S. B. No. 220 As Introduced

As Introduced

127th General Assembly

Regular Session

2007-2008

S. B. No. 220

Senator Schuring

A BILL

To amend sections 2907.01, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.24,

2907.241, and 2907.25 of the Revised Code to

provide increased penalties for the offenses of

promoting prostitution, procuring, soliciting,

loitering to engage in solicitation, and

prostitution if the offense occurs in a school

safety zone or within 1,000 feet of a school

building or the boundaries of school premises.

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

Section 1. That sections 2907.01, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.24,	9
2907.241, and 2907.25 of the Revised Code be amended to read as	10
follows:	11

Sec. 2907.01. As used in sections 2907.01 to 2907.38 of the	12
Revised Code:	13

(A) "Sexual conduct" means vaginal intercourse between a male	14
and female; anal intercourse, fellatio, and cunnilingus between	15
persons regardless of sex; and, without privilege to do so, the	16
insertion, however slight, of any part of the body or any	17
instrument, apparatus, or other object into the vaginal or anal	18
opening of another. Penetration, however slight, is sufficient to	19
complete vaginal or anal intercourse.	20

(B) "Sexual contact" means any touching of an erogenous zone	21
of another, including without limitation the thigh, genitals,	22
buttock, pubic region, or, if the person is a female, a breast,	23
for the purpose of sexually arousing or gratifying either person.	24

(C) "Sexual activity" means sexual conduct or sexual contact,	25
or both.	26

(D) "Prostitute" means a male or female who promiscuously	27
engages in sexual activity for hire, regardless of whether the	28
hire is paid to the prostitute or to another.	29

(E) "Harmful to juveniles" means that quality of any material	30
or performance describing or representing nudity, sexual conduct,	31
sexual excitement, or sado-masochistic abuse in any form to which	32
all of the following apply:	33

(1) The material or performance, when considered as a whole,	34
appeals to the prurient interest of juveniles in sex.	35

(2) The material or performance is patently offensive to	36
prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with	37
respect to what is suitable for juveniles.	38

(3) The material or performance, when considered as a whole,	39
lacks serious literary, artistic, political, and scientific value	40
for juveniles.	41

(F) When considered as a whole, and judged with reference to	42
ordinary adults or, if it is designed for sexual deviates or other	43
specially susceptible group, judged with reference to that group,	44
any material or performance is "obscene" if any of the following	45
apply:	46

(1) Its dominant appeal is to prurient interest;

(2) Its dominant tendency is to arouse lust by displaying or	48
depicting sexual activity, masturbation, sexual excitement, or	49
nudity in a way that tends to represent human beings as mere	50
objects of sexual appetite;	51

(3) Its dominant tendency is to arouse lust by displaying or	52
depicting bestiality or extreme or bizarre violence, cruelty, or	53
brutality;	54

(4) Its dominant tendency is to appeal to scatological	55
interest by displaying or depicting human bodily functions of	56
elimination in a way that inspires disgust or revulsion in persons	57
with ordinary sensibilities, without serving any genuine	58
scientific, educational, sociological, moral, or artistic purpose;	59

(5) It contains a series of displays or descriptions of	60
sexual activity, masturbation, sexual excitement, nudity,	61
bestiality, extreme or bizarre violence, cruelty, or brutality, or	62
human bodily functions of elimination, the cumulative effect of	63
which is a dominant tendency to appeal to prurient or scatological	64
interest, when the appeal to such an interest is primarily for its	65
own sake or for commercial exploitation, rather than primarily for	66
a genuine scientific, educational, sociological, moral, or	67
artistic purpose.	68

(G) "Sexual excitement" means the condition of human male or	69
female genitals when in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.	70

(H) "Nudity" means the showing, representation, or depiction	71
of human male or female genitals, pubic area, or buttocks with	72
less than a full, opaque covering, or of a female breast with less	73
than a full, opaque covering of any portion thereof below the top	74
of the nipple, or of covered male genitals in a discernibly turgid	75
state.	76

(I) "Juvenile" means an unmarried person under the age of	77
eighteen.	78

(J) "Material" means any book, magazine, newspaper, pamphlet,	79
poster, print, picture, figure, image, description, motion picture	80
film, phonographic record, or tape, or other tangible thing	81
capable of arousing interest through sight, sound, or touch and	82
includes an image or text appearing on a computer monitor,	83
television screen, liquid crystal display, or similar display	84
device or an image or text recorded on a computer hard disk,	85
computer floppy disk, compact disk, magnetic tape, or similar data	86
storage device.	87

(K) "Performance" means any motion picture, preview, trailer,	88
play, show, skit, dance, or other exhibition performed before an	89
audience.	90

(L) "Spouse" means a person married to an offender at the	91
time of an alleged offense, except that such person shall not be	92
considered the spouse when any of the following apply:	93

(1) When the parties have entered into a written separation	94
agreement authorized by section 3103.06 of the Revised Code;	95

(2) During the pendency of an action between the parties for	96
annulment, divorce, dissolution of marriage, or legal separation;	97

(3) In the case of an action for legal separation, after the	98
effective date of the judgment for legal separation.	99

(M) "Minor" means a person under the age of eighteen.

