Ohio is a constitutional carry state.
Or, more accurately, it is if you’re over 21. If you’re an adult under 21, well, you’re kind of screwed. There’s no avenue for you to lawfully carry a firearm for self-defense purposes. No, you can’t purchase a handgun in a gun store, but you’re allowed to own one…still can’t carry it, though, even if that guy you graduated high school with can.
While the best solution is to modify the constitutional carry law to include these adults under 21, one Ohio lawmaker is still offering a pathway forward for these folks. Among other things.
State Sen. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, introduced the Freedom to Carry Act that would make it easier to transport shotguns and rifles in vehicles without breaking the law, and it would lower the minimum age from 21 to 18 for those wanting to obtain a concealed carry license.
“We’re fixing an issue that law-abiding citizens are experiencing,” Cutrona said. “We have a lot of outdated policies, and we need to get them in sync with federal laws. We’re trying to avoid people unintentionally breaking the law.”
Under current law, a person can be charged with improper handling of a firearm — a fourth-degree penalty punishable by up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine — for transporting long guns, such as shotguns or rifles, in a vehicle with ammunition either in or near the gun even if a person has a concealed carry license, Cutrona said.
“The state has outdated policies on this,” Cutrona said. “If you’re pulled over going from one property to another to go hunting, it’s a felony if you are transporting long guns in a certain way. This allows law-abiding citizens to carry them during transportation.”
The bill also would lower the age from 21 to 18 for those who wanted to obtain concealed carry licenses, Cutrona said. Currently, those who are 18 in Ohio are permitted to possess and carry firearms, but that is for open carry only, he said.
There’s a similar bill languishing in committee at the moment, so I’m not sure this measure has a better shot at passage, but both aspects of it are good things that simply need to happen.
Yes, constitutional carry is better for these adults under 21, but I’ll take whatever moves the needle forward on gun rights, and this does. I won’t let the perfect be the enemy of the better than nothing. Take what we can get here, then try again next year, especially after literally nothing changes despite the hysterics of how this would lead to “blood in the streets” or whatever.
As for the rifle and shotgun storage, that definitely needs to be fixed. I’m sorry, but that definition sure sounds like having a gun in the trunk of your car with your ammo, or inside the cab of your pickup, is enough to land you with a felony, even though that’s a pretty responsible way to transport it.
How this hasn’t been addressed before now is amazing.
I don’t know how many people get busted for something like that on an annual basis, but even if the number is a decimal, it’s still too damn many.
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