Ohio

Visit our new blog site!

Posted on January 09, 2015
The Hamilton County Law Library is happy to announce the launch of our new website!  Beginning this week, all blog posts will now be posted exclusively to the blog page on the new site. Please feel free to visit us there. The URL for the website is: lawlibrary...

Judge Spiegel, remembered

Posted on January 02, 2015
U.S. District Judge Arthur Spiegel died on Wednesday at the age of 94. Spiegel had served on the court since 1980 when he was appointed by President Jimmy Carter. He presided over such high profile matters as the Cincinnati anti-gay rights charter amendment, the Fernald uranium processing plant settlement and a case involving Timothy Thomas, whose shooting by Cincinnati police in 2001 sparked

Top legal news of 2014

Posted on December 31, 2014
In honor of New Year's Eve and in order to reflect on events of this past year we offer you a round-up of top legal news lists from various sources on the web. Happy New Year, everyone! Westlaw Legal Solutions Blog has published the Top 20 Legal Events of 2014 in three parts, detailing various cases and events that have shaped the legal world this past year...

Ohio traffic cameras still making headlines

Posted on December 30, 2014
Traffic cameras have had a contentious time recently in Ohio, and the after-effects of court hearings and legislation about their use may continue into the new year. According to the Columbus Dispatch, the attorney for Bradley Walker, a Kentucky man who challenged Toledo's procedures for assessing penalties from traffic cameras, has filed a motion asking the Ohio Supreme Court to reconsider their

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Employees who report abuse/neglect are protected from employment retaliation, rules SCO

Posted on December 29, 2014
The Ohio Supreme Court ruled last Tuesday that an Ohio law provides protection from employment retaliation for employees who report suspicions of abuse and neglect of residents of long term care facilities to entities other than the Ohio director of health...

Happy Holidays from the Law Library!

Posted on December 26, 2014
For your holiday reading pleasure, we offer you the classic poem, "A Visit from St. Nicholas," lawyer-style.  Recently posted by the Wall Street Journal Law Blog, "The Night Before Christmas Legally Speaking" has made its rounds on the Internet for nearly two decades, although it's author is unknown...

Ohio redistricting resolution headed to voters in November

Posted on December 23, 2014
Just before adjourning for the year, the Ohio legislature passed a bipartisan measure to govern redistricting of Ohio's legislative districts. House Joint Resolution 12, which was passed with only 9 "no" votes between both the House and Senate, will be placed on the ballot for voters statewide to decide whether to adopt as an amendment to the Ohio Constitution in November...

Sixth Circuit strikes down ban on gun ownership for those previously committed to mental institutions

Posted on December 19, 2014
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a federal law yesterday that prohibits a person who has been committed to a mental institution from owning a gun. Judge Boggs, writing for the Court, found that the law violated the Second Amendment...

Toledo can continue using red light cameras with existing civil penalty process, rules Ohio Supreme Court

Posted on December 18, 2014
The Supreme Court of Ohio issued an opinion today that upholds Toledo's system of penalties for traffic violations caught by the city's red light traffic cameras. According to the opinion, in 2008 Toledo enacted a municipal code provision that permitted their traffic camera system to assess civil penalties on drivers who are caught speeding or running red lights...

Settlement agreement reached in rap video case against local schools, police

Posted on December 17, 2014
WCPO reports today that a settlement agreement has been reached in the federal lawsuit four African-American students filed against the Northwest Local School District and Colerain Township police earlier this year. The suit alleges that Northwest Local Schools and several officers from the Colerain Township Police Department violated the students' constitutional rights when they held,

Many Ohio bills still need final action as end of term nears

Posted on December 16, 2014
The Columbus Dispatch has put together a list of bills that still need attention before the end of this lame-duck session. A few of the bills have already been passed by both the House and Senate and are now being sent to Governor Kasich for signature...

Supreme Court to rule on whether ban on mandatory life sentences for juveniles applies retroactively

Posted on December 15, 2014
The New York Times, the Washington Post and SCOTUS Blog report that the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving the retroactivity of a ban on mandatory life sentences for juveniles. The ban came about in 2012, when the high court found these sentences for juveniles who commit murder violated the 8th Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment...

Pets to be covered in protection orders in Ohio

Posted on December 12, 2014
The Columbus Dispatch reports that Ohio is about to pass a bill that would offer protection to pets by including them in protection orders that are already available to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and other abuse under Ohio law...

Ohio bill protecting elderly and other wards unlikely to pass this year

Posted on December 11, 2014
Ohio House Bill 624, which we discussed back in October, has hit a stumbling block in the Ohio legislature, the Columbus Dispatch reports. The bill, proposed by Rep. Dorothy Pelanda (R) in September, would establish a bill of rights for wards in guardianship situations in Ohio and require that probate courts provide a guardianship guide to guardians that includes the enumeration of those rights.

Immigrant children in Ohio courts

Posted on December 10, 2014
The December 2014 issue of CNO Review features an article about unaccompanied minors in the U.S. and how they interact with the Ohio court system. According to the article, with the recent arrivals of significant numbers of unaccompanied minors at the border, Ohio has seen over 500 placed within the state between January and September 2014...

