Warrant by ezJustice: Transforming Search Warrants for Law Enforcement and Courts

Marysville Journal-Tribune: Process to get warrants may be streamline

Williamson, Michael. “Process to get warrants may be streamlined.” Marysville Journal-Tribune, 28 Jan. 2025.

Getting a warrant approved may soon be easier and faster for local law enforcement agents. Union County prosecutor Dave Phillips said his office is in the process of implementing an electronic search warrant system for law-enforcement officers and members of the court system, something that he said will noticeably improve the process. 

“It should really improve the efficiency and deliveries of warrants,” he said. “I wouldn’t call the current system slow and inefficient, but it is slower.” 

Right now, when an officer is at the scene of a crime or engaging in an active investigation, the officer would have to leave the scene, fill out, and file the affidavit. That document includes information such as the location, person or property to be searched, and the items to be seized, as well as the probable cause reasoning for the search warrant. The document has to be approved by the prosecutor, sent to the court, and the judge would have to sign off. Phillip said that sometimes it can take a few hours or more for an officer to get the warrant.

“In some cases, depending on the evidence and things like that, we may not have that much time,” he said. 

The new system called Warrant by ezJustice, a criminal justice software suite will allow the officers to file digitally on a device, putting the document in the system immediately accessible to prosecutors and judges who can approve the form as soon as it’s available and reviewed.

“When an officer submits a warrant to the on-call prosecutor/DA, they receive customized notifications via text email indoor phone call, alerting them that the warrant is ready for review,” according to information from ezJustice. “Additional reminder notifications can be sent if a prosecutor does not respond promptly.” 

Judges are alerted in a similar manner and can then apply a digital certified signature from any device with an Internet connection. The officers can then see you real time updates in approval. Phillips said with the US Supreme Court ruling that allows for a “reliable electronic means for the execution of a search warrant,” a new system makes the most sense.

“An officer still has to go through the same process and have the same reasoning and approval. It will just now be more efficient. It could be done electronically,” he said. “For example, it should help with if you have a warrant that’s needed overnight you can do it electronically rather than having the judge have to come to the courthouse.” 

According to the Supreme Court, electronic warrant offerings became more typical overtime in “the number of states…allowing the issuance of warrants based on telephonic, video or electronic affidavit has grown from a simple majority to at least 45.”

There are a number of counties in Ohio that already implement an electronic system in the state of Ohio itself has program. According to the state Department of Public Safety, “Ohio’s eWarrant system approves the thrones, accuracy and timeliness of the submissions to the Ohio Law Enforcement Automated Data System (LEADS) and the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).” Phillips said he’s been working on implementing the system for local usage for a while as his office continues to run into instances where a more streamline process would help.

“We’ve seen the need for that. Over the holidays one of my assistance was… Trying to get a search warrant done and their template wasn’t working and I’m not sure that they- the search warrant took a long time to get done,” Phillips told the county earlier this month. “ the courts have now bought off on this.” 

Currently, Phillips said his office is reviewing possible templates for the electronic forms. The new system comes with an ability to either use the cords, pre-existing templates or upload their own departments. Courts can also offer standardized templates for frequently used warrants according to the company.

Phillip said getting a standardized template will also help the process. Once the review is done and the selection is made, he said the county can move forward and likely will be up and running in a couple of months.