New Ohio Law Allows Bystanders To Break Into Cars To Save Lives

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Wikimedia Commons, David Shankbone

A new Ohio law will give immunity to people who rescue pets and kids from hot cars.

Police Captain Jim Coey recently got a report of a dog that had been left inside a car at the local canoe livery in Loudonville in Amish country.

“The dog was starting to get in a bad way. He had crawled up to the front of the car and was down under the brake pedal in the front driver’s side of the car. So we got concerned about that so we went ahead and broke a window out and got the dog out, got him some water. He came around pretty quick. He was pretty hot and pretty distressed at that point.” (:22)

Under this new law, anyone can break the car window and rescue a pet or child who appears to be in distress, as long they alert authorities first and they leave a note for the car’s owner. But this law won’t go into effect until late August, when summer is almost over.

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Contact Jo Ingles at jingles@statehousenews.org.