Ohio Code 2925.32 – Trafficking in harmful intoxicants – improperly dispensing or distributing nitrous oxide
(A) Divisions (A)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply to the dispensing or distributing of nitrous oxide.
Attorney's Note
Under the Ohio Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Felony of the fourth degree | 6 to 18 months | up to $5,000 |
| Felony of the fifth degree | 6 to 12 months | up to $2,500 |
| Misdemeanor of the fourth degree | up to 30 days | up to $250 |
Terms Used In Ohio Code 2925.32
- Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
- Another: when used to designate the owner of property which is the subject of an offense, includes not only natural persons but also every other owner of property. See Ohio Code 1.02
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Drug abuse offense: means any of the following:
(1) A violation of division (A) of section 2913. See Ohio Code 2925.01
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Juvenile: means a person under eighteen years of age. See Ohio Code 2925.01
- Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
- Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Professionally licensed person: means any of the following:
(1) A person who has received a certificate or temporary certificate as a certified public accountant or who has registered as a public accountant under Chapter 4701 of the Revised Code and who holds an Ohio permit issued under that chapter;
(2) A person who holds a certificate of qualification to practice architecture issued or renewed and registered under Chapter 4703 of the Revised Code;
(3) A person who is registered as a landscape architect under Chapter 4703 of the Revised Code or who holds a permit as a landscape architect issued under that chapter;
(4) A person licensed under Chapter 4707 of the Revised Code;
(5) A person who has been issued a certificate of registration as a registered barber under Chapter 4709 of the Revised Code;
(6) A person licensed and regulated to engage in the business of a debt pooling company by a legislative authority, under authority of Chapter 4710 of the Revised Code;
(7) A person who has been issued a cosmetologist's license, hair designer's license, manicurist's license, esthetician's license, natural hair stylist's license, advanced cosmetologist's license, advanced hair designer's license, advanced manicurist's license, advanced esthetician's license, advanced natural hair stylist's license, cosmetology instructor's license, hair design instructor's license, manicurist instructor's license, esthetics instructor's license, natural hair style instructor's license, independent contractor's license, or tanning facility permit under Chapter 4713 of the Revised Code;
(8) A person who has been issued a license to practice dentistry, a general anesthesia permit, a conscious sedation permit, a limited resident's license, a limited teaching license, a dental hygienist's license, or a dental hygienist's teacher's certificate under Chapter 4715 of the Revised Code;
(9) A person who has been issued an embalmer's license, a funeral director's license, a funeral home license, or a crematory license, or who has been registered for an embalmer's or funeral director's apprenticeship under Chapter 4717 of the Revised Code;
(10) A person who has been licensed as a registered nurse or practical nurse, or who has been issued a certificate for the practice of nurse-midwifery under Chapter 4723 of the Revised Code;
(11) A person who has been licensed to practice optometry or to engage in optical dispensing under Chapter 4725 of the Revised Code;
(12) A person licensed to act as a pawnbroker under Chapter 4727 of the Revised Code;
(13) A person licensed to act as a precious metals dealer under Chapter 4728 of the Revised Code;
(14) A person licensed under Chapter 4729 of the Revised Code as a pharmacist or pharmacy intern or registered under that chapter as a registered pharmacy technician, certified pharmacy technician, or pharmacy technician trainee;
(15) A person licensed under Chapter 4729 of the Revised Code as a manufacturer of dangerous drugs, outsourcing facility, third-party logistics provider, repackager of dangerous drugs, wholesale distributor of dangerous drugs, or terminal distributor of dangerous drugs;
(16) A person who is authorized to practice as a physician assistant under Chapter 4730 of the Revised Code;
(17) A person who has been issued a license to practice medicine and surgery, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or podiatric medicine and surgery under Chapter 4731 of the Revised Code or has been issued a certificate to practice a limited branch of medicine under that chapter;
(18) A person licensed as a psychologist, independent school psychologist, or school psychologist under Chapter 4732 of the Revised Code;
