Get caught for ‘hooning’ in Ohio now and you’ll face stiffer penalties, possibly jail

Legislation that enhances penalties for “hooning” -- showboating featuring drivers who take over street intersections to perform smoke producing, tire spinning donuts called spinouts -- is now the law of the land in Ohio.

>> EARLIER COVERAGE: Tougher penalties for drivers, spectators in newly passed anti-hooning bill

Gov. Mike DeWine, with Dayton Mayor Jeffrey Mims Jr., former Montgomery County Sheriff and current state Rep. Phil Plummer and others in attendance, signed the anti-hooning/street racing bill into law Wednesday in Columbus.

News Center 7′s Mike Campbell, who has followed the bill through the legislature, reported last month that Law enforcement and prosecutors throughout Ohio now have more power to stop the dangerous driving because the law takes the offense from a simple traffic ticket to a first-degree misdemeanor to a felony.

Law enforcement can now ticket spectators.

Drivers who flee law enforcement now can be charged with a third-degree felony -- which means possible jail time.

State Rep. Andrea White, who co-sponsored the legislation with Plummer, said, “enough is enough, we need to be able to have better tools to enforce the law and help us stop street takeovers, so that innocent citizens don’t get hurt.”

>> RELATED: ‘I don’t want to be a victim,’ says resident who hopes bill to curb street racing survives

One provision of the law eliminates law enforcement’s ability to seize the high-performance cars used in many hooning episodes.

The Ohio House had that provision in its version of the legislation. The Senate eliminated it.