26-03-2025
Former Rocky River officer illegally searches students, families on police database: prosecutor
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ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (WJW) — A former Rocky River police officer was indicted on multiple counts, accused of illegally searching the police database system over 70 Times in a 10-year span.
According to a press release from the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, 54-year-old Michael Bernhard illegally searched on the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway and Law Enforcement Automated Database System from 2013 to 2023.
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'Bernhardt would illegally search multiple people without an official law enforcement purpose in the law enforcement databases OHLEG and LEADS while he was a law enforcement officer with the Rocky River Police Department RRPD and a school resource officer at Rocky River High School,' the release said.
According to the release, Bernhardt's searches included Rocky River students and their family members, other law enforcement officers and colleagues, school teachers and administrators, and his own family members and ex-spouses.
An investigation into Bernhardt was initiated by the RRPD in October 2023 when the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation was asked to conduct the investigation.
'The investigation stemmed from allegations of inappropriate relationships and contact with high school students,' the release said.
According to the release, the BCI investigation found several suspicious database searches, which were confirmed by RRPD to have had no valid law enforcement purpose.
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The investigation eventually revealed that Bernhardt conducted 77 unlawful searches in total.
'The majority of searches were of females, many of which were related to his obsessive and inappropriate relationships with students,' the release said.
'Michael Bernhardt's blatant and egregious pattern of disregarding citizens' — including minors' — privacy rights is outrageous, especially for a police officer,' said Prosecutor Michael C. O'Malley. 'This case raises all kinds of red flags.'
On Tuesday, Bernhardt was indicted on 11 counts of unauthorized use of the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway, one count of unauthorized use of the Law Enforcement Automated Database System and one count of possessing criminal tools.
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An arraignment for Bernhardt at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center has been set for April 9.
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