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The Legislative Service Commission staff updates the Revised Code on an ongoing basis, as it completes its act review of enacted legislation. Updates may be slower during some times of the year, depending on the volume of enacted legislation.
 
 
 
Section
Section 3767.01 | Nuisances - disorderly houses definitions.
 

As used in all sections of the Revised Code relating to nuisances:

(A) "Place" includes any building, erection, or place or any separate part or portion thereof or the ground itself;

(B) "Person" includes any individual, corporation, association, partnership, trustee, lessee, agent, or assignee;

(C) "Nuisance" means any of the following:

(1) That which is defined and declared by statutes to be a nuisance;

(2) Any place in or upon which lewdness, assignation, or prostitution is conducted, permitted, continued, or exists, or any place, in or upon which lewd, indecent, lascivious, or obscene films or plate negatives, film or plate positives, films designed to be projected on a screen for exhibition films, or glass slides either in negative or positive form designed for exhibition by projection on a screen, are photographed, manufactured, developed, screened, exhibited, or otherwise prepared or shown, and the personal property and contents used in conducting and maintaining any such place for any such purpose. This chapter shall not affect any newspaper, magazine, or other publication entered as second class matter by the post-office department.

(3) Any room, house, building, boat, vehicle, structure, or place where beer or intoxicating liquor is manufactured, sold, bartered, possessed, or kept in violation of law and all property kept and used in maintaining the same, and all property designed for the unlawful manufacture of beer or intoxicating liquor and beer or intoxicating liquor contained in the room, house, building, boat, structure, or place, or the operation of such a room, house, building, boat, structure, or place as described in division (C)(3) of this section where the operation of that place substantially interferes with public decency, sobriety, peace, and good order. "Violation of law" includes, but is not limited to, sales to any person under the legal drinking age as prohibited in division (A) of section 4301.22 or division (A) of section 4301.69 of the Revised Code and any violation of section 2913.46 or 2925.03 of the Revised Code.

Section 3767.02 | Nuisance.
 

(A) Any person, who uses, occupies, establishes, or conducts a nuisance, or aids or abets in the use, occupancy, establishment, or conduct of a nuisance; the owner, agent, or lessee of an interest in any such nuisance; any person who is employed in that nuisance by that owner, agent, or lessee; and any person who is in control of that nuisance is guilty of maintaining a nuisance and shall be enjoined as provided in sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code.

(B) A criminal gang that uses or occupies any building, premises, or real estate, including vacant land, on more than two occasions within a one-year period to engage in a pattern of criminal gang activity is guilty of maintaining a nuisance and shall be enjoined as provided in sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code. As used in this division, "criminal gang" and "pattern of criminal gang activity" have the same meanings as in section 2923.41 of the Revised Code.

Section 3767.03 | Abatement of nuisance - bond.
 

Whenever a nuisance exists, the attorney general; the village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer of the municipal corporation in which the nuisance exists; the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the nuisance exists; the law director of a township that has adopted a limited home rule government under Chapter 504. of the Revised Code; or any person who is a citizen of the county in which the nuisance exists may bring an action in equity in the name of the state, upon the relation of the attorney general; the village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer of the municipal corporation; the prosecuting attorney; the township law director; or the person, to abate the nuisance and to perpetually enjoin the person maintaining the nuisance from further maintaining it. If an action is instituted under this section by a person other than the prosecuting attorney; the village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer of the municipal corporation; the attorney general; or the township law director, the complainant shall execute a bond in the sum of not less than five hundred dollars, to the defendant, with good and sufficient surety to be approved by the court or clerk of the court, to secure to the defendant any damages the defendant may sustain and the reasonable attorney's fees the defendant may incur in defending the action if the action is wrongfully brought, not prosecuted to final judgment, is dismissed, or is not maintained, or if it is finally decided that an injunction should not have been granted. If it is finally decided that an injunction should not have been granted or if the action was wrongfully brought, not prosecuted to final judgment, dismissed, or not maintained, the defendant shall have recourse against the bond for all damages suffered, including damages to the defendant's property, person, or character, and for the reasonable attorney's fees incurred by the defendant in defending the action.

Any agency, officer, or other person bringing an action under this section against the holder of a liquor permit issued under Chapter 4303. of the Revised Code shall notify the division of liquor control, the liquor control commission, and the liquor enforcement division of the department of public safety regarding the action at the time of bringing the action.

Section 3767.04 | Procedure in injunction action.
 

(A) The civil action provided for in section 3767.03 of the Revised Code shall be commenced in the court of common pleas of the county in which the nuisance is located. At the commencement of the action, a complaint alleging the facts constituting the nuisance shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the court of common pleas.

(B)(1) After the filing of the complaint, an application for a temporary injunction may be filed with the court or a judge of the court. A hearing shall be held on the application within ten days after the filing.

(2) If an application for a temporary injunction is filed, the court or a judge of the court, on application of the complainant, may issue an ex parte restraining order restraining the defendant and all other persons from removing or in any manner interfering with the personal property and contents of the place where the nuisance is alleged to exist until the decision of the court or judge granting or refusing the requested temporary injunction and until the further order of the court. The restraining order may be served by handing it to and leaving a copy of it with any person who is in charge of the place where the nuisance is alleged to exist or who resides in that place, by posting a copy of it in a conspicuous place at or upon one or more of the principal doors or entrances to that place, or by both delivery and posting. The officer serving the restraining order forthwith shall make and return into court an inventory of the personal property and contents situated in and used in conducting or maintaining the nuisance. Any violation of the restraining order is a contempt of court, and, if the order is posted, its mutilation or removal while it remains in force is a contempt of court, provided the posted order contains a notice to that effect.

(3) A copy of the complaint, a copy of the application for the temporary injunction, and a notice of the time and place of the hearing on the application shall be served upon the defendant at least five days before the hearing. If the hearing then is continued on the motion of any defendant, the requested temporary injunction shall be granted as a matter of course. If, upon hearing, the allegations of the complaint are sustained to the satisfaction of the court or judge, the court or judge shall issue a temporary injunction without additional bond restraining the defendant and any other person from continuing the nuisance. Except as provided in division (C) of this section, if at the time of granting the temporary injunction it further appears that the person owning, in control, or in charge of the nuisance so enjoined had received five days' notice of the hearing and unless that person shows to the satisfaction of the court or judge that the nuisance complained of is abated or that he proceeded forthwith to enforce his rights under section 3767.10 of the Revised Code, the court or judge forthwith shall issue an order closing the place against its use for any purpose of lewdness, assignation, prostitution, or other prohibited conduct until a final decision is rendered on the complaint for the requested permanent injunction. Except as provided in division (C) of this section, the order closing the place also shall continue in effect for that further period any restraining order already issued under division (B)(2) of this section, or, if a restraining order was not so issued, the order closing the place shall include an order restraining for that further period the removal or interference with the personal property and contents located in the place. The order closing the place shall be served and an inventory of the personal property and contents situated in the place shall be made and filed as provided in division (B)(2) of this section for restraining orders.

(C) The owner of any real or personal property closed or restrained or to be closed or restrained may appear in the court of common pleas between the time of the filing of the complaint for the permanent injunction described in division (A) of this section and the hearing on the complaint, and, if all costs incurred are paid and if the owner of the real property files a bond with sureties approved by the clerk, in the full value of the real property as ascertained by the court or, in vacation, by the judge, and conditioned that the owner of the real property immediately will abate the nuisance and prevent it from being established or kept until the decision of the court or judge is rendered on the complaint for the permanent injunction, the court or judge in vacation, if satisfied of the good faith of the owner of the real property and of innocence on the part of any owner of the personal property of any knowledge of the use of the personal property as a nuisance and that, with reasonable care and diligence, the owner of the personal property could not have known of its use as a nuisance, shall deliver the real or personal property, or both, to the respective owners and discharge or refrain from issuing at the time of the hearing on the application for the temporary injunction any order closing the real property or restraining the removal or interference with the personal property. The release of any real or personal property under this division shall not release it from any judgment, lien, penalty, or liability to which it may be subjected.

