As Passed by the House                        1            

122nd General Assembly                                             4            

   Regular Session                                 H. B. No. 382   5            

      1997-1998                                                    6            


   REPRESENTATIVES OGG-OPFER-PRINGLE-SULZER-TAVARES-VAN VYVEN-     8            

     GARCIA-SUTTON-FORD-MYERS-MASON-LUCAS-CAREY-BRADY-MOTTL-       9            

 HOUSEHOLDER-GRENDELL-WESTON-PATTON-O'BRIEN-WINKLER-TERWILLEGER-   10           

      BRADING-OLMAN-SALERNO-PADGETT-ROBERTS-ROMAN-COLONNA-         11           

  BENDER-VESPER-NETZLEY-BUCHY-LEWIS-CATES-BRITTON-JONES-VERICH     12           


                                                                   14           

                           A   B I L L                                          

             To amend section 2917.31 of the Revise Code to        16           

                increase the penalty for the offense of inducing   17           

                panic when the public place  involved in the       18           

                offense is a school.                               19           




BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:        20           

      Section 1.  That section 2917.31 of the Revised Code be      22           

amended to read as follows:                                        23           

      Sec. 2917.31.  (A)  No person shall cause the evacuation of  32           

any public place, or otherwise cause serious public inconvenience  33           

or alarm, by doing any of the following:                           34           

      (1)  Initiating or circulating a report or warning of an     36           

alleged or impending fire, explosion, crime, or other              37           

catastrophe, knowing that such report or warning is false;         38           

      (2)  Threatening to commit any offense of violence;          40           

      (3)  Committing any offense, with reckless disregard of the  42           

likelihood that its commission will cause serious public           43           

inconvenience or alarm.                                            44           

      (B)  Division (A)(1) of this section does not apply to any   46           

person conducting an authorized fire or emergency drill.           47           

      (C)(1)  Whoever violates this section is guilty of inducing  49           

panic,.                                                            50           

      (2)  EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN DIVISION (C)(3) OR (4)  52           

                                                          2      

                                                                 
OF THIS SECTION, INDUCING PANIC IS a misdemeanor of the first      54           

degree.  If                                                                     

      (3)  EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN DIVISION (C)(4) OF      56           

THIS SECTION, IF A violation of this section results in physical   59           

harm to any person, inducing panic is a felony of the fourth       60           

degree.                                                                         

      (4)(a)  EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN DIVISION (C)(4)(b)   63           

OF THIS SECTION, IF THE PUBLIC PLACE INVOLVED IN A VIOLATION OF    64           

DIVISION (A)(1) OF THIS SECTION IS A SCHOOL, INDUCING PANIC IS A   65           

FELONY OF THE FOURTH DEGREE.                                                    

      (b)  IF THE PUBLIC PLACE INVOLVED IN A VIOLATION OF          67           

DIVISION (A)(1) OF THIS SECTION IS A SCHOOL AND IF THE VIOLATION   68           

RESULTS IN PHYSICAL HARM TO ANY PERSON, INDUCING PANIC IS A        69           

FELONY OF THE THIRD DEGREE.                                                     

      (D)  AS USED IN THIS SECTION, "SCHOOL" MEANS ANY SCHOOL      71           

OPERATED BY A BOARD OF EDUCATION OR ANY SCHOOL FOR WHICH THE       72           

STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION PRESCRIBES MINIMUM STANDARDS UNDER        73           

SECTION 3301.07 OF THE REVISED CODE, WHETHER OR NOT ANY                         

INSTRUCTION, EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES, OR TRAINING PROVIDED BY   74           

THE SCHOOL IS BEING CONDUCTED AT THE TIME A VIOLATION OF THIS      75           

SECTION IS COMMITTED.                                                           

      Section 2.  That existing section 2917.31 of the Revised     77           

Code is hereby repealed.                                           78