Criminal Defense

If I am on probation, can my probation search my cell phone at any time and for any reason?  The answer is yes, if you consented to the search. The Ohio Supreme Court recently ruled a probation officer did not need reasonable grounds to search a cell phone of a...

Whether it is in a movie or your favorite episode of Law & Order, whenever someone is arrested for an alleged crime, the police always read the individual their Miranda Rights. Those rights include the right to remain silent, the right to an attorney, and the...

According to the Ohio Supreme Court, No. In State v. Burroughs, Slip Opinion No. 2022-Ohio-2146, the Court recently held that a specific exception to the warrant requirement, “the single purpose container exception”, applies only when the illegal contents of the...

Starting June 12, 2022, Ohio will make a concealed weapons permit optional for anyone legally allowed to carry a gun. Previously, if you wanted to get your concealed carry permit in Ohio, you had to complete 8 hours of training and submit to a background check. That...

Sealing a record of non-conviction: a two-year delay for people who were not indicted and immediate eligibility for people who were indicted People in Ohio are eligible to seal a record of non-conviction immediately after a dismissal, yet people who are accused of a...

In an effort to curb drunk driving and to prevent impaired drivers from ever getting behind the wheel, it's not uncommon to hear the admonition "remember: buzzed driving is drunk driving." While an effective marketing ploy and pithy phrase, does the Ohio Revised Code...

On January 4, 2022, the Supreme Court of Ohio wasted no time in the new year in entering a historic decision. Over the past few years, criminal justice reform has been on the forefront of the political arena, news media, and equal rights activists. A substantial issue...

Based on the Ohio Supreme Court’s recent decision in State v. LaRosa, Slip Opinion No. 2021-Ohio-4060, the short answer is the classic lawyer response of “it depends” or “maybe.” The answer for LaRosa was “not without a warrant” but that didn’t legally prohibit the...

The recent trend from the Ohio legislature has been to expand the types and number of convictions that defendants are able to have sealed, what some people often consider to be expunged.  There are two factors that must be considered when determining if a defendant is...