Can Police Officer Appointed as Parttime Clerk of Court Serve as 'Neutral Magistrate' Who Issues Arrest Warrant?
Where Warrant Affirms Fellow Officer's Probable Cause to Make Warrantless Arrest
State of Ohio v. Jillian D. Hobbs, Case nos. 2011-1504 and 2011-1593
Ninth District Court of Appeals (Summit County)
ISSUES:
May a law enforcement officer who is also a deputy clerk of a municipal court serve as the "neutral magistrate" who approves a warrant affirming that a fellow officer had probable cause to make a warrantless arrest?
If an arrest warrant signed by a fellow officer serving in the dual capacity as a deputy clerk of courts is invalid, is the defendant entitled to exclusion of evidence obtained following the issuance of the defective warrant?