(a) No driver of a truck, trailer or semitrailer shall knowingly permit any person who has not attained the age of sixteen years to ride in the unenclosed or unroofed cargo storage area of his vehicle if the vehicle is traveling faster than twenty-five miles per hour, unless either of the following applies:
(1) The cargo storage area of the vehicle is equipped with a properly secured seat to which is attached a seat safety belt that is in compliance with federal standards for an occupant restraining device as defined in Ohio R.C. 4513.263(A)(2), the seat and seat safety belt were installed at the time the vehicle was originally assembled, and the person riding in the cargo storage area is in the seat and is wearing the seat safety belt;
(2) A bona fide emergency exists that threatens the life of the driver or the person being transported in the cargo storage area of the truck, trailer or semitrailer.
(b) No driver of a truck, trailer or semitrailer shall permit any person, except for those workers performing specialized highway or street maintenance or construction under authority of a public agency, to ride in the cargo storage area or on a tailgate of his vehicle while the tailgate is unlatched. (Ord. 1989-51. Passed 10-12-89.)
(c) Whoever violates any provision of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor on a first offense; on a second offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree; on each subsequent offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.