Latest news with #OhioLawEnforcementGateway
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Yahoo
Ex-Rocky River officer charged with using databases to spy on students enters plea
CUYAHOGA COUNTY, Ohio (WJW) – A former Rocky River police officer who is accused of using police databases for illegal searches on people, including students, appeared in court Tuesday. Michael Bernhardt, 54, entered a not guilty plea on the following charges: 11 counts of Unauthorized Use of the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway (F5) One count of Unauthorized Use of the Law Enforcement Automated Database System (F5) One count of Possessing Criminal Tools (F5) 'Destroy them before they hatch' in Ohio Bernhardt was given a $5,000 bond, which he posted, according to court records. He'll be back in court for pretrial on April 17. Bernhardt was indicted last month, accused of more than 70 illegal searches over a period of 10 years. According to prosecutors, the crimes took place when Bernhardt was employed as a police officer with Rocky River, at which time he was also a school resource officer at Rocky River High School. 'These searches included Rocky River students and their family members, other law enforcement officers and colleagues, school teachers and school administrators, and his own family members and ex-spouses,' the prosecutor's office said in a press release. The investigation stemmed from allegations of inappropriate relationships and contact with high school students. Florida man faces execution for killing of woman on break from work at The Miami Herald That investigation did not lead to charges. Bernhardt left the police force in April 2024. BCI agents are asking anyone who may have additional information about Bernhardt or his conduct with students to contact state investigators at 855-BCI-OHIO or 855-224-6446. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Yahoo
Retired Beachwood officer facing misdemeanor charge: I-Team
BEACHWOOD, Ohio (WJW) – A recently retired Beachwood police officer is now facing a misdemeanor count of possessing criminal tools. According to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court records, Charles Piro was charged Tuesday by way of a bill of information, a sign that the defendant is cooperating with authorities. Piro is due in court for an arraignment on April 15. Former coach accused of sexual conduct with teen student Beachwood police released a statement to the FOX 8 I-Team, saying on Oct. 11 that Police Chief Dan Grispino was made aware of 'multiple instances of alleged criminal misuse of a Law Enforcement Data Platform discovered during a routine Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway (OHLEG) audit by OHLEG system administrators.' Summit County inmate dies following medical emergency Piro was placed on paid administrative leave on Oct. 14, according to Beachwood police. The investigation was handled by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office. '3/13/25 The City of Beachwood's Law Department learned that the County Prosecutor's Office reached a plea agreement with Officer Piro for one count of misdemeanor possession of criminal tools,' the Beachwood release stated. '3/15/25 Officer Piro submitted his retirement from the Beachwood Police Department. The department filed his retirement paperwork as 'Retired — Under Criminal Investigation.'' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Yahoo
Ex-Rocky River officer charged with using databases to spy on students, others: ‘Absolute concern'
ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (WJW) – A former Rocky River police officer has been indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury on charges that he used police databases to conduct searches that had no legitimate law enforcement purpose. Between 2013 and 2023, Michael Bernhardt served as a school resource officer at Rocky River High School, where he was accused two years ago of having inappropriate relationships with female students. According to the indictment, Bernhardt is accused of using his access to two law enforcement databases to electronically spy on a wide range of people. 'Students at the high school, they were his two ex-wives and their families, including one of the new husbands. In his own family, his children, his parents. In addition, Rocky River police officers and also teachers at the school, mostly female teachers, as well as the school principal and assistant principal,' said Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Mary Grace Tokmenko, who serves in the economic crimes and public corruption unit. New measles cases in Ashtabula, Knox counties The 54-year-old Bernhardt is now facing 11 counts of the unauthorized use of the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway, one count of the unauthorized use of the Law Enforcement Automated Database System (LEADS) and one count of possessing criminal tools. Prosecutors said the databases contain personal and confidential information, and that is why there are very strict rules on when police can use them. 'Anything from your social security number, your address, different cars that are registered to you. It also has your picture because every time you get your driver's license picture, it also feeds into those databases,' said Tokmenko. Investigators said while he was working at Rocky River High School, Bernhardt pursued 'obsessive and inappropriate relationships with students,' and many of his computer searches between 2013 and 2023 involved young girls. 'During that time period, he did have access to their information, he could have figured out where they live, what their birthdays were,' said Tokmenko. In 2023, Bernhardt was the focus of a separate investigation into his conduct with students, but an independent prosecutor found there was insufficient evidence to file charges. However, when Bernhardt left the police force in April,2024, he remained under a cloud of suspicion that ultimately led to this week's indictment. 'This happened as a result of an investigation conducted by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation after the Rocky River Police Department asked them to investigate reports of inappropriate relationships that Mike Bernhardt was alleged to have had with high school students in his role as a school resource officer,' Rocky River Police Chief George Lichman said. Local nurse indicted after patient went missing and later died: I-Team BCI agents are now asking anyone who may have additional information about Bernhardt or his conduct with students to contact state investigators at 855-BCI-OHIO or 855-224-6446. 'I think it's an absolute concern for all parents of students who were going through the school during this time period and they should talk to their kids and ask them if there were any issues there,' said Tokmenko. If convicted, Bernhardt could face up to one year in prison on each count. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Yahoo
Former Rocky River officer illegally searches students, families on police database: prosecutor
*Attached video: Cleveland crime by the numbers 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. 7 pets suspected dead after barricaded man starts fire: Police '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. Person struck by multiple vehicles on I-271: Coroner 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. Atlantic publishes Trump Cabinet group chat messages An arraignment for Bernhardt at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center has been set for April 9. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Yahoo
No jail for ex-West Chester Twp. officer who pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence
Feb. 24—A former West Chester Twp. police officer who admitted she tampered with evidence in a death investigation was placed on community control Monday avoiding any jail time, according to officials Michelle Berling, 46, was indicted in October on two counts of tampering with evidence and one count of tampering with records, all third-degree felonies, and unauthorized use of property, a fifth-degree felony. According to the grand jury report, the crimes, investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, occurred between Aug. 8 and Aug. 13. Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said Berling altered Flock camera data and images involving the death investigation of a woman in June on Schumacher Park Drive. Berling also misused the department's Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway (OHLEG) to gather information for personal use, Gmoser said. In January, Berling pleaded guilty to one tampering charge, a third-degree felony, and the others were dismissed in exchange for the plea. Butler County Common Pleas Judge Kelly Heile sentenced Berling to five years community control. She faced a maximum of 36 months in prison. Berling has been free on her own recognizance. "She panicked and did the wrong thing for self preservation purposes. It potentially hurt an investigation; we will never know for sure," Gmoser said in January after he plea. "That is the charge I would not reduce (or dismiss)." Berling was placed on paid administrative leave and was suspended of all police duties in August when the investigation began, according to the township. She later resigned.
