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Secret Car Compartment Law

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Started 1 year ago by pez
Latest reply from MRipley

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pez

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From The Dispatch

Secret compartments could get drivers busted

A hidden compartment in your vehicle, with or without drugs, could mean big trouble as Ohio officials get serious about slowing down drug-smuggling.

A proposed state law, advocated by Gov. John Kasich, would make it a fourth-degree felony to own a vehicle equipped with secret compartments. A conviction would mean up to 18 months in jail and a potential $5,000 fine.

-snip-

Part of the new drug-interdiction strategy is legislation to be introduced by Sen. Jim Hughes, R-Columbus, that would make it a fourth-degree felony to own a vehicle that has special hidden compartments — whether or not they are found to hold drugs. Currently, there is no state law prohibiting secret compartments, frequently used for drug smuggling.

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This is a felony, meaning you'll likely never get a decent job unless you start your own business.

Posted 1 year ago #
Twixlen
The Weston District
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This is perhaps one of the more asinine & wrong-headed pieces of legislation (outside of the uterus wars) to come about lately.

I can't find the actual written legislation online anywhere, to get the real language of it, but from what the paper has, it will be a felony to have a subwoofer added to your vehicle.

Posted 1 year ago #
cheap
Westgate
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one big problem that these morons must know.

how are they going to prove who installed the hidden compartment in the vehicle,and when it was installed?

Posted 1 year ago #
cbus11

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Mixed feelings on this. A friend of mine had some issues with tenants in the Hilltop. They were selling drugs out of their apartment. One of the things they were doing was modifying a truck to run drugs (obviously for resale). From what I understand that is becoming fairly common. I would not have a problem if once caught for drugs there were additional penalties for such attempts at concealment. From what I understand it is not that easy to get a drug conviction to carry much weight in the area. I am assuming these compartments automagically put one at dealer status.

Posted 1 year ago #
Buster Bluth
Columbus, OH
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So dumb, and I actually like most of what Kasich is doing.

Why can't they just say that if you have drugs in your "secret compartment," you get a much greater penalty?

Posted 1 year ago #
Coremodels
Really close to Explorer's Club.
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Buster Bluth said:
So dumb, and I actually like most of what Kasich is doing.

Why can't they just say that if you have drugs in your "secret compartment," you get a much greater penalty?

Or we could just leave well enough alone, because drug laws in this country are severe enough already.

Posted 1 year ago #
Buster Bluth
Columbus, OH
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I think that's a fine choice too. I'm 100% for the legalization of marijuana.

Posted 1 year ago #
cheap
Westgate
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law enforcement is worried about theIr own job security.

the more things they make illegal,the more secure their jobs are.

law enforcement is a business,like the US Govt.

Posted 1 year ago #
News
Columbus Underground
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Car’s secret compartment OK, if it’s for a gun
By David Eggert
The Columbus Dispatch
Wednesday April 18, 2012 9:32 AM

Gun-rights groups have successfully pushed for changes to a proposed law that would make it a crime to have a secret compartment in your vehicle. The National Rifle Association and Buckeye Firearms Association said yesterday that a new version of the legislation — advocated by Gov. John Kasich to slow down drug smuggling — no longer could cause potential problems for gun owners.

READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/04/18/cars-secret-compartment-ok-if-its-for-a-gun.html

Posted 1 year ago #
GCrites80s
5xNW
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If it was the '70s and '80s the conversion van lobby would have squashed this flat.

Posted 1 year ago #
Schoolboy
Columbus
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So I buy a used car. Have never taken or especially sold an illegal drug in my life.

Yet on a random search, a cop finds a secret compartment in my vehicle that I never knew about.

Now I'm a felon, life in shambles.

Great idea.

Just when Kasich actually gained a few points with me for wanting to increase the gas/oil taxes... he goes back to where I knew he belonged.

Posted 1 year ago #
Buster Bluth
Columbus, OH
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Kasich's new law...and it's not even a law.

Posted 1 year ago #
Snarf
Dystopia
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Schoolboy said:
Have never taken or especially sold an illegal drug in my life.

pshh!

Posted 1 year ago #
misskitty
Columbus
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It's bullshit is what it is.

I don't understand why they can't just be happy with Their “criminal indicators” on stops. I mean their record of accomplishment for finding heavy hulls is good even when welded into steel… So good at that.......

I would hope it’s a arguable offence in court destroying someone’s life is not a reasonable objective for this shit.

Even the unannounced “operation shield” is a little bit shady granted they have pulled a lot of idiots off the street for a day it seems so wrong to randomly snag people like that.

Posted 1 year ago #
Walker
The KLD / Downtown / Gay Street
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Buster Bluth said:
Kasich's new law...and it's not even a law.

Fixed. The OP set the subject line over a month ago.

Posted 1 year ago #
Rockmastermike
The Bacon District
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so... with the new amendment to the law, all the drug dealers this bill was targeting have to do is keep a gun in the compartment and it won't count?

uh... does anyone else see the logical flaw here?

Posted 1 year ago #
Pablo
Crestview Addition
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No, it's logical. Only law abiding citizens keep guns in their car's secret compartment.

Posted 1 year ago #
misskitty
Columbus
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Rockmastermike said:
so... with the new amendment to the law, all the drug dealers this bill was targeting have to do is keep a gun in the compartment and it won't count?

uh... does anyone else see the logical flaw here?

No, I would guess that the compartment law would be written to be an added charge and fine. I actually think that if a cop found a random compartment on a car it could be dismissed in court of course at your cost. However, if a cop pulls someone over who is in possession of drugs and has hidden compartments it will be a charge that could place the person over a tip line. If whatever the person has was not quite enough to tip a small misdemeanor the compartment would take it over that. Then in court, I bet they would make that a bargaining chip. So lots of money if you do help and your life if you do not.
That’s just my guess

Posted 1 year ago #
Rockmastermike
The Bacon District
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misskitty said:
No, I would guess that the compartment law would be written to be an added charge and fine. I actually think that if a cop found a random compartment on a car it could be dismissed in court of course at your cost. However, if a cop pulls someone over who is in possession of drugs and has hidden compartments it will be a charge that could place the person over a tip line. If whatever the person has was not quite enough to tip a small misdemeanor the compartment would take it over that. Then in court, I bet they would make that a bargaining chip. So lots of money if you do help and your life if you do not.
That’s just my guess

I dunno. it makes little sense to me. They article said that johnny law was complaining that they couldn't bust people with hidden compartments unless they actually found drugs in them. So they wanted a law making the compartments themselves illegal. Now the NRA demands that if there's a gun in the compartment, but no drugs it should be legal, thus providing a handy loophole.

Its looking more and more like some kind of monty python skit.

Posted 1 year ago #
gramarye
In Exile
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cheap said:
law enforcement is worried about theIr own job security.

the more things they make illegal,the more secure their jobs are.

law enforcement is a business,like the US Govt.

Neither law enforcement nor the U.S. government is a business.

There are definitely private prison companies, however, that do push for harsher sentences for common offenses, because that is how demand for their services rises. Remember, even low-crime communities generally like to have solid police protection, and the public's willingness to fund police protection is seldom influenced by the amount of crimes on the books. It's more influenced by the amount of criminals in the streets. Moreover, when it *is* influenced by the amount of crimes on the books, it's often influenced negatively, i.e., people take it out on the police when they feel that the law is coming down too harshly on people who don't deserve it. Yes, you can say that the better response is to take it out on lawmakers, not law enforcement, but that's a hard sell when you're at an off-year local election in May and you don't have a lawmaker's name on the ballot in front of you to vote out.

Posted 1 year ago #