Law Enforcement Bulletin 

You now can tailor the topics and timing of email communications from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. In addition to receiving the Law Enforcement Bulletin, Criminal Justice Update, and OPOTA Mobile Academy newsletters, you can learn about new OPOTA courses as they’re posted and get updates on missing persons, unsolved homicides, and other topics. To choose your preferred topics and timeframe — when available, daily, or weekly — visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/EmailUpdates. 

Question: Can an officer be criminally prosecuted for abduction when he detains a person he does not suspect of criminal wrongdoing?
 
Quick answer: Yes, absolutely.

Question: When can you rely on a tip to make a stop?
 
Quick answer: These three cases highlight the most basic issues that come up in a tip-based stop: identifying whether the suspect is an “identified citizen informant” or a “known” or “anonymous” informant.

Question: Can an officer generate reasonable suspicion to stop based on many factors that, standing alone, would not create reasonable suspicion?
 
Quick Answer: Yes, that’s why it’s called “totality” of all the circumstances; you have to look at every permissible factor.

Question: Can you pat down and search someone you place in your cruiser for the sole purpose of convenience?
 
Quick answer: No.

Question: When a plastic bag of drugs falls out during a pat-down, is it admissible?
 
Quick answer: Yes.

Question: Can officers search a car inside a detached garage if their search warrant allows them to search the “surrounding curtilage” of a house?
 
Quick answer: Yes.

The fee for law enforcement and other emergency responders to attend a School Safety/Crisis Management Conference in Columbus Aug. 19 has been reduced to $50 per person. The conference will address emergency management and planning along with recommended steps to take before, during, and after an emergency.

The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutionality of taking DNA samples from felony arrestees. This case confirms the validity of the Ohio law that established the requirement for felony arrestees to submit DNA samples beginning in July 2011.

Quick Summary: This case should be a must-read for officers trying to understand how courts view — sometimes skeptically — an officer’s actions that intrude on individual liberty. Although this case turns on the complex legal question of qualified immunity, it is a candid view of how courts seek to protect individual liberty from undue police intrusion.

Question: Can an officer use false threats or promises of leniency to secure a confession from a suspect?
 
Quick Answer: No. The Sixth Circuit said the interrogation in this case “presents a stark example of police impropriety and deplorable interrogation techniques.” This is a good read on how not to get a confession.

Question: Can an officer open a small container found during a pat-down that he suspects may contain razor blades.
 
Quick answer: No. An officer’s mere hunch that a small container may contain razor blades is insufficient.

Question: Can officers search a vehicle that leaves a premises that they have a warrant to search?
 
Quick Answer: No. A search warrant is limited to the immediate premises it describes.

Question: Is physical control a lesser-included offense of an over-the-limit OVI?
 
Quick Answer: No.

Two upcoming training opportunities can help law enforcement officers enhance their ability to speak to and for abused children. The trainings, provided by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office in coordination with the National Child Protection Training Center, also can benefit prosecutors, victim advocates, and social workers.

Strategies that have produced drastic reductions in gun-related crime in cities around the country form the foundation for Attorney General Mike DeWine’s new Safe Neighborhoods Initiative.

Question: Can an officer pull over a vehicle for being on a “tow-in” list for unpaid parking tickets because he has been ordered to do so?
 
Quick answer: No, not unless there is some other criminal activity afoot.

Question: Can an officer pre-sign and date blank complaints and have another officer fill in the facts later?
 
Quick Answer: No. Officers must follow Criminal Rule 3 and have their complaints made under oath.

Question: After a suspect invokes his right to counsel under Miranda, can an officer initiate conversation with the suspect without additional Miranda warnings?
 
Quick Answer: No. When a suspect invokes his right to counsel, all interrogation must cease.

Question: Can an agency search containers inside an impounded vehicle as part of an inventory search?
 
Quick Answer: Yes, but only if the agency has a specific policy that deals with searching containers inside vehicles.

Question: If a suspect opens his door when officers knock, can the officers enter the home and arrest the suspect without a warrant?
 
Quick answer: No. An officer who enters a home without a warrant in order to arrest a suspect violates the suspect’s constitutional rights.

Question: Is a warrant to search premises sufficient if it does not link the address to be searched with the crime or suspect?
 
Quick Answer: No. In order to establish probable cause, an affidavit for a search warrant should explicitly link the suspect or crime with the address.

Question: Does the natural dissipation of alcohol in a drunk driver’s bloodstream always create circumstances that allow officers to require a blood draw without a warrant or consent?
 
Quick Answer: No. The mere fact that alcohol dissipates from the bloodstream does not automatically justify a warrantless blood draw.

School districts across the state have received a training video on school safety developed by the Attorney General’s Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy (OPOTA) and intended to arm administrators, teachers, and school employees with knowledge should they ever face a school shooting crisis.

The Ohio Attorney General's Office will offer several workshops during this year's Emerging Trends in Fraud Investigation and Prevention Conference, set for June 3-4 at the Hilton Columbus at Easton. The annual conference is presented by the Ohio Auditor's Office.