Governor Mike DeWine (R-OH) announced Friday that numerous local law enforcement departments will receive a total of $3.5 million for anti-trafficking efforts and other anti-crime initiatives, with the cities of Toledo and Cortland receiving significant grants.
The money comes in the fifth round of allocations from the Crime Reduction Grant Program, a project created last year that has disbursed $23 million to 83 agencies across the Buckeye State so far.
The Toledo Police Department will get $372,800 to acquire technology designed to help officers develop more useful leads toward apprehending especially active and dangerous criminals. The Cortland Police Department will meanwhile receive $112,097.73 to place a full-time officer on the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force to work against violent trafficking operations.
“Violent crime not only impacts public safety but also quality of life, and I am committed to doing all we can to protect Ohio’s citizens from violence,” DeWine said in a statement. “By giving local law enforcement agencies these additional resources, they’ll be able to do more to prevent crime so that community members feel safe.”
Other municipalities with police departments benefiting from this wave of crime-reduction grants include Athens, Bath, Brooklyn, Champaign, Columbus, Gallipolis, Noble, Oak Hill, Reynoldsburg, Ross Township, Stow, and Wadsworth.
Ohio is among many states across America that have endured rising violent crime since 2020, both in large cities and in smaller communities. One poll conducted by 22 local law-enforcement agencies for the Franklin County Chiefs’ Association shows that aggravated assault jumped by 36 percent in that county between 2020 and 2021. Robbery, meanwhile, rose by 47 percent, rape increased by 13 percent, manslaughter rose by a third, and murder went up by six percent.
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Bradley Vasoli is managing editor of The Ohio Star. Follow Brad on Twitter at @BVasoli. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Mike DeWine” by Governor Mike DeWine.
