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To amend sections 2901.21 and 2901.22 and to enact | 1 |
section 2901.20 of the Revised Code to clarify | 2 |
when strict criminal liability is imposed or a | 3 |
degree of culpability is required for the | 4 |
commission of an offense, to modify the concept of | 5 |
acting recklessly, and to require that future acts | 6 |
creating criminal offenses specify the requisite | 7 |
degree of culpability. | 8 |
Section 1. That sections 2901.21 and 2901.22 be amended and | 9 |
section 2901.20 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows: | 10 |
Sec. 2901.20. (A) Every act enacted on or after the | 11 |
effective date of this section that creates a new criminal offense | 12 |
shall specify the degree of mental culpability required for | 13 |
commission of the offense. A criminal offense for which no degree | 14 |
of mental culpability is specified that is enacted in an act in | 15 |
violation of this division is void. | 16 |
(B) Division (A) of this section does not apply to the | 17 |
amendment of a criminal offense that existed on the effective date | 18 |
of this section, but it does apply to a new criminal offense added | 19 |
to a statute that existed on the effective date of this section. | 20 |
Sec. 2901.21. (A) Except as provided in division (B) of this | 21 |
section, a person is not guilty of an offense unless both of the | 22 |
following apply: | 23 |
(1) The person's liability is based on conduct that includes | 24 |
either a voluntary act, or an omission to perform an act or duty | 25 |
that the person is capable of performing; | 26 |
(2) The person has the requisite degree of culpability for | 27 |
each element as to which a culpable mental state is specified by | 28 |
the
| 29 |
(B) When the | 30 |
specify any degree of culpability, and plainly indicates a purpose | 31 |
to impose strict criminal liability for the conduct described in | 32 |
the section, then culpability is not required for a person to be | 33 |
guilty of the offense. The fact that one division of a section | 34 |
plainly indicates a purpose to impose strict liability for an | 35 |
offense defined in that division does not by itself plainly | 36 |
indicate a purpose to impose strict criminal liability for an | 37 |
offense defined in other divisions of the section that do not | 38 |
specify a degree of culpability. | 39 |
(C)(1) When | 40 |
offensethat is related to knowledge or intent or to which mens | 41 |
rea could fairly be applied neither specifies culpability nor | 42 |
plainly indicates a purpose to impose strict liability, | 43 |
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element of the offense is established only if a person acts | 45 |
recklessly. | 46 |
(2) Division (C)(1) of this section does not apply to | 47 |
offenses defined in Title XLV of the Revised Code. | 48 |
(3) Division (C)(1) of this section does not relieve the | 49 |
prosecution of the burden of proving the culpable mental state | 50 |
required by any definition incorporated into the offense. | 51 |
| 52 |
consideration in determining the existence of a mental state that | 53 |
is an element of a criminal offense. Voluntary intoxication does | 54 |
not relieve a person of a duty to act if failure to act | 55 |
constitutes a criminal offense. Evidence that a person was | 56 |
voluntarily intoxicated may be admissible to show whether or not | 57 |
the person was physically capable of performing the act with which | 58 |
the person is charged. | 59 |
| 60 |
(1) Possession is a voluntary act if the possessor knowingly | 61 |
procured or received the thing possessed, or was aware of the | 62 |
possessor's control of the thing possessed for a sufficient time | 63 |
to have ended possession. | 64 |
(2) Reflexes, convulsions, body movements during | 65 |
unconsciousness or sleep, and body movements that are not | 66 |
otherwise a product of the actor's volition, are involuntary acts. | 67 |
(3) "Culpability" means purpose, knowledge, recklessness, or | 68 |
negligence, as defined in section 2901.22 of the Revised Code. | 69 |
(4) "Intoxication" includes, but is not limited to, | 70 |
intoxication resulting from the ingestion of alcohol, a drug, or | 71 |
alcohol and a drug. | 72 |
Sec. 2901.22. (A) A person acts purposely when it is | 73 |
person's specific intention to cause a certain result, or, when | 74 |
the gist of the offense is a prohibition against conduct of a | 75 |
certain nature, regardless of what the offender intends to | 76 |
accomplish thereby, it is | 77 |
engage in conduct of that nature. | 78 |
(B) A person acts knowingly, regardless of | 79 |
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cause a certain result or will probably be of a certain nature. A | 81 |
person has knowledge of circumstances when | 82 |
that such circumstances probably exist. When knowledge of the | 83 |
existence of a particular fact is an element of an offense, such | 84 |
knowledge is established if a person subjectively believes that | 85 |
there is a high probability of its existence and fails to make | 86 |
inquiry or acts with a conscious purpose to avoid learning the | 87 |
fact. | 88 |
(C) A person acts recklessly when, with heedless indifference | 89 |
to the consequences, | 90 |
substantial and unjustifiable risk that | 91 |
is likely to cause a certain result or is likely to be of a | 92 |
certain nature. A person is reckless with respect to circumstances | 93 |
when, with heedless indifference to the consequences, | 94 |
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unjustifiable risk that such circumstances are likely to exist. | 96 |
(D) A person acts negligently when, because of a substantial | 97 |
lapse from due care, | 98 |
risk that | 99 |
may be of a certain nature. A person is negligent with respect to | 100 |
circumstances when, because of a substantial lapse from due care, | 101 |
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circumstances may exist. | 103 |
(E) When the section defining an offense provides that | 104 |
negligence suffices to establish an element thereof, then | 105 |
recklessness, knowledge, or purpose is also sufficient culpability | 106 |
for such element. When recklessness suffices to establish an | 107 |
element of an offense, then knowledge or purpose is also | 108 |
sufficient culpability for such element. When knowledge suffices | 109 |
to establish an element of an offense, then purpose is also | 110 |
sufficient culpability for such element. | 111 |
Section 2. That existing sections 2901.21 and 2901.22 of the | 112 |
Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 113 |