How Many People in Cuyahoga County Have a Concealed Carry License?
The answer isn’t easy to find.
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Do you know how many of your neighbors have a license to carry a concealed weapon?
No? That’s because Ohio keeps those records private.
The state releases a quarterly report of all the concealed carry licenses issued, renewed and suspended by county, but that’s as far as the breakdown goes. Information by city or zip code is not available.
Representatives from the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office and the Summit County Sheriff’s Office told Patch via email that the Ohio Revised Code allows journalists to view the list of license holders, but not to copy the information. The code defines the records as confidential. Journalists are the only individuals named in that portion of the law who are allowed to view the records and are defined as those employed by or otherwise connected to a news medium.
Not all states protect their gun permit holders’ privacy so well—a New York-based newspaper, The Journal News, recently sparked a debate when it published a map with the names and addresses of gun owners in nearby counties. The Huffington Post reports that critics said the map could put people with—and without—guns in danger.
Peekskill-Cortlandt Patch reports that a new, bipartisan coalition has formed in opposition to the newspaper’s map, saying it puts residents at risk. One of the examples given was that inmates in local jails now know the addresses of corrections officers.
The numbers in Ohio
According to the report released by the state, there were 560 regular concealed carry licenses issued and 208 renewed in Cuyahoga County in the third quarter of 2012. There were nine licenses suspended, 13 revoked and another 11 denied.
In Summit County, there were 354 licenses issued and 107 renewed during that time. Ten licenses were suspended and 17 were denied.
Overall, there were 13,949 regular licenses issued across Ohio in the third quarter of 2012. Another 3,447 were renewed.
The most recent annual report from the state is for 2011. According to the report, the state had issued about 296,600 regular and temporary concealed carry licenses from April 2004—when the state began allowing concealed weapons—through the end of 2011. The reports do not include the number of total active licenses.
What do you think? Should the state release more information about concealed carry license holders or is privacy critical in this case? Tell us in the comments.
H. Faulkner
7:43 am on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
It's not the people who have a concealed carry weapon I'm worried about. They understand that while its a constitutional right to have a gun, they also understand the importance of responsible gun ownership. They have completed the 12 hour course, made an appointed with the sheriff department, completed the application, and taken all th proper steps to carry a gun. The people I do worry about are those who carry illegally. Making the names and addresses of those who have a CCW public makes them targets for criminals and stigmatizes CCW holders to neighbors who are gun opponents. Rather than put the blame in a weapon, we need take care of those with mental problem, keep them away from guns and get them help rather than hide it.
Kim Campbell
9:11 am on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Obviously these records should remain closed. In fact, there is no compelling reason for them to be even as open as they are to journalists. Sadly, "journalists" have shown time and again they are not exactly pillars of integrity, but seem more interested in boosting circulation than anything else. No, it's called a CONCEALED handgun license for a reason. It is no one's business who is or is not a holder of such a license, and it is in the public interest to keep criminals guessing just exactly which segment of the population at large might be carrying. Additionally, as has already been shown in the case in New York, many license holders have compelling reasons to keep their identities, and by extension their whereabouts, from general public view.
Garry Kanter
9:46 am on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
They are "public" records. There's nothing "obvious" about their confidentiality at all.
Emanuel
11:19 am on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
i agree having a registered weapon and CCW makes us more aware to the laws that govern usage and protection releasing that information i think would make law abiding citizens a target... don't ridicule people for doing it the right way...
Bryan T
8:11 am on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Several years ago, driver's license and auto registration information was used by a person in California to stalk and ultimately murder an actress. Following that incident Federal laws were enacted restricting access to those records. A concealed weapons permit or license is a personal license issued to an individual. As such, the privacy and safety of the individual is no less sacred than that of a person who owns or drives a car. These should not be freely available public records.
John Miller
1:32 pm on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO PREVENT AMERICANS FROM KILLING CHILDREN IS TO SNUFF OUT DRUNK DRIVING. DRUNKS KILL 2 AND ONE HALF AS MANY PEOPLE AS GUNS. THIS ADDS UP TO REAL NUMBERS. YOU DONT HAVE A RIGHT TO DRINK EITHER. IF YOU THINK YOU DO THEN YOU ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM