648.03 JUSTIFIABLE USE OF FORCE TO SUPPRESS RIOT.

   A law enforcement officer or fireman engaged in suppressing riot or in protecting persons or property during riot:

   (a)    Is justified in using force, other than deadly force, when and to the extent he has probable cause to believe such force is necessary to disperse or apprehend rioters;

   (b)    Is justified in using force, including deadly force, when and to the extent he has probable cause to believe such force is necessary to disperse or apprehend rioters whose conduct is creating a substantial risk of serious physical harm to persons. (ORC 2917.05)

648.04 DISORDERLY CONDUCT; UNREASONABLE NOISES.

   (a)    No person shall recklessly cause inconvenience, annoyance or alarm to another, by doing any of the following:

      (1)    Engaging in fighting, in threatening harm to persons or property, or in violent or turbulent behavior;

      (2)    Making unreasonable noise or offensively coarse utterance, gesture or display, or communicating unwarranted and grossly abusive language to any person in such manner as to provoke or encourage a violent response.

      (3)    Insulting, taunting or challenging another under circumstances in which such conduct is likely to provoke a violent response;

      (4)    Hindering or preventing the movement of persons on a public street, road, highway or right of way, or to, from, within or upon public or private property, so as to interfere with the rights of others and by any act which serves no lawful and reasonable purpose of the offender;

      (5)    Creating a condition which is physically offensive to persons or which presents a risk of physical harm to persons or property by any act which serves no lawful and reasonable purpose of the offender.

   (b)    No person, while voluntarily intoxicated shall do either of the following:

      (1)    In a public place or in the presence of two or more persons engage in conduct likely to be offensive or to cause inconvenience, annoyance or alarm to persons of ordinary sensibilities, which conduct the offender, if he were not intoxicated, should know is likely to have such effect on others;

      (2)    Engage in conduct or create a condition which presents a risk of physical harm to himself or another, or to the property of another.

   (c)    Violation of any statute or ordinance of which an element is operating a motor vehicle, locomotive, watercraft, aircraft or other vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or any drug of abuse, is not a violation of subsection (b) hereof.

   (d)    When to an ordinary observer a person appears to be intoxicated, it is probable cause to believe such person is voluntarily intoxicated for purposes of subsection (b) hereof.

(ORC 2917.11; Adopting Ordinance)

   (e)    The following acts, among others, are hereby declared to be unreasonable noises in violation of subsection (a)(2) hereof, but such enumeration shall not be deemed to be exclusive:

      (1)    The sounding of any horn, bell or other signal or warning device on any automobile, motorcycle, bus or other vehicle, except as a danger or warning signal; however, any such sounding of horn, bell or other signal or warning device as a danger or warning signal shall not be unreasonably loud or harsh or continued for any unnecessary period of time;

      (2)    The use of any automobile, motorcycle or other vehicle so out of repair, so loaded or in such manner as to create loud or unnecessary grating, grinding, rattling or other noise;

      (3)    The unreasonable discharge into the open air of the exhaust of any steam engine, stationary internal combustion engine, motor vehicle or motor boat engine without effective and efficient muffling and reduction of noise;

      (4)    The use of any mechanical device operated by compressed air unless the noise created thereby is effectively muffled and reduced; and

      (5)    The use of any drum, loudspeaker or other instrument or device for the purpose of attracting attention by creation of noise to any performance, show or game or display of merchandise, except where a specific permit therefor has been granted by the Chief of Police. (1964 Code §73.03)

   (f)    No person shall engage in construction or other activities, such as hammering, pounding, grinding or grading, so as to create objectionable or unreasonable noise or a disturbance to neighbors or other residents in the City, between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Monday through Friday and 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m.  on Saturdays, Sundays and official holidays.  In case of an emergency, such as a utility outage, significant hardship, or to provide for safe and efficient flow of motor vehicle traffic, the Safety Director may authorize work during prohibited hours.

   (g)    In case of emergency or serious illness, the Chief of Police may order the temporary cessation of a noisy or disturbing operation or construction work at any time, if necessary for the preservation of the health or safety of the residents of the City.

(Ord. 2008-92.  Passed 8-12-08.)

