COLUMBUS, Ohio — Derek Myers, an Ohio news publisher known for his legal victories expanding public access to police records, has filed a lawsuit against Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and the state, challenging the passage of House Bill 315, known as the “body-cam bill.” Alongside the suit, Myers has moved for a temporary restraining order to prevent the bill’s controversial provision from taking effect on April 3, placing the decision in the hands of a Franklin County judge.
The legal filings, submitted Thursday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court, allege that the bill’s enactment violated the Ohio Constitution and threatens to impose fees that could restrict access to law enforcement video footage, upending decades of public records precedent.
Myers, who in 2022 won a landmark Ohio Supreme Court case, Myers v. Meyers, compelling the Chillicothe Police Department to release records to the media, targets a provision in H.B. 315 dubbed the “Law Enforcement Rider.” This rider, amending R.C. 149.43, permits law enforcement agencies to charge up to $75 per hour, with a $750 cap per request, for preparing video records like body-camera and dashcam footage for public release. Historically, body-cams have been part of the public record and free to those who request them.
The complaint, filed on Thursday asserts that the fee structure contradicts Ohio law, which bars public agencies from charging for staff time in fulfilling records requests, as affirmed by the Ohio Supreme Court in 1994.
The lawsuit, detailed in court filings, claims the rider was covertly inserted into H.B. 315—a 300-page township omnibus bill—during a late-night lame-duck session on December 19, 2024, and signed into law by DeWine on January 2 of this year. Myers’ legal team argues this breaches the Ohio Constitution’s single-subject rule, requiring bills to focus on one topic and the three-reading rule, mandating consideration on three separate days. The filings describe the rider as having “no common purpose or relationship” with the bill’s township focus, labeling it a product of “logrolling.”
Ohio law has historically prohibited public agencies from charging for labor costs in records requests, a stance rooted in a 1994 Supreme Court ruling that “record seekers should not be charged for the cost of employee labor.” Myers’ filings argue that the rider’s fees defy this principle, potentially pricing out journalists and citizens seeking transparency.
To block the rider’s April 3 enforcement, Myers’ legal team, led by premier First Amendment Rights lawyer John “Jack” C. Greiner and associate, Griffin Reyelts, esq., filed a motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. The motion contends that Myers, as a media professional, faces irreparable harm, that maintaining the status quo harms no third parties, and that the public interest favors constitutional legislation. A Franklin County judge will now determine whether to grant the restraining order, effectively deciding if the law takes effect as scheduled or is paused pending further litigation.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a 2026 gubernatorial candidate, has backed H.B. 315 and the fees for body cameras. In a January 3, statement, Yost said, “Law enforcement-worn body cameras and dashboard cameras have been a major improvement for both law enforcement investigations and for accountability… [but] social media influencers and professional YouTube creators have bogged down police departments with requests for these videos, effectively making the taxpayers subsidize their little garden businesses.” Yost’s office, tasked with defending the state, has not yet responded to Thursday’s filings.
This case builds on Myers’ track record of challenging records restrictions. His 2022 victory set a transparency precedent, and legal experts say this suit—stemming entirely from Thursday’s filings in Franklin County Common Pleas Court—could further define Ohio’s public records landscape. With a hearing on the restraining order pending, the judge’s ruling will shape whether the “bodycam bill” proceeds or stalls.
