The City of Columbus filed a lawsuit against Ohio, claiming that the state has exceeded its power by passing legislation making it difficult for municipalities to establish specific gun control measures.
The lawsuit, filed in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, follows an Ohio judge ruling which denied the city of Columbus’ request to allow them to enforce their new gun control laws, while the lawsuit filed by The Buckeye Institute to protect the rights of Ohioans to keep and bear arms is being heard.
The Columbus City Council passed an ordinance in December 2022, making it unlawful to own a gun magazine that holds 30 or more rounds of ammunition by anyone other than a federal or state agent, armed services member, or a member of state or local law enforcement, and mandates firearm storage in the home. Also, it penalizes the straw sales of firearms when someone buys a gun to sell or gives it to someone prohibited from having one.
The lawsuit urges the court to declare that the city’s gun safety ordinances are enforceable and that the state laws restricting the local authority from implementing gun control restrictions are unconstitutional.
The complaint targets two Ohio weapons laws.
The lawsuit claims that municipal law makes it a misdemeanor infraction if a minor not in the gun owner’s care can obtain a stored handgun and cause injury, despite Ohio law having no particular requirements for the safe storage of firearms.
At the moment, Ohio law only permits a prosecutor to file charges against a parent or guardian if their child has access to a firearm and causes harm to themselves or someone else.
The lawsuit seeks to rule that Ohio’s Senate Bill (SB) 156 does not prevent the full implementation of its ordinances. The plaintiffs contend that while SB 156 prevents Ohio communities from forbidding the carrying of knives, it also contains wording that some may interpret as nullifying the city’s gun control laws.
The complaint also addresses a Columbus code that controls how the city’s leaders can exercise their authority in times of emergency, including riots and natural disasters. Additionally, it permits the suspension of the sale of alcohol and weapons in the impacted regions.
But according to the lawsuit, the state passed a law in December 2022 that expressly forbids any political subdivision, elected or appointed official, or state employee from forbidding the sale and transit of guns.
Columbus Solicitor General Rich Coglianese told The Ohio Star that the city is prepared to do what is necessary to enforce its new gun control regulations.
“The City is prepared to defend its right to enact and enforce gun safety laws that make sense for us here in Columbus, just as we are in countless other areas of the law. Carving out exceptions because that’s what the NRA wants doesn’t make it constitutional. It simply makes it harder for police and prosecutors to do their jobs,” Coglianese told The Star.
According to Buckeye Firearms Association Executive Director Dean Rieck, “The City of Columbus is blatantly flouting both state law and a judge’s orders and the Buckeye Firearms Association will fight Columbus in the court and in the legislature over their renegade ordinances.”
Communications director for Attorney General Dave Yost Bethany McCorkle told The Star that they cannot comment as they have not yet received the lawsuit.
“We cannot comment as they have not provided us with a copy of the lawsuit. However, local ordinances that violate citizens’ constitutional rights are simply against the law,” McCorkle told The Star.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Franklin County Court of Common Pleas” by â±®. CC BY-SA 4.0.
