a felony offense of violence.
As an example of how juvenile adjudications can sometimes apply, suppose a student intending to enroll in
peace officer basic training had previously been adjudicated delinquent by a juvenile court for having committed
an act that would constitute Felonious Assault under R.C. 2903.13. R.C. 2923.13(A)(2) imposes a state
weapons disability since that subsection specifically applies to juvenile adjudications, and Felonious Assault is a
felony offense of violence under R.C. 2901.01(A)(9). However, in this case, there is no federal weapons
disability imposed by virtue of a conviction of a “crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one
year.” Rather, 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(20) states that “[w]hat constitutes a conviction of such a crime shall be
determined in accordance with the law of the jurisdiction in which the proceedings were held.” In other words,
since, under Ohio law, a juvenile adjudication is not considered a criminal conviction, the federal weapons
disability does not apply. Similarly, R.C. 109.77(E)(3) does not disqualify the student for having a felony
adjudication, since that statute is not expressly made applicable to juvenile court adjudications. Thus, the
OPOTC would notify the student and commander of the apparent state weapons disability. The student would
need to petition the common pleas court in his or her county of residence pursuant to R.C. 2923.14 to remove
the weapons disability or get the offense sealed in juvenile court. Once obtained, a copy of the court’s journal
entry would need to be forwarded to the OPOTC, and the Commission would, in turn, notify the student and
school commander that the disability had been resolved.
As another example, a student’s juvenile adjudication was for a misdemeanor domestic violence violation. In
this case, there would be no state weapons disability, since Ohio law does not impose a disability for a domestic
violence conviction, even if committed by an adult. Moreover, there would be no federal weapons disability,
since under Ohio law, the juvenile adjudication is not a criminal conviction. Thus, the student would be
permitted to participate in firearms training.
Peace Officer Basic Training Disqualifying Offenses
Pursuant t
o Ohio Administrative Code section 109:2-1-03(C), an applicant cannot attend peace officer basic
training if any of the following apply:
(1) the person is subject to a weapons disability;
(2) the person is under indictment, has pleaded guilty to, or been convicted of a felony;
(3) the person is currently registering as a sex offender, child-victim offender, or arson offender;
(4) the person is under indictment or otherwise charged with an offense that involves the illegal
possession, use, sale, administration, or distribution of or trafficking in a drug
of abuse;
(5) the person is under indictment or otherwise charged with a misdemeanor offense of violence;
(6) the person is under indictment or otherwise charged with a violation of section 2903.14 of the
Revis
ed Code
;
(7) within three years of applying to attend training, the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty
to an offense that involves the illegal possession, use, sale, administration, or distribution of or
trafficking in a drug of abuse; or has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor offense
of violence;
(8) within three years of applying to attend training, the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty
to an offense under Chapter 2913. of the Revised Code or a municipal ordinance that is
substantially similar to an offense under Chapter 2913. of the Revised Code.
Other than numbers (1) and (3) above, none of these disqualifiers would apply to applicants who committed
offenses as juveniles and were adjudicated delinquent for those offenses. Juvenile adjudications, as well as
weapons disabilities and obtaining relief from one, are covered in more detail previously in this document. For
felony convictions or guilty pleas, an applicant would need a Governor’s pardon to attend peace officer basic
training. For numbers (4) – (6), once the charges are resolved, the disqualifications would not apply to an
applicant. As for the offenses in (7) and (8), if an applicant does not wish to wait three years, they may apply to
their sentencing court to have their record sealed. If successful, and if the applicant has no other disqualifiers,
then the applicant could attend basic training.