Ohio lawmakers introduce bill to protect first responders
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Ohio legislators want to make harassing first responders a crime.
House Bill 20 was introduced to the Ohio House of Representatives earlier this year, seeking to assure first responders can safely and effectively do their jobs in stressful situations.
Investigation into Zaden McKnight disappearance continues
The bill aims to 'prohibit a person from knowingly harassing or impeding an emergency service responder who is engaged in the lawful performance of a legal duty,' as well as adding probation officers to the list of first responders.
If HB-20 goes through, individuals accused of harassing first responders could face a first-degree misdemeanor.
The bill is currently in the House Public Safety Committee. It was introduced by Rep. Thomas Hall and Rep. Phil Plummer.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Advertisement Her boyfriend at the time, Jesse Tafero, a petty criminal who had been convicted of attempted rape, was also convicted of murder. He was executed by electric chair in Florida in a notoriously botched procedure in May 1990. It took seven minutes and three jolts, and his head caught on fire. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Ms. Jacobs, whose death sentence was overturned in 1982, was ultimately freed a decade later, when a federal appeals court found that prosecutors had improperly withheld evidence from the defense. She took a plea deal rather than face retrial and was never legally exonerated. 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