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Ohio’s public safety challenges look like much of the country’s: violent crime concentrated among a small group of repeat offenders, the ongoing overdose crisis, and agencies asked to do more with fewer people. In this episode of Policing Matters, host Jim Dudley talks with Ohio Department of Public Safety Director Andy Wilson about how the state is pushing proactivity over reaction, using analysts and technology to build stronger cases, and flexing statewide assets like aviation and specialized units to help local agencies disrupt shootings, recover illegal guns, and reduce harm before the next call comes in.
Wilson brings a prosecutor’s mindset to a statewide job. Before being appointed in December 2022 by Gov. Mike DeWine to lead the Ohio Department of Public Safety, he served as an attorney and elected prosecutor, building cases shoulder-to-shoulder with detectives and staying close to the realities of street-level policing. Today he oversees 10 divisions, nearly 4,000 employees, and a $2.5 billion budget focused on “safety, service and protection,” with an emphasis on policies that help officers in the trenches rather than making the job harder from a distance.
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Tune in to hear
- Why Ohio’s top public safety leader says less than 1% of offenders drive most violent crime
- How aviation-backed operations are helping officers catch armed suspects without high-risk pursuits
- What happens when analysts, prosecutors and patrol align to build airtight cases against repeat shooters
- How Ohio is using social media and digital evidence to influence bond decisions and sentencing
- Why transparency around arrests, bonds and releases could change how communities view the justice system
Key takeaways from this episode
Proactivity is the multiplier. Wilson argues the fastest way to reduce shootings is to work the places and people driving violence before the next incident. When officers focus on known hot spots, active warrants, and the small group carrying guns, they can interrupt retaliatory cycles and prevent the next drive-by.
A small number of offenders drive a huge share of harm. He points to Ohio analysis showing violence is concentrated among repeat offenders. The operational goal is clear: identify the chronic violent actors, then align enforcement, prosecution, and analytics to remove them from the street for meaningful time.
“Full-court press” policing and prosecution can cool a city down. Wilson describes a targeted approach used as a prosecutor: coordinated traffic enforcement in high-risk areas, aggressive follow-through on felony fleeing and weapons charges, no “easy” plea deals for the identified group, and sentencing packages supported by analyst-developed social media and background context. He credits that combination with helping stop gun-related homicides in one jurisdiction for a full year.
State resources can change the math for mid-size agencies. Ohio’s violent crime reduction strategy includes grants for technology (including cameras and LPRs) but also the ability to surge capabilities locals can’t afford: aviation support, extra troopers, specialized enforcement, parole checks, and undercover liquor control agents trained to spot firearms. A key tactic: use the helicopter to track fleeing vehicles so ground units can back off, reduce pursuit risk, and still capture suspects and recover guns.
Courts and bond decisions need better information, earlier, with public transparency. Wilson says judges often see only the instant charge in an “assembly line” process. His fix: bring complete risk context to bond hearings (criminal history, social media, suspected involvement, threats) and then publicly track outcomes so communities understand who is being released, on what bond, and what happens next. In his view, transparency pressures the system to take repeat violence seriously before the next tragedy forces the issue.
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