What is common sense about that?

January 5, 6:09 AMCleveland Gun Rights ExaminerDaniel White

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You hear a lot about anti-gun pundits wanting "common sense" gun control. But what exactly is common sense about some of the laws they want?

Ohio is known for having some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country, but what are they accomplishing? Are they really making us safer?

Take, for instance, one of my pet peeves, the restrictions placed on concealed handgun license holders when it comes to patronizing a place serving alcohol.

From the Ohio Revised Code:

Sec. 2923.121.  (A) No person shall possess a firearm in any room in which any person is consuming liquor in premises for which a D permit has been issued under Chapter 4303. of the Revised Code or in an open air arena for which a permit of that nature has been issued.

There is an exemption for a retail store (such as a grocery store) provided the CHL holder isn't consuming alcohol, but not for a restaurant. Why not?

Last week, I visited the state of Idaho and brought along my handgun under the Ohio/Idaho reciprocity agreement. While there, I carried my firearm in several restaurants. Some served alcohol, some didn't. Oddly enough, not one person was injured the whole time I was there.

In what reality is it common sense to prohibit licensed individuals from being able to protect themselves just because they happen to be in a restaurant that serves alcohol? Forty other states don't think so. They all have some provision for allowing a CHL holder to patronize a restaurant while carrying their firearm for personal protection. Many have conditions such as not in bars or bar areas, or while not consuming alcohol, but at least there is some common sense involved. The fact that such a large number of states don't have a total ban like Ohio gives us a large base to sample from, and in not one of them are CHL holders going on drunken shooting sprees. It just doesn't happen.

Ohio needs to do away with this insane provision in the law, and make a retail food establishment (restaurant) exempt from the gun ban. It is already against the law to carry a firearm while intoxicated, why this extra restriction? This would be like banning anyone who visits a restaurant from driving afterward, regardless of whether or not they had anything to drink.

Rendering someone defenseless simply because they're in a restaurant that happens to serve alcohol, especially considering all the news we've seen lately about criminals targeting restaurants for armed robbery, is not what enlightened citizens think is right. Fixing this error in the law should be a top priority in 2009.