648.045 ILLEGAL PICKETING.

   (a)   As used in this section:

      (1)    "Illegal picketing" means picketing which:

         A.    Is directed or targeted at or conducted primarily before, near, about, on or in the immediate vicinity of the land upon which the dwelling of any individual is situated; or

         B.    Involves blocking or interfering with ingress or egress to any public or private walkway or driveway leading to or from the dwelling of any individual; or

         C.    Involves blocking or interfering with the flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic; or

         D.    Involves the display of signs of a size or at a location otherwise prohibited or regulated by ordinance; or

         E.    Involves trespassing on any residential or public property while violating or attempting to violate any provision of this section; or

         F.    Involves the violation of any other provision of this chapter, including, but not limited to, prohibitions against disturbing the peace and/or disorderly conduct.

      (2)    "Picketing" includes, but is not limited to, one or more persons marching, parading or demonstrating at or about the same location as a means of communicating information or in support of one or more causes.

   (b)    No person, while picketing, shall, or shall attempt to:

      (1)    Alone or in the company of others direct or target picketing at, near, on, about or in the immediate vicinity of land upon which the dwelling of any individual is located;

      (2)    Block or interfere with the ingress or egress of any public or private walkway or driveway leading to or from the dwelling of any individual;

      (3)    Block or interfere with the flow of pedestrians or vehicular traffic;

      (4)    Trespass on any residential property as a part of a violation of, or while violating, paragraphs (b)(1), (2) or (3) hereof.

   (c)    At the request of the Mayor, the Law Director is hereby authorized to file a civil action in court seeking an order of injunction, or other relief, to prevent a violation of this section and to recover from a violator the cost to the City resulting from a violation of this section.

(Ord. 1993-87. Passed 7-12-93.)

648.05 DISTURBING A LAWFUL MEETING.

   No person, with purpose to prevent or disrupt a lawful meeting, procession or gathering, shall do either of the following:

   (a)    Do any act which obstructs or interferes with the due conduct of such meeting, procession or gathering,

   (b)    Make any utterance, gesture or display which outrages the sensibilities of the group. (ORC 2917.12)

648.06 MISCONDUCT AT AN EMERGENCY.

   (a)   No person shall knowingly do any of the following:

      (1)   Hamper the lawful operations of any law enforcement officer, firefighter, rescuer, medical person, emergency medical services person, or other authorized person, engaged in the person’s duties at the scene of a fire, accident, disaster, riot, or emergency of any kind;

      (2)   Hamper the lawful activities of any emergency facility person who is engaged in the person’s duties in an emergency facility;

      (3)   Fail to obey the lawful order of any law enforcement officer engaged in the law enforcement officer’s duties at the scene of or in connection with a fire, accident, disaster, riot, or emergency of any kind.

   (b)   Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit access or deny information to any news media representative in the lawful exercise of the news media representative’s duties.

   (c)   As used in this section:

      (1)   “Emergency medical services person” is the singular of “emergency medical services personnel” as defined in Ohio R.C. 2133.21.

      (2)   “Emergency facility person” is the singular of “emergency facility personnel” as defined in Ohio R.C. 2909.04.

      (3)   “Emergency facility” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2909.04.

648.07 INDUCING PANIC.

   (a)    No person shall cause the evacuation of any public place, or otherwise cause serious public inconvenience or alarm, by doing any of the following:

      (1)   Initiating or circulating a report or warning of an alleged or impending fire, explosion, crime or other catastrophe, knowing that such report or warning is false;

      (2)   Threatening to commit any offense of violence;

      (3)   Committing any offense, with reckless disregard of the likelihood that its commission will cause serious public inconvenience or alarm.

   (b)    Division (a) hereof does not apply to any person conducting an authorized fire or emergency drill.

   (c)   Whoever violates this section is guilty of inducing panic, a misdemeanor of the first degree.  If inducing panic results in physical harm to any person, economic harm of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more, if the public place involved in a violation of this section is a school or an institution of higher education, or if the violation pertains to a purported, threatened or actual use of a weapon of mass destruction, inducing panic is a felony and shall be prosecuted under appropriate State law.

   (d)   Any act that is a violation of this section and any other section of the Codified Ordinances may be prosecuted under this section, the other section, or both sections.

