A Ruff Body Cam and March Madness

Public Records Briefing - Edition #84

How did we already make it through a quarter of 2025? We’re puzzled too!

How about those basketball games this week? March Madness!

Oof – we forget to send you a card last week to celebrate what the news media calls “Sunshine Week.” This is usually the time of year when reporters write stories about how local government won’t give them public records. Maybe it’s a good thing we didn’t send you a card!

Let’s jump right into this edition!

Exceptions A thru ZZ to 149.43

This week’s exception (which actually has 17 subparts) focuses on a type of record that our subscribers know very well: R.C. 149.43(A)(1)(jj). This is one of the most recent amendments to the Public Records Act. It creates the list of restricted portions of a body-worn camera or dashboard camera recordings. We touch on this exception in every edition when we show an incident involving body cam, and sometimes cruiser cams, in other states as compared to Ohio.