. “I think it’s crazy someone can go in and get a background check and have a gun in a matter of an hour,” he said. “What’s the hurry? When you’re buying a gun why do you need it right now?”

But Mike Titlow, who owns the shop that sold Kallas the gun, said the system usually works. He said Kallas was professional and joked with employees in the store Tuesday.

If a person seeking a gun seems antsy or angry, Titlow said, his staff will question why they want a gun. “I wish we weren’t connected to this [death] in any way,” he said. “We feel awful.”

Kallas pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of aggravated murder. He is being held on a $1 million bond. He did not speak in Lorain Municipal Court.

A few relatives sitting in the front row cried during the proceeding and gasped at the bond amount.

Marjorie Kallas, his sister-in-law, said the retired Ford worker was fine last summer, even happy, but had changed.

“I never would imagine in my wildest dreams he would have done something like this,” she said. Kallas’ attorney, Kenneth Lieux, said his client was in shock.

When the library reopened at 3 p.m. Wednesday, the shooting was a topic of chatter among kids from two nearby schools and library patrons. Lorain Middle School had counselors available to talk to children who saw the shooting or were frightened because of it.

The library staff was part of Kallas’ family, and her family made up part of the staff. Her son Jonathan worked with her as a library aide inLorain, and her daughter-in-law Denise worked at the North Ridgeville branch. Co-worker Debra Jackson said Barbara Kallas was gracious and outgoing.

“Even the grumpiest of people got nothing but smiles back from her. She was calm and patient with everyone.”

Plain Dealer reporter Carl Matzelle and news researcher JoEllen Corrigan contributed to this story

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: rdissell@plaind.com, 800-767-2821

© 2004 The Plain Dealer. Used with permission.
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Seems to me that even with a waiting period, if someone has the intent of killing but they "cool off" because they can't get the gun right then they'll just get that intent a few days or a week later after they have the gun or they'll just find a different way to kill.

[BenW]

“I wish we weren’t connected to this [death] in any way,” he said. “We feel awful.”
Appropriate sentiment by the blameless gun shop, but I can already see the litigious vultures circling in search of a deep pocket. Sometimes in today's "who can we blame?" society it's better to stay quiet and be thought insensitive.

[esheato]

“I think it’s crazy someone can go in and get a background check and have a gun in a matter of an hour,” he said. “What’s the hurry? When you’re buying a gun why do you need it right now?”

I dislike waiting periods, but I deal with them. The people proposing waiting periods aren't the ones that have to wait through them.

But...It gets really ludicrous when you turn the tables on non-gun owners.

Institute a waiting period when you buy a vehicle. How 'bout a waiting period for those new stereo components you want? How would you like to be told, "Yes ma'am, you qualify for this stereo, but ther's a 5 day waiting period before you can pick them up." Who would settle for that?

Sound crazy? Yes, because it is crazy.

esheato..

[Ukraine Train]

Good call esheato

LOL it's like saying you can't receive this chocolate ice cream for three days because it's unhealthy and you need to "cool off" and consider the risks of eating it.:banghead:

[esheato]

My point exactly.

Try to find someone that would put up with it. Nobody would, and why they expect us to do it with our hobby is ludicrous.

Some people buy guns to collect them because they enjoy shooting. But when you REALLY need a gun, you need a gun! Some people REALLY need a gun for the wrong reasons (original article)...but without the gun, it would have been a baseball bat, a knife...anything...

esheato....

[P95Carry]

Another very unwelcome event for all RKBA people ...... altho in itself a very small addition to the ''bad'' statistics - a sad one nonetheless.

The sort of happening that will tend to get all the worst of exposure and be blown up into something to ''their'' advantage to the max.:(

[wingnutx]

At least he didn't push her out a window.

[Atticus]

" In the days before, the couple had argued about her job as a library assistant. George Kallas thought it was an unsafe place and wanted her to quit, according to a police report."

Like a few days would have mattered to that nut case.

[71Commander]

He was right though. It was unsafe at the library:banghead:

How ironic.

[Penforhire]

“What’s the hurry? When you’re buying a gun why do you need it right now?”

Now there's a smart statement :barf:

If I were as clever as Lt. Jim Rohner I might say, "police don't prevent crime so why do we need so many of 'em? You're fired Jim."

