Cleveland Council Passes New Gun Restrictions

Cleveland City Council approved a slate of new gun laws Monday night on a 15-1 vote. ideastream’s Nick Castele reports.

The new laws require people who have committed gun crimes to register their names with the city’s safety department. And gun dealers without licenses must notify police if they sell or give someone a gun. There’s an exemption for gun shows.

The laws also make it easier for the city to prosecute people who allow guns to fall into the hands of children, with exemptions for hunting, gun education and other provisions. An infraction leads to a mandatory minimum $1,000 fine and 180 day jail sentence.

Under these laws, people can also face city charges for handing a gun over to a felon or drunk person.

At a hearing Monday afternoon, council members were broadly supportive of the legislation, though some questioned whether the law would reduce the number of homicides.

Safety Director Michael McGrath said the laws will help the city identify people with a history of gun offenses, who might commit another.

"I can’t guarantee this legislation is going to save a life," McGrath said, "but at least we’re in the batter’s box swinging the bat, and trying, rather than doing nothing.”

Cleveland’s old gun laws were rendered powerless after the Ohio legislature decided only the state could regulate firearms. The city sued, and lost before the state supreme court.

Jim Irvine with the gun-rights group Buckeye Firearms Association warns the city is taking a risk.

"If they pass unconstitutional laws, then yes, they will face a challenge," Irvine said in an interview earlier in the day before the vote. "It ties up city time and money and effort in fighting another losing lawsuit."

Irvine said he’s taken the city to court before over its gun laws, and he’ll leave the door open to doing it again.