Kyle Nagel and Kristin McAllister

 

Kyle Nagel and Kristin McAllister,  Smoking limits may hit home;  More custody fights being won by the nonsmoking parent, and courts uphold that as a healthy move, 9/27/06 Dayton Daily News A1.

  Ohio may soon ban smoking in the barroom and the bedroom.

Voters could face rival smoking restriction petitions on the Nov. 7 ballot.

And a recent Ohio appeals court custody ruling that favored a nonsmoking parent could affect other smoker households with children.

The ruling by the 7th District Court of Appeals is part of a trend that punishes parents who puff.

"More and more people are bringing these issues up in custody fights, and courts are having to consider it," said Vernellia Randall, a University of Dayton health care law professor.

Courts in at least 18 states "have issued orders prohibiting smoking in homes and cars of children involved in custody disputes and/or limited custody of parents smoking around children," according to Action on Smoking and Health, a Washington, D.C.-based anti-smoking group.

"A parent who smokes around their children in their home in a closed environment is subjecting their child to a health hazard," Randall said. "That's the basic argument."

The U.S. surgeon general reported in June that secondhand smoke from adults can cause sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), low birth weight, acute respiratory infections, ear infections and asthma attacks in infants and children.

That report, Randall said, played a role in custody cases that favored a nonsmoking parent.

The custody ruling is "not the law of our district, but it's something people can rely on," said John Ruffolo, counsel for the Dayton Bar Association.

Smoking restriction proponents say such rulings reflect a shift in public opinion.

Of the two smoking restriction issues proposed for the Nov. 7 ballot, Issue 5 would create a state law to ban smoking in places of employment and most enclosed public places.

The proposed Issue 4 by Smoke Less Ohio awaits signatures certification by the secretary of state. It is funded by restaurant and bar associations and tobacco companies that seek a constitutional amendment to ban smoking in enclosed areas with some exceptions such as bars, restaurants and bowling facilities.

If both pass, the constitutional amendment would trump the state law and would repeal local smoking bans passed in 21 cities across Ohio, according to Smoke Less Ohio's representatives.