CINCINNATI — The weapon stolen from Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey's county vehicle in 2021 was used in a robbery, the sheriff's office said.
McGuffey's assigned county vehicle was stolen from her driveway in June 2021. While the vehicle was recovered, her duty weapon — which was concealed inside a compartment in the car — was missing.
The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office said McGuffey's weapon was recovered by Cincinnati police during a traffic stop over the weekend. It is undergoing investigative testing. However, the sheriff's office said there are three separate locations where shell casings from the gun were recovered.
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Officials also said the weapon was used in a robbery where someone punched a man in the head and shot him in the leg. That man did not press charges nor cooperate with police.
"Sheriff McGuffey's empathy goes out to the individual who was the target of this criminal activity," a spokesperson for the sheriff's office said.
McGuffey has said there was no wrongdoing on her part before her vehicle and gun were stolen, speculating that her key fob may have been cloned.
"My conduct was as the Sheriff of Hamilton County, a law enforcement officer who legally and appropriately has a weapon," she said in 2021. "Who legally and appropriately has a weapon in a vehicle in the event that there would be a call out, which there actually was."
The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office's firearms policy states the proper way to store a gun in a vehicle should be in a lock box or the trunk of the car. McGuffey does not store her current gun in her car, officials said.
Northern Kentucky University law professor Ken Katkin said if McGuffey's gun is used in a crime she likely won't face charges.
"There’s only three states in the union where a gun owner can be held liable for crimes that are committed with a stolen gun and those states would be New Jersey, Oregon and Washington," Katkin said. "We are in the large majority of states where if a gun gets stolen and the owner reports it stolen that’s the end for their liability for how that gun is used."
He noted there can be consequences.
"It’s as big of a deal as the voters think it is," Katkin said. "So the voters are who would hold her accountable for that, and there’s not really another legal mechanism I think to hold her accountable, but it’s not a good look. I think that has to be a concern for her coming into the next election."
Katkin noted gun thefts from law enforcement officials are unusual, but not unique. He added the consequences for crimes involving a stolen gun are steep.
"In Ohio ... if they catch the perpetrator, the fact that the gun was stolen and was used in a crime, that would be a justification under Ohio law for giving the maximum sentence for the crimes that have been committed," said Katkin.
