Last year police in Columbus shot 19 civilians; eight of which died. This marks the second highest number of police shootings in the past 15 years and the highest rate of mortalities since 1997. The police say the bad guys are more brazen, and community leaders largely agree.

In August, 2011, police shootings spiked with six people shot and four killed.

But Sgt. Rich Weiner, a police spokesperson, says police can’t be blamed, that they are only reacting to civilian actions. “We’re not the ones choosing to do this,” he says. “The suspect has chosen to do something that necessitates our using that kind of force.”

According to the Columbus Dispatch, police have averaged 13.5 shootings each year for the past 15 years, with the highest total being 21 in 2008.

Interestingly, officer death-by-firearms have also been increasing. Last year more officers were killed by firearms than in traffic accidents for the first time in 14 years. Is it possible that this is in the back of officers’ heads when they approach volatile situations? Of course. But, as community activist Cecil Ahad says, it’s also due to a growing apathy among young men within impoverished neighborhoods.

“He sees the police-involved shootings as a symptom of the rift between the police and the community, and of the desperation of young men who believe they have little to live for,” report Stephanie Czekalinski and Theodore Decker.

Police may or may not be more apt to shoot suspects now than before. But their conflicts are becoming more volatile as the police are growingly militaristic and people prone to criminality are facing bleaker and bleaker outlooks.

It’s precisely these exchanges that leave mothers in inner city neighborhoods petrified when their sons go out for the night, unsure of whether or not they will see them again, or if the next time they see them will be from behind thick visiting-room plexiglass.

When you live in a city like Columbus, it’s crucial that you remain calm when dealing with the police. Even if they are wrong for executing a search or arrest, you could put yourself in a dire situation if you resist or fight back. Instead, you are likely safer to just allow them to do their job and sort the rest out in court.

If you are facing criminal charges after a questionable exchange with police, we might be able to help. Contact our offices today to discuss the charges against you, whether drug or gun related.

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With a total county population of just over 365,000, Butler County, Ohio isn’t too densely populated. But within those 365,000 residents, the Butler County Sheriff’s Office monitors about 460 sex offenders on any given day. When you add in juveniles and offenders that come into the county for work, that number jumps to over 700 and while the merits of sex offender monitoring are questionable, the costs are not.

According to the Middletown Journal, the annual cost of “dealing with sex offenders” in the county is $179,000 (and that’s a low-balled estimate). This cost includes salaries for the assistant prosecutor who handles these cases and the deputies who monitor them once they leave prison.

The laws that require sex offenders to register were enacted to make the public feel safe and were said to potentially decrease the risk that an offender would reoffend. Recent studies, however, contradict these justifications, saying that sex offenders required to register are actually at a greater risk of recidivism than others.

The overwhelming attitude among the general public is that sex offenders are all predatory and deranged, incapable of stopping their urges and destined to make the same mistakes again and again. It’s this fear that has driven the policies across the nation to keep sex offenders “under control”. But the stigma associated with registering and the subsequent inability for these offenders to lead a normal life may increase the odds that they will violate another law and be sent back to prison.

People who live in the neighborhoods of Butler County and other similar counties statewide, want to know that their children won’t encounter a sex offender. Here, letters are sent out in neighborhoods when an offender is released from prison and plans to settle down up the street. School buses may rearrange their routes to avoid the publicized address and everyone will be on alert that a registered sex offender has moved into the area.

As for the offenders themselves, their perception of the registry is mixed. Some believe the registration hinders their reintegration into society. It prevents them from truly being able to rehabilitate. Others see the value and know why members of the public would be wary of them.

There is no other crime for which the stigma is greater. Being accused of a sex offense can be the most dramatic thing to happen in your life, especially with the knowledge of how it could change everything.

If you are accused of a sex offense, contact our attorneys today to discuss your case.

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Police in Cincinnati had been busy issuing citations to protesters camped out in Piatt Park. The protestors, part of the larger Occupy movement that began on Wall Street, were granted a temporary relief from the ticketing from a federal judge. But the stay was temporary and a small move in a larger federal lawsuit filed against the city on behalf of the protesters.

