Our 2025 Spring Training seminar will focus on a variety of topics including battling gender bias; dealing with illicitly manufactured fentanyls and nitazense; Ohio Board of Nursing and Prosecutors; obtaining cell phone and digital data; prosecuting marijuana cases; closing arguments; a look at legislation passed during lame duck that affects prosecutors; and a case study on identifying and prosecuting elder abuse cases. We hope to see you there!

Thursday, April 17th

8:00 - 9:00 Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00 - 10:30 Battling Gender Bias: How Bill Cosby and other Sexual Predators Escape Punishment
Bill Cosby victimized nearly sixty women and was convicted of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand and sentenced to prison. However, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court reversed his convictions indicating he could not be tried again. In this presentation we will discuss statistics indicating that victims of sexual assault do not report these crimes especially when alcohol and drugs are involved. We will review bias by law enforcement, prosecutors, judges, and jurors and how the legal system has a history of protecting the predator and not the victims of sexual assault. Further, we will discuss why this occurs, how to prevent these miscarriages of justice and what steps we can take as a prosecutor to ensure that the legal system treats victims of sexual assault with dignity and respect.
Philip Bogdanoff
Retired career prosecutor

10:30 - 10:45 Break

10:45 - 11:45 What are “He-Man” and “Frankenstein” doing in Ohio?
In 2023, illicitly manufactured fentanyls (IMFs) contributed to an estimated 74,702 of the 107,543 drug overdose deaths in the United States. He-Man is a common street name for IMFs. The trafficking of counterfeit tablets containing novel opioid agonist is further contributing to the drug overdose issue in the United States. In March 2019, nitazene (aka. Frankenstein) first appeared on the drug scene in Canada and Europe and are now being seen in Ohio. The potency of the nitazenes ranges from 20 to 50 times more potent than fentanyl. Here, we will discuss what is known about the chemistry, pharmacology, and toxicology of these agents.
Jon E. Sprague, R.PH., Ph.D.
Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation Eminent Scholar and Director of Science and Research
Office of Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost

11:45 - 12:45 Lunch (with Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Investigators Association)

12:45 - 1:15   Prosecuting Attorneys and the Ohio Board of Nursing
The OBN will present ways the Board and Prosecutors can work together to exchange information and keep the public safe. Topics to be discussed include who is the OBN and how we impact public health, how the OBN can help prosecutors with investigative packets, witness allocation, trial testimony, license verification, and more, and finally how prosecutors can help the OBN and keep the public safe through timely reporting.
Thomas Lininger, Chief of Investigations
Pam Morse, Compliance Investigator
Both with the Ohio Board of Nursing

1:15 - 1:30 Break

1:30 - 3:30  Cell Phone Evidence for Your Prosecutions
In 2025, one of the most abundant locations for evidence is the cell phone. Items like texts, app data, payment platforms and digital media are all great sources of information. However, it does not stop there, we can also obtain data from the records and clouds, to make an even stronger case. We’ll look at what records can be obtained and how to go about getting those records to help with prosecutions.
Glenn K. Bard, (retired)
Pennsylvania State Trooper
CISSP, EnCE, CHFI, A+, Network +, Security +, AME
PATCtech Digital Forensics

3:30 – 3:45 Break

3:45 – 4:45 Prosecuting Marijuana in 2025
An in-depth look at the new rules and laws, charging concerns and pitfalls, what impact the DCC has seen, and the societal issues that have stemmed from legalization.
James V. Canepa, Superintendent
Ohio Division of Cannabis Control

Friday, April 18th

8:00 - 9:00 Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00 - 10:30 Closing Argument Guardrails: Don’t Run Your Case Off the Road by Committing Reversible Error.
Veteran prosecutor Mark Weaver will overview several Ohio cases that limit what prosecutors can say during closing arguments. In addition to case law, the session will highlight some examples for effective closing arguments, including defeating defense counsel’s attempts to raise the burden of proof.
Mark R. Weaver, Founder
Communications Counsel, Inc. and
Assistant Prosecutor, Marion County

10:30 - 10:45 Break

10:45 - 12:15 Legislation Passed During 2024 Lame Duck
This 90-minute presentation will review many of the statutory changes enacted during the recent lame duck session of the General Assembly as well as some of the December decisions of the Ohio Supreme Court, i.e., on firearm specifications (Beatty), submission of proposed findings (Riley), Stand Your Ground and retroactivity (Miree), and the “emergency” exception to Confrontation (Wilcox and Smith).
Steven L. Taylor, Legal Research and Staff Counsel
Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association

12:15 - 1:15 Lunch

1:15 – 2:15 Two-Pronged Attack: Combating Elder Financial Abuse through Criminal and Civil Action
Elder abuse is a critical issue that affects many vulnerable individuals. This workshop aims to address the complexities of elder victimization and prosecution and provide valuable insights and practical strategies for effectively addressing and prosecuting crimes against the elderly. It's crucial to create a supportive environment that empowers victims and holds perpetrators accountable.
Brian M. McDonough, Assistant United States Attorney and
Sylvia M. Pla-Raith, MA, LSW
Deputy Director Community Programs
Division of Senior and Adult Service, Cuyahoga County HHS

We have received approval for 10 hours of general CLE from the Supreme Court of Ohio Commission on Continuing Legal Education.

The registration fees for OPAA members are $300.00 for both days, $200.00 for one day only. Registration fees for non-members are $600.00 and $400.00. The fee covers all continental breakfasts, breaks, and lunches. To help defray the cost of food guarantees, cancellations after Friday, April 4th, will be assessed a $100.00 penalty if scheduled to attend both days, and a $60.00 penalty if scheduled for one day only. Please send registrations to OPAA by April 4th.