Child Porn Found on Cell Phone Admissible Despite Illegal Search

The child pornography found on a probationer’s phone may be used as evidence against him, even though his probation officer didn’t have probable cause and the search violated Ohio law, the state’s supreme court said.

The statute that was violated doesn’t explicitly require suppression of evidence collected in violation of its terms, the opinion by Justice R. Patrick DeWine said Thursday.

When Daniel Campbell was released from prison after serving his sentence for a robber conviction, he signed a waiver allowing his probation officer to search his person, property, and residence “at any time without a warrant.”

Although she didn’t ...