Section 3767.05 | Priority of action - evidence - permanent injunction - abatement orders.
 

(A) The civil action provided for in section 3767.03 of the Revised Code shall be set down for trial at the earliest possible time and shall have precedence over all other cases except those involving crimes, election contests, or injunctions regardless of the position of the proceedings on the calendar of the court. In the civil action, evidence of the general reputation of the place where the nuisance is alleged to exist or an admission or finding of guilt of any person under the criminal laws against prostitution, lewdness, assignation, or other prohibited conduct at the place is admissible for the purpose of proving the existence of the nuisance and is prima-facie evidence of the nuisance and of knowledge of and of acquiescence and participation in the nuisance on the part of the person charged with maintaining it.

(B) If the complaint for the permanent injunction is filed by a person who is a citizen of the county, it shall not be dismissed unless the complainant and the complainant's attorney submit a sworn statement setting forth the reasons why the civil action should be dismissed and the dismissal is approved by the prosecuting attorney in writing or in open court. If the person who files the complaint for the permanent injunction is a citizen of the county, if that person refuses or otherwise fails to prosecute the complaint to judgment, and if the civil action is not dismissed pursuant to this division, then, with the approval of the court, the attorney general, the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the nuisance exists, or the village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer of the municipal corporation in which the nuisance exists, may be substituted for the complainant and prosecute the civil action to judgment.

(C) If the civil action is commenced by a person who is a citizen of the county where the nuisance is alleged to exist and the court finds that there were no reasonable grounds or cause for the civil action, the costs may be taxed to that person.

(D) If the existence of the nuisance is established upon the trial of the civil action, a judgment shall be entered that perpetually enjoins the defendant and any other person from further maintaining the nuisance at the place complained of and the defendant from maintaining the nuisance elsewhere.

(E) If the court finds that a nuisance described in division (C)(3) of section 3767.01 of the Revised Code exists, the court shall order the nuisance to be abated, and, in entering judgment for nuisance, the court shall do all of the following:

(1) Specify that judgment is entered pursuant to division (E) of this section;

(2) Order that no beer or intoxicating liquor may be manufactured, sold, bartered, possessed, kept, or stored in the room, house, building, structure, place, boat, or vehicle or any part thereof. The court need not find that the property was being unlawfully used at the time of the hearing on the matter if the court finds there existed a nuisance as described in division (C)(3) of section 3767.01 of the Revised Code.

(3) Order that the room, house, building, boat, vehicle, structure, or place not be occupied or used for one year after the judgment is rendered. The court may permit the premises to be occupied by a person other than the defendant or a business affiliate of the defendant in the nuisance action, or an agent of, or entity owned in whole or part by, the defendant, if the person, lessee, tenant, or occupant of the location posts a bond with sufficient surety, to be approved by the court issuing the order, in the sum of not less than one thousand nor more than five thousand dollars, payable to the state of Ohio, on the condition that no beer or intoxicating liquor thereafter shall be manufactured, sold, bartered, possessed, kept, stored, transported, or otherwise disposed of on the premises, and the person agrees to pay all fines, costs, and damages that may be assessed for a violation. A reasonable sum shall be allowed an officer by the issuing court for the cost of closing and keeping closed the premises that is the subject of the nuisance action.

(4) Send notice of the judgment entered to the division of liquor control, the liquor control commission, and the liquor enforcement division of the department of public safety.

(F) A defendant found to have maintained a nuisance as described in division (C)(3) of section 3767.01 of the Revised Code also is subject to liability and penalties under sections 4301.74 and 4399.09 of the Revised Code. The abatement of a nuisance under section 4399.09 of the Revised Code is in addition to and does not prevent the abatement of a nuisance under division (D) or (E) of this section.

(G) If a court enters judgment pursuant to division (D) or (E) of this section finding that a nuisance exists at a liquor permit premises or as a result of the operation of a liquor permit premises, except in the case of a nuisance found as a result of a violation of a local zoning ordinance or resolution, the certified copy of the judgment required under division (A) of section 4301.331 of the Revised Code shall be filed with the board of elections in the county in which the nuisance exists, not later than four p.m. of the ninetieth day before the day of the next general or primary election. However, no election shall be conducted on sales at the liquor permit premises under section 4301.352 of the Revised Code until all appeals on the judgment are resolved. The court of appeals shall render a decision on any appeal of the judgment within six months after the date of the filing of the appeal of the judgment with the clerk of the court of appeals, and the supreme court shall render a decision on any appeal of the judgment within six months after the date of the filing of the appeal of the judgment with the clerk of the supreme court.

Section 3767.06 | Order of abatement to direct removal of personal property and contents - attorney general nuisance abatement fund.
 

(A) If the existence of a nuisance is admitted or established in the civil action provided for in section 3767.03 of the Revised Code or in a criminal action, an order of abatement shall be included in the judgment entry under division (D) of section 3767.05 of the Revised Code. The order shall direct the removal from the place where the nuisance is found to exist of all personal property and contents used in conducting or maintaining the nuisance and not already released under authority of the court as provided in division (C) of section 3767.04 of the Revised Code and shall direct that the personal property or contents that belong to the defendants notified or appearing be sold, without appraisal, at a public auction to the highest bidder for cash. The order also shall require the renewal for one year of any bond furnished by the owner of the real property under section 3767.04 of the Revised Code; if a bond was not so furnished, shall continue for one year any closing order issued at the time of granting the temporary injunction; or, if a closing order was not then issued, shall include an order directing the effectual closing of the place where the nuisance is found to exist against its use for any purpose and keeping it closed for a period of one year unless sooner released. The owner of any place closed and not released under bond may appear and obtain a release in the manner and upon fulfilling the requirements provided in section 3767.04 of the Revised Code. The release of property under this division shall not release it from any judgment, lien, penalty, or liability to which it may be subject.

(B) Owners of unsold personal property or contents seized pursuant to division (A) of this section shall appear and claim the personal property or contents within ten days after the order of abatement is issued and prove to the satisfaction of the court their lack of any actual knowledge of the use of the personal property or contents in the conduct or maintenance of the nuisance and that with reasonable care and diligence they could not have known of that use. Every defendant in the action shall be presumed to have had knowledge of the general reputation of the place where the nuisance is found to exist. If an owner establishes the lack of actual or constructive knowledge of the use of his personal property or contents in the conduct or maintenance of the nuisance, the unsold personal property and contents shall be delivered to the owner. If an owner does not so establish, the personal property or contents shall be sold or otherwise disposed of as provided in division (A) of this section. For removing and selling the personal property and contents, the officer involved shall be entitled to charge and receive the same fees as he would for levying upon and selling similar property on execution. For closing the place where the nuisance is found to exist and keeping it closed, a reasonable sum shall be allowed by the court.

(C) There is hereby established in the state treasury the attorney general nuisance abatement fund. Except as otherwise provided in sections 3767.07 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code, all proceeds from the sale of personal property or contents seized pursuant to a civil action commenced or otherwise prosecuted by the attorney general under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code shall be deposited into the state treasury and credited to the fund. The attorney general shall use the fund solely to defray expenses and costs associated with those types of civil actions.

(D) All proceeds from the sale of personal property or contents seized pursuant to a civil action commenced or otherwise prosecuted under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code by a village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer of a municipal corporation initially shall be applied to the payment of the costs incurred in the prosecution of the civil action and the costs associated with the abatement and sale ordered pursuant to division (A) of this section, including, but not limited to, court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, and other litigation expenses incurred by the complainant. Except as otherwise provided in sections 3767.07 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code, any proceeds remaining after that initial application shall be deposited into the city or village treasury and credited to the general fund.

