Ohio Gun Safety Laws Get 'D' On Annual Scorecard

CLEVELAND — Ohio received a "D" grade for its gun safety laws in the latest edition of the annual Giffords Law Center Gun Law Scorecard. The report said Ohio had "significant room for improvement" on gun safety.

According to the report, Ohio's gun death rate (13.7 per 100,000 residents) is higher than the national average (11.9 per 100,000 residents). The Buckeye State has the 22nd highest gun death rate.

"To save lives from gun violence, Ohio legislators could require universal background checks and regulate undetectable and untraceable firearms (also known as ghost guns)," the report said.

The Giffords Law Center scorecard is based on gun death rates tabulated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and analysis of gun legislation in all 50 states. Each law and policy is assigned a point value, with more stringent gun laws gaining points for a state.

"For decades, state lawmakers have an established track record of following the NRA’s orders. But this era is over as state leaders are now charting a different course, passing hundreds of laws that have brought countless communities increased peace and safety,” said Robyn Thomas, executive director of Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “The rise of gun safety laws, which accelerated after Parkland captured the nation’s attention and crystalized demands for action, shows leaders on both sides of the aisle are taking action.”

Earlier this month, several Ohio counties took the ceremonial step of declaring themselves "Second Amendment sanctuaries." The announcements carried no legislative weight, but was designed to express support for residents' rights to carry firearms.

Ohio's most recent foray into firearm regulation was in late 2019, when Governor Mike DeWine unveiled his STRONG Ohio bill, a package of legislative reforms designed to reduce gun violence across the state. The proposals came after a deadly mass shooting in Dayton, which killed nine people.

After initially considering implementation of so-called "red flag laws," which give courts the right to take firearms out of certain people's hands, DeWine dropped that proposal after pressure from gun rights lobbyists.

"Nothing we are doing places new restrictions on a law-abiding citizen from owning a gun," said Lt. Governor Jon Husted at the time. "These proposals are focused on keeping guns out of the hands of people who are prevented from owning a gun by enhancing law enforcement's ability to enforce current law."

The Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence group expressed concern over DeWine's plan, arguing it focused too much on increasing punishments and not on prevention. "Our concern is that mental illness is not the cause of gun violence and the mental health professionals should drive the needs and solutions," the group said in a public letter to the governor.

As ABC 6 reported this over the weekend, the stalemate over STRONG Ohio has left the bill languishing. In fact, there has been little movement on any firearm legislation introduced in the Ohio Congress.

The Giffords Law Center Gun Safety Scorecard can be found online.