"Four years after Ohio began issuing permits to carry concealed handguns, some questions remain: for instance, whether cities can ban the weapons in city parks or if permit-holders' names should be public.
But there is an even more basic one, which Army Capt. John Pritchard ran smack into: Ohio will issue the permits only to residents of the state, but what does it mean to be an Ohio resident?
The answer, apparently, is "It depends."
Pritchard has an Ohio driver's license, is registered to vote in Ohio, claims his residency at an address in Canal Winchester and, until the state exempted active-duty troops, paid Ohio income tax.
With all of this proof, he was able to get an Ohio permit four years ago. With all of the same proof, however, the Franklin County sheriff's office told him he couldn't renew that permit. He wasn't a resident, the office told him.
Because of military assignments, Pritchard hasn't lived in Ohio since 2003.
But he is a lawyer for the Army, and after speaking to three levels of officials at the sheriff's office, which sought two legal opinions, his permit will be renewed.
Service members who claim a residence in other Ohio counties, though, might not be as lucky, Pritchard said. They might not be as savvy about the law as he is.
The bottom line, according to Michelle Gatchell, a spokeswoman for the state attorney general's office, is the interpretation of residency lies with each county.
What if a 19-year-old member of the military, who lived in an apartment in some other Ohio county, were deployed and had to give up his lease?
"It's up to the county prosecutors," Gatchell said.
Pritchard said he knew he should have been able to renew his permit. There is no mention of physical residency in Ohio's concealed-carry law. And the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003 allows an active-duty service member to maintain permanent residence in a state even if he or she is serving and living elsewhere.
At first, the Franklin County sheriff's office told Pritchard he wasn't eligible to renew. Pritchard had a second conversation with a supervisor, who also turned him down. Then Pritchard talked to Chief Deputy Steve Martin, who said he would look into it.
Jonathan Fulkerson, section chief of health and human services in the state attorney general's office, sent an e-mail saying, "It sounds to me like he is not a resident because he really is not 'in' Ohio."
But Fulkerson said the decision was ultimately the sheriff's. Martin said his office first checked with county Prosecutor Ron O'Brien's office.
"We decided he met our requirements here," Martin said.
Pritchard wasn't about to let a vague law stand in his way.
"I am an Ohioan. I love Ohio. I got made fun of in Afghanistan because I had an Ohio flag hanging up."
Petty dictators enjoying the power derived from their minuscule fiefdoms. To hell with common sense and the spirit of the law, guys like Fulkerson simply get off on making people sweat. With Ohio's draconian list of places off-limits to concealed carry it's a wonder people even bother, but they do and after jumping through one ridiculous hoop after another that disregards pretty much everything the Constitution stands for, it'd be generous of such minor clerks to leave people the hell alone.
Kudos to Chief Deputy Martin for helping Captain Pritchard out when all he had to do was give the old shoulder shrug while muttering 'nuttin I can do."
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