Exercising the Right
“We Want People to Do the Right Thing”
The Dayton Daily News reported out of Ohio on November 15 about elected leaders actually looking to protect gun rights for a change. A bipartisan group of legislators in the Ohio state Senate unanimously approved a bill that would grant civil immunity to anyone who engages in armed self-defense to protect attendees of religious institutions or any nonprofit organization. This would mean that if there is any type of violent attack at a church or similar locale and a law-abiding person uses his own firearm to halt the attack, that individual would not be liable for any injuries occurring as a result of that armed self-defense.
The bill is now before the Ohio House, and considering how it succeeded in the Senate due to support from gun lobbyists and religious organizations, odds are good that it will succeed in the House as well. Republican Ohio Senator Tim Schaffer, who sponsored the bill, explained that “the concept for this legislation was brought to my attention by a constituent who wants to close the loophole in current law for his church…. My constituent’s church has highly trained members who carry concealed as a part of their structured defensive protection plan, as do many other places of worship throughout our state.”
President and CEO of Ohio Jewish Communities Howie Beigelman identified the bill as a “critical missing piece to community safety.” Beigelman testified in support of the bill before the Legislature, and explained that “whether on duty, off duty, or as private security, we depend on armed individuals to be our last line of defense…. What this legislation will do is very simply provide legal immunity to those defending houses of worship, preschools, summer camps, community centers, nursing homes, and college student groups from those with deadly intent.”
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