Gov. DeWine and Republican lawmakers trampled police concerns over law that will transform Ohio into Wild We – cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- I recognize the right to bear arms, and for me to whine about how shortsighted Ohioans are on this constitutional right is to pick a fight that cant be won.

In the 1700s, the right made sense. An armed militia had a duty that served and protected. Nowadays, firearms that people can readily buy at Walmart seem out of sync with contemporary mores.

But some safeguards had been in place till now.

Gov. Mike DeWine signed legislation Monday that loosened the restrictions on gun ownership. Recreating in Ohio the Wild West days of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, DeWine thought it wise to allow a person over the age of 21 to carry a concealed handgun without a permit.

The legislation the governor OKd also eliminated the requirement that a person take classes to obtain a gun permit. People can walk into a gun shop, show ID and then slide that Glock 19 they bought into their waistband.

This is what we get in feckless politicians like DeWine and from state legislators who govern year-round. Their idle minds find ways to make mischief and awaken a political base, and what better way to do that than stoking fears about crime and how to protect ourselves against it?

Stand-your-ground legislation is one thing; having two people stand their ground with handguns is a different proposition altogether.

Tuning out those who knew better, DeWine and Republicans trampled the concerns of local cops and county sheriffs. The Fraternal Order of Police, predicting a rise in violent crime, had opposed the legislation.

One Democrat in the Ohio Senate called the law anti-public safety and anti-police.

He was right.

To put a face to such concerns, critics of the law Im one of them need only recount the tale of the off-duty police officer killed on New Years Eve in a West Side carjacking.

Charged in his death was an 18-year-old woman who should not have had a handgun in her possession. We know she had no problem finding one.

Various sources put the number of guns at 393 million in homes and other places in America, enough to ensure every person has one. In 2021, gun deaths topped 20,000, and deaths from bullet wounds continue to pile up in 2022.

What the totals suggest is that guns dont make the U.S. safer; they make it deadlier.

I suspect Clevelanders who support open carry and freer access to guns will trumpet the fact murders here dipped from 179 in 2020 to 165 last year, ignoring two salient points: covid isolation and the fact the 21 total was still the second highest in decades.

Lawmakers had to have heard bullets ricocheting in Columbus as well. The city recorded more gun deaths in 2021 than in 2020.

Gun ownership is an obsession of Ohioans. Many cling to this constitutional right; few of them apologize for standing behind the Second Amendment, 26 well-chosen words unseen in the governing principles of fellow democracies.

Jefferson, Hancock & Co. followed no blueprint in penning these magnificent words, which reflect a pioneers soul.

Their handiwork, however, needs revision. For nobody wants to see shootouts that mirror the O.K. Corral.

Im unsurprised DeWine disregarded the carnage handguns left on Black lives. But did he forget the lives in blue?

Let me answer: Yes.

Justice B. Hill grew up on the citys East Side. He practiced journalism for more than 25 years before settling into teaching at Ohio University. He quit May 15, 2019, to write and globetrot. Hes doing both.

Justice Hill, columnist for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer. January 14, 2022. - Justice Hill, columnist for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer David Petkiewcz, cleveland.comDavid Petkiewcz, cleveland.com

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Gov. DeWine and Republican lawmakers trampled police concerns over law that will transform Ohio into Wild We - cleveland.com