Ohio Code 4511.751 – School bus operator to report violations
As used in this section, “license plate” includes, but is not limited to, any temporary motor vehicle license registration issued under section 4503.182 of the Revised Code or similar law of another jurisdiction.
Terms Used In Ohio Code 4511.751
- Another: when used to designate the owner of property which is the subject of an offense, includes not only natural persons but also every other owner of property. See Ohio Code 1.02
- Bus: means every motor vehicle designed for carrying more than nine passengers and used for the transportation of persons other than in a ridesharing arrangement, and every motor vehicle, automobile for hire, or funeral car, other than a taxicab or motor vehicle used in a ridesharing arrangement, designed and used for the transportation of persons for compensation. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: means every natural person, firm, co-partnership, association, or corporation. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
- School bus: means every bus designed for carrying more than nine passengers that is owned by a public, private, or governmental agency or institution of learning and operated for the transportation of children to or from a school session or a school function, or owned by a private person and operated for compensation for the transportation of children to or from a school session or a school function, provided "school bus" does not include a bus operated by a municipally owned transportation system, a mass transit company operating exclusively within the territorial limits of a municipal corporation, or within such limits and the territorial limits of municipal corporations immediately contiguous to such municipal corporation, nor a common passenger carrier certified by the public utilities commission unless such bus is devoted exclusively to the transportation of children to and from a school session or a school function, and "school bus" does not include a van or bus used by a licensed child care center or type A family child care home to transport children from the child care center or type A family child care home to a school if the van or bus does not have more than fifteen children in the van or bus at any time. See Ohio Code 4511.01
- Vehicle: means every device, including a motorized bicycle and an electric bicycle, in, upon, or by which any person or property may be transported or drawn upon a highway, except that "vehicle" does not include any motorized wheelchair, any electric personal assistive mobility device, any low-speed micromobility device, any personal delivery device as defined in section 4511. See Ohio Code 4511.01
When the operator of a school bus believes that a motorist has violated division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code, the operator shall report the license plate number and a general description of the vehicle and of the operator of the vehicle to the law enforcement agency exercising jurisdiction over the area where the alleged violation occurred. The information contained in the report relating to the license plate number and to the general description of the vehicle and the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation may be supplied by any person with first-hand knowledge of the information. Information of which the operator of the school bus has first-hand knowledge also may be corroborated by any other person.
Upon receipt of the report of the alleged violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code, the law enforcement agency shall conduct an investigation to attempt to determine or confirm the identity of the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation. If the identity of the operator at the time of the alleged violation is established, the reporting of the license plate number of the vehicle shall establish probable cause for the law enforcement agency to issue a citation for the violation of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code. However, if the identity of the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation cannot be established, the law enforcement agency shall issue a warning to the owner of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation, except in the case of a leased or rented vehicle when the warning shall be issued to the lessee at the time of the alleged violation.
The registrar of motor vehicles and deputy registrars shall, at the time of issuing license plates to any person, include with the license plate a summary of the requirements of division (A) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code and the procedures of, and penalty in, division (F) of section 4511.75 of the Revised Code.
Last updated April 14, 2021 at 7:30 AM