(19) A person registered to practice the profession of engineering or surveying under Chapter 4733 of the Revised Code;
(20) A person who has been issued a license to practice chiropractic under Chapter 4734 of the Revised Code;
(21) A person licensed to act as a real estate broker or real estate salesperson under Chapter 4735 of the Revised Code;
(22) A person registered as a registered environmental health specialist under Chapter 4736 of the Revised Code;
(23) A person licensed to operate or maintain a junkyard under Chapter 4737 of the Revised Code;
(24) A person who has been issued a motor vehicle salvage dealer's license under Chapter 4738 of the Revised Code;
(25) A person who has been licensed to act as a steam engineer under Chapter 4739 of the Revised Code;
(26) A person who has been issued a license or temporary permit to practice veterinary medicine or any of its branches, or who is registered as a graduate animal technician under Chapter 4741 of the Revised Code;
(27) A person who has been issued a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license or trainee permit under Chapter 4747 of the Revised Code;
(28) A person who has been issued a class A, class B, or class C license or who has been registered as an investigator or security guard employee under Chapter 4749 of the Revised Code;
(29) A person licensed to practice as a nursing home administrator under Chapter 4751 of the Revised Code;
(30) A person licensed to practice as a speech-language pathologist or audiologist under Chapter 4753 of the Revised Code;
(31) A person issued a license as an occupational therapist or physical therapist under Chapter 4755 of the Revised Code;
(32) A person who is licensed as a licensed professional clinical counselor, licensed professional counselor, social worker, independent social worker, independent marriage and family therapist, or marriage and family therapist, or registered as a social work assistant under Chapter 4757 of the Revised Code;
(33) A person issued a license to practice dietetics under Chapter 4759 of the Revised Code;
(34) A person who has been issued a license or limited permit to practice respiratory therapy under Chapter 4761 of the Revised Code;
(35) A person who has been issued a real estate appraiser certificate under Chapter 4763 of the Revised Code;
(36) A person who has been issued a home inspector license under Chapter 4764 of the Revised Code;
(37) A person who has been admitted to the bar by order of the supreme court in compliance with its prescribed and published rules. See Ohio Code 2925.01
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
- United States: includes all the states. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Whoever: includes all persons, natural and artificial; partners; principals, agents, and employees; and all officials, public or private. See Ohio Code 1.02
(1) No person shall knowingly dispense or distribute a harmful intoxicant to a person age eighteen or older if the person who dispenses or distributes it knows or has reason to believe that the harmful intoxicant will be used in violation of section 2925.31 of the Revised Code.
(2) No person shall knowingly dispense or distribute a harmful intoxicant to a person under age eighteen if the person who dispenses or distributes it knows or has reason to believe that the harmful intoxicant will be used in violation of section 2925.31 of the Revised Code. Division (A)(2) of this section does not prohibit either of the following:
(a) Dispensing or distributing a harmful intoxicant to a person under age eighteen if a written order from the juvenile‘s parent or guardian is provided to the dispenser or distributor;
(b) Dispensing or distributing gasoline or diesel fuel to a person under age eighteen if the dispenser or distributor does not know or have reason to believe the product will be used in violation of section 2925.31 of the Revised Code. Division (A)(2)(a) of this section does not require a person to obtain a written order from the parent or guardian of a person under age eighteen in order to distribute or dispense gasoline or diesel fuel to the person.
(B)(1) No person shall knowingly dispense or distribute nitrous oxide to a person age twenty-one or older if the person who dispenses or distributes it knows or has reason to believe the nitrous oxide will be used in violation of section 2925.31 of the Revised Code.
(2) Except for lawful medical, dental, or clinical purposes, no person shall knowingly dispense or distribute nitrous oxide to a person under age twenty-one.
(3) No person, at the time a cartridge of nitrous oxide is sold to another person, shall sell a device that allows the purchaser to inhale nitrous oxide from cartridges or to hold nitrous oxide released from cartridges for purposes of inhalation. The sale of any such device constitutes a rebuttable presumption that the person knew or had reason to believe that the purchaser intended to abuse the nitrous oxide.
