Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Today, state Sen Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood), a Lakewood Democrat and House Minority Leader whose 23rd state senate district includes state legislative districts 13, 14 and 15, parts of the cities of Lakewood, Euclid and Parma, and 14 of Cleveland's 17 wards, provided sponsor testimony on Senate Bill 100, which she is jointly sponsoring with state Sen. Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville). The anti-stalking bill, if passed, would prohibit the installation of an electronic tracking device or app on someone else's property without consent and a conviction for doing so would constitute a first degree misdemeanor, which under Ohio law is punishable by a possible fine and up to six months in jail.

"Right now, Ohio's stalking code does not include the use of electronic tracking devices," Antonio said. "Clearly, that law was put into the code long before we ever had small electronic tracking devices, like Apple AirTags, thus the application of the law is inconsistent.”

The state senator said that while typical electronic devices can be useful, they can also be harmful when misused, particularly if the intent is to stalk a person.

“Ohioans deserve protection from all forms of stalking, especially as technology continues to evolve,” said Sen Antonio, also a women’s rights advocate.

The idea for this legislation came from a WKYC story involving Kar'mell Triplett, a woman from Akron who unknowingly had an AirTag attached to her car that tracked her movements for 24 hours.

The bill is a reintroduction of Senate Bill 339 from the last general assembly and awaits further hearings in the Senate Financial Institutions and Technology Committee. Like House Bill  672, which is also pending and is similar to SB100, SB100 creates exceptions for law enforcement officials installing tracking devices as part of a criminal investigation, parents monitoring their minor children, and caregivers keeping track of elderly adults. But even those exceptions have provisions designed to prevent their abuse.

The use of electronic devices in spy-stalking has become more common place, though physical surveillance is often the most frequently cited tactic (when considering all the varieties of physical surveillance), followed by phone calls, and then by other unwanted contact. Data also reveal that men are more frequent stalkers in comparison to women.

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