(E) All proceeds from the sale of personal property or contents seized pursuant to a civil action commenced or otherwise prosecuted under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code by a prosecuting attorney initially shall be applied to the payment of the costs incurred in the prosecution of the civil action and the costs associated with the abatement and sale ordered pursuant to division (A) of this section, including, but not limited to, court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, and other litigation expenses incurred by the complainant. Except as otherwise provided in sections 3767.07 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code, any proceeds remaining after that initial application shall be deposited into the county treasury and credited to the general fund.

(F) All proceeds from the sale of personal property or contents seized pursuant to a civil action commenced under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code by a person who is a citizen of the county where the nuisance is found to exist initially shall be applied to the payment of the costs incurred in the prosecution of the civil action and the costs associated with the abatement and sale ordered pursuant to division (A) of this section, including, but not limited to, court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, and other litigation expenses incurred by the complainant. Except as otherwise provided in sections 3767.07 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code, any proceeds remaining after that initial application shall be deposited into the county treasury and credited to the general fund.

Section 3767.07 | Court shall punish offender for violation of injunction or order.
 

In case of the violation of any injunction or closing order, granted under sections 3767.01 to 3767.11, inclusive, of the Revised Code, or of a restraining order or the commission of any contempt of court in proceedings under such sections, the court or, in vacation, a judge thereof, may summarily try and punish the offender. The trial may be had upon affidavits or either party may demand the production and oral examination of the witnesses.

Section 3767.08 | Tax when permanent injunction issues - payment.
 

Whenever a permanent injunction issues against any person for maintaining a nuisance, there shall be imposed upon said nuisance and against the person maintaining the same a tax of three hundred dollars. Such tax may not be imposed upon the personal property or against the owner thereof who has proved innocence as provided in section 3767.06 of the Revised Code, or upon the real property or against the owner thereof who shows to the satisfaction of the court or judge thereof at the time of the granting of the permanent injunction, that he has, in good faith, permanently abated the nuisance complained of. The imposition of said tax shall be made by the court as a part of the proceeding and the clerk of said court shall make and certify a return of the imposition of said tax thereon to the county auditor, who shall enter the same as a tax upon the property and against the persons upon which or whom the lien was imposed as and when other taxes are entered, and the same shall be and remain a perpetual lien upon all property, both personal and real, used for the purpose of maintaining said nuisance except as excepted in this section until fully paid. Any such lien imposed while the tax books are in the hands of the auditor shall be immediately entered therein. The payment of said tax shall not relieve the persons or property from any other taxes. The provisions of the laws relating to the collection of taxes in this state, the delinquency thereof, and sale of property for taxes shall govern in the collection of the tax prescribed in this section in so far as the same are applicable, and the said tax collected shall be applied in payment of any deficiency in the costs of the action and abatement on behalf of the state to the extent of such deficiency after the application thereto of the proceeds of the sale of personal property.

Section 3767.09 | Tax shall be imposed against owner of property.
 

When a nuisance is found to exist in any proceeding under sections 3767.01 to 3767.11, inclusive, of the Revised Code, and the owner or agent of such place whereon the same has been found to exist was not a party to such proceeding, and did not appear therein, the tax of three hundred dollars, imposed under section 3767.08 of the Revised Code, shall, nevertheless, be imposed against the persons served or appearing and against the property as set forth in this section. Before such tax is enforced against such property, the owner or agent thereof shall have appeared therein or shall be served with summons therein, and existing laws, regarding the service of process, shall apply to service in proceedings under sections 3767.01 to 3767.11, inclusive, of the Revised Code. The person in whose name the real estate affected by the action stands on the books of the county auditor for purposes of taxation is presumed to be the owner thereof, and in case of unknown persons having or claiming any ownership, right, title, or interest in property affected by the action, such may be made parties to the action by designating them in the petition as "all other persons unknown claiming any ownership, right, title, or interest in the property affected by the action." Service thereon may be had by publication in the manner prescribed in sections 2703.14 to 2703.19, inclusive, of the Revised Code. Any person having or claiming such ownership, right, title, or interest, and any owner or agent in behalf of himself and such owner may make defense thereto and have trial of his rights in the premises by the court; and if said cause has already proceeded to trial or to findings and judgment, the court shall, by order, fix the time and place of such further trial and shall modify, add to, or confirm such findings and judgment. Other parties to said action shall not be affected thereby.

Last updated April 14, 2022 at 2:22 PM

Section 3767.10 | Lease void if building used for lewd purposes.
 

If a tenant or occupant of a building or tenement, under a lawful title, uses such place for the purposes of lewdness, assignation, or prostitution, such use makes void the lease or other title under which he holds, at the option of the owner, and, without any act of the owner, causes the right of possession to revert and vest in such owner, who may without process of law make immediate entry upon the premises.

Section 3767.11 | Procedure when nuisance established in criminal proceeding.
 

(A) If a nuisance is established in a criminal action, the prosecuting attorney, village solicitor, city director of law, or other similar chief legal officer shall proceed promptly under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code to enforce those sections. The finding of the defendant guilty in the criminal action, unless reversed or set aside, shall be conclusive against the defendant as to the existence of the nuisance in the civil action under those sections.

(B) Except for proceeds described in divisions (C) to (F) of section 3767.06 of the Revised Code, all moneys collected under sections 3767.03 to 3767.11 of the Revised Code shall be paid to the county treasurer.

Section 3767.12 | Habitual resort for thieves, burglars, robbers or persons involved in felonious conduct.
 

(A) As used in this section, "felonious conduct" means an offense that is a felony or a delinquent act that would be a felony if committed by an adult.

(B) A house or building used or occupied as a habitual resort for thieves, burglars, or robbers, or for persons who are conspiring or planning to commit, who are fleeing after having committed or after attempting to commit, or who are in hiding after having committed or after attempting to commit, felonious conduct is a public nuisance, and the court may order the public nuisance abated.

No person shall keep a house that is a habitual resort for thieves, burglars, or robbers, or for persons who are conspiring or planning to commit, who are fleeing after having committed or after attempting to commit, or who are in hiding after having committed or after attempting to commit, felonious conduct. No person shall let a house to be so kept, or knowingly permit a house that the person has let to be so kept.

Section 3767.13 | Prohibited acts.
 

(A) No person shall erect, continue, use, or maintain a building, structure, or place for the exercise of a trade, employment, or business, or for the keeping or feeding of an animal which, by occasioning noxious exhalations or noisome or offensive smells, becomes injurious to the health, comfort, or property of individuals or of the public.

(B) No person shall cause or allow offal, filth, or noisome substances to be collected or remain in any place to the damage or prejudice of others or of the public.

(C) No person shall unlawfully obstruct or impede the passage of a navigable river, harbor, or collection of water, or corrupt or render unwholesome or impure, a watercourse, stream, or water, or unlawfully divert such watercourse from its natural course or state to the injury or prejudice of others.

(D) Persons who are engaged in agriculture-related activities, as "agriculture" is defined in section 519.01 of the Revised Code, and who are conducting those activities outside a municipal corporation, in accordance with generally accepted agricultural practices, and in such a manner so as not to have a substantial, adverse effect on the public health, safety, or welfare are exempt from divisions (A) and (B) of this section, from any similar ordinances, resolutions, rules, or other enactments of a state agency or political subdivision, and from any ordinances, resolutions, rules, or other enactments of a state agency or political subdivision that prohibit excessive noise.

Section 3767.14 | Prohibition against throwing refuse, oil, or filth into lakes, streams, or drains.
 

No person shall intentionally throw, deposit, or permit to be thrown or deposited, coal dirt, coal slack, coal screenings, or coal refuse from coal mines, refuse or filth from a coal oil refinery or gasworks, or whey or filthy drainage from a cheese factory, into a river, lake, pond, or stream, or a place from which it may wash therein. No person shall cause or permit petroleum, crude oil, refined oil, or a compound, mixture, residuum of oil or filth from an oil well, oil tank, oil vat, or place of deposit of crude or refined oil, to run into or be poured, emptied, or thrown into a river, ditch, drain, or watercourse, or into a place from which it may run or wash therein. Prosecution for a violation of this section must be brought in the county in which such coal mine, coal oil refinery, gasworks, cheese factory, oil well, oil tank, oil vat, or place of deposit of crude or refined oil is situated.

