“Irrespective of whether the court of appeals based its judgment on the content of the video alone or on the prosecutor’s narrative description of the video’s content, however, the video does not by itself establish that it contains information directly used for protecting or maintaining the security of a public office against attack, interference, or
Merit Decisions
Merit Decision: City Not Entitled to Restitution Under Marsy’s Law. Centerville v. Knab
“The normal and ordinary use of the word ‘person’ suggests that Ohio voters would not have understood that term to include a public corporation.”
Justice French, majority opinion
“It is beyond the scope of this case to determine whether a municipal corporation is a ‘person’ protected by Marsy’s Law in relation to its proprietary functions.”…
Merit Decision: City Not Entitled to Restitution Under Marsy’s Law. Centerville v. Knab
“The normal and ordinary use of the word ‘person’ suggests that Ohio voters would not have understood that term to include a public corporation.”
Justice French, majority opinion
“It is beyond the scope of this case to determine whether a municipal corporation is a ‘person’ protected by Marsy’s Law in relation to its proprietary functions.”…
Merit Decision: Educators Not Liable in School Bullying Case. A.J.R. v. Lute.
By Marianna Bettman on
“Based on the record before us, even when viewed in a light most favorable to the family, reasonable minds can come to only one conclusion: appellants were not reckless.”
Justice Fischer, Opinion of the Court
On November 10, 2020, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in A.J.R. v. Lute, 2020-Ohio-5168…
Merit Decision: Dayton Mass Shooter’s School Records Not Subject to Disclosure. State ex rel. Cable News Network, Inc. v. Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Local Schools
By Marianna Bettman on
“…under the plain language of R.C. 3319.321(B), the school district is prohibited from releasing any personally identifying information about Betts without his consent.”
Justice Stewart, majority opinion
“The text of R.C. 3319.321(B) is written in the present tense and unambiguously limits the release of ‘personally identifiable information other than directory information concerning any student attending…
Merit Decision: Jury Was Properly Instructed on Causation in Drug Overdose Case. State v. Price
By Marianna Bettman on
“ …[T]he trial court’s instructions did not permit the jury to predicate guilt based on a finding that the drugs Price furnished to Dawson merely contributed to his death.”
Justice Kennedy, Opinion of the Court
On October 20, 2020, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in State v. Price, Slip Opinion…
Merit Decision: Jury Was Properly Instructed on Causation in Drug Overdose Case. State v. Price
By Marianna Bettman on
“ …[T]he trial court’s instructions did not permit the jury to predicate guilt based on a finding that the drugs Price furnished to Dawson merely contributed to his death.”
Justice Kennedy, Opinion of the Court
On October 20, 2020, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in State v. Price, Slip Opinion…
Merit Decision: Amazon Not a Supplier Under Ohio Products Liability Act. Stiner v. Amazon.com, Inc.
By Marianna Bettman on
“…[W]e conclude that a person who ‘otherwise participates in the placing of a product in the stream of commerce’ must exert some control over the product as a prerequisite to supplier liability.”
Justice French, opinion of the Court
“Even if Amazon cannot be considered a supplier in the traditional, pre-Internet sense, I believe that its…
Merit Decision: Court Clarifies Proper Use of 404(B) Other-Acts Evidence. State v. Smith.
“On the facts of this case, we conclude that because Smith placed his intent at issue by claiming that his actions were accidental and not done with sexual intent, the trial court properly admitted evidence of the prior sexual-assault allegations.”
Justice DeWine, opinion of the Court
On September 22, 2020 the Supreme Court of Ohio…
Merit Decision: No Invasion of Privacy Claim for At-Will Employees Required to Submit to Direct-Observation Drug Test. Lunsford v. Sterilite of Ohio, L.L.C.
By Marianna Bettman on
“While we recognize that workplace drug-testing policies implicate employees’ privacy interests, we find as a matter of law that the facts alleged in appellees’ complaint cannot sustain their common-law invasion-of-privacy claim.”
Justice Kennedy, majority opinion
“At the time appellees were required to provide their urine samples, they were presented with two choices: either provide a…