[Zundfolge]

FINALY the antis have a single example of a murder that might have been prevented by a waiting period (although I doubt it)

If the media didn't bury self defense accounts on purpose, I bet we could come up with a dozen or so cases where someone was murdered during the waiting period because they couldn't get a self defense gun when they needed it, or a few stories of people who defended themselves on the same day they bought their gun.


Isolated anecdotes DO NOT show the whole picture (too bad your average American has become too stupid to understand that)

[Dorian]

Yes.. This was, of course, the GUNS fault and not the fault of the man who wanted to kill his wife.

[esheato]

FINALY the antis have a single example of a murder that might have been prevented by a waiting period

...And you also have an example for the gun-rights crowd. She might not have been killed if she had a firearm. Ohh, that dreaded waiting period just might not have let her get a firearm in her possesion in time to defend herself.

It's all in perspective.

esheato...

[greyhound]

I know its kinda blunt, but if a man decides he's going to kill his wife of 40 years, he's going to do it one way or another.

Make him wait 7 days to buy a gun and he'll just do it some other way.

Someone "joking and acting professional" in the gun shop has this waaay planned out. In fact, I might be wrong - anyone that cool and calm might just wait 7 days.

Bottom line is blame the man, not the tool.

[OF]

<whine>If only Ohio had waiting periods this tradgedy could have been avoided!</whine>

It is so moronic it defies description.

- Gabe

[Boats]

I can't believe that no one has yet pointed out that a cooling off period for an abortion is unconstitutional. Applied to your gun rights, a "cooling off period" is just another reasonable restriction permitted by judges who won't strike it down as unconstitutional.

We won't even get go to that point where I point out that the "right" to an abortion is not mentioned in the constitution whereas arms are in there explicitly.

[Bill Hook]

In the days before, the couple had argued about her job as a library assistant. George Kallas thought it was an unsafe place and wanted her to quit, according to a police report.

Yeah, thanks to him. :rolleyes:

You think your wife's place of employment is unsafe and she might get hurt, so you kill her over the disagreement. DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It already sounds like he had a few days to cool off.

[BHPshooter]

That truly is sad.

However, insisting on a waiting period is an accusation that the buyer IS going to commit a crime. At the point that he bought the gun he hadn't committed a crime. He still had a CHOICE not to kill his wife up until he did it.

I guess if no one understands that, they need to rent "Minority Report."

By the same token, the guy could have bought the gun to protect his family from an imminent attack. There's just no way to know, not that we could do anyting. All we can do is punish him after he does something, but not before.

Wes

[Standing Wolf]

George Kallas thought it was an unsafe place...

I guess it was.

[nico]

We won't even get go to that point where I point out that the "right" to an abortion is not mentioned in the constitution whereas arms are in there explicitly.
it's exactly the same way with cars. Tonight on a local radio station (WMAL for locals) they were talking about a VA proposal to make people convicted of DUI have yellow liscence plates for a month as part of the punnishment. They talked about how generally a first time offender gets off with a fine, some class, and probation. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't possession of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol a felony that results in the revocation of the right to own a firearm and possible jail time? :fire: It really bothers me that owning a car and being able to drive is seen as a right, but owning a firearm for self protection isn't.

As for this case, I don't think a waiting period would have helped the woman any more than a restraining order would.

[blackrazor]

oh yeah... if only they had a cooling off period in Ohio! Everything would have been OK... he certainly couldn't use any of the other THREE guns he already had to kill her. :rolleyes:

Waiting periods are bad enough, but it's even more nonsensical to make someone wait who already owns a gun. I own over a dozen firearms, but since I'm lucky enough to live in the people's republic of Kali, I get to wait 10 days if I want to pick up another one. :cuss:

[Art Eatman]

For several years, I made an effort to track this sort of "Buy gun, go shoot someone" event. As near as I can tell, it's maybe once per year per state, as a generalization. Round numbers, 50 or so such homicides per year, compared to the 13,000 or 14,000 homicides where firearms are used.

Art

[TheeBadOne]

Be prepared to hear about this one for a long time. :uhoh:

[nico]

well, you know how it works art. "if it saves just one life" :barf:

[megatronrules]

Another side of the coin is the cop who says why do you need a gun right now? Well easy for him to say he already has one. Also what if say for example my life or yours even was threatened and I felt I was in real danger what If I needed that gun now where would I be?,probably dead while my cooling off period was going on :rolleyes:

[SIGarmed]

Lorain Lt. Jim Rohner, who heads the city’s detective bureau, said a person should have a “cooling off” period before buying a gun — even if it’s only a few days. “I think it’s crazy someone can go in and get a background check and have a gun in a matter of an hour,” he said. “What’s the hurry? When you’re buying a gun why do you need it right now?”

