RSparky Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 My buddy got pulled over for solely a seat belt violation... He's pissed, and I am too.A) Is that legal?B) Could he prove it in court?He had it on when the officer came up to the car, but apparently the officer said he saw him with it off, while driving.I think it's a bullshit law to begin with, but what do I know, I'm only in a free country...Any advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flounder Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 (edited) I thought that a seatbelt violation in ohio was a secondary violation. i.e. you had to be pulled over for something else. Although I have a few seatbelt violations on my record but I agree, I think they are complete BS.Guess Im wronghttp://codes.ohio.gov/orc/4513.263 Edited April 29, 2011 by flounder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buildit Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 Well, go to court and ask the officer to produce dash cam video of him with it off or prove he was capable of seeing him with it off. I doubt you'll win but hey, it's a free country as long as you can afford the bills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crb Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 The state, counties, cities, municipalities, etc are low on funds its expected. Either pay it or fight it good luck if he fights it. Select.ding on how much the ticket is it may be worthwhile to pay it. Are seatbelt tickets moving violations in Ohio? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSparky Posted April 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 (D) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no law enforcement officer shall cause an operator of an automobile being operated on any street or highway to stop the automobile for the sole purpose of determining whether a violation of division (B) of this section has been or is being committed or for the sole purpose of issuing a ticket, citation, or summons for a violation of that nature or causing the arrest of or commencing a prosecution of a person for a violation of that nature, and no law enforcement officer shall view the interior or visually inspect any automobile being operated on any street or highway for the sole purpose of determining whether a violation of that nature has been or is being committed.What about this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevysoldier Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 I thought they changed it to where that is enough to pull you over andcite you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhaag Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 i got one of those a couple years ago. i was going the opposite direction in a semi on 270 and the trooper did a flip and pulled me over for no seat belt. i tried to protest but he then asked me if i wanted a speeding ticket (60 in a 55) or a seat belt ticket. i took the obvious, i think it was $100. its a non points violation (or used to be) and probably not worth the hassle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevysoldier Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 Did some research. According to this site, Ohio has secondary seatbelt laws .Secondary seat belt laws state that law enforcement officers may issue a ticket for not wearing a seat belt only when there is another citable traffic infraction.http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/seatbelt_laws.htmlMore Ohio laws: http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/bystate/oh.html*This site is not to be considered legal authority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dugan n rita Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 They can do pretty much anything they want to, you may fight it, but they still going to get court cost from you. Sorry dude I also think it Suks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSparky Posted April 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 well, he pulled him over for no front plate. yet said he saw him without his belt while he was driving, even though it was on when he walked up... didn't get the ticket for no plate though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevysoldier Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 well, he pulled him over for no front plate. yet said he saw him without his belt while he was driving, even though it was on when he walked up... didn't get the ticket for no plate though.Well if he pulled him over for the plate, then that would be reason enough. He chose to cite for the belt and not the plate. My guess anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buildit Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 I've always wondered if that could not be viewed as coerced when told I'll give you this ticket or I'll give you this one which is worse? Might be a good civil rights case. I'm sure the $50,000 lawyer bill will make it all worth while though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSparky Posted April 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 Well if he pulled him over for the plate, then that would be reason enough. He chose to cite for the belt and not the plate. My guess anyways.i was afraid of that. didn't find that out until later in the evening, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerben Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 They don't have to cite you for the primary reason for the stop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyJ Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 Maybe the cop is tired of responding to preventable injury/fatality accidents? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NinjaNick Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 They can do pretty much anything they want to, you may fight it, but they still going to get court cost from you. Sorry dude I also think it Suks.Yep, they always win. They are the biggest and only legal gang in the country and we only can sit back and take it. That's why they're not liked by many. There's always bad seeds though, so you just have to hope you don't run into that cop. Maybe the cop is tired of responding to preventable injury/fatality accidents?Because we all care about what he's tired of. He/she should've went into corrections then instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scruit Posted April 30, 2011 Report Share Posted April 30, 2011 (edited) My buddy got pulled over for solely a seat belt violation...(my emphasis) he pulled him over for no front plate. (my emphasis)So this has become a non-issue then? He was pulled over for breaking the front-plate law, and the officer also saw that he was breaking the seat-belt law. Instead of citing him for both (which was what he is expected to do) the officer chose to cite him only for the lesser offense.The only way your buddy could have got off lighter that that would be if the police simply stopped enforcing the law. he saw him without his belt while he was driving, even though it was on when he walked up... didn't get the ticket for no plate though.So, is your buddy upset that his attempt to lie to the cop by pretending he was wearing the belt all along didn't work? If he has a valid reason for not wearing the belt then he should consult an attorney to see if there is some kind of waiver that he can get. Edited April 30, 2011 by Scruit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSparky Posted May 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 i found out about the front plate thing after the original post. He just doesn't like wearing his belt. His decision, in his free country... I don't mind being paranoid, so I wear my belt, or ride atgatt. But, to each his own imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Posted May 4, 2011 Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 he must like bouncing his face off the windshield. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FZRMatt Posted May 4, 2011 Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 My buddy got pulled over for solely a seat belt violation... He's pissed, and I am too.A) Is that legal?B) Could he prove it in court?He had it on when the officer came up to the car, but apparently the officer said he saw him with it off, while driving.I think it's a bullshit law to begin with, but what do I know, I'm only in a free country...Any advice?I noticed that you said that he had it on when the cop walked up to the car, but you didn't say that he had it on when he was driving. He just got busted, period. Seatbelt is a secondary offense, but if he didn't have front tag, that is an equipment violation and is a primary offense.The state, counties, cities, municipalities, etc are low on funds its expected. Either pay it or fight it good luck if he fights it. Select.ding on how much the ticket is it may be worthwhile to pay it. Are seatbelt tickets moving violations in Ohio?Seatbelt violations are state charges, not local. So, the money does not go to the local municipality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorifto240 Posted May 4, 2011 Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 "Every driver and front seat passenger must wear a seat belt." Here.It looks like Ohio revised the code to make seat belts a primary offense (here).Everybody talks about 'free country' like it's a defense for stupid. Tell your idiot friend to wear a seat belt. "Free country" nothing. If he dies in a wreck everyone's insurance and premiums go up. Where's the freedom in that? I pay enough as it is because of other stupid people and their stupid decisions, I don't need to cover for one more.Your freedoms extend only so far as they can without infringing on another's freedoms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadyone Posted May 5, 2011 Report Share Posted May 5, 2011 I'll take the non moving violation for $100 Trebek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevysoldier Posted May 5, 2011 Report Share Posted May 5, 2011 "Every driver and front seat passenger must wear a seat belt." Here.It looks like Ohio revised the code to make seat belts a primary offense (here).Everybody talks about 'free country' like it's a defense for stupid. Tell your idiot friend to wear a seat belt. "Free country" nothing. If he dies in a wreck everyone's insurance and premiums go up. Where's the freedom in that? I pay enough as it is because of other stupid people and their stupid decisions, I don't need to cover for one more.Your freedoms extend only so far as they can without infringing on another's freedoms.How would HB 2 change that law?By revising section 4513.263 of the Ohio Revised Code to change the front seat occupant restraint provision from a secondary to a primary offense. No other changes are made.So did HB2 pass or is it still being debated? Everything I found states it is only a secondary offense, not a primary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorifto240 Posted May 5, 2011 Report Share Posted May 5, 2011 So did HB2 pass or is it still being debated? Everything I found states it is only a secondary offense, not a primary.It looks like HB2 was line item vetoed by Strickland in 09. But I could see anything directly relating to seatbelts in the veto report. According to Lawriter it isn't a primary offense. But line D says "notwithstanding any provision of the law to the contrary" which might mean that in Dayton it could be a primary offense.It does look like 4513.263 is only good until June 29th of this year, afterwards: who knows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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