Restore Hope: Support Second Chance OVI Expungement in Ohio

Restore Hope: Petition for Second Chance OVI Reform in Ohio

We, the undersigned citizens of Ohio, petition our state legislators to amend Ohio law to allow for the expungement of one-time misdemeanor OVI offenses.

THE PROBLEM

Currently in Ohio, a single misdemeanor OVI (Operating a Vehicle Impaired) conviction results in a lifetime criminal record that can never be expunged — even when more serious offenses like felony theft, felony financial fraud, and misdemeanor domestic violence are eligible for expungement. This permanent record creates barriers to employment, housing, education, and volunteer opportunities for the estimated 910,000 Ohioans who have only one OVI conviction and have never reoffended (a). That number means roughly eight percent of the 11.88 million people living in Ohio are subjected to a lifetime of collateral consequences for a single OVI conviction.

OUR REQUEST

We request that the Ohio legislature amend ORC §2953.32 to allow for the expungement of one-time misdemeanor OVI offenses where:

• No serious injuries to others occurred
• A reasonable waiting period (3-5 years) has passed
• The individual has completed all court-ordered requirements
• The individual has not been convicted of any subsequent OVI offenses

TO BE CLEAR

• We are NOT proposing any changes to current OVI penalties, fines, or sentencing guidelines
• We are NOT seeking expungement for OVI offenses involving serious injuries to others or fatalities
• We are NOT seeking expungement for individuals with multiple OVI convictions

BENEFITS TO OHIO

Allowing expungement for one-time OVI offenders will:

1. Reduce recidivism and increase public safety: Research shows people given expungements are less likely to commit subsequent criminal offenses than even the general population (b). Granting OVI expungements to people who have earned them will create a safer Ohio and allow Ohioans to find stable employment and housing.

2. Strengthen Ohio's economy: Removing barriers to employment allows more Ohioans to contribute fully to our workforce and tax base.

3. Support families: When one person in a family faces employment barriers, the entire family suffers financially. Allowing expungement strengthens Ohio's families by helping Ohioans get back to work.

4. Align with Ohio's values: For individuals with criminal records, Governor DeWine has declared Ohio a "second chance state" where "your success is everyone's success," (c). Let's help make those words a reality for individuals with a single OVI.

5. Create fairness in Ohio law: Allowing OVI expungement will create consistency with Ohio's approach to other offenses, eliminating the current arbitrary distinction. Currently, Ohioans convicted of offenses such as felony theft, felony financial fraud, felony elder neglect, misdemeanor assault, misdemeanor domestic violence, misdemeanor menacing, misdemeanor inciting violence, misdemeanor riot, and misdemeanor inducing panic are eligible for expungement, but Ohioans with a single misdemeanor OVI with no serious injury to others are barred permanently from second chances.

SUPPORTING FACTS

• Approximately 70% of Ohioans with an OVI conviction never receive a second OVI (a).

• 96% of OVI incidents in Ohio result in no fatalities [including to the drivers themselves] (d).

• 94% of OVI incidents in Ohio involve no serious injuries [including to the drivers themselves] (e).

• Among OVI incidents involving fatalities or serious injuries, the impaired drivers themselves are most often the ones injured or killed (f).

• Over 1.3 million Ohioans (11% of the state's population) are affected by lifetime OVI records. An estimated 910,000 Ohioans (8% of the state's population) have only a single OVI with no repeat OVI offenses (a).

• Ohio is one of only 22 states that permanently bars expungement of first-time OVI / DUI offenses (g). The majority of states (28) allow for second chances for their citizens charged with a one-time misdemeanor DUI. All five of the states that border Ohio permit some form of expungement or diversion for first-time DUI offenses (Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, and Michigan). There is no evidence that allowing expungement increases the overall rates of DUI offenses. In fact, research indicates that providing second chances to citizens lowers the risk of committing another criminal offense (h).

• Operating a vehicle impaired poses comparable public safety risks as speeding (i), drowsy driving (j), and distracted driving (k) – a fact attested to by our own governor (l). Most drivers are likely to commit at least one of these offenses in their lifetimes (m, n), yet these other traffic violations do not result in the severe lifetime collateral consequences of an OVI. We recognize as a society that in these cases, one traffic violation should not brand you as a criminal for life, yet the current laws single out individuals with a one-time OVI for permanent punishment in the form of collateral consequences.

