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Self-Defense Gun Bill Contingent On Possible Veto Override
By: Andy Chow | Statehouse News Bureau
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The stage is set for one last battle between lawmakers and Gov. John Kasich after he vetoed three bills in the past month. The House says it plans to take at least one veto override vote, which could include the self-defense gun bill.
That bill, HB228, would shift the burden of proof in self-defense cases from the defense to the prosecution. Ohio is the only state to put that burden on the defense.
In his veto message, Kasich said the Legislature should’ve considered his “red flag law” proposal which allows courts to take guns away from people who pose a threat to themselves or others.
“It’s hard for me to know what his reason is for doing anything,” says Jim Irvine, president of the Buckeye Firearms Association. “They’re two completely unrelated concepts and ideas. So why you would veto ‘Bill A’ because they didn’t pass ‘Bill 3’ makes no sense to me.”
Irvine is urging the Ohio General Assembly to override the veto saying the bill would correct “an absolute wrong in Ohio law.”
While the majority of Kasich’s veto message was spent discussing his “common sense” gun regulations, he also objected to the bill’s language on municipalities.
“A provision in this bill to restrict the rights of local governments to enact any policies concerning firearms further erodes Ohio’s long-established policies that guarantee local governments substantial sovereignty under the legal principle known as “home rule,” Kasich wrote.
The Senate approved the bill by a vote of 19-10, and the House concurred with a vote of 59-22. To override a veto, both chambers would need to swing one more “yes” vote.