I haven't found a comprehensive list on this, but by my tally at least five states allow guns to be carried into bars. How's that rule working out? Opinions differ.
A Deer Park man became the first in Greater Cincinnati to face charges under Ohio’s “guns in bars” law Wednesday when he was arrested for threatening to kill a fellow bar patron.
Chad O’Reilly’s arrest came two weeks after the law took effect and immediately reignited debate between gun-rights activists and those who wanted to continue a statewide ban on guns in bars.
“This law is so absurd,” said Toby Hoover, director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence. “Without this law, maybe some fists would have flied. Instead, he’s waving a gun around.”
Supporters of the new law say it worked as intended in this case. They say O’Reilly will lose his concealed-carry permit and could face up to five years in jail if he is convicted of violating the new gun law – stiffer penalties than he would have faced under the old law.
“This fellow made a serious mistake,” said state Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Green Township, who supported changing the law. “Nothing in the law allows you to do anything other than carry a gun into an establishment if you have a permit.
“It does not give you license to brandish a gun and wave it around.”
Hey, nobody's dead. Not yet, anyway.