OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
Office of Research Legislative Budget
www.lsc.ohio.gov and Drafting Office
S.B. 16 Final Analysis
135th General Assembly
Click here for S.B. 16’s Fiscal Note
Primary Sponsor: Sen. Wilson
Effective date: Emergency: July 7, 2023
Effective Date:
Amanda Goodman, Attorney
Ashley Dean, Attorney
SUMMARY
Immunity associated with perishable food donation
 Extends the immunity provided to a person who donates perishable food to a nonprofit
organization to include donations to a nonprofit that charges individuals an amount to
cover food handling costs, rather than limiting the immunity only to donations to a
nonprofit that does not charge for the food.
Victims’ rights
Procedural changes
 Requires the court to inform all law enforcement agencies that have jurisdiction to
enforce a protection order that the order is no longer effective at the time of the order’s
termination.
 Permits a court to appoint a victim advocate or other appropriate person if the victim is
incapacitated, incompetent, or deceased and no family member or victim advocate
comes forward to be the victim’s representative, or if the victim representative is not
acting in the victim’s interests.
 Prohibits a court from appointing a person employed by the prosecuting attorney to act
as a victim’s representative without the prosecuting attorney’s consent.
Information provided to victims
 Requires that the specified information the prosecution must supply to the victim be
provided within a reasonable time frame after prosecution has commenced, rather than
after 14 days.
 Removes the requirement that the prosecutor provide the victim with information on
the following:
 The right of the victim to have a victim’s representative;
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 How to designate a representative;
 The right of the victim and victim’s representative to confer with the prosecutor
upon request;
 The fact that the victim can seek the advice of an attorney or have legal
representation;
 Information on negotiation.
Time limits
 Requires a court to provide a prosecutor notice of having to seal or expunge a juvenile
record not less than 30 days before the hearing.
 Permits a prosecutor and court to agree to a shorter notice period for nonjuvenile
sealing and expungement hearings than the otherwise required 60-day notice.
 Removes the maximum time limit of five years from payment of sanctions imposed for
misdemeanors.
Privacy concerns
 Removes the requirement that a victim’s name and identifying information be filed
separately on documents filed with the court.
 Requires a separate redaction request be submitted to the Department of Public Safety
for redaction of victim information from motor vehicle accident reports.
 Requires a juvenile judge or judge, where applicable, upon a motion from specified
persons and under specified conditions, to order a child victim’s testimony be taken
outside the room in which the proceeding is being conducted.
 Expands the exemption that allows identifying information of a minor victim who died
as a result of a criminal offense or delinquent act to be exempted from the rules
regarding a victim’s right not to testify regarding certain information to all victims who
die as a result of a criminal offense or delinquent act.
Access to forensic interview
 Establishes procedures for a victim or victim’s attorney to access and view the forensic
interview of the victim.
Victim’s rights request form
 Requires the Attorney General to provide access to a sample victim’s rights request
form.
 Requires the victim’s rights request form to be provided in English, Spanish, and Arabic,
and any other language upon request.
 Permits the victim’s rights compilation to be provided to victims with the information
card or other materials regarding information explaining awards of reparations.
 Adds the following to the victim’s rights request form:
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 A section that allows the victim or victim’s representative to request redaction of
the victim’s name, address, and identifying information in case documents.
 A section that allows the victim or victim’s representative to request interpretation
services and provide the information necessary for the criminal justice system to
provide those services.
 A section explaining that if a victim of specified offenses does not complete the form
or request the victim’s rights on first contact with law enforcement, it is considered
an assertion of the victim’s rights until the victim completes the form or requests
applicable rights, or the prosecutor contacts the victim.
 Removes from the victim’s rights request form the section where the victim or victim’s
representative was required to indicate whether the victim was a victim against whom
the criminal offense or delinquent act was committed or if the victim was directly or
proximately harmed by the commissions of the offense or act.
 Specifies the procedures when a law enforcement agency does not obtain a completed
victim’s rights request form from a victim of violating a protection order, an offense of
violence, or a sexually oriented offense.
 Specifies the timing to submit a victim’s rights request form to the court by law
enforcement or the prosecutor.
 Specifies that if the victim of specified offenses, or the victim’s representative, was
unable to complete the victim’s rights request form at the time of first contact with law
enforcement, all case documents related to the case must be redacted prior to public
release as public records to remove identifying information of the victim.
Costs
 Clarifies how the costs for an interpreter for the victim are allocated.
 Permits charging a victim or victim’s representative for copies of certain case documents
at actual cost.
 Eliminates the requirement that the clerk of the sentencing court make an offender’s
payment history available to the victim, victim’s representative, victim’s attorney,
prosecutor, probation department, and court, upon request, without cost.
 Repeals a section that stated that a victim was not required to pay for a copy of any
public records related to the victim’s case.
Definition – “case document”
 Excludes from the definition of “case document,” in the law addressing the release of
documents pertaining to a victim, motor vehicle accident reports submitted to the
Department of Public Safety unless the victim or victim’s representative requests
redaction of those reports.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Immunity associated with perishable food donation ..................................................................... 4
Victims’ rights.................................................................................................................................. 4
Procedural changes ..................................................................................................................... 4
Information provided to victims............................................................................................. 5
Time limits .............................................................................................................................. 6
Privacy concerns ..................................................................................................................... 6
Access to forensic interview ................................................................................................... 8
Defendant motion regarding victim’s rights .......................................................................... 9
Law enforcement agency duties .......................................................................................... 10
Costs .......................................................................................................................................... 12
Interpreter costs ................................................................................................................... 12
Copies provided free of charge ............................................................................................ 13
Restitution ............................................................................................................................ 14
Definition – case document ...................................................................................................... 14
DETAILED ANALYSIS
Immunity associated with perishable food donation
Under continuing law, a person who makes a perishable food donation to a nonprofit is
immune from civil liability for that donation if the nonprofit provides the food free of charge.