Section 3767.15 | Fine and costs are a lien.
 

The fine and costs imposed in division (D) of section 3767.99 of the Revised Code shall be a lien on such oil well, oil tank, oil refinery, oil vat, or place of deposit and the contents thereof until paid, and such oil well, oil tank, oil refinery, oil vat, or place of deposit and the contents thereof, may be sold for the payment of such fine and costs upon execution issued for that purpose.

Section 3767.16 | Prohibition against deposit of dead animals and offal upon land or water.
 

No person shall put the carcass of a dead animal or the offal from a slaughterhouse, butcher's establishment, packing house, or fish house, or spoiled meat, spoiled fish, or other putrid substance or the contents of a privy vault, upon or into a lake, river, bay, creek, pond, canal, road, street, alley, lot, field, meadow, public ground, market place, or common. No owner or occupant of such place shall knowingly permit such thing to remain therein to the annoyance of any citizen or neglect to remove or abate the nuisance occasioned thereby within twenty-four hours after knowledge of the existence thereof, or after notice thereof in writing from a township trustee or township highway superintendent, constable, or health commissioner of a city or general health district in which such nuisance exists or from a county commissioner of such county.

Section 3767.17 | Prohibition against obstructing township or county ditch.
 

No person shall willfully obstruct a ditch, drain, or watercourse constructed by order of a board of county commissioners or by a board of township trustees, or divert the water therefrom.

Section 3767.18 | Prohibition against defiling spring or well.
 

No person shall maliciously put a dead animal, carcass, or part thereof, or other putrid, nauseous, or offensive substance into, or befoul, a well, spring, brook, or branch of running water, or a reservoir of a water works, of which use is or may be made for domestic purposes.

Section 3767.19 | Prohibition against nuisances when near state institutions.
 

No person shall carry on the business of slaughtering, tallow chandlery, or the manufacturing of glue, soap, starch, or other article, the manufacture of which is productive of unwholesome or noxious odors in a building or place within one mile of a benevolent or correctional institution supported wholly or in part by the state. No person shall erect or operate, within one hundred twenty rods of such benevolent institution, a rolling mill, blast furnace, nail factory, copper-smelting works, petroleum oil refinery, or other works which may generate unwholesome or noxious odors or make loud noises, or which may annoy or endanger the health or prevent the recovery of the inmates of such institution. Each week such business is conducted, or works operated, constitutes a separate offense.

All property, real or personal, which is used with the knowledge of the owner thereof in violation of this section, shall be liable, without exemption, for the fines and costs assessed for such violation.

Section 3767.201 | Destroying or removing barriers along limited access highways.
 

No person, firm or corporation shall cut, injure, remove, or destroy any fence or other barrier designed and erected to prevent traffic from entering or leaving a limited access highway without the permission of the director of transportation, except in a case of emergency where life or property is in danger. No person, firm, or corporation shall cause a vehicle of any character to enter or leave a limited access highway at any point other than intersections designated by the director for such purpose, except in a case of emergency where life or property is in danger.

Section 3767.22 | Exceptions.
 

Section 3767.16 of the Revised Code does not prohibit the deposit of the contents of privy vaults and catch basins into trenches or pits not less than three feet deep excavated in a lot, field, or meadow, with the consent of the owner, outside of the limits of a municipal corporation and not less than thirty rods distant from a dwelling, well or spring of water, lake, bay, pond, canal, run, creek, brook or stream of water, public road or highway, provided that such contents so deposited are forthwith covered with at least twelve inches of dry earth; nor prohibit the deposit of such contents in furrows, as specified for such trenches or pits, to be forthwith covered with dry earth by plowing or otherwise, and with the consent of the owner or occupant of the land in which such furrows are plowed.

The board of health of a city or a general health district may allow the contents of privy vaults and catch basins to be deposited within corporate limits into such trenches, pits, or furrows.

Section 3767.23 | Corporations may be prosecuted for nuisance - abatement.
 

Corporations may be prosecuted by indictment for violation of sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, and in every case of conviction under such sections, the court shall adjudge that the nuisance described in the indictment be abated or removed within a time fixed, and, if it is of a recurring character, the defendant shall keep such nuisance abated.

Section 3767.24 | Contempt proceedings.
 

If the defendant, convicted of a violation of sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, fails, neglects, or refuses to abate the nuisance described in the indictment, as ordered by the court, or, if the nuisance is of a recurring character, and such defendant fails, neglects, or refuses to keep it abated, proceedings in contempt of court may be instituted against him and all others assisting in or conniving at the violation of such order, and the court may direct the sheriff to execute the order of abatement at the cost and expense of the defendant.

Section 3767.25 | Venue.
 

An offense charged under sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, shall be held to be committed in any county whose inhabitants are, or have been, aggrieved thereby. The continuance of such nuisance for five days after the prosecution thereof is begun is an additional offense.

Section 3767.26 | Judgment for fine and costs.
 

A judgment for fine and costs rendered against a person or corporation for the violation of sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, when the defendant has no property or has not a sufficient amount within the county upon which to levy to satisfy such judgment and costs, may be enforced and collected in the manner in which judgments are collected in civil cases.

Section 3767.27 | Inspector of nuisances.
 

The board of county commissioners, whenever there is a violation of sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, may employ and reasonably compensate one inspector of nuisances who shall be vested with police powers and authorized to examine all cases of violation of such sections.

Section 3767.28 | Inspector of nuisances - powers and duties.
 

For the purpose of examining cases of violations of sections 3767.13 to 3767.29, inclusive, of the Revised Code, and for obtaining evidence thereof, an inspector of nuisances may enter upon any premises in any county, and shall make a complaint, and institute prosecution, against any one violating such sections. The inspector shall not be required to give security for costs. The prosecuting attorney shall be the legal advisor of such inspector and the attorney in all such prosecutions.

Section 3767.29 | Prohibition against abandoned refrigerators.
 

No person shall abandon, discard, or knowingly permit to remain on premises under the person's control, in a place accessible to children, any abandoned or discarded icebox, refrigerator, or other airtight or semi-airtight container which has a capacity of one and one-half cubic feet or more and an opening of fifty square inches or more and which has a door or lid equipped with hinge, latch, or other fastening device capable of securing such door or lid, without rendering said equipment harmless to human life by removing such hinges, latches, or other hardware which may cause a person to be confined therein. This section shall not apply to an icebox, refrigerator, or other airtight or semi-airtight container located in that part of a building occupied by a dealer, warehouse, or repairer.

Section 3767.30 | Picketing or protest during funeral or burial service prohibited.
 

Every citizen may freely speak, write, and publish the person's sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of the right, but no person shall picket or engage in other protest activities, nor shall any association or corporation cause picketing or other protest activities to occur, within three hundred feet of any residence, cemetery, funeral home, church, synagogue, or other establishment during or within one hour before or one hour after the conducting of an actual funeral or burial service at that place. No person shall picket or engage in other protest activities, nor shall any association or corporation cause picketing or other protest activities to occur, within three hundred feet of any funeral procession.

As used in this section, "other protest activities" means any action that is disruptive or undertaken to disrupt or disturb a funeral or burial service or a funeral procession.

Section 3767.32 | Littering.
 

(A) No person, regardless of intent, shall deposit litter or cause litter to be deposited on any public property, on private property not owned by the person, or in or on waters of the state unless one of the following applies:

(1) The person is directed to do so by a public official as part of a litter collection drive;

(2) Except as provided in division (B) of this section, the person deposits the litter in a litter receptacle in a manner that prevents its being carried away by the elements;

(3) The person is issued a permit or license covering the litter pursuant to Chapter 3734. or 6111. of the Revised Code.

