A passing motorcyclist stopped to complain about Shawn’s [Northrup] visible firearm. The stranger, Alan Rose, yelled, “[Y]ou can’t walk around with a gun like that!” But “[O]pen carry is legal in Ohio!” Denise responded. As the Northrups walked away, Denise and Rose exchanged increasingly unprintable words until he was out of view (and earshot). Rose called 911, reporting that “a guy walking down the street” with his dog was “carrying a gun out in the open.” When asked what type of gun the guy was carrying, Rose replied, “A handgun, and he’s telling me it’s legal to carry out in the open.” That’s right, the dispatcher responded, it’s legal “f you have a CCW”—a concealed-carry weapon permit. “I’ll get a crew out though.” The legality of Northrup’s behavior threw Rose for a loop, prompting him to add: “I’m not going to call a crew out if it’s legal to carry a gun out in the open.”
Despite Rose’s change of heart, the dispatcher sent an officer to the scene anyway. “I’m not an officer,” she worried. ...