Early this week judge U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott ordered the police to stop ticketing protestors for being in the part after the posted 10p.m. closing time. The stay was only effective for 28 hours in hopes the city and those who filed suit against them would reach a compromise by Wednesday. But at 8p.m. Wednesday night, the ticketing resumed.

Protesters are suing the city, saying the 10 p.m. park closure time and ticking violates their right to free speech on public property. The city maintains that regulating the park in such a manner is no violation of rights.

As of Monday, when the order was issued, police had doled out 239 citations in the park since October 9, totaling around $25,000 in revenue if they are eventually collected. The tickets had been handed out to 91 people who continued camping in the park after hours.

On Wednesday, after the 8 p.m. deadline passed, police got out their pens again, issuing more of the $105 tickets.

In their lawsuit, the protesters are challenging the validity of the tickets. Obviously if they win the suit or reach a compromise with the city, they would ideally be able to peacefully protest within the park 24 hours a day, if they so choose.

But local police aren’t just passing out tickets, they are also passing around handcuffs. Just last night 23 protesters were arrested in the park for refusing to leave after 10 p.m. They were all charged with trespassing and many posted the $500 bail soon after their arrest. Many of those arrested had been previously ticketed in past weeks.

While protesters have no intention on leaving and have rejected several different offers from the city to squash the lawsuit, local businesses are reportedly concerned about how the local chanting and sign carrying will affect their business. This, city officials say, is ample reason to control the flow and presence of protesters in the downtown park.

There is little doubt that the city will also continue to fight their side, making arrests and issuing citations. Arrests for trespassing, disorderly conduct, and similar charges can be expected.

If you’ve been arrested in an Occupy protest and are seeking legal advice, contact our offices today.

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Related: Article on What To Do If Arrested in an Occupy Protest

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Federal agents will soon be knocking on doors in some of the more violence-prone neighborhoods of Cleveland. They will be asking questions and hoping for willing cooperation in their attempt to assist the city in reducing gun violence.

The multi-agency effort is being called “V-GRIP” or Violence Gun Reduction and Interdiction Program. It will involve the work of the Cleveland Police Department, the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, the U.S. Marshals, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Probation Service, Ohio Adult Parole Authority and the Ohio Highway Patrol.

Mayor Frank Jackson announced the group this week and said that rising gun violence within the city drove the decision to pull in other agencies. The program is expected to roll out in coming weeks and it will target the “worst of the worst.”

Jackson said about the growing gun violence, “Guns are readily available, guns are more powerful and guns are in the hands of younger and younger people.”

The agencies will be working together in investigation stages and to help build “larger criminal cases of gun trafficking” to be prosecuted within the federal courts. Local officers will also receive additional training about search and seizure issues and report writing, to shore up their practices and make resulting cases more likely to stick.

Often cases are dismissed because evidence is found to have been seized in an illegal search. The 4^th Amendment which protects citizens against illegal searches and seizures is a frequent issue in criminal cases and something all law enforcement officers could use a refresher on.

The Feds will be doing what’s called “knock and talks” around the city, hoping to get a positive reaction from residents willing to share information about crime in their neighborhoods. FBI agents have reportedly had success with this method in other Ohio cities including Youngstown where they say it has had positive results.

Federal and state criminal charges are quite different. The majority of criminal cases seen throughout the state are handed down by the state of Ohio. Federal cases are far rarer, though possible.

Under state law, there are many different crimes you could be charged with related to weapons. Some are misdemeanors, some are felonies, and all carry serious repercussions.

When you are accused of violating laws regarding weapons in Ohio, a criminal defense lawyer is there to ensure you are treated fairly within the criminal courts. If you are facing charges, contact our offices today to discuss the details of your case and how we might be able to help.

