State v. Repp

In State v. Repp, 5th Dist. No. 01-CA-11, 2001 Ohio 7034, 2001 Ohio App, the officer stopped the defendant for driving a vehicle he considered was unsafe in that it had a cracked windshield. At issue was an ordinance identical to the one involved here. The court noted that the ordinance mirrored R.C. 4513.02(A), which provides that no person shall drive any vehicle "which is in such unsafe condition as to endanger any person." In Repp the officer testified that he stopped the defendant because his car had a cracked windshield and therefore was unsafe. The court cited Ohio Adm. Code 4501:2-1-11 concerning motor vehicle equipment safety standards: "Every motor vehicle shall be equipped with safety glass. Such glass shall be free of cracks." The court held the promulgation of this regulation was authorized by R.C. 4513.02, and carried the full force and effect of law. The court held that the regulation required that windshield glass be free of cracks, and that since there was a crack in the defendant's windshield, the defendant's vehicle was in violation of the law. Id.