(B) No person, without privilege to do so, shall knowingly deposit litter, or cause it to be deposited, in a litter receptacle located on any public property or on any private property not owned by the person unless one of the following applies:

(1) The litter was generated or located on the property on which the litter receptacle is located;

(2) The person is directed to do so by a public official as part of a litter collection drive;

(3) The person is directed to do so by a person whom the person reasonably believes to have the privilege to use the litter receptacle;

(4) The litter consists of any of the following:

(a) The contents of a litter bag or container of a type and size customarily carried and used in a motor vehicle;

(b) The contents of an ash tray of a type customarily installed or carried and used in a motor vehicle;

(c) Beverage containers and food sacks, wrappings, and containers of a type and in an amount that reasonably may be expected to be generated during routine commuting or business or recreational travel by a motor vehicle;

(d) Beverage containers, food sacks, wrappings, containers, and other materials of a type and in an amount that reasonably may be expected to be generated during a routine day by a person and deposited in a litter receptacle by a casual passerby.

(C)(1) As used in division (B)(1) of this section, "public property" includes any private property open to the public for the conduct of business, the provision of a service, or upon the payment of a fee, but does not include any private property to which the public otherwise does not have a right of access.

(2) As used in division (B)(4) of this section, "casual passerby" means a person who does not have depositing litter in a litter receptacle as the person's primary reason for traveling to or by the property on which the litter receptacle is located.

(D) As used in this section:

(1) "Litter" means garbage, trash, waste, rubbish, ashes, cans, bottles, wire, paper, cartons, boxes, automobile parts, furniture, glass, auxiliary containers, or anything else of an unsightly or unsanitary nature.

(2) "Deposit" means to throw, drop, discard, or place.

(3) "Litter receptacle" means a dumpster, trash can, trash bin, garbage can, or similar container in which litter is deposited for removal.

(4) "Auxiliary container" means a bag, can, cup, food or beverage service item, container, keg, bottle, or other packaging to which all of the following apply:

(a) It is designed to be either single use or reusable.

(b) It is made of cloth, paper, plastic, foamed or expanded plastic, cardboard, corrugated material, aluminum, metal, glass, postconsumer recycled material, or similar materials or substances, including coated, laminated, or multilayered substrates.

(c) It is designed for consuming, transporting, or protecting merchandise, food, or beverages from or at a food service operation, retail food establishment, grocery, or any other type of retail, manufacturing, or distribution establishment.

(E) This section may be enforced by any sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer of a municipal corporation, police constable or officer of a township, or township or joint police district, wildlife officer designated under section 1531.13 of the Revised Code, natural resources officer appointed under section 1501.24 of the Revised Code, forest-fire investigator appointed under section 1503.09 of the Revised Code, conservancy district police officer, inspector of nuisances of a county, or any other law enforcement officer within the law enforcement officer's jurisdiction.

Section 3767.33 | Authorization for disposal of materials in or upon banks of ditch, stream, river, or other watercourse.
 

No zoning commission, municipal corporation, or other governmental authority, except the director of environmental protection acting pursuant to the powers granted to him in sections 6111.01 to 6111.08 of the Revised Code, may authorize the placing or disposal of materials in or upon the banks of a ditch, stream, river, or other watercourse after January 1, 1968, where such placing or disposal would be prohibited under the provisions of section 3767.32 of the Revised Code. Such placing or disposal may be enjoined by the common pleas court in the county in which the placing or disposal occurs, upon application by the prosecuting attorney of the county, the director of environmental protection, the director of health, or the attorney general.

Section 3767.34 | Rest room facilities free of charge.
 

(A) No person shall make available any rest room facility intended for multiple occupancy and which requires payment of money or any other thing of value for entry into the rest room facility, or for use of a toilet within, unless said person also makes available for use by the same sex, at the same location, an equal number of the same kind of rest room facilities, toilets, urinals, and washbowls free of charge.

(B) Rest room facilities having no more than one toilet and a washbowl, or having no more than one toilet, one urinal, and one washbowl, shall be exempt from the provisions of division (A) of this section if a key is made available immediately, or other means of access made available immediately, for any customer who requests use of the rest room facility or the toilet, urinal, or washbowl within.

(C) As used in divisions (A) and (B) of this section, "rest room facility" means any room or area containing one or more toilets, washbowls, or urinals; "multiple occupancy" means a rest room facility containing more than one toilet and one washbowl, or containing more than one toilet, one urinal, and one washbowl used for the purpose of eliminating human biological waste materials and commonly referred to as "lavatory," "toilet," "urinal," or "water closet."

Section 3767.41 | Buildings found to be public nuisance.
 

(A) As used in this section:

(1) "Building" means, except as otherwise provided in this division, any building or structure that is used or intended to be used for residential purposes. "Building" includes, but is not limited to, a building or structure in which any floor is used for retail stores, shops, salesrooms, markets, or similar commercial uses, or for offices, banks, civic administration activities, professional services, or similar business or civic uses, and in which the other floors are used, or designed and intended to be used, for residential purposes. "Building" does not include any building or structure that is occupied by its owner and that contains three or fewer residential units.

(2)(a) "Public nuisance" means a building that is a menace to the public health, welfare, or safety; that is structurally unsafe, unsanitary, or not provided with adequate safe egress; that constitutes a fire hazard, is otherwise dangerous to human life, or is otherwise no longer fit and habitable; or that, in relation to its existing use, constitutes a hazard to the public health, welfare, or safety by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, or abandonment.

(b) "Public nuisance" as it applies to subsidized housing means subsidized housing that fails to meet the following standards as specified in the federal rules governing each standard:

(i) Each building on the site is structurally sound, secure, habitable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(b);

(ii) Each building's domestic water, electrical system, elevators, emergency power, fire protection, HVAC, and sanitary system is free of health and safety hazards, functionally adequate, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(c);

(iii) Each dwelling unit within the building is structurally sound, habitable, and in good repair, and all areas and aspects of the dwelling unit are free of health and safety hazards, functionally adequate, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(1);

(iv) Where applicable, the dwelling unit has hot and cold running water, including an adequate source of potable water, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(2);

(v) If the dwelling unit includes its own sanitary facility, it is in proper operating condition, usable in privacy, and adequate for personal hygiene, and the disposal of human waste, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(3);

(vi) The common areas are structurally sound, secure, and functionally adequate for the purposes intended. The basement, garage, carport, restrooms, closets, utility, mechanical, community rooms, child care rooms, halls, corridors, stairs, kitchens, laundry rooms, office, porch, patio, balcony, and trash collection areas are free of health and safety hazards, operable, and in good repair. All common area ceilings, doors, floors, HVAC, lighting, smoke detectors, stairs, walls, and windows, to the extent applicable, are free of health and safety hazards, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(e);

(vii) All areas and components of the housing are free of health and safety hazards. These areas include, but are not limited to, air quality, electrical hazards, elevators, emergency/fire exits, flammable materials, garbage and debris, handrail hazards, infestation, and lead-based paint, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(f).

(3) "Abate" or "abatement" in connection with any building means the removal or correction of any conditions that constitute a public nuisance and the making of any other improvements that are needed to effect a rehabilitation of the building that is consistent with maintaining safe and habitable conditions over its remaining useful life. "Abatement" does not include the closing or boarding up of any building that is found to be a public nuisance.

(4) "Interested party" means any owner, mortgagee, lienholder, tenant, or person that possesses an interest of record in any property that becomes subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to this section, and any applicant for the appointment of a receiver pursuant to this section.

(5) "Neighbor" means any owner of property, including, but not limited to, any person who is purchasing property by land installment contract or under a duly executed purchase contract, that is located within five hundred feet of any property that becomes subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to this section, and any occupant of a building that is so located.

(6) "Tenant" has the same meaning as in section 5321.01 of the Revised Code.