CONCLUSION

We believe in a more just, safe, and compassionate approach to OVI policy that balances public safety with the opportunity for rehabilitation. We urge our lawmakers to support legislation that creates a pathway to expungement for one-time OVI offenders who have demonstrated their commitment to safe driving and responsible citizenship.

By signing this petition, you join Citizens for OVI Reform (CORE) in advocating for fair second chances for Ohioans. Please also join our community movement at r/OhioOVIreform.
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REFERENCES

(a) https://statepatrol.ohio.gov/dashboards-statistics/ostats-dashboards/ovi-dashboard/. This figure was calculated by multiplying the rate of individuals who receive only a single lifetime OVI as reported by the Ohio Statistics and Analytics for Traffic Safety OVI dashboard (70%) by the estimated total number of OVI arrests in Ohio as previously reported by the Ohio Department of Public Safety (1.3 million). See article here for a report on the estimated total number of OVI arrests in Ohio: https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/crime/2018/04/26/repeat-dui-cases-add-up/12384188007/

(b) Prescott, J.J. and Starr, Sonja B., Expungement of Criminal Convictions: An Empirical Study (March 16, 2019). Harvard Law Review, Vol. 133, No. 8, pp.2460-555 (June 2020), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3353620 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3353620

(c) https://nationalreentryresourcecenter.org/resources/second-chance-month-qa-ohio-governor-mike-dewine

(d) https://statepatrol.ohio.gov/dashboards-statistics/ostats-dashboards/ovi-dashboard/. The 96% figure of OVI charges that are non-fatal was calculated based on the total number of fatal OVI crashes tracked by the OVI dashboard at the time of this writing (3,219) divided by the total number of OVI arrests during that same time period (82,565). Per the OVI dashboard, this data was collected between 1/01/20 and 3/10/25.

(e) https://statepatrol.ohio.gov/dashboards-statistics/ostats-dashboards/crash-dashboard. The 94% figure of OVI charges that are not associated with serious injuries was calculated based on the total number of "serious injury suspected" OVI incidents tracked as of this writing (4,882) divided by the total number of OVI arrests during that same time period (82,565). Per the OSTATS crash dashboard, this data was collected between 1/01/20 and 3/10/25.

(f) See NHTSA's most recent 2022 Traffic Safety Facts report for alcohol-related fatality data at: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813578. As can be seen in Table 1 of that report, alcohol-impaired drivers account for the majority of alcohol-related driving fatalities (59%). For alcohol-related injury data, see NHTSA'S March 2020 research report here: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812937. As can be seen in Table 1 of that report, of the 1,304,028 total vehicle-related severe injury incidents from 2012 to 2017, 137,202 (10.5%) involved driver alcohol use. Table 1 also reports that of the total severe injury incidents, 935,595 of the severe injuries were the drivers themselves, and 368,433 of the severe injuries were the passengers. Assuming that 10.5% of these total incidents involved driver alcohol use based on NHTSA's data, that means that in cases involving driver alcohol use an estimated 98,238 of the severe injuries were the alcohol-impaired drivers themselves, whereas 38,686 of the severe injuries were the passengers. In other words, in severe injury incidents involving driver alcohol use, it is the drivers themselves who are severely injured an estimated 72% of the time.

(g) https://www.findlaw.com/dui/cases/dui-expungement-laws-by-state.html

(h) Bland, M., Ariel, B. & Kumar, S. Criminal records versus rehabilitation and expungement: a randomised controlled trial. J Exp Criminol 20, 717–741 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-023-09557-x

(i) https://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyamohn/2017/07/30/speeding-its-just-as-dangerous-as-driving-drunk-new-report-finds/?sh=69dcb94070df

(j) https://www.sleepfoundation.org/drowsy-driving

(k) Lee VK, Champagne CR, Francescutti LH. Fatal distraction: cell phone use while driving. Can Fam Physician. 2013;59:723-725. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3710028/

(l) https://governor.ohio.gov/media/news-and-media/governor-dewine-signs-bill-that-strengthens-distracted-driving-laws-in-ohio-01032023

(m) https://magazine.northeast.aaa.com/daily/newsroom/aaa-survey-nearly-two-thirds-of-drivers-admit-to-unsafe-driving-behaviors/#:~:text=Aggressive%20Driving%20and%20Speeding&text=And%20nearly%20half%20(49%25),limit%20on%20a%20residential%20street

(n) https://www.thezebra.com/resources/driving/common-traffic-tickets/#footnote-3