Section 2923.129. Immunity

(A)

(1) If a sheriff, the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation, the employees of the bureau, the Ohio peace officer training commission, or the employees of the commission make a good faith effort in performing the duties imposed upon the sheriff, the superintendent, the bureau's employees, the commission, or the commission's employees by sections 109.731, 311.41, and 2923.124 to 2923.1213 of the Revised Code, in addition to the personal immunity provided by section 9.86 of the Revised Code or division (A)(6) of section 2744.03 of the Revised Code and the governmental immunity of sections 2744.02 and 2744.03 of the Revised Code and in addition to any other immunity possessed by the bureau, the commission, and their employees, the sheriff, the sheriff's office, the county in which the sheriff has jurisdiction, the bureau, the superintendent of the bureau, the bureau's employees, the commission, and the commission's employees are immune from liability in a civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property that allegedly was caused by or related to any of the following:

(a) The issuance, renewal, suspension, or revocation of a concealed handgun license;

(b) The failure to issue, renew, suspend, or revoke a concealed handgun license;

(c) Any action or misconduct with a handgun committed by a licensee.

(2) Any action of a sheriff relating to the issuance, renewal, suspension, or revocation of a concealed handgun license shall be considered to be a governmental function for purposes of Chapter 2744. of the Revised Code.

(3) An entity that or instructor who provides a competency certification of a type described in division (B)(3) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code is immune from civil liability that might otherwise be incurred or imposed for any death or any injury or loss to person or property that is caused by or related to a person to whom the entity or instructor has issued the competency certificate if all of the following apply:

(a) The alleged liability of the entity or instructor relates to the training provided in the course, class, or program covered by the competency certificate.

(b) The entity or instructor makes a good faith effort in determining whether the person has satisfactorily completed the course, class, or program and makes a good faith effort in assessing the person in the competency examination conducted pursuant to division (G)(2) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code.

(c) The entity or instructor did not issue the competency certificate with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner.

(4) An entity that or instructor who, prior to March 27, 2013, provides a renewed competency certification of a type described in division (G)(4) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to March 27, 2013, is immune from civil liability that might otherwise be incurred or imposed for any death or any injury or loss to person or property that is caused by or related to a person to whom the entity or instructor has issued the renewed competency certificate if all of the following apply:

(a) The entity or instructor makes a good faith effort in assessing the person in the physical demonstrations or the competency examination conducted pursuant to division (G)(4) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to March 27, 2013.

(b) The entity or instructor did not issue the renewed competency certificate with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner.

(5) A law enforcement agency that employs a peace officer is immune from liability in a civil action to recover damages for injury, death, or loss to person or property allegedly caused by any act of that peace officer if the act occurred while the peace officer carried a concealed handgun and was off duty and if the act allegedly involved the peace officer's use of the concealed handgun. Sections 9.86 and 9.87, and Chapter 2744., of the Revised Code apply to any civil action involving a peace officer's use of a concealed handgun in the performance of the peace officer's official duties while the peace officer is off duty.

(B) Notwithstanding section 149.43 of the Revised Code, the records that a sheriff keeps relative to the issuance, renewal, suspension, or revocation of a concealed handgun license, including, but not limited to, completed applications for the issuance or renewal of a license, completed affidavits submitted regarding an application for a license on a temporary emergency basis, reports of criminal records checks and incompetency records checks under section 311.41 of the Revised Code, and applicants' social security numbers and fingerprints that are obtained under division (A) of section 311.41 of the Revised Code, are confidential and are not public records. No person shall release or otherwise disseminate records that are confidential under this division unless required to do so pursuant to a court order.

(C) Each sheriff shall report to the Ohio peace officer training commission the number of concealed handgun licenses that the sheriff issued, renewed, suspended, revoked, or denied under section 2923.125 of the Revised Code during the previous quarter of the calendar year, the number of applications for those licenses for which processing was suspended in accordance with division (D)(3) of section 2923.125 of the Revised Code during the previous quarter of the calendar year, and the number of concealed handgun licenses on a temporary emergency basis that the sheriff issued, suspended, revoked, or denied under section 2923.1213 of the Revised Code during the previous quarter of the calendar year. The sheriff shall not include in the report the name or any other identifying information of an applicant or licensee. The sheriff shall report that information in a manner that permits the commission to maintain the statistics described in division (C) of section 109.731 of the Revised Code and to timely prepare the statistical report described in that division. The information that is received by the commission under this division is a public record kept by the commission for the purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code.

(D) Law enforcement agencies may use the information a sheriff makes available through the use of the law enforcement automated data system pursuant to division (H) of section 2923.125 or division (B)(2) or (D) of section 2923.1213 of the Revised Code for law enforcement purposes only. The information is confidential and is not a public record. A person who releases or otherwise disseminates this information obtained through the law enforcement automated data system in a manner not described in this division is guilty of a violation of section 2913.04 of the Revised Code.

(E) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty of illegal release of confidential concealed handgun license records, a felony of the fifth degree. In addition to any penalties imposed under Chapter 2929. of the Revised Code for a violation of division (B) of this section or a violation of section 2913.04 of the Revised Code described in division (D) of this section, if the offender is a sheriff, an employee of a sheriff, or any other public officer or employee, and if the violation was willful and deliberate, the offender shall be subject to a civil fine of one thousand dollars. Any person who is harmed by a violation of division (B) or (C) of this section or a violation of section 2913.04 of the Revised Code described in division (D) of this section has a private cause of action against the offender for any injury, death, or loss to person or property that is a proximate result of the violation and may recover court costs and attorney's fees related to the action.

Amended by 131st General Assembly File No. TBD, HB 64, §101.01, eff. 9/29/2015.

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

Effective Date: 04-08-2004; 09-29-2007; 2008 SB184 09-09-2008