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This week, Ohio Governor John Kasich commuted a second death sentence this year. Joseph Murphy, convicted of murdering a 72 year old widow in 1987, was scheduled to die at the hands of the state on October 18. Now he will serve a life sentence with no chance of parole, thanks to the Governor and recommendations by the parole board.

The reason for the commutation? Murphy’s troubled childhood which may have played a role in his mental state now and at the time of the murder.

According to the Dispatch, Murphy was a victim of severe child abuse while growing up in Ohio and West Virginia. As a child, he was beaten, raped, starved, tied up, and left in a burning home. He is said to be “borderline mentally retarded” and spent years in mental hospitals and institutions before he took his victim’s life.

Though the murder was a gruesome one, Murphy’s childhood was the catalyst to saving his life.

In 1992 the Ohio Supreme Court voted 4-3 in support of Murphy’s death penalty. Justice Thomas J. Moyer wrote the dissent, which would later be used by Murphy’s attorneys in front of the parole board. The parole board recommended that Kasich commute the sentence and Kasich followed that recommendation this week.

“In all of the death penalty cases I have reviewed, I know of no other case in which the defendant, clearly guilty of the crime as the defendant is here, was as destined for disaster as was Joseph Murphy as a direct result of the conditions to which he was exposed by his family,” said Justice Moyer in his 1992 opinion.

Earlier this year Kasich commuted another death sentence in the case of Shawn Hawkins. This time because the details of Hawkins role in the double-slaying he was convicted of were “frustratingly unclear.”

Kasich has used his power of commutation in several cases. He commuted the controversial prison sentence that was handed down to a mother who was accused of lying about her living address in order to provide her children with a better education. Kelley Williams-Bolar was originally sentenced to prison time for two felony counts. Kasich reduced these to misdemeanors and required probation in lieu of jail time.

While Kasich may be commuting more sentences than his predecessors and his colleagues in other states, this doesn’t mean he is handing out free passes to anyone who has a good reason. Commutations are extremely rare.

If the case against you is based on flimsy evidence or if the prosecution is seeking an unusually harsh sentence, it’s the job of your defense lawyer to help ensure things are handled correctly the first time around so you don’t have to depend on appeals.

If you are accused of a crime, as serious as murder or as minor as pot possession—we can help. Contact us for an Oho criminal defense legal consultation.

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So far in 2011, there have been 9 officer involved shootings in Cincinnati. Last year there were only 2. According to Cincinnati.com, this means officers have fired on civilians more this month than all of last year. While the reasons aren’t certain, some suspect young gun owners are less afraid to confront officers than they were in the past.

Officers can use deadly force (fire their weapon) when someone uses deadly force against them. In other words, if they have a reasonable fear that their life is being threatened, they can fire. This is a pretty standard use of force policy, used by departments across the nation.

In all nine cases so far in 2011, the officer who fired believed they were being threatened with their life. In 5 of the cases, the citizen who was fired upon had a gun themselves. In one case, the citizen fired upon police.

It’s standard protocol that any police involved shooting be investigated. None of the officers have faced criminal charges, though not all of the investigations are complete.

There is no way to know for sure what’s driving the increase in situations where officers feel threatened. Many think the youth are simply more brazen than they used to be. One officer said a few decades ago, a suspect would throw their gun and run away, but that’s not the case anymore.

Nationwide crime in general has fallen over the past year. But Cincinnati isn’t the only city that’s seen a rise in officer shootings. Milwaukee and Jacksonville, Florida have seen similar trends emerging.

They say it’s impossible to say at this time if the rise is a short-lived uptick or if it’s a trend that will continue to climb. Time will tell.

However, the increase will, no doubt, make officers more vigilant when dealing with gun-carrying citizens. Even citizens who are lawful gun owners should take extra precautions to ensure they don’t run afoul of the law. Because gun laws are so complex, it’s not completely unusual for people to break them without even realizing it.

Many weapons charges are felonies and don’t only carry a lengthy potential prison sentence but also the permanent designation of being a convicted felon. For this reason, a gun conviction should be avoided at all costs.

