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Attorney General Mike DeWine
DeWine, Hughes,
O’Brien Urge Support for Violent Career Criminal Act
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, State Senator Jim
Hughes (R-Columbus), and Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien are
urging support for the Violent Career Criminal Act, which was
introduced this General Assembly as Senate Bill 97. Sponsored by
Senators Hughes and Frank LaRose (R-Copley), the legislation would add
additional prison time for repeat violent offenders, the group which a
study concluded committed the majority of violent crimes in Ohio.
“A very small percentage of repeat offenders are responsible for most
violent crimes,” said Attorney General DeWine. “Regardless of where
that violent crime takes place, we are determined to target this small
group that commits a disproportionate number of crimes and prevent them
from victimizing more Ohio families.”
“Senate Bill 97 gives us the tools we need to reduce gun crimes by
cracking down on violent, repeat offenders. It is imperative that we do
everything we can to defend the most vulnerable members of society from
violent crime," said Senator Hughes.
“Senate Bill 97 would target repeat violent offenders and reduce gun
crime by the worst of the worst in our society. This bill represents an
important step in removing these offenders from our streets so that we
can keep our neighborhoods safe without infringing on the rights of
law-abiding gun owners,” said Senator LaRose.
The Violent Career Criminal Act would classify any adult who has been
convicted of at least two violent felonies as a “Violent Career
Criminal.” If a Violent Career Criminal commits an additional felony,
the legislation would require the defendant to be sentenced to an
additional 2 to 11 years of mandatory prison time upon the discretion
of the sentencing judge. The legislation would also increase prison
time for crimes with gun specifications by an additional 50%.
Attorney General DeWine formed the Violent Crimes with Guns Advisory
Group in 2011 to study the problem of gun violence in Ohio and provide
guidance to law enforcement and the legislature on how to best prevent
gun crimes
The group commissioned Ohio State University researcher Deanna
Wilkinson, Ph.D., to conduct an in-depth study of Ohio Department of
Rehabilitation and Correction and BCI data from 1974 to 2010. The study
found that people with two or more violent felony offenses, who make up
only .91% of Ohio's adult population, are responsible for 57% of Ohio's
violent felony convictions.
The study also found that nearly 56% of all of Ohio's violent felony
convictions happened in Cuyahoga, Hamilton, Summit, and Franklin
counties. Those counties, along with Montgomery, Stark, Lucas, Lorain,
Butler, Lake, Clark, and Mahoning counties, account for 83% of violent
crime.
In addition to the Violent Career Criminal Act, the work of the
advisory group also led to the creation of Attorney General DeWine’s
Safe Neighborhoods Initiative, which works with potential repeat
offenders to prevent crimes before they are committed. Currently, the
Safe Neighborhoods Initiative is operating in Akron, Ashtabula,
Fostoria, Fremont, Hamilton, Lima, Sandusky, Steubenville, and Warren.
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