100

(N) "Mental health client or patient" has the same meaning as	101
in section 2305.51 of the Revised Code.	102

(O) "Mental health professional" has the same meaning as in	103
section 2305.115 of the Revised Code.	104

(P) "Sado-masochistic abuse" means flagellation or torture by	105
or upon a person or the condition of being fettered, bound, or	106
otherwise physically restrained.	107

(Q) An offense is "committed in proximity to a school" if the	108
offender commits the offense in a school safety zone or within one	109
thousand feet of any school building or the boundaries of any	110
school premises, regardless of whether the offender knows the	111
offense is being committed in a school safety zone or within one	112
thousand feet of any school building or the boundaries of any	113
school premises.	114

Sec. 2907.22. (A) No person shall knowingly:

115

(1) Establish, maintain, operate, manage, supervise, control,	116
or have an interest in a brothel;	117

(2) Supervise, manage, or control the activities of a	118
prostitute in engaging in sexual activity for hire;	119

(3) Transport another, or cause another to be transported	120
across the boundary of this state or of any county in this state,	121
in order to facilitate the other person's engaging in sexual	122
activity for hire;	123

(4) For the purpose of violating or facilitating a violation	124
of this section, induce or procure another to engage in sexual	125
activity for hire.	126

(B)(1) Whoever violates this section is guilty of promoting	127
prostitution,. Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2) or	128
(3) of this section, promoting prostitution is a felony of the	129
fourth degree. If	130

(2) If the offense is committed in proximity to a school,	131
except as otherwise provided in division (B)(3) of this section,	132
promoting prostitution is a felony of the third degree.	133

(3) If any prostitute in the brothel involved in the offense,	134
or the prostitute whose activities are supervised, managed, or	135
controlled by the offender, or the person transported, induced, or	136
procured by the offender to engage in sexual activity for hire, is	137
a minor, whether or not the offender knows the age of the minor,	138
~~then~~ promoting prostitution is one of the following:	139

(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(3)(b) of	140
this section, it is a felony of the third degree.	141

(b) If the offense is committed in proximity to a school, it	142
is a felony of the second degree.	143

Sec. 2907.23. (A) No person, knowingly and for gain, shall	144
do either of the following:	145

(1) Entice or solicit another to patronize a prostitute or	146
brothel;	147

(2) Procure a prostitute for another to patronize, or take or	148
direct another at ~~his or her~~the other's request to any place for	149
the purpose of patronizing a prostitute.	150

(B) No person, having authority or responsibility over the	151
use of premises, shall knowingly permit such premises to be used	152
for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity for hire.	153

(C) Whoever violates this section is guilty of procuring,.	154
Except as otherwise provided in this division, procuring is a	155
misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offense is committed in	156
proximity to a school, and if the offender previously has been	157
convicted two or more times of a violation of this section in	158
circumstances in which the offense was committed in proximity to a	159
school, procuring is a felony of the third degree.	160

Sec. 2907.24. (A) No person shall solicit another to engage	161
with such other person in sexual activity for hire.	162

(B) No person, with knowledge that the person has tested	163
positive as a carrier of a virus that causes acquired	164
immunodeficiency syndrome, shall engage in conduct in violation of	165
division (A) of this section.	166

(C)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is	167
guilty of soliciting,. Except as otherwise provided in this	168
division, soliciting is a misdemeanor of the third degree. If the	169
offense is committed in proximity to a school, soliciting is one	170
of the following:	171

(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(1)(b) of	172
this section, it is a misdemeanor of the first degree.	173

(b) If the offender previously has been convicted two or more	174
times of a violation of division (A) or (B) of this section in	175
circumstances in which the offense was committed in proximity to a	176
school, it is a felony of the fifth degree.	177

