Starting Oct. 6, Ohio law enforcement agencies must follow new statewide rules for drone surveillance under House Bill 251, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in July. The law requires a warrant when police use a drone to enter or observe the interior of a home or other place they would otherwise need a warrant to physically search. Nine exceptions allow warrantless drone use, including exigent circumstances, crime-scene documentation, crash response, public events, border enforcement near Lake Erie, and observation of what's visible to the naked eye from navigable airspace.
Agencies must also document every surveillance flight and retain related data, which is generally classified as a public record unless an exemption applies. Lethal weapons on police drones are banned outright. The ACLU of Ohio warned that some exceptions, particularly the naked-eye observation provision, could still enable broad warrantless surveillance, but lawmakers kept it in the final bill.
A separate restriction barring public agencies from acquiring drones made by designated foreign adversaries doesn't take effect until 2030. Ohio joins at least 15 other states that require warrants for police drone surveillance.