(7) "Subsidized housing" means a property consisting of more than four dwelling units that, in whole or in part, receives project-based assistance pursuant to a contract under any of the following federal housing programs:

(a) The new construction or substantial rehabilitation program under section 8(b)(2) of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f(b)(2) as that program was in effect immediately before the first day of October, 1983;

(b) The moderate rehabilitation program under section 8(e)(2) of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f(e)(2);

(c) The loan management assistance program under section 8 of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f;

(d) The rent supplement program under section 101 of the "Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965," Pub. L. No. 89-174, 79 Stat. 667, 12 U.S.C. 1701s;

(e) Section 8 of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f, following conversion from assistance under section 101 of the "Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965," Pub. L. No. 89-174, 79 Stat. 667, 12 U.S.C. 1701s;

(f) The program of supportive housing for the elderly under section 202 of the "Housing Act of 1959," Pub. L. No. 86-372, 73 Stat. 654, 12 U.S.C. 1701q;

(g) The program of supportive housing for persons with disabilities under section 811 of the "National Affordable Housing Act of 1990," Pub. L. No. 101-625, 104 Stat. 4313, 42 U.S.C. 8013;

(h) The rental assistance program under section 521 of the "United States Housing Act of 1949," Pub. L. No. 90-448, 82 Stat. 551, as amended by Pub. L. No. 93-383, 88 Stat. 696, 42 U.S.C. 1490a.

(8) "Project-based assistance" means the assistance is attached to the property and provides rental assistance only on behalf of tenants who reside in that property.

(9) "Landlord" has the same meaning as in section 5321.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)(1)(a) In any civil action to enforce any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, resolution, or regulation applicable to buildings, that is commenced in a court of common pleas, municipal court, housing or environmental division of a municipal court, or county court, or in any civil action for abatement commenced in a court of common pleas, municipal court, housing or environmental division of a municipal court, or county court, by a municipal corporation or township in which the building involved is located, by any neighbor, tenant, or by a nonprofit corporation that is duly organized and has as one of its goals the improvement of housing conditions in the county or municipal corporation in which the building involved is located, if a building is alleged to be a public nuisance, the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation may apply in its complaint for an injunction or other order as described in division (C)(1) of this section, or for the relief described in division (C)(2) of this section, including, if necessary, the appointment of a receiver as described in divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section, or for both such an injunction or other order and such relief. The municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action is not liable for the costs, expenses, and fees of any receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section.

(b) Prior to commencing a civil action for abatement when the property alleged to be a public nuisance is subsidized housing, the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action shall provide the landlord of that property with written notice that specifies one or more defective conditions that constitute a public nuisance as that term applies to subsidized housing and states that if the landlord fails to remedy the condition within sixty days of the service of the notice, a claim pursuant to this section may be brought on the basis that the property constitutes a public nuisance in subsidized housing. Any party authorized to bring an action against the landlord shall make reasonable attempts to serve the notice in the manner prescribed in the Rules of Civil Procedure to the landlord or the landlord's agent for the property at the property's management office, or at the place where the tenants normally pay or send rent. If the landlord is not the owner of record, the party bringing the action shall make a reasonable attempt to serve the owner. If the owner does not receive service the person bringing the action shall certify the attempts to serve the owner.

(2)(a) In a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section, a copy of the complaint and a notice of the date and time of a hearing on the complaint shall be served upon the owner of the building and all other interested parties in accordance with the Rules of Civil Procedure. If certified mail service, personal service, or residence service of the complaint and notice is refused or certified mail service of the complaint and notice is not claimed, and if the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action makes a written request for ordinary mail service of the complaint and notice, or uses publication service, in accordance with the Rules of Civil Procedure, then a copy of the complaint and notice shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the building.

(b) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall conduct a hearing at least twenty-eight days after the owner of the building and the other interested parties have been served with a copy of the complaint and the notice of the date and time of the hearing in accordance with division (B)(2)(a) of this section.

(c) In considering whether subsidized housing is a public nuisance, the judge shall construe the standards set forth in division (A)(2)(b) of this section in a manner consistent with department of housing and urban development and judicial interpretations of those standards. The judge shall deem that the property is not a public nuisance if during the twelve months prior to the service of the notice that division (B)(1)(b) of this section requires, the department of housing and urban development's real estate assessment center issued a score of seventy-five or higher out of a possible one hundred points pursuant to its regulations governing the physical condition of multifamily properties pursuant to 24 C.F.R. part 200, subpart P, and since the most recent inspection, there has been no significant change in the property's conditions that would create a serious threat to the health, safety, or welfare of the property's tenants.

(C)(1) If the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section finds at the hearing required by division (B)(2) of this section that the building involved is a public nuisance, if the judge additionally determines that the owner of the building previously has not been afforded a reasonable opportunity to abate the public nuisance or has been afforded such an opportunity and has not refused or failed to abate the public nuisance, and if the complaint of the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action requested the issuance of an injunction as described in this division, then the judge may issue an injunction requiring the owner of the building to abate the public nuisance or issue any other order that the judge considers necessary or appropriate to cause the abatement of the public nuisance. If an injunction is issued pursuant to this division, the owner of the building involved shall be given no more than thirty days from the date of the entry of the judge's order to comply with the injunction, unless the judge, for good cause shown, extends the time for compliance.

(2) If the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section finds at the hearing required by division (B)(2) of this section that the building involved is a public nuisance, if the judge additionally determines that the owner of the building previously has been afforded a reasonable opportunity to abate the public nuisance and has refused or failed to do so, and if the complaint of the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action requested relief as described in this division, then the judge shall offer any mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party associated with the property on which the building is located, in the order of the priority of interest in title, the opportunity to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate the public nuisance. Prior to selecting any interested party, the judge shall require the interested party to demonstrate the ability to promptly undertake the work and furnish the materials required, to provide the judge with a viable financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building as described in division (D) of this section, and to post security for the performance of the work and the furnishing of the materials.

If the judge determines, at the hearing, that no interested party is willing or able to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate the public nuisance, or if the judge determines, at any time after the hearing, that any party who is undertaking corrective work pursuant to this division cannot or will not proceed, or has not proceeded with due diligence, the judge may appoint a receiver pursuant to division (C)(3) of this section to take possession and control of the building.

(3)(a) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall not appoint any person as a receiver unless the person first has provided the judge with a viable financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building involved as described in division (D) of this section and has demonstrated the capacity and expertise to perform the required work and to furnish the required materials in a satisfactory manner. An appointed receiver may be a financial institution that possesses an interest of record in the building or the property on which it is located, a nonprofit corporation as described in divisions (B)(1) and (C)(3)(b) of this section, including, but not limited to, a nonprofit corporation that commenced the action described in division (B)(1) of this section, or any other qualified property manager.

(b) To be eligible for appointment as a receiver, no part of the net earnings of a nonprofit corporation shall inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. Membership on the board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation appointed as a receiver does not constitute the holding of a public office or employment within the meaning of sections 731.02 and 731.12 or any other section of the Revised Code and does not constitute a direct or indirect interest in a contract or expenditure of money by any municipal corporation. A member of a board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation appointed as a receiver shall not be disqualified from holding any public office or employment, and shall not forfeit any public office or employment, by reason of membership on the board of trustees, notwithstanding any law to the contrary.

(D) Prior to ordering any work to be undertaken, or the furnishing of any materials, to abate a public nuisance under this section, the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall review the submitted financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building involved and, if it specifies all of the following, shall approve that plan:

(1) The estimated cost of the labor, materials, and any other development costs that are required to abate the public nuisance;

(2) The estimated income and expenses of the building and the property on which it is located after the furnishing of the materials and the completion of the repairs and improvements;

(3) The terms, conditions, and availability of any financing that is necessary to perform the work and to furnish the materials;

(4) If repair and rehabilitation of the building are found not to be feasible, the cost of demolition of the building or of the portions of the building that constitute the public nuisance.

(E) Upon the written request of any of the interested parties to have a building, or portions of a building, that constitute a public nuisance demolished because repair and rehabilitation of the building are found not to be feasible, the judge may order the demolition. However, the demolition shall not be ordered unless the requesting interested parties have paid the costs of demolition and, if any, of the receivership, and, if any, all notes, certificates, mortgages, and fees of the receivership.

