Columbus, OH – Everytown Law advised the City of Columbus, Ohio, on a lawsuit defending two of the city’s gun safety ordinances: (1) a prohibition on bump stocks and other illegal rate-of-fire devices, and (2) an ordinance penalizing individuals who unlawfully possess, carry, or use a firearm after having been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor. On August 1, 2019, the Ohio Court of Appeals granted the City’s appeal and reversed a lower court ruling that had found the bump stock prohibition was unlawful under state law. The Court sent the case back to the trial court for further proceedings, giving the City the opportunity to prove that its ordinance is a lawful exercise of its power as a local government. The appeals court also threw out several of the plaintiffs, including Ohio’s leading pro-gun group (Buckeye Firearms Foundation), ruling they did not have standing to challenge the law, and upheld the enforceability of the City’s ordinance prohibiting misdemeanor domestic violence offenders from having firearms.