(4) No person who dispenses or distributes nitrous oxide in cartridges shall fail to comply with either of the following:
(a) The record-keeping requirements established under division (F) of this section;
(b) The labeling and transaction identification requirements established under division (G) of this section.
(C) This section does not apply to products used in making, fabricating, assembling, transporting, or constructing a product or structure by manual labor or machinery for sale or lease to another person, or to the mining, refining, or processing of natural deposits.
(D)(1)(a) Whoever violates division (A)(1) or (2) or division (B)(1), (2), or (3) of this section is guilty of trafficking in harmful intoxicants, a felony of the fifth degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of a drug abuse offense, trafficking in harmful intoxicants is a felony of the fourth degree. In addition to any other sanction imposed upon an offender for trafficking in harmful intoxicants, the court may suspend for not more than five years the offender’s driver’s or commercial driver’s license or permit. However, if the offender pleaded guilty to or was convicted of a violation of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code or a substantially similar municipal ordinance or the law of another state or the United States arising out of the same set of circumstances as the violation, the court shall suspend the offender’s driver’s or commercial driver’s license or permit for not more than five years. If the offender is a professionally licensed person, in addition to any other sanction imposed for trafficking in harmful intoxicants, the court immediately shall comply with section 2925.38 of the Revised Code.
(b) Any offender who received a mandatory suspension of the offender’s driver’s or commercial driver’s license or permit under this section prior to the effective date of this amendment may file a motion with the sentencing court requesting the termination of the suspension. However, an offender who pleaded guilty to or was convicted of a violation of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code or a substantially similar municipal ordinance or law of another state or the United States that arose out of the same set of circumstances as the violation for which the offender’s license or permit was suspended under this section shall not file such a motion.
Upon the filing of a motion under division (D)(1)(b) of this section, the sentencing court, in its discretion, may terminate the suspension.
(2) Whoever violates division (B)(4)(a) or (b) of this section is guilty of improperly dispensing or distributing nitrous oxide, a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.
(E) It is an affirmative defense to a charge of a violation of division (A)(2) or (B)(2) of this section that:
(1) An individual exhibited to the defendant or an officer or employee of the defendant, for purposes of establishing the individual’s age, a driver’s license or permit issued by this state, a commercial driver’s license or permit issued by this state, an identification card issued pursuant to section 4507.50 of the Revised Code, for another document that purports to be a license, permit, or identification card described in this division;
(2) The document exhibited appeared to be a genuine, unaltered document, to pertain to the individual, and to establish the individual’s age;
(3) The defendant or the officer or employee of the defendant otherwise did not have reasonable cause to believe that the individual was under the age represented.
(F) Beginning July 1, 2001, a person who dispenses or distributes nitrous oxide shall record each transaction involving the dispensing or distributing of the nitrous oxide on a separate card. The person shall require the purchaser to sign the card and provide a complete residence address. The person dispensing or distributing the nitrous oxide shall sign and date the card. The person shall retain the card recording a transaction for one year from the date of the transaction. The person shall maintain the cards at the person’s business address and make them available during normal business hours for inspection and copying by officers or employees of the state board of pharmacy or of other law enforcement agencies of this state or the United States that are authorized to investigate violations of Chapter 2925., 3719., or 4729. of the Revised Code or the federal drug abuse control laws.
The cards used to record each transaction shall inform the purchaser of the following:
(1) That nitrous oxide cartridges are to be used only for purposes of preparing food;
(2) That inhalation of nitrous oxide can have dangerous health effects;
(3) That it is a violation of state law to distribute or dispense cartridges of nitrous oxide to any person under age twenty-one, punishable as a felony of the fifth degree.
(G)(1) Each cartridge of nitrous oxide dispensed or distributed in this state shall bear the following printed warning:
“Nitrous oxide cartridges are to be used only for purposes of preparing food. Nitrous oxide cartridges may not be sold to persons under age twenty-one. Do not inhale contents. Misuse can be dangerous to your health.”
(2) Each time a person dispenses or distributes one or more cartridges of nitrous oxide, the person shall mark the packaging containing the cartridges with a label or other device that identifies the person who dispensed or distributed the nitrous oxide and the person’s business address.