CHAPTER 648 Peace Disturbances

(a) No person shall participate with four or more others in a course of disorderly conduct in violation of Ohio R.C. 2917.11 or a substantially equivalent municipal ordinance:

(1) With purpose to commit or facilitate the commission of a misdemeanor, other than disorderly conduct;

(2) With purpose to intimidate a public official or employee into taking or refraining from official action, or with purpose to hinder, impede, or obstruct a function of government;

(3) With purpose to hinder, impede, or obstruct the orderly process of administration or instruction at an educational institution, or to interfere with or disrupt lawful activities carried on at the institution.

(b) No person shall participate with four or more others with purpose to do an act with unlawful force or violence, even though the act might otherwise be lawful.

(ORC 2917.03; Ord. 278-73. Passed 12-17-73.)

(c) Whenever the Mayor finds it necessary, in the exercise of the authority granted to him under the Constitution and laws of the State, to cordon off any area or areas, which may be limited to a single building or parcel of land, when engaged in the suppression of a riot or when there is a clear and present danger of a riot, he shall issue a proclamation stating the facts requiring such action, describing the area or areas to be cordoned off and the terms and conditions upon which persons may enter such area or areas and setting forth any other restrictions upon the activities of persons within such area or areas which he may deem necessary and which he is authorized to impose under the Constitution and laws of the State.

(d) Copies of the proclamation provided for in subsection (c) hereof shall promptly be posted conspicuously within and surrounding such cordoned-off area or areas in such manner as to give notice of such terms to persons entering, leaving or within such area or areas and shall as soon as possible be published once in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the City. Copies of such proclamation may also be delivered to representatives of newspapers, radio and television stations and other communications media to which residents of the City commonly resort for news of current events.

(e) The proclamation provided for in subsection (c) hereof shall remain in effect until modified or rescinded by subsequent proclamation or order of the Mayor or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction. Any person affected or aggrieved by the continued effectiveness of such proclamation may petition the Mayor for modification or rescission of such proclamation and may request a hearing on such petition by leaving a copy thereof at the office of the Mayor. Such petition shall contain the name of the petitioner and the address at which he can be served with notice. If more than one person presents the petition, one of their number shall be designated to receive notice on behalf of all of such petitioners. Not more than five days following receipt of such a petition the Mayor shall conduct a hearing thereon at which the petitioner and all other interested persons shall be entitled to be heard. Any number of petitions relating to the same area may be considered at the same hearing. Notice of the time and place of such hearing shall be given to the petitioner by delivering such notice to him personally, by leaving a copy thereof at the address contained in the petition or by certified mail sent to such address not less than three days prior to the hearing. Copies of such notice shall also be posted in the five public places in the City designated by Council for the posting of ordinances, resolutions, statements, orders, proclamations, notices and reports required by law or ordinance to be published and may be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the City.

(f) Not less than two days after the conclusion of such hearing, the Mayor shall issue an order modifying, rescinding or continuing in effect such proclamation. Any such order shall be a final order within the meaning of Ohio R.C. 2006.01.

(Ord. 117-68. Passed 4-1-68.)

(g) Whoever violates this section is guilty of riot, a misdemeanor of the first degree and shall be subject to the penalty provided in Section 698.02.

(ORC 2917.03; Ord. 278-73. Passed 12-17-73.)

(h) For the purposes of prosecuting violations of this section, the prosecution is not required to allege or prove that the offender expressly agreed with four or more others to commit any act that constitutes a violation this section prior to or while committing those acts.

(ORC 2917.031)

Statutory reference:

Aggravated riot, felony provisions, see Ohio R.C. 2917.02

648.02 FAILURE TO DISPERSE.

(a) Where five or more persons are participating in a course of disorderly conduct in violation of Ohio R.C. 2917.11 or a substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, and there are other persons in the vicinity whose presence creates the likelihood of physical harm to persons or property or of serious public inconvenience, annoyance, or alarm, a law enforcement officer or other public official may order the participants and the other persons to disperse. No person shall knowingly fail to obey the order.

(b) Nothing in this section requires persons to disperse who are peaceably assembled for a lawful purpose.

(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (c)(3) of this section, failure to disperse is a minor misdemeanor.

(3) Failure to disperse is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree if the failure to obey the order described in division (a) of this section creates the likelihood of physical harm to persons or is committed at the scene of a fire, accident, disaster, riot, or emergency of any kind.

(ORC 2917.04; Ord. 278-73. Passed 12-17-73.)

648.03 JUSTIFIABLE USE OF FORCE TO SUPPRESS RIOT.

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

(a) Is justified in using force, other than deadly force, when and to the extent he or she 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 or she 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; Ord. 278-73. Passed 12-17-73.)

Disclaimer: This Code of Ordinances and/or any other documents that appear on this site may not reflect the most current legislation adopted by the Municipality. American Legal Publishing provides these documents for informational purposes only. These documents should not be relied upon as the definitive authority for local legislation. Additionally, the formatting and pagination of the posted documents varies from the formatting and pagination of the official copy. The official printed copy of a Code of Ordinances should be consulted prior to any action being taken. For further information regarding the official version of any of this Code of Ordinances or other documents posted on this site, please contact the Municipality directly or contact American Legal Publishing toll-free at 800-445-5588.

Hosted by: American Legal Publishing

Back to Code Library

Previous Doc

Next Doc