The act extends that immunity to a person who donates perishable food to a nonprofit that
charges individuals in need an amount sufficient to cover the cost of handling the perishable
food distributed to them.1
Victims’ rights
Procedural changes
Under the act, a court is required to inform all law enforcement agencies that have
jurisdiction to enforce a protection order that the order is no longer effective at the time the
order is terminated.2
Previously, under law repealed by the act, a court was required to appoint a court
appointed special advocate, or a guardian ad litem if the court found that a victim’s
1 R.C. 2305.37.
2 R.C. 2903.213(J).
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representative was not acting in the best interests. Provisions regarding appointing a victim
advocate are retained, as explained in the paragraph below.3
Upon the filing of a complaint or indictment, the court may appoint a victim advocate or
other appropriate person if the victim is incapacitated, incompetent, or deceased and no family
member or victim advocate comes forward to be the victim’s representative, or if the victim’s
representative is not acting in the victim’s interests. If the court finds that the representative is
not acting in the victim’s interests, the court will appoint a victim advocate or other person the
court determines to be appropriate to act as the victim’s representative. However, the court
cannot appoint any person employed by the prosecuting attorney to act as a victim’s
representative unless the prosecuting attorney consents to the appointment.4
Information provided to victims
The act permits filing a motion for a menacing by stalking protection order or a
temporary protection order on behalf of a victim any time after the filing of an indictment, in
addition to any time after the filing of a complaint for certain listed offenses and circumstances.
The act also permits the prosecutor to file a motion for a menacing by stalking protection order
on behalf of the victim.5
Previously, the prosecutor, or a designee of the prosecutor other than a court or court
employee, was required to give the victim and victim’s representative certain information
within 14 days after the start of prosecution in a case. The act instead requires the prosecution
to give the victim and the victim’s representative the information within a reasonable time
frame, rather than a set number of days.6
The act removes the following from the information the prosecution must provide a
victim:7
 The right of the victim to have a victim’s representative;
 How to designate a representative;
 The right of the victim and victim’s representative to confer with the prosecutor upon
request;
 The fact that the victim can seek the advice of an attorney or have legal representation;
 Information on negotiation.
Under continuing law, a prosecutor, prosecutor’s designee, or a court that is required to
notify a victim or victim’s representative of hearings, on request, must attempt a notification
3 R.C. 2930.02(B).
4 R.C. 2930.02(A)(2).
5 R.C. 2903.213 and 2919.26.
6 R.C. 2930.06(C).
7 R.C. 2930.06(C).
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and keep a record of the attempt. Under the act, the record must indicate who the intended
recipient of the notice was, the date the attempt was made, the manner in which the attempt
was made, and the person who made the attempt. The notification must be provided to the
victim using the victim’s contact information provided on the victims’ rights request form or
otherwise provided by the victim or victim’s representative by any reasonable means, including
regular mail, telephone, or electronic mail.8
Continuing law requires the prosecutor to review the victim’s rights request form with
the victim or victim’s representative and file the form with the court within seven days after
initiation of a criminal prosecution. The act allows the prosecutor to obtain the victim’s and the
victim’s representative’s, if applicable, signatures if the form was not previously completed with
law enforcement. Prior law required the prosecutor to obtain those signatures.9
Time limits
In determining whether to grant an application to seal or expunge a juvenile record, the
court is required to notify the prosecutor not less than 30 days before the hearing. For
nonjuvenile sealing and expungement hearings, 60 days’ notice is required unless the
prosecutor and court agree to a shorter notice period.10
The act removes the maximum time limit of five years for installment payments of
sanctions imposed for misdemeanors.11
Privacy concerns
The act removes the requirement that a victim’s name and identifying information be
filed separately on documents filed with the court.12 Additionally, law enforcement agencies
and prosecutors’ offices are no longer required to provide an explanation of the potential risks
and benefits of redaction, and the ability of the victim to retain counsel, upon receipt of a
request for case documents to have victim information redacted. Under the act, if the victim of
a protection order violation, an offense of violence, or a sexually oriented offense, or the
victim’s representative, was unable to complete the victim’s rights request form at the time of
first contact with law enforcement, then until the victim’s initial interaction with a prosecutor,
all case documents related to the case or matters currently before the court regarding that
offense must be redacted prior to release under the Public Records Law to remove the name,
address, or other identifying information of the victim.13
If the victim or victim’s representative uses the victim’s rights request form to request
redaction, that redaction request applies only to the case or cases to which the form pertains. If
8 R.C. 2930.06(G).
9 R.C. 2930.06(H).
10 R.C. 2930.171(A).
11 R.C. 2929.28(G).
12 R.C. 2930.04(C)(1).
13 R.C. 2930.07(D)(1)(a).
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the victim requests redaction via some other method than the victim’s rights request form, that
written request must specify the cases or matters to which the request applies.14
For motor vehicle accident reports, a victim is required to submit a separate redaction
request to the Department of Public Safety to have victim identifying information redacted.15
Under the act, a juvenile judge or judge, whichever is applicable, upon a motion from
the prosecution, the child victim, victim with a developmental disability,