The law targets acts of taking over city streets with cars, an issue that has recently plagued Cleveland.
The law, which originated with House Bill 56 introduced by lawmakers from the Miami Valley, spells out some new crimes, along with some new penalties.
Actions on public roadways that are targeted by the new law: Vehicle doughnuts; Burnouts; Drifting; Wheelies.
HB 56 also adds stunt driving to the definition of street racing under the law.
Early versions of the bill also tried to crack down on spectators by giving police the power to ticket them, but that portion was removed and isn’t part of the new law.
“If you happened upon it, you’re not going to be charged,” said State Rep. Andrea White, of Kettering. “So some people have been reporting that spectators could be charged is not accurate.
“What this bill does is give law enforcement and communities more tools to keep our streets safe, because Dayton and many communities in Ohio have been experiencing these, like large crowds of people doing all kinds of takeovers of city streets. “
Ohio’s new law also increases the penalty for evading or fleeing police in a motor vehicle. Instead of a misdemeanor, it is now a fourth-degree felony, unless it happens immediately after the commission of another felony, in which case it escalates to third-degree.
The law also requires police agencies to have a chase policy and to train their officers about how the policy is supposed to work.
While Ohio’s law stops short of punishing spectators, laws in other states go much further.
In California, for example, a recent street takeover in the city of Stockton led to the county sheriff seizing 88 vehicles that allegedly took part in the sideshow. More than 100 people were initially detained, but most were eventually released.
This is all pursuant to a California law that allows law enforcement to ticket spectators and confiscate their cars if they took part in dangerous activity.
A legal analyst in Silicon Valley said lawmakers there are looking beyond just drivers and spectators.
“Cities have decided now that if you promote a sideshow on social media, you’re going to face civil injunction,” said former prosecutor Steven Clark. “You could face criminal charges. So they’re trying to stop the advertisement and the communication about sideshows because they operate underground in social media and they’re targeting these individuals to keep these sideshows from popping up.”
Clark said California’s law targeting spectators and the like raise some constitutional questions that have yet to be answered.
In addition to Ohio and California, anti-hooning laws are also on the books in North Carolina, Kansas City, Detroit and other locations.
