COLUMBUS, Ohio – Since the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., one year ago today, 21 states enacted new laws to curb gun violence in their communities but one gun control advocate says Ohio is not among them.
There were more measures introduced to make it easier for gun access, use and to prohibit enforcement than there were measures to reduce gun violence, Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence founder Toby Hoover said.
“It’s like we’re not connected to the rest of the country. Because there have been states that have passed some very good laws – and ours seem to be going in a different direction” Hoover said.
In a 2013 report card from the Brady Campaign and the Center to Control Gun Violence, Ohio was among the states considered failing on gun laws, receiving a “D” for having only a small handful of firearms regulations.
In the wake of the Sandy Hook shootings, many Ohio school districts reviewed their own safety polices and implemented new measures in buildings, including alarm systems and lock-down drills.
There are also efforts in some communities to allow school employees to carry a firearm. Hoover says that should be allowed if it is a trained resource officer.