If you are accused of a gun charge in Ohio and are unsure of your options, contact our offices today. We can discuss your case and what can be done.

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Last weekend an 18 year old high school student was killed when campus police at the University of Cincinnati used Tasers to subdue him. While the actual cause of death may not be known for weeks, UC has since suspended the use of Tasers on campus until more is known.

This past weekend was particularly bad for Taser deaths. According to the Christian Science Monitor, three people were killed when police used the shock devices to gain control of situations. All three deaths are under investigation.

Eighteen year old Everette Howard was a student from North College Hill. He had recently graduated in the top of his class and was looking to attend UC full time in the coming months. According to police who had been called to the dorms about an assault, Howard approached them with fists balled before they fired the Taser at him.

Though the officers state Howard was breathing and had a pulse, they acknowledged that something didn’t seem right, that he appeared incoherent after being hit. He went into cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived and he then died.

When local press gained copies of the police reports, they found that much of the reports had been blacked out or “redacted”. There were fourteen pages in all, including incident reports and dispatch logs, with even basic information deleted. Under the Public Records Act, incident reports are to be turned over without redaction.

Assistant General Counsel for UC Doug Nienaber says that there is a section of Ohio law that allows certain things to be withheld when it is imperative to the law enforcement investigation. Jack Griener, attorney for the Enquirer, however, says that incident reports are not part of the investigation and instead merely begin the investigation.

It isn’t immediately clear if UC is trying to hide something and no one seems to be implying this, only that they should be more forthcoming with this information. The coroner doesn’t plan to have results back on the official cause of death for at least a month. In the meantime, the college will no longer be using Tasers to enforce security.

This is far from the first incident of Taser use resulting in death. As a matter of fact, Amnesty International says that since 2001, over 340 people in North America have died following police use of Tasers. Taser International released a warning two years ago alerting law enforcement agencies that the device should not be aimed at the chest, hopefully preventing a deadly shock to the heart.

Police count Tasers as a valuable tool but their safety isn’t completely guaranteed. Although they may save some lives, giving officers an additional step between verbal direction and deadly force, the presence of a Taser may make an officer more likely to use force when a questionable situation arises.

Being on the other side of a police use of force action can be both physically painful and mentally stressing. Usually, such interactions result in injury and criminal charges.

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A new policy being implemented by the Cleveland Police is requiring them to either charge a suspect or release them within 36 hours after their arrest. Although some police officers have complained, according to The Plain Dealer, Deputy Chief Timothy Hennessy says “If you have probable cause to arrest, you should have probable cause to charge.”

The new policy comes after Cleveland Municipal Judge Ronald Adrine enacted an order to comply with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That order required all suspects to be brought before a judge within 48 hours of their arrest.

Overcrowding at the Cleveland jail is expected to be relieved by this new policy and administrators state they are already seeing the effects. Prior to the change, the city faced scrutiny for arresting and jailing people for days without access to bail and without any formal charges being levied. This is in direct violation of those citizens’ constructional right to due process under the law.

Previously there was a 24 hour policy in place but there was said to be too many exceptions to this rule, causing suspects again to be held long after the 24 period had passed.

Although the police may seem this kind of requirement as a hassle, they really shouldn’t have any problem charging someone with a crime within 36 hours if they had valid suspicion (or probable cause) that a crime had been committed by the suspect in question. If the evidence doesn’t amount to probable cause, and they cannot be charged, there’s no reason to keep them in custody.

You have rights under the constitution, we all do. And access to fair treatment in the courts, technically referred to as “due process” is one of them. You cannot be held indefinitely without being charged and without access to bail. It’s unlawful.

Similarly, you cannot be subjected to illegal searches by the police. This is one protection that seems to be a frequent issue in criminal cases. Searches by police must be justified and when they are not, any evidence that arises from that search is not admissible in court. If you are facing criminal charges, your defense lawyer would file a motion to suppress the evidence based on the illegal search. Because criminal cases frequently hinge on physical evidence, this could be the thing that gets the charges dropped.