(2) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty	178
of engaging in solicitation after a positive HIV test. If the	179
offender commits the violation prior to July 1, 1996, engaging in	180
solicitation after a positive HIV test is a felony of the second	181
degree. If the offender commits the violation on or after July 1,	182
1996, engaging in solicitation after a positive HIV test is a	183
felony of the third degree.	184

(D) If a person is convicted of or pleads guilty to a	185
violation of any provision of this section, an attempt to commit a	186
violation of any provision of this section, or a violation of or	187
an attempt to commit a violation of a municipal ordinance that is	188
substantially equivalent to any provision of this section and if	189
the person, in committing or attempting to commit the violation,	190
was in, was on, or used a motor vehicle, the court, in addition to	191
or independent of all other penalties imposed for the violation,	192
shall impose upon the offender a class six suspension of the	193
person's driver's license, commercial driver's license, temporary	194
instruction permit, probationary license, or nonresident operating	195
privilege from the range specified in division (A)(6) of section	196
4510.02 of the Revised Code.	197

Sec. 2907.241. (A) No person, with purpose to solicit	198
another to engage in sexual activity for hire and while in or near	199
a public place, shall do any of the following:	200

(1) Beckon to, stop, or attempt to stop another;

201

(2) Engage or attempt to engage another in conversation;

202

(3) Stop or attempt to stop the operator of a vehicle or	203
approach a stationary vehicle;	204

(4) If the offender is the operator of or a passenger in a	205
vehicle, stop, attempt to stop, beckon to, attempt to beckon to,	206
or entice another to approach or enter the vehicle of which the	207
offender is the operator or in which the offender is the	208
passenger;	209

(5) Interfere with the free passage of another.

210

(B) No person, with knowledge that the person has tested	211
positive as a carrier of a virus that causes acquired	212
immunodeficiency syndrome, shall engage in conduct in violation of	213
division (A) of this section.	214

215

(1) "Vehicle" has the same meaning as in section 4501.01 of	216
the Revised Code.	217

(2) "Public place" means any of the following:

218

(a) A street, road, highway, thoroughfare, bikeway, walkway,	219
sidewalk, bridge, alley, alleyway, plaza, park, driveway, parking	220
lot, or transportation facility;	221

(b) A doorway or entrance way to a building that fronts on a	222
place described in division (C)(2)(a) of this section;	223

(c) A place not described in division (C)(2)(a) or (b) of	224
this section that is open to the public.	225

(D)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is	226
guilty of loitering to engage in solicitation,. Except as	227
otherwise provided in this division, loitering to engage in	228
solicitation is a misdemeanor of the third degree. If the offense	229
is committed in proximity to a school, and if the offender	230
previously has been convicted two or more times of a violation of	231
division (A) or (B) of this section in circumstances in which the	232
offense was committed in proximity to a school, loitering to	233
engage in solicitation is a misdemeanor of the first degree.	234

(2) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty	235
of loitering to engage in solicitation after a positive HIV test.	236
If the offender commits the violation prior to July 1, 1996,	237
loitering to engage in solicitation after a positive HIV test is a	238
felony of the fourth degree. If the offender commits the violation	239
on or after July 1, 1996, loitering to engage in solicitation	240
after a positive HIV test is a felony of the fifth degree.	241

Sec. 2907.25. (A) No person shall engage in sexual activity	242
for hire.	243

(B) No person, with knowledge that the person has tested	244
positive as a carrier of a virus that causes acquired	245
immunodeficiency syndrome, shall engage in sexual activity for	246
hire.	247

(C)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is	248
guilty of prostitution,. Except as otherwise provided in this	249
division, prostitution is a misdemeanor of the third degree. If	250
the offense is committed in proximity to a school, prostitution is	251
one of the following:	252

(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(1)(b) of	253
this section, it is a misdemeanor of the first degree.	254

(b) If the offender previously has been convicted two or more	255
times of a violation of division (A) or (B) of this section in	256
circumstances in which the offense was committed in proximity to a	257
school, it is a felony of the fifth degree.	258

(2) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty	259
of engaging in prostitution after a positive HIV test. If the	260
offender commits the violation prior to July 1, 1996, engaging in	261
prostitution after a positive HIV test is a felony of the second	262
degree. If the offender commits the violation on or after July 1,	263
1996, engaging in prostitution after a positive HIV test is a	264
felony of the third degree.	265

Section 2. That existing sections 2907.01, 2907.22, 2907.23,	266
2907.24, 2907.241, and 2907.25 of the Revised Code are hereby	267
repealed.	268

Section 3. Sections 1 and 2 of this act shall take effect on	269
the earliest date permitted by law or January 1, 2008, whichever	270
is later.	271