HILLSBORO, Ohio, Oct. 19 (UPI) -- The Ohio Supreme Court heard opening arguments Wednesday in a bar's challenge of the state's nearly 5-year-old smoking ban.
A lawyer representing Zeno's, a Columbus bar challenging the ban, said the law is unconstitutional. Maurice Thompson argued the ban shouldn't apply to a private establishment that caters to people over age 21 who are drinking alcohol, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported.
"We don't want to strike the ban at a Bob Evans," Thompson said. "Let the smokers have their bar."
The Ohio Attorney General's office, however, said the public's health must be considered.
Richard Allen, the owner of Zeno's, has received 10 citations for violating the ban, accumulating about $33,000 in fines between July 2007 and September 2009. The state attorney general's office filed a brief in August stating Allen allowed patrons to smoke despite the ban.
"There's no evidence the proprietor said a word to patrons who were smoking in his establishment," said Elisabeth Long, deputy solicitor in the attorney general's office.