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The Cleveland Plain Dealer has been running a series of investigative reports lately on the local police department. These articles have called into question the integrity of the department and have ultimately led to some serious allegations of police brutality, cover ups, and the every present and impenetrable “blue wall of silence.” Now the local department says that changes in policy will be made as a response to these cases, though they may not admit any wrongdoing.

Many of the problems within the department can be attributed to record keeping issues. Whether conflicting reports were overlooked by supervisors or if crucial video-evidence was “lost”, the Plain Dealer suggests that all of the issues were worth examining and rectifying so as not to happen again.

One thing that won’t be changed, according to the Cleveland Police Department, is the way they handle conflicting statements and discrepancies the news organization uncovered in their work. The department states these were honest mistakes with little bearing on the integrity of any investigation.

About the inconsistencies, Deputy Chief Hector Cuevas said, “I don’t know if they’re substantial or significant differences. It’s not unusual that you have four different officers and four different accounts of what happened.”

But the Plain Dealer asserts that of more than 36 use-of-force cases they reviewed, “several” included instances where supervisors “questionable details and perfunctory reports.” The Department defends their officers and their use of force policies, calling them some of the strictest in the United States.

What will be changed is how the city handles video evidence collected at the jail. The current policy will require them to save any video footage for more than the current policy’s 30 day limit. They will also likely be changing how the police maintain digital photos after a use of force. These photos are used to chronicle the injuries of suspects and officers alike.

When you’re on the wrong end of a police use of force, you want to know that the department is concerned about your treatment. Very few of these incidents end with the suspect not facing criminal charges. This is what makes them so tricky. You could see it as self-defense, but when you’re defending yourself against police officers you face an uphill battle.

You could be charged with resisting arrest or even assault on a law enforcement officer. These are very serious criminal charges that should be handled with the assistance of a local criminal defense lawyer. If you are accused of one of these offenses or if you are charged with another crime, contact our attorneys today to discuss your case.

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Governor John Kasich plans to cut the state’s prison budget and send many inmates back to the county level. While the move would likely save the state some serious money, the counties aren’t completely confident that they could handle the influx of offenders. The state has reassured the counties that it will provide funding, but some remain unconvinced.

Kasich’s plan has been passed by the House and is currently pending in the Ohio Senate. It would allow first time nonviolent criminal offenders in Ohio to avoid prison by serving probation or a sentence within a community facility. This is a trend that’s taking place across the nation as states look to save money and also begin accepting the notion that hard time isn’t always the best solution for low level offenders.

The plan would also release nonviolent inmates that have served 85% of their sentence, and have them supervised at a local level by probation/parole officers. This move could potentially assist the offenders in their reentry, offering support while they readjust to living on the “outside” and even potentially reduce recidivism.

Community supports are crucial, however, in making community supervision (both probation and post-release) successful. Such programs, when handled correctly, decrease the chances that an offender will reoffend and they also allow them to stay close to home, where their families often depend on them.

But those community supports might not be able to handle the number of state inmates the proposed changes would send their way. Halfway houses and treatment agencies are all concerned that they will be overwhelmed with the changes.

The state has reassured them that $10 million will go to the counties to help them cope with the changes, but it isn’t clear if this will be enough nor if counties will have enough time to get the expanded supports in place.

There’s no question this plan could save the state money. According to The Plain Dealer, it costs the state $24,494 to house an offender in prison and only $10.030 to house them in a community based facility. Even more cost effective, it costs $5,801 to house someone in a halfway house.

In order for the changes to work the counties must have supports in place when the changes occur. Releasing nonviolent offenders into communities that aren’t prepared will no doubt leave some without the treatment and supervision that they need for success.

There are such community treatment and housing programs currently available. Even before the new changes happen, people accused of crimes can often take advantage of these resources when encountered by a progressive judge who doesn’t see them as a risk to themselves or the community.

If you are charged with a crime and are curious about the options you have, contact our attorneys today.

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