His permit to carry a hidden handgun should have been suspended, and his guns surrendered, when his wife obtained a domestic-violence protection order Feb. 11.
However, the Athens County sheriff's office didn't suspend his permit, as required by state law, and might not even have asked Kidby to turn over his guns.
After two public suicide attempts, Kidby fatally wounded himself yesterday morning by firing rounds from his .38-caliber handgun into his chest and head at his rural home.In the weeks before, he had threatened twice to jump off tall structures in Athens, was admitted to a mental-health hospital and talked of “suicide by cop.”
The Athens County sheriff's office apparently was unaware that the law requires sheriffs to immediately suspend gun permits when a protection order is issued against permit holders.Chief Deputy Dave Malawista said today that he was unfamiliar with the law. “If that in fact is the case and we have notification of that, we will take care of it. … This may have been a single-case error.”
Malawista said he will meet with Common Pleas Judge Michael Ward to develop a consistent system of checking protection orders against lists of gun-permit holders.
“When we give them the orders over there, it's up to them to comply,” Ward said.
The protection order issued against Kidby, 30, an Ohio University employee disturbed by his pending divorce, instructed him to turn over his guns to deputies.
Federal domestic-violence laws also forbid domestic-violence suspects under protection orders from possessing firearms or ammunition.
“Even if someone had gone in and confiscated his guns, he certainly would not have lacked access to weapons,” Malawista said. “I know of no case where anyone thought he was a threat to others.”& amp; amp; lt; /p>
However, Kidby's wife said in her petition for a protection order that he had threatened to kill her and their 2-year-old daughter.
Nancy Neylon, executive director of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network, said she found it alarming that Kidby still possessed a gun permit when he killed himself. “You're not supposed to even have a firearm, let alone a concealed-carry permit,” she said.
Judge Craig Baldwin of Licking County Domestic Relations Court said that, at a minimum, law-enforcement officers should ask those served with protection orders to surrender their guns.
Officers may arrest someone who they suspect is violating an order by not turning over guns and then can obtain a search warrant to look for weapons, said Baldwin, chairman of the Ohio Domestic Relations Judges Association.
Statewide, sheriffs suspended 502 concealed-carry permits last year for reasons ranging from protective orders to criminal arrests. Two permits were suspended in Athens County. About 108,000 Ohioans hold gun permits.
However, the Athens County sheriff's office didn't suspend his permit, as required by state law, and might not even have asked Kidby to turn over his guns.
After two public suicide attempts, Kidby fatally wounded himself yesterday morning by firing rounds from his .38-caliber handgun into his chest and head at his rural home.In the weeks before, he had threatened twice to jump off tall structures in Athens, was admitted to a mental-health hospital and talked of “suicide by cop.”
The Athens County sheriff's office apparently was unaware that the law requires sheriffs to immediately suspend gun permits when a protection order is issued against permit holders.Chief Deputy Dave Malawista said today that he was unfamiliar with the law. “If that in fact is the case and we have notification of that, we will take care of it. … This may have been a single-case error.”
Malawista said he will meet with Common Pleas Judge Michael Ward to develop a consistent system of checking protection orders against lists of gun-permit holders.
“When we give them the orders over there, it's up to them to comply,” Ward said.
The protection order issued against Kidby, 30, an Ohio University employee disturbed by his pending divorce, instructed him to turn over his guns to deputies.
Federal domestic-violence laws also forbid domestic-violence suspects under protection orders from possessing firearms or ammunition.
“Even if someone had gone in and confiscated his guns, he certainly would not have lacked access to weapons,” Malawista said. “I know of no case where anyone thought he was a threat to others.”& amp; amp; lt; /p>
However, Kidby's wife said in her petition for a protection order that he had threatened to kill her and their 2-year-old daughter.
Nancy Neylon, executive director of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network, said she found it alarming that Kidby still possessed a gun permit when he killed himself. “You're not supposed to even have a firearm, let alone a concealed-carry permit,” she said.
Judge Craig Baldwin of Licking County Domestic Relations Court said that, at a minimum, law-enforcement officers should ask those served with protection orders to surrender their guns.
Officers may arrest someone who they suspect is violating an order by not turning over guns and then can obtain a search warrant to look for weapons, said Baldwin, chairman of the Ohio Domestic Relations Judges Association.
Statewide, sheriffs suspended 502 concealed-carry permits last year for reasons ranging from protective orders to criminal arrests. Two permits were suspended in Athens County. About 108,000 Ohioans hold gun permits.
