Assured Clear Distance, R.C. 4511.21(A)
Ohio Revised Code 4511.21(A), Assured Clear Distance, is a law requiring that you drive your vehicle in such a way as to be able to bring you car to a stop to avoid an accident. As a driver, you are required to take into consideration, night driving, weather conditions, hills, curves, turns and poor lighting. If you are driving your car and a car is traveling or stopped in front of you heading in the same direction and in the same path or lane of travel as you, you must be able to bring your car to a stop to avoid a wreck. The statute reads as follows:
4511.21 Speed limits – assured clear distance.
(A) No person shall operate a motor vehicle, trackless trolley, or streetcar at a speed greater or less than is reasonable or proper, having due regard to the traffic, surface, and width of the street or highway and any other conditions, and no person shall drive any motor vehicle, trackless trolley, or streetcar in and upon any street or highway at a greater speed than will permit the person to bring it to a stop within the assured clear distance ahead.
If, at the time of an accident, it can be established that a driver was following too closely the driver may also be charged with Reckless Operation, a violation of Ohio Revised Code 4511.20 and can be charged as a two-point minor misdemeanor or a four-point fourth degree misdemeanor which carries a maximum jail penalty of 30 days. Drivers who find themselves facing such charges are subject to a license suspension. If you are also charged with speeding, you may also be assessed a penalty of either two or four points. Examples of two-point violations include going 10-30 miles per hour (mph) over the limit in an area with a speed limit of 55 mph or more. Or driving 5-30 mph over the limit in an area where the speed limit is 55 mph or less. Four-point violations include driving 30 mph or more over the limit in any zone.
If you are facing an OVI or other traffic charge, please take the time to check out Dayton, Ohio Traffic Attorney Charles M. Rowland II. Charles has been a city prosecutor, a special prosecutor and has represented traffic offenders in Ohio courts for over 15 years. You can also reach Charles Rowland at (937)318-1384 or 1-888-ROWLAND.