Ohio drones in the news

Posted on December 09, 2014
The Columbus Dispatch reports that the defense bill passed last week by the U.S. House of Representatives contained provisions that would facilitate Ohio's plans to "become a hub for unmanned aerial vehicles." According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, Ohio Governor John Kasich and Indiana Governor Mike Pence created the joint Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center (UASC) in 2013 by joining

Greenpeace protesters to take plea deal

Posted on December 05, 2014
Activists with Greenpeace who staged a protest at Procter and Gamble's headquarters in Cincinnati last March will accept a plea deal that reduces their felony charges to criminal trespassing, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. The reduced charge is a fourth degree misdemeanor and carries a maximum jail sentence of 30 days and maximum fine of $250...

Cincinnati must pay Duke Energy's relocation costs for streetcar project, rules Ohio court

Posted on December 04, 2014
A Hamilton County Common Pleas judge ruled on Tuesday that the City of Cincinnati must pay the costs for moving Duke energy's lines when building the infrastructure for the streetcar, according to an article in the Cincinnati Business Courier. In his decision granting summary judgment to Duke Energy, Judge Stich found that in order for Duke to be responsible for the costs of moving the lines the

SCOTUS hears Facebook threats case; Chief Justice quotes Eminem

Posted on December 03, 2014
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday about a relatively novel topic: threats on Facebook.  SCOTUS Blog reports that the case involved posts by Anthony Elonis, a Pennsylvania man whose wife left him in 2010, taking their two children. Elonis began posting on Facebook, making threatening and violent statements in the form of rap lyrics...

WestlawNext will replace Westlaw Classic in January

Posted on December 02, 2014
Westlaw Classic is currently being phased out by Thomson Reuters and will be replaced by WestlawNext at the Hamilton County Law Library in January. We are excited to continue to offer Westlaw services to our subscribers with the same coverage as our existing subscription in a new and updated format...

Legal Aid of Western Ohio launches new chat service

Posted on December 01, 2014
Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO) has launched a new interactive chat service that connects eligible low-income clients with volunteer attorneys in an online platform, according to Court News Ohio. Residents of the northwest and west central counties served by LAWO who are otherwise eligible for legal services can now chat with attorneys online to receive brief  advice and counsel about their

Suit alleges juvenile detentions without probable cause in Hamilton County violate constitutional rights

Posted on November 26, 2014
The Children's Law Center of Covington filed a complaint against Hamilton County Juvenile Court officials in federal court this week, alleging that the court's practice of detaining children without first finding probable cause violates their constitutional rights...

Proposed Ohio bill would require BB guns, air guns to be brightly colored

Posted on November 25, 2014
According to Cleveland.com, Ohio State Rep. Alicia Reese (D-Cincinnati) will be introducing a bill to require certain toy and imitation firearms sold in Ohio to be "brightly colored or have prominent fluorescent strips." This would apply to all BB guns, air rifles and airsoft guns...

Rape convictions overturned based on improperly admitted evidence

Posted on November 24, 2014
The Supreme Court of Ohio ruled last week that when evidence of other bad acts is improperly admitted at trial an appeals court must evaluate both the impact that the evidence had on the outcome of the case, and the strength of the remaining evidence in determining whether to uphold a conviction...

Updates: Planned Parenthood to stay open and H.B. 663 passes House

Posted on November 24, 2014
Some updates from previous posts for you on this Monday morning: Planned Parenthood The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Ohio Department of Health has granted a variance to Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio, allowing their Mt. Auburn clinic to remain open...

Upcoming CLEs

Posted on April 01, 2011
We're pleased to offer the following CLE opportunities in April and May. Our CLEs are free to current subscribers. April 14: Two Westlaw sessions: Basics 12:30-1:30 Secondary Sources 1:45-2:45 April 19: Lexis Search Tips- 1:00-2:00 May 27: Prenuptial Basics with presenter Cathy R...

Supreme Court reverses single-incidentBrady violation case

Posted on March 31, 2011
The New York Times reported yesterday that "The Supreme Court had reversed a $14 million jury award in favor of a former death row inmate who had finally been aquitted & freed after prosecutorial misconduct came to light."In early 1985, John Thompson was charged with the murder of Raymond T...

Ohio Supreme Court rule amendments

Posted on March 29, 2011
The Ohio Supreme Court adopted two rule amendments yesterday, both of which become effective April 1, 2011. The first will allow suspended attorneys, in limited circumstances, to apply for reinstatement while still being subject to probation or other post-conviction sanctions...

Ohio criminal sentencing legislation

Posted on March 25, 2011
Sentencing can be one of the most rapidly changing areas of law there is. In Ohio, 1995 Senate Bill 2, is often viewed as the first comprehensive revision of the state's criminal code since 1974. Senate Bill 2 and amending "clean-up" Senate Bill 269 went into effect July 1, 1996...

Wiretapping right to sue

Posted on March 23, 2011
In what a New York Times editorial this morning referred to as "a decision that might lead to a significant ? and far too long delayed ? legal review of federal statute," the United States Second Circuit Court of Appeals this past Monday reinstated a lawsuit by civil liberties and journalism groups challenging government eavesdropping law, that the district court had found against two years ago

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