In Divorce, Use of Tracking Programs and Apps Can Violate Ohio Law

Under Ohio law, a person cannot knowingly install a tracking device or application without the other person’s consent, or fail to remove the tracker upon revocation of that consent. This is especially important in divorce cases, domestic violence cases and divorce cases involving children.

Under Ohio R.C. 2903.216, tracking application means any software program that permits a person to remotely determine or track the position or movement of another person or another person’s property. Examples of this are the Find My friends and Life360 apps, Snapchat or any other application that allows for the remote determination of an individual’s location.

Under Ohio R.C. 2903.216, a tracking device means an electronic or mechanical device that permits a person to remotely determine or track the position or movement of another person or another person’s property, including an electronic monitoring device. Examples are AirTags and other traditional tracking monitors.

In today’s world of technology and crime, it is not uncommon for parents to have apps that allow them to locate their child(ren) at all times. In a happy marriage, that’s usually not an issue. But in a divorce, such tracking apps can become problematic.

If a spouse files for divorce or for a domestic violence application, consent for these types of tracking devices or apps is presumed to be withdrawn. Within 72 hours of being served, the party MUST uninstall or disconnect usage of the device or application. If that is not possible, the party must notify the court in writing.

For married parents who are not separated and have not filed for divorce, a device or application can be installed on a child’s device with one parent’s consent. The filing of divorce, however, triggers the presumed waiver of consent even if the parties are still living together.

During and after a divorce, if one parent has sole custody, then tracking can continue regardless of whether the other parent consents. Shared parenting is a bit more complicated. In that scenario, if one parent consents to the installation of a device application or one parent revokes consent, the parent who consents can only use the device or application during their parenting time and must disable or remove the tracking device or application during the parenting time of the parent that did not consent.

Violations of the statute create criminal penalties of a first-degree misdemeanor but can rise to a fourth-degree felony if (1) the individual previously was convicted or pled guilty to the statute, (2) the individual was subject to a temporary protection order (TPO) or TPO for menacing by stalking, (3) prior to violating the statute, the individual created a substantial rick of harm to the other person that placed them in reasonable fear of violent behavior, or (4), the offender has a history of violence toward the victim or a history of other violent acts towards the victim.