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You now can tailor the topics and timing of email communications from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. In addition to receiving the Law Enforcement Bulletin, Criminal Justice Update, and OPOTA Mobile Academy newsletters, you can learn about new OPOTA courses as they’re posted and get updates on missing persons, unsolved homicides, and other topics. To choose your preferred topics and timeframe — when available, daily, or weekly — visit
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/EmailUpdates.
New BCI facility in Bowling Green under construction
Ground was broken in July for a nearly $12 million Northwest Ohio office of the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI). To be located on the Bowling Green State University campus, adjacent to BGSU’s science buildings, the facility is expected to open in fall 2014.
The expanded BCI location, encompassing about 30,000 square feet, will replace the current regional office on East Wooster Street. It will serve a 22-county area with on-site laboratory and investigative services.
Attorney General Mike DeWine and BGSU President Mary Ellen Mazey say the crime lab, which will be one of few located on a U.S. college campus, will give BCI access to scientific research and prospective scientists and investigators while providing Bowling Green students and graduates with learning and employment opportunities.
Beginning this fall, BGSU will offer forensics as an undergraduate specialization through the departments of criminal justice, chemistry, and biology, helping prepare students for careers in public safety and the forensic sciences.
The project is funded by $11.9 million allocated to the Attorney General’s Office through the state’s capital budget.
AG DeWine names former Sheriff Radcliff to law enforcement liaison position
Former Pickaway County Sheriff Dwight Radcliff is now serving as a senior law enforcement liaison for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
Radcliff, who joined the office in mid-June, will meet with law enforcement officials statewide to discuss the programs, services, and trainings offered by the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy.
“We are pleased to have Sheriff Radcliff as part of our team,” Attorney General Mike DeWine said. “His law enforcement experience is unmatched, and he is very well-respected across the state. We are confident that he will continue to advance the relationship between local law enforcement and the Attorney General’s Office.”
Radcliff retired in 2012 as the longest-serving sheriff in the United States. He took office in 1965, serving as Pickaway County’s sheriff for 47 years.
To reach Radcliff, call the Attorney General’s Office at 614-728-7275 or send him an email at
Dwight.Radcliff@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov.
Arson offenders now required to register with county sheriffs
Ohio’s new arson registry law, which took effect July 1, requires individuals convicted of an “arson-related offense” to register annually for life with the sheriff in their county of residence. The law applies to people convicted under any subsection of Ohio Revised Code Section 2909 if the original arrest was for arson or aggravated arson.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office, which will maintain the registry, will provide registry information to fire department arson investigators and law enforcement agencies and personnel through the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway (OHLEG) beginning later this summer. The registry is not a publicly accessible database.
The Attorney General’s Office has trained personnel of Ohio sheriffs’ offices and provided them with an Internet-based application to use in registering offenders. Only offenders convicted on or after July 1, 2013, (or released from incarceration on or after that date after serving time for a qualifying crime) must register.
For more information: Call OHLEG Support at 866-40-OHLEG (866-406-4534). Arson investigators who do not have OHLEG access can call for information on how to set up an account.
2013 TDIM at a glance
Here’s a recap from the Ohio Attorney General’s 2013 Two Days in May Conference on Victim Assistance, which drew about 1,100 participants:
Legislation and Policy Award: This inaugural award went to Robert Francis, father of murder victim Roberta Francis, and Sens. Jim Hughes and Kevin Bacon, who sponsored Roberta’s Law. The law, which took effect March 22, requires victims of violent crime to be notified when their perpetrators face proceedings related to release or transfer, giving them an opportunity to argue against parole. Roberta Francis, 15, was raped and killed in 1974. After serving 30 years for that crime, her killer molested another girl within two years of his parole.
Robert Denton Special Achievement Award: This award went to Bruce Adams, who has worked with and for crime victims, survivors, and advocates for more than 25 years. He heads the Ohio Department of Youth Services’ Office of Victim Services, where he has worked since 1999.
Promising Practice Award: This award recognized the Columbus City Attorney’s Stalking Initiative, which coordinates the response of law enforcement, prosecutors, and victim service agencies to stalking and stalking-related crimes. Under the initiative, the City Attorney’s Office, law enforcement, domestic violence organizations, and other partners work together to encourage arrests and enforce protection orders.
During the conference, an Anti-Bullying Symposium drew 185 leaders from the education, health, and justice systems. Nineteen Ohio students offered guidance on creating a plan to curtail bullying. The Institute for Human Services facilitated the discussion and will compile participants’ recommendations.
For details: For a video recapping the conference, visit
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/media and click on “videos.”