(A) As used in this section:

(1) "Evidence of imminent danger" means any of the following:

(a) A statement sworn by the person seeking to carry a concealed handgun that is made under threat of perjury and that states that the person has reasonable cause to fear a criminal attack upon the person or a member of the person's family, such as would justify a prudent person in going armed;

(b) A written document prepared by a governmental entity or public official describing the facts that give the person seeking to carry a concealed handgun reasonable cause to fear a criminal attack upon the person or a member of the person's family, such as would justify a prudent person in going armed. Written documents of this nature include, but are not limited to, any temporary protection order, civil protection order, protection order issued by another state, or other court order, any court report, and any report filed with or made by a law enforcement agency or prosecutor.

(2) "Prosecutor" has the same meaning as in section 2935.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)

(1) A person seeking a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis shall submit to the sheriff of the county in which the person resides or, if the person usually resides in another state, to the sheriff of the county in which the person is temporarily staying, all of the following:

(a) Evidence of imminent danger to the person or a member of the person's family;

(b) A sworn affidavit that contains all of the information required to be on the license and attesting that the person is legally living in the United States; is at least twenty-one years of age; is not a fugitive from justice; is not under indictment for or otherwise charged with an offense identified in division (D)(1)(d) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code; has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense, and has not been adjudicated a delinquent child for committing an act, identified in division (D)(1)(e) of that section and to which division (B)(3) of this section does not apply; within three years of the date of the submission, has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense, and has not been adjudicated a delinquent child for committing an act, identified in division (D)(1)(f) of that section and to which division (B)(3) of this section does not apply; within five years of the date of the submission, has not been convicted of, pleaded guilty, or adjudicated a delinquent child for committing two or more violations identified in division (D)(1)(g) of that section; within ten years of the date of the submission, has not been convicted of, pleaded guilty, or adjudicated a delinquent child for committing a violation identified in division (D)(1)(h) of that section and to which division (B)(3) of this section does not apply; has not been adjudicated as a mental defective, has not been committed to any mental institution, is not under adjudication of mental incompetence, has not been found by a court to be a mentally ill person subject to court order, and is not an involuntary patient other than one who is a patient only for purposes of observation, as described in division (D)(1)(i) of that section; is not currently subject to a civil protection order, a temporary protection order, or a protection order issued by a court of another state, as described in division (D)(1)(j) of that section; is not currently subject to a suspension imposed under division (A)(2) of section 2923.128 of the Revised Code of a concealed handgun license that previously was issued to the person or a similar suspension imposed by another state regarding a concealed handgun license issued by that state; is not an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance as defined in 21 U.S.C. 802; if applicable, is an alien and has not been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa, as defined in the "Immigration and Nationality Act," 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26); has not been discharged from the armed forces of the United States under dishonorable conditions; if applicable, has not renounced the applicant's United States citizenship; and has not been convicted of, pleaded guilty to, or been adjudicated a delinquent child for committing a violation identified in division (D)(1)(s) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code;

(c) A nonrefundable temporary emergency license fee as described in either of the following:

(i) For an applicant who has been a resident of this state for five or more years, a fee of fifteen dollars plus the actual cost of having a background check performed by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation pursuant to section 311.41 of the Revised Code;

(ii) For an applicant who has been a resident of this state for less than five years or who is not a resident of this state, but is temporarily staying in this state, a fee of fifteen dollars plus the actual cost of having background checks performed by the federal bureau of investigation and the bureau of criminal identification and investigation pursuant to section 311.41 of the Revised Code.

(d) A set of fingerprints of the applicant provided as described in section 311.41 of the Revised Code through use of an electronic fingerprint reading device or, if the sheriff to whom the application is submitted does not possess and does not have ready access to the use of an electronic fingerprint reading device, on a standard impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code. If the fingerprints are provided on a standard impression sheet, the person also shall provide the person's social security number to the sheriff.

(2) A sheriff shall accept the evidence of imminent danger, the sworn affidavit, the fee, and the set of fingerprints required under division (B)(1) of this section at the times and in the manners described in division (I) of this section. Upon receipt of the evidence of imminent danger, the sworn affidavit, the fee, and the set of fingerprints required under division (B)(1) of this section, the sheriff, in the manner specified in section 311.41 of the Revised Code, immediately shall conduct or cause to be conducted the criminal records check and the incompetency records check described in section 311.41 of the Revised Code. Immediately upon receipt of the results of the records checks, the sheriff shall review the information and shall determine whether the criteria set forth in divisions (D)(1)(a) to (j) and (m) to (s) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code apply regarding the person. If the sheriff determines that all of criteria set forth in divisions (D)(1)(a) to (j) and (m) to (s) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code apply regarding the person, the sheriff shall immediately make available through the law enforcement automated data system all information that will be contained on the temporary emergency license for the person if one is issued, and the superintendent of the state highway patrol shall ensure that the system is so configured as to permit the transmission through the system of that information. Upon making that information available through the law enforcement automated data system, the sheriff shall immediately issue to the person a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis.

If the sheriff denies the issuance of a license on a temporary emergency basis to the person, the sheriff shall specify the grounds for the denial in a written notice to the person. The person may appeal the denial, or challenge criminal records check results that were the basis of the denial if applicable, in the same manners specified in division (D)(2) of section 2923.125 and in section 2923.127 of the Revised Code, regarding the denial of an application for a concealed handgun license under that section.

