(a) No person shall engage in the following behavior in or about any public place, or any place open to the public, or any private place visible from a public place, with the specific intent to engage in drug-related activity contrary to the provisions of Chapters 2925 or 4729 of the Ohio Revised Code, or Chapter 513 of these Codified Ordinances:
(1) Repeatedly stop, beckon to, or attempt to stop passersby;
(2) Repeatedly stop, beckon to, or attempt to stop motor vehicles, by hailing, waiving arms, or making other bodily gestures;
(3) Act as a lookout;
(4) Repeatedly interfere with the free passage of other persons; or
(5) Transfer small objects or packages in a furtive or surreptitious fashion in exchange for currency or any other thing of value such as to lead an observer to believe or ascertain that a drug sale has or is about to occur.
(b) It is prima facie evidence of a violation of this section when a law enforcement officer observes any of the activities described in subsections (a)(1) through (a)(5) hereof.
(c) For purposes of prosecution for a violation of this section, it shall be a rebuttable presumption that a person has the specific intent to engage in drug-related activity contrary to the provisions of Chapters 2925 or 2729 of the Ohio Revised Code, or Chapter 513 of these Codified Ordinances if the person persists in one or more of the behaviors described in subsections (a)(1) through (a)(5) hereof after a law enforcement officer gives the person reasonable warning to desist, and:
(1) The person is a known drug offender, user, possessor or seller; or
(2) The person is identified by law enforcement officers as a member of a gang or association that has engaged in illegal drug activity.
This rebuttable presumption shall not apply if the person is engaged in otherwise lawful activity at the time, and when questioned by a law enforcement officer, provides a credible explanation of his or her conduct that is consistent with lawful activity.
(d) Whoever violates this section is guilty of engaging in prohibited drug-related activities, a misdemeanor of the first degree. (Ord. 2002-166. Passed 11-26-02.)