OPD Resources 

The Adam Walsh Act

On June 30, 2007, Senate Bill 10 and Senate Bill 97 were signed into law.  These two bills implement the federal Adam Walsh Act in Ohio, and make substantial changes in Ohio's sex offender classification, registration, and notification systems for adults and juveniles, and greatly increase the penalties for failure to register. 

Senate Bill 10 is retroactive, so people convicted or adjudicated for sex offenses many years ago could be affected. 

Collateral Consequences

In February 2009, the American Bar Association published Internal Exile: Collateral Consequences of Conviction in Federal Laws and Regulations. A result of the collaborative effort between the American Bar Association Commission on Effective Criminal Sanctions and the Public Defender Services of the District of Columbia, Internal Exile provides an overview of the federal collateral consequences that attend a state or federal conviction. Internal Exile is a resource that will better enable practitioners to advise clients about the impact a criminal conviction may have on their future.

• Internal Exile: Collateral Consequences of Conviction in Federal Laws and Regulations.

David H. Bodiker
Lecture Series on Criminal Justice

David H. Bodiker, the Ohio Public Defender from 1994–2007, died on Jan. 25, 2008. His family and friends are working with his law school alma mater, The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, to establish the David H. Bodiker Lecture Series on Criminal Justice. This will be an annual series that will bring nationally-known speakers to Ohio. The project is currently in the fundraising and organizing stages, and hopes to have the first speaker in Spring 2009. If you wish to contribute to the project, click here for a donation form, which can be mailed to:

Michael E. Moritz College of Law
The Ohio State University
Office of Development
55 West Twelfth Ave. – 374 DH
Columbus, OH 43210-1338

Parole Board Litigation

Douglas Ankrom et al. v. Harry Hageman et al.
In March 2001 the Office of the Ohio Public Defender filed a class-action lawsuit against the Ohio Adult Parole Authority and its subdivision, the Ohio Parole Board.  Click here for case update and case documents.

David Hall et al. v. Harry Hageman et al.- is a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of the Ohio inmates seeking enforcement of their right to meaningful consideration for parole.  Click here for case update and case documents.

OPD Resources

"Laws alone can not secure freedom of expression; in order that every man present his views without penalty there must be spirit of tolerance in the entire population."

Albert Einstein