COLUMBUS, Ohio — A new Ohio law taking effect this fall will create a 15-foot buffer zone around police officers and other first responders, making it a crime for people to ignore warnings to keep their distance while emergency personnel are performing their duties.
Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 20 into law on July 7 after it passed the Ohio House and Senate with bipartisan support. The legislation, sponsored by Reps. Thomas Hall, R-Dayton, and Phil Plummer, R-Dayton, will take effect in October according to WCMH.
Under the new law, a person who knowingly approaches or remains within 15 feet of a first responder after being warned to stay back — while interfering with the responder’s duties or threatening physical harm — can be charged with a first-degree misdemeanor.
A conviction could carry penalties of up to 180 days in jail and a maximum $1,000 fine.
The law also increases criminal penalties in more serious situations. If the violation creates a risk of physical harm to a first responder, the offense can be elevated to a fourth-degree felony. If it creates a risk of physical harm to someone other than a first responder, the charge can become a fifth-degree felony.
The legislation applies to law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical services personnel and probation officers.
Supporters say the measure provides clearer legal authority for officers and emergency personnel to maintain safe working distances during emergencies.
“HB 20 will be a vital tool to protect our first responders,” Plummer said in a statement. “We must give the first responders the proper space to keep everyone safe.”
The law expands on Ohio’s existing obstruction of official business statute, which already prohibits intentionally interfering with public officials performing their lawful duties.
Support for the legislation came from several public safety organizations, including the Fraternal Order of Police of Ohio, the Ohio Fire Chiefs Association and the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association.
Robert Butler, police chief for the City of Independence and president of the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police, said during legislative testimony that the bill is intended to improve safety without limiting constitutional rights.
“I want to be clear: the OACP and its members fully support the First Amendment right of the public to record and observe police activity,” Butler said. “However, that right does not include the right to physically crowd a scene, distract an officer during a high-tension encounter or create a ‘tactical blind spot’ that puts the officer or the public at risk.”
Butler also argued that Ohio’s current obstruction law has sometimes proven difficult to enforce because of differing court interpretations, saying the new law establishes clearer standards.
The legislation drew opposition from the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, which argued the language could be interpreted too broadly.
Gary Daniels, the organization’s legislative director, told lawmakers the bill could potentially affect constitutionally protected activities such as peaceful protests if not applied carefully.
“To what necessary degree or magnitude an interruption or disruption must be for HB 20 to apply, this bill is silent,” Daniels said during committee testimony. “Likewise, whether that disruption, interruption, interference, etc. must be ongoing or whether it can be temporary, fleeting or must truly prevent a first responder from performing their duties is unrevealed in HB 20.”
The new law is scheduled to take effect in October.