How about we pass a law that systematically requires for Police to have a cooling off period before they strap on a firearm in performance of their duties? After all they have one of the most stressfull jobs and deal with some of the worst our society has to offer. It would go a long way to prevent suicides and it would make our communities safer. They should do it for the children.

Something tells me Lt. Jim Rohner would oppose such a law as if it were a law requiring for Police to give up their first born sons but at the same time this jerk thinks that we the people don't matter.



This is the case that anti-gun leftists have been waiting for, but their reasoning is really disingenious. For the most part leftists are at the helm of every liberal indoctrination center in the country such as DC, New York,Los Angeles, and other cities. Politically left cities aren't known for their peace loving residents and are among the cities with the highest murder rates in the country. In every one of these places there are stringent victim disarmament laws in place. These laws have proven their worth by doing nothing but making it harder for the honest citizen. You'd think murder wouldn't be a shock to liberals being as they control the area's that see the most problems but you know you haven't heard the last of this article.

If I hear cries for more restrictions because of this case I'll just think to myself that anti-gun leftists are the ones responsible for many an untimely death. Their arguements for waiting periods are meritless.

[Delmar]

Gee, if she would have only filed a restraining order against her husband, the LAW would have certainly protected her:rolleyes:

[Lennyjoe]

Lorain police confiscated three rifles and a .38-caliber Special from Kallas the day of the fight but did not charge him for pushing down his wife.
So if he wasnt charged with any crime why didnt he get the weapons returned to him?

I have been to that library plenty of times before and its not an unsafe place to work at all.

This guy was off his rocker.

[71Commander]

quote:

Lorain police confiscated three rifles and a .38-caliber Special from Kallas the day of the fight but did not charge him for pushing down his wife.
----------------------------------------------------------------

Looks like the police srewed up and are looking to pass the blame.

[swingset]

Lorain police confiscated three rifles and a .38-caliber Special from Kallas the day of the fight but did not charge him for pushing down his wife. She didn't want them to, according to police. Instead, she said she would stay with a relative

So, he didn't even need the handgun to kill her "right now", did he? He simply bought a gun the day he was going to kill his wife. Had he been turned down or had to wait 5 days, he'd have likely just used one of the rifles he already owned. Of course, the antis would just ban everything so he couldn't have killed her at all. Ooops...knife/bat/hammer. Guess that woman was going to die, sadly, no matter what laws were in place.

[Hal]

I have been to that library plenty of times before and its not an unsafe place to work at all.
lenny,

6th and Reid's gotten kind of nasty. (where the libray is)
We used to live on 6th just a few blocks from the library and it's weird cause my wife and I were commenting a couple of weeks ago how bad the area has become.

I've heard the name George Kallas before, I just can't place it. IIRC, the Kallas family is pretty well known in Lorain. I believe one of the Kallas children (girls) was in the International Festival.

[TheOtherOne]

He strode calmly into a gun shop Tuesday on Ohio 57 and breezed through an instant background check, before returning a short time later because his ammunition was too large for his gun. :eek: What!? How?? I thought the background check was hooked up to the pre-cogs from Minority Report? Isn't this the fault of Tom Cruise -- I say prosecute his failure.

[FPrice]

"In Ohio, there is no wait to buy a gun for a person who has no criminal record."

Why should there be?

[Nickotym]

of the revolver that got confiscated?


".38-caliber Special "

Don't know if it is just unfamiliarity ( we would call it a .38 special caliber) or a deliberate attempt to make the 38 special sound like a "Saturday Night Special". I can see a reporter doing the first, but can also see them trying to make it sound worse than it is too.

[Art Eatman]

When folks bring up this "cooling off" deal, I ask about the consequence where a woman had to wait before taking delivery on her handgun. During that time, her restraining-ordered ex-husband murdered her. (Pennsylvania?) That was not a unique event; it has happened more than once...

Art

[RustyHammer]

Was married to her for 40 years ...
then shot her ...
anyone else besides me see a connection?

The gun had nothing to do with it!

/Rusty

(If he hadn't used a gun, he would have
found something else.)