(F) Before proceeding with the duties of receiver, any receiver appointed by the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section may be required by the judge to post a bond in an amount fixed by the judge, but not exceeding the value of the building involved as determined by the judge.

The judge may empower the receiver to do any or all of the following:

(1) Take possession and control of the building and the property on which it is located, operate and manage the building and the property, establish and collect rents and income, lease and rent the building and the property, and evict tenants;

(2) Pay all expenses of operating and conserving the building and the property, including, but not limited to, the cost of electricity, gas, water, sewerage, heating fuel, repairs and supplies, custodian services, taxes and assessments, and insurance premiums, and hire and pay reasonable compensation to a managing agent;

(3) Pay pre-receivership mortgages or installments of them and other liens;

(4) Perform or enter into contracts for the performance of all work and the furnishing of materials necessary to abate, and obtain financing for the abatement of, the public nuisance;

(5) Pursuant to court order, remove and dispose of any personal property abandoned, stored, or otherwise located in or on the building and the property that creates a dangerous or unsafe condition or that constitutes a violation of any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, or regulation;

(6) Obtain mortgage insurance for any receiver's mortgage from any agency of the federal government;

(7) Enter into any agreement and do those things necessary to maintain and preserve the building and the property and comply with all local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety codes, ordinances, resolutions, and regulations;

(8) Give the custody of the building and the property, and the opportunity to abate the nuisance and operate the property, to its owner or any mortgagee or lienholder of record;

(9) Issue notes and secure them by a mortgage bearing interest, and upon terms and conditions, that the judge approves. When sold or transferred by the receiver in return for valuable consideration in money, material, labor, or services, the notes or certificates shall be freely transferable. Any mortgages granted by the receiver shall be superior to any claims of the receiver. Priority among the receiver's mortgages shall be determined by the order in which they are recorded.

(G) A receiver appointed pursuant to this section is not personally liable except for misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance in the performance of the functions of the office of receiver.

(H)(1) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section may assess as court costs, the expenses described in division (F)(2) of this section, and may approve receiver's fees to the extent that they are not covered by the income from the property. Subject to that limitation, a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section is entitled to receive fees in the same manner and to the same extent as receivers appointed in actions to foreclose mortgages.

(2)(a) Pursuant to the police powers vested in the state, all expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance, and any expenditures in connection with the foreclosure of the lien created by this division, is a first lien upon the building involved and the property on which it is located and is superior to all prior and subsequent liens or other encumbrances associated with the building or the property, including, but not limited to, those for taxes and assessments, upon the occurrence of both of the following:

(i) The prior approval of the expenditures by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section;

(ii) The recordation of a certified copy of the judgment entry and a sufficient description of the property on which the building is located with the county recorder in the county in which the property is located within sixty days after the date of the entry of the judgment.

(b) Pursuant to the police powers vested in the state, all expenses and other amounts paid in accordance with division (F) of this section by a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section, the amounts of any notes issued by the receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section, all mortgages granted by the receiver in accordance with that division, the fees of the receiver approved pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section, and any amounts expended in connection with the foreclosure of a mortgage granted by the receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section or with the foreclosure of the lien created by this division, are a first lien upon the building involved and the property on which it is located and are superior to all prior and subsequent liens or other encumbrances associated with the building or the property, including, but not limited to, those for taxes and assessments, upon the occurrence of both of the following:

(i) The approval of the expenses, amounts, or fees by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section; or the approval of the mortgages in accordance with division (F)(9) of this section by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, that judge;

(ii) The recordation of a certified copy of the judgment entry and a sufficient description of the property on which the building is located, or, in the case of a mortgage, the recordation of the mortgage, a certified copy of the judgment entry, and such a description, with the county recorder of the county in which the property is located within sixty days after the date of the entry of the judgment.

(c) Priority among the liens described in divisions (H)(2)(a) and (b) of this section shall be determined as described in division (I) of this section. Additionally, the creation pursuant to this section of a mortgage lien that is prior to or superior to any mortgage of record at the time the mortgage lien is so created, does not disqualify the mortgage of record as a legal investment under Chapter 1107. or any other chapter of the Revised Code.

(I)(1) If a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section files with the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section a report indicating that the public nuisance has been abated, if the judge confirms that the receiver has abated the public nuisance, and if the receiver or any interested party requests the judge to enter an order directing the receiver to sell the building and the property on which it is located, the judge may enter that order after holding a hearing as described in division (I)(2) of this section and otherwise complying with that division.

(2)(a) The receiver or interested party requesting an order as described in division (I)(1) of this section shall cause a notice of the date and time of a hearing on the request to be served on the owner of the building involved and all other interested parties in accordance with division (B)(2)(a) of this section. The judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall conduct the scheduled hearing. At the hearing, if the owner or any interested party objects to the sale of the building and the property, the burden of proof shall be upon the objecting person to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the benefits of not selling the building and the property outweigh the benefits of selling them. If the judge determines that there is no objecting person, or if the judge determines that there is one or more objecting persons but no objecting person has sustained the burden of proof specified in this division, the judge may enter an order directing the receiver to offer the building and the property for sale upon terms and conditions that the judge shall specify.

(b) In any sale of subsidized housing that is ordered pursuant to this section, the judge shall specify that the subsidized housing not be conveyed unless that conveyance complies with applicable federal law and applicable program contracts for that housing. Any such conveyance shall be subject to the condition that the purchaser enter into a contract with the department of housing and urban development or the rural housing service of the federal department of agriculture under which the property continues to be subsidized housing and the owner continues to operate that property as subsidized housing unless the secretary of housing and urban development or the administrator of the rural housing service terminates that property's contract prior to or upon the conveyance of the property.

(3) If a sale of a building and the property on which it is located is ordered pursuant to divisions (I)(1) and (2) of this section and if the sale occurs in accordance with the terms and conditions specified by the judge in the judge's order of sale, then the receiver shall distribute the proceeds of the sale and the balance of any funds that the receiver may possess, after the payment of the costs of the sale, in the following order of priority and in the described manner:

(a) First, in satisfaction of any notes issued by the receiver pursuant to division (F) of this section, in their order of priority;

(b) Second, any unreimbursed expenses and other amounts paid in accordance with division (F) of this section by the receiver, and the fees of the receiver approved pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section;

(c) Third, all expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance, provided that the expenditures were approved as described in division (H)(2)(a) of this section and provided that, if any such interested party subsequently became the receiver, its expenditures shall be paid prior to the expenditures of any of the other interested parties so selected;

(d) Fourth, the amount due for delinquent taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest owed to this state or a political subdivision of this state, provided that, if the amount available for distribution pursuant to division (I)(3)(d) of this section is insufficient to pay the entire amount of those taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest, the proceeds and remaining funds shall be paid to each claimant in proportion to the amount of those taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest that each is due.

(e) The amount of any pre-receivership mortgages, liens, or other encumbrances, in their order of priority.

(4) Following a distribution in accordance with division (I)(3) of this section, the receiver shall request the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section to enter an order terminating the receivership. If the judge determines that the sale of the building and the property on which it is located occurred in accordance with the terms and conditions specified by the judge in the judge's order of sale under division (I)(2) of this section and that the receiver distributed the proceeds of the sale and the balance of any funds that the receiver possessed, after the payment of the costs of the sale, in accordance with division (I)(3) of this section, and if the judge approves any final accounting required of the receiver, the judge may terminate the receivership.

(J)(1) A receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section may be discharged at any time in the discretion of the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section. The receiver shall be discharged by the judge as provided in division (I)(4) of this section, or when all of the following have occurred:

(a) The public nuisance has been abated;

(b) All costs, expenses, and approved fees of the receivership have been paid;

(c) Either all receiver's notes issued and mortgages granted pursuant to this section have been paid, or all the holders of the notes and mortgages request that the receiver be discharged.