The license on a temporary emergency basis issued under this division shall be in the form, and shall include all of the information, described in divisions (A)(2)(a) and (d) of section 109.731 of the Revised Code, and also shall include a unique combination of identifying letters and numbers in accordance with division (A)(2)(c) of that section.

The license on a temporary emergency basis issued under this division is valid for ninety days and may not be renewed. A person who has been issued a license on a temporary emergency basis under this division shall not be issued another license on a temporary emergency basis unless at least four years has expired since the issuance of the prior license on a temporary emergency basis.

(3) If a person seeking a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense identified in division (D)(1)(e), (f), or (h) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code or has been adjudicated a delinquent child for committing an act or violation identified in any of those divisions, and if a court has ordered the sealing or expungement of the records of that conviction, guilty plea, or adjudication pursuant to sections 2151.355 to 2151.358 or sections 2953.31 to 2953.36 of the Revised Code or the applicant has been relieved under operation of law or legal process from the disability imposed pursuant to section 2923.13 of the Revised Code relative to that conviction, guilty plea, or adjudication, the conviction, guilty plea, or adjudication shall not be relevant for purposes of the sworn affidavit described in division (B)(1)(b) of this section, and the person may complete, and swear to the truth of, the affidavit as if the conviction, guilty plea, or adjudication never had occurred.

(4) The sheriff shall waive the payment pursuant to division (B)(1)(c) of this section of the license fee in connection with an application that is submitted by an applicant who is a retired peace officer, a retired person described in division (B)(1)(b) of section 109.77 of the Revised Code, or a retired federal law enforcement officer who, prior to retirement, was authorized under federal law to carry a firearm in the course of duty, unless the retired peace officer, person, or federal law enforcement officer retired as the result of a mental disability.

The sheriff shall deposit all fees paid by an applicant under division (B)(1)(c) of this section into the sheriff's concealed handgun license issuance fund established pursuant to section 311.42 of the Revised Code.

(C) A person who holds a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis has the same right to carry a concealed handgun as a person who was issued a concealed handgun license under section 2923.125 of the Revised Code, and any exceptions to the prohibitions contained in section 1547.69 and sections 2923.12 to 2923.16 of the Revised Code for a licensee under section 2923.125 of the Revised Code apply to a licensee under this section. The person is subject to the same restrictions, and to all other procedures, duties, and sanctions, that apply to a person who carries a license issued under section 2923.125 of the Revised Code, other than the license renewal procedures set forth in that section.

(D) A sheriff who issues a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis under this section shall not require a person seeking to carry a concealed handgun in accordance with this section to submit a competency certificate as a prerequisite for issuing the license and shall comply with division (H) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code in regards to the license. The sheriff shall suspend or revoke the license in accordance with section 2923.128 of the Revised Code. In addition to the suspension or revocation procedures set forth in section 2923.128 of the Revised Code, the sheriff may revoke the license upon receiving information, verifiable by public documents, that the person is not eligible to possess a firearm under either the laws of this state or of the United States or that the person committed perjury in obtaining the license; if the sheriff revokes a license under this additional authority, the sheriff shall notify the person, by certified mail, return receipt requested, at the person's last known residence address that the license has been revoked and that the person is required to surrender the license at the sheriff's office within ten days of the date on which the notice was mailed. Division (H) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code applies regarding any suspension or revocation of a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis.

(E) A sheriff who issues a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis under this section shall retain, for the entire period during which the license is in effect, the evidence of imminent danger that the person submitted to the sheriff and that was the basis for the license, or a copy of that evidence, as appropriate.

(F) If a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis issued under this section is lost or is destroyed, the licensee may obtain from the sheriff who issued that license a duplicate license upon the payment of a fee of fifteen dollars and the submission of an affidavit attesting to the loss or destruction of the license. The sheriff, in accordance with the procedures prescribed in section 109.731 of the Revised Code, shall place on the replacement license a combination of identifying numbers different from the combination on the license that is being replaced.

(G) The attorney general shall prescribe, and shall make available to sheriffs, a standard form to be used under division (B) of this section by a person who applies for a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis on the basis of imminent danger of a type described in division (A)(1)(a) of this section. The attorney general shall design the form to enable applicants to provide the information that is required by law to be collected, and shall update the form as necessary. Burdens or restrictions to obtaining a concealed handgun license that are not expressly prescribed in law shall not be incorporated into the form. The attorney general shall post a printable version of the form on the web site of the attorney general and shall provide the address of the web site to any person who requests the form.

(H) A sheriff who receives any fees paid by a person under this section shall deposit all fees so paid into the sheriff's concealed handgun license issuance expense fund established under section 311.42 of the Revised Code.

(I) A sheriff shall accept evidence of imminent danger, a sworn affidavit, the fee, and the set of fingerprints specified in division (B)(1) of this section at any time during normal business hours. In no case shall a sheriff require an appointment, or designate a specific period of time, for the submission or acceptance of evidence of imminent danger, a sworn affidavit, the fee, and the set of fingerprints specified in division (B)(1) of this section, or for the provision to any person of a standard form to be used for a person to apply for a concealed handgun license on a temporary emergency basis.

Amended by 130th General Assembly File No. TBD, HB 234, §1, eff. 3/23/2015.

Amended by 130th General Assembly File No. TBD, SB 43, §1, eff. 9/17/2014.

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.190, HB 495, §1, eff. 3/27/2013.

Amended by 128th General AssemblyFile No.9, HB 1, §101.01, eff. 10/16/2009.

Effective Date: 04-08-2004; 03-14-2007; 2008 SB184 09-09-2008.