After the tragic, fatal police shootings in Ohio and across the nation last year, I convened an advisory group to take an in-depth look at the state’s system for peace officer training.
The group consists of 16 community leaders with diverse personal and professional backgrounds to review how Ohio trains its law enforcement officers and to make suggestions for improvement. In April, the group, led by Reginald A. Wilkinson, former director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, completed its report and issued several recommendations regarding standards for those interested in entering an academy, basic training and certification, continuing education, and innovations to improve the law enforcement profession.
I discussed the advisory group’s findings with the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission, which then voted to require peace officers to have a diploma or GED and also lifted the cap that limited basic training to 605 hours. In addition, Reps. Tim Derickson (R-Hanover Township) and Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville) have introduced HB 204 based on the group’s recommendations. The bill would lift the cap on the number of hours of basic training required for peace officers and would require all newly appointed peace officers to receive a high-school diploma or GED.
One major area that the advisory group examined is how law enforcement deals with people who are mentally ill. One in four Ohioans has a diagnosable mental-health disorder, making critical training for law enforcement in how to interact with this population. In this issue of
Criminal Justice Update, our cover story examines three areas of Ohio, and how law enforcement and social services have worked together to interact with people who have had, or are at risk of having, mental-health crises. For example, in Butler County in southwestern Ohio, community mental-health professionals often ride along with law enforcement officers during their shifts. In addition, Ohio law enforcement officers who have taken Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training are able to draw upon de-escalation techniques to deal with the person experiencing a crisis and can defuse the situation instead of having it potentially spiral out of control.
Peace officer training is crucial for both officers and the public. For the men and women who put their lives on the line to serve and protect us, we owe it to them to ensure that they have the best training possible.
Very respectfully yours,
Mike DeWine
Ohio Attorney General
To read the report from the Advisory Group on Law Enforcement Training, visit
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/PoliceTrainingReport.