The Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) will celebrate its 95
th anniversary in September. The bureau started in 1921 as a record-keeping facility operated by the Department of Public Welfare. By 1924, a superintendent, one assistant, and a corps of inmates from the Ohio State Penitentiary had become the caretakers of criminal identification and fingerprint records, which they would make available to law enforcement agencies. The bureau moved to the Department of Mental Hygiene and Corrections and then to the Department of Corrections. In 1963, it became part of the Attorney General’s Office.
Through the years, the bureau has grown into a multifaceted law enforcement resource. BCI is the state’s official crime lab, and it provides criminal investigative services to law enforcement agencies upon request. In the past 95 years, various divisions have been added to fulfill the needs of law enforcement.
Experienced special agents, forensic scientists, and other law enforcement experts staff BCI’s Identification Division, Investigations Division, and Laboratory Division.
Today, BCI has offices in Athens, Bowling Green, Cambridge, Richfield, Youngstown, and London. In the past year, BCI handled more than 207,830 pieces of evidence and investigated more than 38,522 cases for 961 law enforcement agencies throughout Ohio in 2015.
In the spotlight
In the past five years, BCI has played a critical role in key initiatives and projects, among them:
-
Sexual Assault Kit Testing Initiative: In 2011, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine launched the initiative after learning that dozens of law enforcement agencies throughout the state had rape kits that had never been sent to a DNA lab for testing. The Attorney General made an open call to law enforcement to send their kits to BCI for testing at no cost to them. “I felt that we owed it to Ohioans to test the thousands of previously untested rape kits in police evidence rooms across the state,” said Attorney General DeWine. “Not only are attackers being held accountable, but this initiative is also preventing future attacks.” As of Aug. 1, 294 law enforcement agencies had submitted 13,908 kits to be tested, and forensic scientists had completed testing on 11,472 kits, resulting in 4,129 hits in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). In Cuyahoga County alone, more than 515 defendants have been indicted following DNA testing conducted as part of the effort.
-
Crimes Against Children Initiative: Started in 2011, the initiative focuses on identifying, arresting, and convicting people who prey on children. For the initiative, BCI formed a Crimes Against Children Unit, which receives assistance from other BCI units, and the Special Prosecutions and Crime Victim Services sections. Local authorities can request help with investigations, prosecutions, forensic analysis, training, technical assistance, equipment loans, and victim advocacy. In 2015, the Crimes Against Children Unit assisted 81 law enforcement agencies in 178 cases. They processed 84 requests for assistance, executed 63 search warrants, and made 35 arrests. The unit helps in a variety of investigations including child sexual abuse, child pornography, online enticement and human trafficking.
-
The Heroin Unit: The Heroin Unit, developed in 2013 to help law enforcement pursue high-level traffickers and to work with communities affected by the opiate epidemic, is a combined effort by BCI, the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission (OOCIC), the Special Prosecutions Section and drug-abuse outreach specialists. BCI provides investigative assistance and training for law enforcement agencies that request help in dealing with drug traffickers. It has special agents assigned regionally to assist local law enforcement with heroin-related investigations. BCI criminal intelligence analysts gather data on complex and multijurisdictional cases. The BCI Chemistry Unit examines evidence is examined to determine the presence of illegal or harmful substances. The Chemistry Unit works to keep BCI’s investigative teams informed of new drug trends it sees, such as clandestine fentanyl.
- Ohio Unsolved Homicides Initiative: In 2012, Attorney General DeWine asked law enforcement agencies to submit any cold case information to BCI to be included on an online database. Today, there are 464 cases from 240 agencies in the database, which can be viewed at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov. The goal of the initiative is to bring visibility to unsolved cases, increase the possibility for tips, and help jurisdictions compare details of unsolved crimes. Local agencies often call upon BCI to assist with the cases, as well. Since its inception, 24 of the cold cases have been resolved.