COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX/WTTE) - In a session lasting more than twelve hours, the Ohio House worked past midnight to pass key gun rights expansions, and to restrict prescriptions of abortion drugs. Both SB 175 and SB 260 passed the House on GOP party lines around midnight.
The House plans to return to session next week to complete more legislation, while the Senate adjourned earlier Thursday evening and will return for more votes on Friday.
The first controversial bill taken up by the House on Thursday was SB 175, a bill meant to remove civil liability from nonprofits over accidental shootings. It was amended in the House to include new "stand your ground" language; Rep. Kyle Koehler (R-Springfield) explained the amendment as an expansion of the "castle doctrine," which is shorthand for a gun owner's right to defend themselves with lethal force inside their own home or vehicle.
Koehler's amendment would expand the area where lethal force is authorized to include “a place in which they lawfully have the right to be," or anywhere in public. That means it voids the commonly-accepted "duty to retreat," and instead ensures that any licensed gun owner who is not an aggressor and who feels threatened by the actions of another, may use lethal force on that person if they feel the force is necessary to protect themselves.
House Democrats were vocally opposed to the amendment.
“Instead of encouraging de-escalation, these bills...often lead to loss of life," said Rep. Jeffrey Crossman (D-Parma).
“People of color die disproportionately because of these laws," said Rep. Erica Crawley (D-Columbus). "It should not be the case, and if it is, we should be able to talk about that.”
The full SB 175 passed the House on a 52-31 vote. The Ohio Senate must concur with the key amendment before sending the bill to Governor Mike DeWine.
The House also passed SB 260 on Republican party lines, a bill to prohibit doctors from prescribing abortion drugs over telehealth appointments. The floor debate on SB 260 was silenced in a move by House leadership.
House Speaker Bob Cupp (R-Lima) said the House would return for another session next week to take up key bills that were not acted upon Thursday night. The date and time remain unscheduled.
Other expected high-profile votes failed to materialize in the marathon session. The House did not take up HB 798, to delay ratepayer fees associated with the scandal-tainted HB 6.
Both House and Senate are also considering overriding Governor Mike DeWine's veto of SB 311 to limit his quarantine powers; the Senate never acted on the override before adjourning late Thursday night.