COLUMBUS — Gov. Mike DeWine said Wednesday that state lawmakers should not send him bills loosening restrictions on guns at a time when they've refused to pass reforms he proposed in the wake of last year's mass shooting in Dayton.
But he stopped short of using the word “veto.”
“I've made it very clear that we can't be looking at other gun bills until we take some action on some of the things I've proposed,” the Republican governor said in an interview with The Blade.
He said he still holds out hope that proposed “stand your ground” legislation and other bills sought by gun-rights supporters might include some of what he has proposed, particularly increased penalties for those who use or possess a gun when they are legally forbidden to have one.
“I've set the priorities,” Mr. DeWine said. “My experience in any lame-duck session is that stuff does happen at the last minute sometimes.... We'll see. Got to remain optimistic.”
Both the House of Representatives and Senate have variations on “stand your ground” bills positioned for potential votes Thursday, possibly the lame-duck session’s last day. They would expand scenarios in which a person could use a gun in self-defense without a legal duty to first try to retreat from the situation.
Ohio's existing Castle Doctrine already removes that duty when people are confronted in their homes or vehicles. Under the proposed expansions, people could employ deadly force in defense of themselves or others as long as their presence in a particular place is legal.
The General Assembly, controlled by Mr. DeWine’s fellow Republicans, has expressed little interest in moving the governor’s gun-reform agenda.
The package of proposals includes, among other things, allowing judges to involuntarily commit people deemed dangerous to themselves or others because of addiction issues, an expansion of existing “pink slip” law pertaining to the mentally ill.
He has also tried to address holes in the background check system by encouraging would-be gun buyers to proactively undergo checks to get a certificate they could show to private sellers.
“I would prefer the legislature pass our bill that goes after repeat violent offenders who use a gun or have a gun,” Mr. DeWine said, saying much of the violence in Ohio's cities involves people who are legally barred from having guns because of their backgrounds.
“You have local county prosecutors, [the] Lucas County prosecutor, who will have a case where the assistant prosecutor would love to get that person put away for a long time but they can't do it,” he said. “If you talk to the chiefs of police, if you talk to the Democrat mayors of this state, the big-city mayors, to a person they're going to tell you if we could get rid of a small number of violent offenders in their city ... that the violence would go dramatically down.”
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, whose city was the site of last year's shooting that killed nine people, and other gun-reform advocates have urged Mr. DeWine to veto a “stand your ground” bill if it reaches his desk this week. A Democrat, she stood with the GOP governor when he unveiled his proposed reforms last year.
John Weber, of the National Rifle Association, testified in favor of the Senate version of the bill earlier this month.
“Because the aggressor is the more morally culpable party, the NRA believes the aggressor should bear the risk that the victim is willing and able to stand and defend, rather than that the victim should bear the risk of hesitation or miscalculation regarding the feasibility of retreat,” he said.
“Also requiring the victim to retreat basically allows violent criminals to chase people from where they are otherwise lawfully present,” Mr. Weber said. “The NRA believes criminals should not decide who goes where in a free society.”
Other gun-related measures are also in a position to be sent to the governor.
They include measures exempting teachers authorized to carry guns in schools from training requirements that pertain to school security officers; reducing penalties for motorists who fail to promptly inform police officers of a gun’s presence during traffic stops, and prohibiting state officials to order the shuttering of federally licensed firearms dealers statewide or regionally.
First Published December 16, 2020, 8:03 p.m.