(2) If a judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section determines that, and enters of record a declaration that, a public nuisance has been abated by a receiver, and if, within three days after the entry of the declaration, all costs, expenses, and approved fees of the receivership have not been paid in full, then, in addition to the circumstances specified in division (I) of this section for the entry of such an order, the judge may enter an order directing the receiver to sell the building involved and the property on which it is located. Any such order shall be entered, and the sale shall occur, only in compliance with division (I) of this section.

(K) The title in any building, and in the property on which it is located, that is sold at a sale ordered under division (I) or (J)(2) of this section shall be incontestable in the purchaser and shall be free and clear of all liens for delinquent taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest owed to this state or any political subdivision of this state, that could not be satisfied from the proceeds of the sale and the remaining funds in the receiver's possession pursuant to the distribution under division (I)(3) of this section. All other liens and encumbrances with respect to the building and the property shall survive the sale, including, but not limited to, a federal tax lien notice properly filed in accordance with section 317.09 of the Revised Code prior to the time of the sale, and the easements and covenants of record running with the property that were created prior to the time of the sale.

(L)(1) Nothing in this section shall be construed as a limitation upon the powers granted to a court of common pleas, a municipal court or a housing or environmental division of a municipal court under Chapter 1901. of the Revised Code, or a county court under Chapter 1907. of the Revised Code.

(2) The monetary and other limitations specified in Chapters 1901. and 1907. of the Revised Code upon the jurisdiction of municipal and county courts, and of housing or environmental divisions of municipal courts, in civil actions do not operate as limitations upon any of the following:

(a) Expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance;

(b) Any notes issued by a receiver pursuant to division (F) of this section;

(c) Any mortgage granted by a receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section;

(d) Expenditures in connection with the foreclosure of a mortgage granted by a receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section;

(e) The enforcement of an order of a judge entered pursuant to this section;

(f) The actions that may be taken pursuant to this section by a receiver or a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance.

(3) A judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section, or the judge's successor in office, has continuing jurisdiction to review the condition of any building that was determined to be a public nuisance pursuant to this section.

(4) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or prohibit a municipal corporation or township that has filed with the superintendent of insurance a certified copy of an adopted resolution, ordinance, or regulation authorizing the procedures described in divisions (C) and (D) of section 3929.86 of the Revised Code from receiving insurance proceeds under section 3929.86 of the Revised Code.

Last updated August 28, 2023 at 10:12 AM

Section 3767.50 | Action to foreclose lien on blighted parcel.
 

(A) For purposes of this section:

(1) "Blighted parcel" has the same meaning as in section 1.08 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Owner" means any of the following:

(a) The owner of record as shown on the current tax list of the county auditor;

(b) A person who has a freehold or lesser estate in the premises;

(c) A mortgagee in possession or vendee in possession who evidences charge, care, or control of the premises, including, but not limited to, a person to whom the sheriff has issued a deed for the premises after a judicial sale regardless of whether the deed has been recorded;

(d) A person who has charge, care, or control of the premises as executor, administrator, assignee, receiver, trustee, or legal guardian;

(e) A person who holds the person's self out to be in charge, care, or control of the premises as evidenced by the negotiation of written or oral lease agreements for the premises, the collection of rents for the premises, the performance of maintenance or repairs on the premises, or the authorization of others to perform maintenance or repairs on the premises.

(B)(1) A municipal corporation, in addition to any other remedy authorized by law, has a cause of action in the environmental division of the municipal court to foreclose any existing liens upon a blighted parcel located in the municipal corporation provided that no other foreclosure action affecting the blighted parcel is being actively prosecuted in any court of record. It is an affirmative defense to an action under this division that the owner of the blighted parcel has not been in default on any mortgage on the property for twelve months or more or that there is a bankruptcy proceeding pending in which the blighted parcel has been listed as an asset. To maintain the action, it is not necessary for the municipal corporation to have a lien of its own upon the property. Rather, it is sufficient for the municipal corporation to allege that, because of the continuing existence of conditions causing the property to be a blighted parcel, the owner has defaulted on the terms of any agreement giving rise to a lien for failure to maintain the property, and then to marshal and plead for foreclosure of any or all outstanding liens upon the blighted parcel. Section 3767.50 of the Revised Code does not create a cause of action regarding any property not subject to a lien. The municipal corporation shall not marshal a lien held by the United States, a lien held by this state other than a lien for real property taxes and assessments, a lien held by a political subdivision other than itself, or a lien vested by a tax certificate held under sections 5721.30 to 5721.43 of the Revised Code. The municipal corporation shall join as a party to the action a lienholder whose lien is being marshaled and shall notify the lienholder party that the municipal corporation is proceeding to foreclose the lien under this section and that the lienholder party may remediate the conditions of the parcel constituting blight. If a lienholder party certifies to the court that the party will remediate the conditions of the parcel constituting blight within sixty days after the party is served with a copy of the complaint of the foreclosure action, the municipal corporation shall move to dismiss the action.

In a judicial sale of a blighted parcel that is ordered as a result of the foreclosure action, the priority of distribution of the proceeds from the sale shall not be altered because the municipal corporation marshaled and foreclosed on one or more liens. Rather, proceeds from the sale shall be distributed according to the priorities otherwise established by law.

(2) The environmental division of the municipal court has exclusive original jurisdiction of an action under this section.

(C)(1) With respect to any blighted parcel that is or may be subject to an action under this section, the municipal corporation may notify the taxing authority of each taxing unit in which the blighted parcel is located that the municipal corporation is proceeding to foreclose the lien under this section. The notice shall state that the taxing authority may preserve its claim on any distributions of delinquent or unpaid taxes and assessments charged against the blighted parcel and arising from the judicial sale proceeds by responding in writing to the municipal corporation within a period of time to be specified in the notice. The written response shall be certified by the taxing authority or by the fiscal officer or other person authorized by the taxing authority to respond. If such a response is received by the municipal corporation within the specified time, or if such a notice is not provided, the taxing authority's claim on distributions of delinquent or unpaid taxes and assessments charged against the blighted parcel and payable from proceeds of the judicial sale shall be preserved and shall be disposed of in the priority and manner otherwise prescribed by law. If such a notice is provided and the response is not received within the specified time, the taxing authority's claim on the delinquent or unpaid taxes and assessments is extinguished, the lien for such taxes is satisfied and discharged to the extent of that claim, and the blighted parcel may be sold at judicial sale free and clear of such lien to that extent, unless the successful bidder at the judicial sale is a lienholder of the blighted parcel. If the successful bidder is a lienholder of the blighted parcel, the lien for all delinquent or unpaid taxes and assessments charged against the blighted parcel shall continue until discharged as otherwise provided by law.

(2) The taxing authority of a taxing unit and a municipal corporation may enter into an agreement whereby the taxing authority consents in advance to release the taxing authority's claim on distributions of delinquent or unpaid taxes and assessments charged against blighted parcels in the taxing unit's territory and waives its right to prior notice and response under division (C)(1) of this section. The agreement shall provide for any terms and conditions on the release of such claim as are mutually agreeable to the taxing authority and municipal corporation, including any option vesting in the taxing authority the right to revoke its release with respect to any blighted parcel before the release becomes effective, and the manner in which notice of such revocation shall be effected.

Section 3767.99 | Penalty.
 

(A) Whoever is guilty of contempt under sections 3767.01 to 3767.11 or violates section 3767.14 of the Revised Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree.

(B) Whoever violates section 3767.12 or 3767.29, or, being an association, violates section 3767.30 of the Revised Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.

(C) Whoever violates section 3767.13, 3767.19, or 3767.32 or, being a natural person, violates section 3767.30 of the Revised Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree. The sentencing court may, in addition to or in lieu of the penalty provided in this division, require a person who violates section 3767.32 of the Revised Code to remove litter from any public or private property, or in or on waters of the state.

(D) Whoever violates section 3767.16, 3767.17, 3767.18, 3767.201, or 3767.34 of the Revised Code is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.