   (e)   As used in this section:

      (1)   “Economic harm” means any of the following:

         A.   All direct, incidental, and consequential pecuniary harm suffered by a victim as a result of criminal conduct.  “Economic harm” as described in this division includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:

            1.   All wages, salaries, or other compensation lost as a result of the criminal conduct;

            2.   The cost of all wages, salaries, or other compensation paid to employees for time those employees are prevented from working as a result of the criminal conduct;

            3.   The overhead costs incurred for the time that a business is shut down as a result of the criminal conduct;

            4.   The loss of value to tangible or intangible property that was damaged as a result of the criminal conduct.

         B.   All costs incurred by the Municipality as a result of, or in making any response to, the criminal conduct that constituted the violation of this section or Section 648.08, including, but not limited to, all costs so incurred by any law enforcement officers, firefighters, rescue personnel, or emergency medical services personnel of the state or the political subdivision.

      (2)   “School” means any school operated by a board of education or any school for which the state board of education prescribes minimum standards under Ohio R.C. 3301.07, whether or not any instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by the school is being conducted at the time a violation of this section is committed.

      (3)   “Weapon of mass destruction” means any of the following:

         A.   Any weapon that is designed or intended to cause death or serious physical harm through the release, dissemination, or impact of toxic or poisonous chemicals, or their precursors;

         B.   Any weapon involving a disease organism or biological agent;

         C.   Any weapon that is designed to release radiation or radioactivity at a level dangerous to human life;

         D.   Any of the following, except to the extent that the item or device in question is expressly excepted from the definition of “destructive device” pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(4) and regulations issued under that section:

            1.   Any explosive, incendiary, or poison gas bomb, grenade, rocket having a propellant charge of more than four ounces, missile having an explosive or incendiary charge of more than one-quarter ounce, mine, or similar device;

            2.   Any combination of parts either designed or intended for use in converting any item or device into any item or device described in division (e)(3)D.1. of this section and from which an item or device described in that division may be readily assembled.

      (4)   “Biological agent” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2917.33.

      (5)   “Emergency medical services personnel” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2133.21.

      (6)   “Institution of higher education” means any of the following:

         A.   A state university or college as defined in Ohio R.C. 3345.12(A)(1), community college, state community college, university branch, or technical college;

         B.   A private, nonprofit college, university or other post-secondary institution located in this State that possesses a certificate of authorization issued by the Ohio Board of Regents pursuant to Ohio R.C. Chapter 1713.

         C.   A post-secondary institution with a certificate of registration issued by the State Board of Career Colleges and Schools under Ohio R.C. Chapter 3332. 
(ORC 2917.31)

648.08 MAKING FALSE ALARMS.

   (a)   No person shall do any of the following:

      (1)   Initiate or circulate a report or warning of an alleged or impending fire, explosion, crime or other catastrophe, knowing that the report or warning is false and likely to cause public inconvenience or alarm;

      (2)   Knowingly cause a false alarm of fire or other emergency to be transmitted to or within any organization, public or private, for dealing with emergencies involving a risk of physical harm to persons or property;

      (3)   Report to any law enforcement agency an alleged offense or other incident within its concern, knowing that such offense did not occur.

   (b)   This section does not apply to any person conducting an authorized fire or emergency drill.

   (c)   Whoever violates this section is guilty of making false alarms, a misdemeanor of the first degree.  If a violation of this section results in economic harm of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more, or if a violation of this section pertains to a purported, threatened, or actual use of a weapon of mass destruction, making false alarms is a felony and shall be prosecuted under appropriate State law.

   (d)   Any act that is a violation of this section and any other section of the Codified Ordinances may be prosecuted under this section, the other section, or both sections.

   (e)   As used in this section, “economic harm” and “weapon of mass destruction” have the same meanings as in Section 648.07.  (ORC 2917.32)

648.09 ANNOYING BUILDING OCCUPANTS.

   No person, without proper occasion, shall disturb or annoy the occupants of any dwelling, building, store or other place by knocking on the door, gate or window of such structure, or by ringing the doorbell attached thereto. (Ord. 1969-54. Passed 7-7-69.)