COLUMBUS – State lawmakers are rushing to close a loophole in state law that forced authorities to drop charges against a man accused of trying to entice girls into his car in the Worthington area.
State Representatives Mike Duffey (R-Worthington) and Bob Cupp (R-Lima) say they’re partnering with Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien to introduce new legislation to strengthen Ohio’s child-enticement law after charges were dropped against convicted sex offender Jonathan Ringel for allegedly enticing at least two nine-year-old girls, and possibly other children, to enter his vehicle this week, the two lawmakers announced in a joint release Thursday.
Franklin County Municipal Court decided the city could not prosecute Ringel for enticement since the Ohio Supreme Court declared the state law partially unconstitutional in a 2014 ruling that the statute unconstitutionally altered innocent situations into potential crimes.
“While we can all agree that normal, innocent behavior should not be criminalized, it is not at all normal for a stranger to approach fourth graders and coax them to enter his vehicle,” Duffey said. “I am committed to updating Ohio law to ensure this dangerous predatory behavior is completely illegal.”
State law made it a crime for anyone to ask a child under age 14 to accompany them into a vehicle or building without their parents’ consent, but, in a case involving a man who offered two boys money to help him move boxes, the state Supreme Court ruled that that section of the law was unconstitutional.
Duffey and Cupp said they would try to clarify the law by ensuring it applies to strangers without any legitimate relationship to a child and also to those with prior sexual offender status. They hope to introduce their bill before the General Assembly returns in September.
While the Franklin County charge was dropped, Ringel remains under arrest pending parole review. Ringel was convicted in Rockingham County, Va., of possession of child pornography and taking indecent liberties with minors in 2014. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison but was released on parole.