As Reported by House Transportation and Public Safety Committee   1            

123rd General Assembly                                             4            

   Regular Session                              Am. S. B. No. 244  5            

      1999-2000                                                    6            


     SENATORS MUMPER-LATTA-SPADA-DRAKE-WATTS-GARDNER-LATELL-       8            

 REPRESENTATIVES CLANCY-BENDER-DAMSCHRODER-PATTON-METTLER-OLMAN-   9            

                          MEAD-BRITTON                             10           


_________________________________________________________________   11           

                          A   B I L L                                           

             To enact section 4501.80 of the Revised Code to       13           

                require every law enforcement agency whose law     14           

                enforcement officers investigate motor vehicle                  

                accidents to develop and adopt a written policy    15           

                governing the procedures for notifying the next    16           

                of kin of any person who is found dead or is                    

                pronounced dead at the scene of a motor vehicle    17           

                accident or who suffers  a serious,                             

                life-threatening injury in a motor vehicle         18           

                accident.                                                       




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

      Section 1.  That section 4501.80 of the Revised Code be      22           

enacted to read as follows:                                        23           

      Sec. 4501.80.  (A)  EVERY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY WHOSE LAW   25           

ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS INVESTIGATE MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS SHALL     26           

DEVELOP AND ADOPT A WRITTEN POLICY ESTABLISHING REASONABLE         27           

PROCEDURES FOR DETERMINING AND NOTIFYING THE NEXT OF KIN OF ANY    28           

PERSON WHO IS FOUND DEAD OR IS PRONOUNCED DEAD AT THE SCENE OF A   30           

MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT OR WHO SUFFERS A SERIOUS, LIFE-THREATENING  31           

INJURY IN A MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT AND WHO THE INVESTIGATING LAW   32           

ENFORCEMENT OFFICER REASONABLY DETERMINES IN ALL PROBABILITY WILL  33           

NOT BE ABLE TO NOTIFY THE PERSON'S NEXT OF KIN WITHIN A                         

REASONABLE TIME AFTER THE MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT.                  34           

      AFTER A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY ADOPTS A WRITTEN POLICY AS    36           

                                                          2      


                                                                 
REQUIRED BY THIS DIVISION, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS EMPLOYED   37           

BY THAT AGENCY SHALL MAKE A GOOD FAITH EFFORT TO FOLLOW THE        38           

PROCEDURES CONTAINED IN THE POLICY.                                             

      (B)  THE NOTIFICATION UNDER THIS SECTION OF THE NEXT OF KIN  40           

OF PERSONS WHO ARE KILLED OR INJURED IN MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS    41           

IS HEREBY DEEMED TO BE A GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTION FOR PURPOSES OF     42           

CHAPTER 2744. OF THE REVISED CODE.