COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Franklin County judge set a $500,000 bond for a man whose 3-year-old son reportedly found a loaded handgun in an unlocked drawer and shot himself.
Abdalla Abdalla is charged with child endangerment in connection to the accidental shooting. Columbus police said the child was expected to survive his injuries.
Abdalla could have faced an additional charge for allegedly not storing his firearm properly if a Columbus ordinance was still in effect.
In 2022, Columbus City Council passed an ordinance in an effort to curb violence through gun control. In part, the measure penalized people who store their firearms when they know or should know, that a child can gain access to them.
In January, the State of Ohio filed a lawsuit in Fairfield County to block the measures, arguing that the ordinances violated the state constitution. The judge denied the attempt to block the measure.
Fast forward to April, a Delaware County judge issued a temporary block on the legislation. The preliminary injunction was granted on behalf of six Columbus residents who sued the city, claiming that the measure violated Ohio’s constitution.
Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein said the city should be able to hold gun owners accountable.
“I want to make a plea to our community to lock up your guns. This is one of several instances in our community where children get access to guns because they are just loosely thrown around a house,” he said.
Klein said if Abdalla was not the father of the 3-year-old boy, then he would not have been charged with child endangerment. And that’s where the safe storage law would come into effect.
“Talking to the [Columbus] Division of Police, there have been dozens and dozens of instances that someone could be charged of an improper handling of a firearm by a child but there’s no charge because this law is paused,” the city said.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said he is a supporter of safe storage, but believes the safe storage charge is not necessary and meaningless.
“If you are charged with a felony like the case here, the misdemeanor gets served concurrently with the felony time so it’s nothing but a political statement,” he said.
Yost believes the power should be in the hands of state leaders, not the city council for this matter.
“It’s a function of the state law. You shouldn’t have different charges in Columbus and if you go across the street to Delaware County or Hilliard then suddenly there are different rules. There needs to be 1 set of criminal rules that cover the whole state,” said Yost.
Klein said his office will go to the Ohio Court of Appeals in December to try and get the safe storage law back into effect.