evan price
Member
http://www.dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/08/13/20060813-C6-00.html
For those not in Ohio politics & don't know who Toby Hoover is, she is the anti gun crusader in Ohio.
Few conceal-carry permits revoked, records show
Sheriffs keeping reasons for suspensions, revocations secret
Sunday, August 13, 2006
John Futty
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Two years after Ohio sheriffs began issuing licenses allowing residents to carry concealed guns, few of those licenses have been suspended or revoked.
Supporters of the law say the statistics prove that the training and screening required for applicants are preventing licenses from being issued to those likely to commit crimes or misuse the weapon.
Others say the statistics don’t reveal enough, because the law forbids the release of information about whose licenses were pulled and why.
"Those with the concealed-carry licenses have been good, law-abiding citizens," said Robert Cornwell, executive director of the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association. "The worst-case scenarios that were put out there about the gunfight at the OK Corral didn’t come to fruition."
Of the 73,530 licenses issued from April 2004 through the first quarter of this year, sheriffs’ offices reported 391 suspensions and 217 revocations. That means roughly one of every 121 licenses was suspended or revoked.
More than half of the 100 revocations issued statewide this year came from the Cuyahoga County sheriff’s office after accusations that dozens of license-holders were trained by a weapons instructor who didn’t provide the training required by state law.
The instructor has been charged with 46 felony counts of forgery and 23 felony counts of tampering with records.
But the reasons for other suspensions and revocations are largely a mystery. The concealcarry law Ohio legislators enacted keeps private most of the information about license-holders.
"I look at the stats and it doesn’t tell me a lot, because it doesn’t tell why they were suspended," said Toby Hoover, executive director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence.
The law requires sheriffs, whose offices issue the licenses, to suspend the license of anyone arrested or charged with certain crimes, including any felony, drug offense or domestic-violence offense. A court-issued protection order against the license-holder also results in suspension.
The license is to be revoked if the holder is convicted of a disqualifying crime or moves out of the state. There also are prohibitions on those judged mentally incompetent or drug or alcohol dependent.
The law restricts the release of information about the licenses to journalists, whose access is limited to the names, birth dates and county of residence for license-holders. News organizations have argued that information on the licenses should be open to the public.
Sheriffs’ offices in Franklin and Cuyahoga counties cited state law last month in denying a Dispatch request for copies of notification letters the offices have mailed to those whose licenses were suspended or revoked.
Supervisors in both offices said they are confident that the system for identifying licenses that must be suspended or revoked is working.
Franklin County has issued 2,957 licenses, suspended 11 and revoked one since the program began. Cuyahoga County has issued 1,906, suspended 16 and revoked 57.
State Rep. James Aslanides, a Republican from Coshocton who was chief sponsor of the legislation allowing Ohioans to carry concealed guns, has opposed the public release of any information about license-holders, saying it endangers them and their families.
"I have argued that records are too open when it comes to those who have the licenses, but whether they are too closed on revocations and suspensions is another argument," he said. "I’d rather have journalists have access to the revocations and suspensions than information about all license-holders."
[email protected]
For those not in Ohio politics & don't know who Toby Hoover is, she is the anti gun crusader in Ohio.
She would like to be able to pull up a list of suspended/revoked CCW permit holders, and see how many were pulled & for what reason, so that she can use those figures to further her anti-gun organizations' goals.