Ohio now requires drivers and passengers to provide identifying details during traffic stops. Refusing to comply may bring misdemeanor charges and possible jail time.
Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 492 into law.
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It makes it a criminal offense for passengers who refuse to identify themselves during a lawful traffic stop.
Law enforcement groups call it a fix for a loophole. Civil liberty advocates say it's an overreach that could criminalize behavior that has long been legal.
What The Law Actually Requires
Under the legislation, a peace officer who reasonably suspects a violation of Ohio's motor vehicle laws can require occupants to provide their name, address, and date of birth.
Refusing to do so is now a fourth-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $250 fine.
The law specifies that occupants cannot be compelled to answer questions beyond those three pieces of information.
The bill also expands Ohio's prohibition against interfering with an officer enforcing traffic laws.
The revised language applies across Ohio's entire motor vehicle code and increases the penalty from a minor misdemeanor to a second-degree misdemeanor, carrying a maximum sentence of 90 days in jail and a $750 fine.
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Supporters, including the Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Fraternal Order of Police of Ohio, argued the legislation was necessary because Ohio appellate courts had repeatedly ruled that simply refusing to identify yourself during a traffic stop did not constitute obstruction of official business.
