Mike
Site Co-Founder
imported post
Now this is what I call a proactive police chief!
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http://www.ohioccw.org/images/stories/ag_willowick_chief_letter.pdf
[align=center]Willowick Police Department Michael T. Lazor, Chief of Police 30435 Lake Shore Boulevard, Willowick, OH 44095-4600 (LAKE COUNTY) 1-440-585-1234 http://www.cityofwillowick.com/ DETECTIVE BUREAU FACSIMILE [font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]1-440-585-1243 1-440-585-3770 [/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]Tuesday, July 8, 2008 [/align]
[align=left]State of Ohio Office of the Attorney General [/align]
[align=left]30 E. Broad St., 17[suP]th Floor [/align]
[align=left]Columbus, OH 43215 [/align]
[align=left]Dear Attorney General Nancy H. Rogers: [/align]
[align=left]A number of Willowick police officers responded to an "open carry" incident in June of this year. A call was received that a male was walking through a residential area with a holstered sidearm. After 10 minutes, the male was told to conceal the firearm ([/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]he had a concealed carry permit[/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]) and was allowed to continue on his way. [/align]
[align=left]Although I won’t get into the specifics of this particular matter, this incident generated a great deal of attention from members of an organization called the Ohioans for Concealed Carry (OFCC). Based upon my understanding of open carry and after conferring with our law department, the determination was that the lone fact of his openly carrying a firearm did not constitute any type of illegal act and that he should not have been informed that he would need to conceal his weapon before proceeding. [emphasis added][/align]
[align=left]As a department, we have taken steps to inform and train our officers and staff regarding open carry. During this time, we have had occasions to discuss this with other law enforcement agencies and officers and come to the realization that uncertainty regarding open carry issues reaches across the entire state. Open carry, as an issue, is misunderstood by a very large portion of the law enforcement community and the public at large. [/align]
[align=left]Members of the Willowick Police Department and Willowick City Administration met with OFCC to discuss this issue. One thing discussed was the general misunderstanding of the laws in this regard. It was suggested that a letter from my office to your attention would be beneficial. An opinion from the Attorney General’s Office along with some training options would go a long ways toward giving law enforcement some guidance from the state level. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. [/align]
[align=right]Sincerely, [/align]
[align=right]Michael Lazor [/align]
[align=right]Chief of Police [/align]
[align=left]CC: Rich Bonde, Mayor [/align]
[align=left]John O’Donnell, Law Director [/align]
Dan White, OFCC ([/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]via email)
[/suP][/font]
Now this is what I call a proactive police chief!
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http://www.ohioccw.org/images/stories/ag_willowick_chief_letter.pdf
[align=center]Willowick Police Department Michael T. Lazor, Chief of Police 30435 Lake Shore Boulevard, Willowick, OH 44095-4600 (LAKE COUNTY) 1-440-585-1234 http://www.cityofwillowick.com/ DETECTIVE BUREAU FACSIMILE [font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]1-440-585-1243 1-440-585-3770 [/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]Tuesday, July 8, 2008 [/align]
[align=left]State of Ohio Office of the Attorney General [/align]
[align=left]30 E. Broad St., 17[suP]th Floor [/align]
[align=left]Columbus, OH 43215 [/align]
[align=left]Dear Attorney General Nancy H. Rogers: [/align]
[align=left]A number of Willowick police officers responded to an "open carry" incident in June of this year. A call was received that a male was walking through a residential area with a holstered sidearm. After 10 minutes, the male was told to conceal the firearm ([/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]he had a concealed carry permit[/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]) and was allowed to continue on his way. [/align]
[align=left]Although I won’t get into the specifics of this particular matter, this incident generated a great deal of attention from members of an organization called the Ohioans for Concealed Carry (OFCC). Based upon my understanding of open carry and after conferring with our law department, the determination was that the lone fact of his openly carrying a firearm did not constitute any type of illegal act and that he should not have been informed that he would need to conceal his weapon before proceeding. [emphasis added][/align]
[align=left]As a department, we have taken steps to inform and train our officers and staff regarding open carry. During this time, we have had occasions to discuss this with other law enforcement agencies and officers and come to the realization that uncertainty regarding open carry issues reaches across the entire state. Open carry, as an issue, is misunderstood by a very large portion of the law enforcement community and the public at large. [/align]
[align=left]Members of the Willowick Police Department and Willowick City Administration met with OFCC to discuss this issue. One thing discussed was the general misunderstanding of the laws in this regard. It was suggested that a letter from my office to your attention would be beneficial. An opinion from the Attorney General’s Office along with some training options would go a long ways toward giving law enforcement some guidance from the state level. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. [/align]
[align=right]Sincerely, [/align]
[align=right]Michael Lazor [/align]
[align=right]Chief of Police [/align]
[align=left]CC: Rich Bonde, Mayor [/align]
[align=left]John O’Donnell, Law Director [/align]
Dan White, OFCC ([/font][font="Times New Roman,Times New Roman"]via email)
[/suP][/font]