April 2010
cover story
Ohio Attorney General
Richard Cordray Science: a partner in crime-fighting
Robotics help speed BCI Lab Division’s turnaround times
By Mary Alice Casey
The Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation’s addition of six
robots last year has helped streamline two important aspects of laboratory
work: analysis for local law enforcement and the addition of DNA profiles to
the CODIS database.
With the robots — four in the DNA casework
vol.2
unit and two in the CODIS databasing unit —
criminal justice scientists are able to pull DNA profiles from a
update no.2
batch of evidence submissions in a matter of
hours rather than several days. That’s en-
abled them to provide faster results, reduce
the number of pending cases and give law
enforcement agencies scientific evidence to
solve crimes.
Burglary and breaking and entering cases are
the best match for the use of robotics in DNA
casework, said Steve Greene, BCI’s deputy
superintendent of laboratory operations.
Many times a suspect leaves blood at the
gov/CriminalJusticeUpdate. point of entry or elsewhere in the crime
community, visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral. scene, providing evidence that can be
sign up for e-mail updates for the criminal justice analyzed through robotics and entered and
To join the Criminal Justice Update mailing list or searched through the Combined DNA Index
System (CODIS). In about half of such cases,
Stay on top of the news the submissions match a convicted offender’s
DNA profile that’s already in the database.
(See story on Page 4.)
(800) 582-2877 Greene has overseen the Lab Division for five
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/TDIM of his 32 years with BCI. He witnessed the
Registration deadline is May 7 buildup of requests for DNA analysis in the
Hyatt Regency Columbus 1990s, when the technology wasn’t even in
May 24-25
For victim advocates, lawyers and law enforcement
Bill impacts law enforcement practices
Two Days in May
(See story on Page 5.)
Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy, London Just-approved Senate Bill 77 will bring Require the collection of a DNA sample from
11 a.m. May 6 significant changes to a number of law any adult arrested on a felony charge
Honoring Ohio’s fallen peace officers enforcement practices.
OHIO PEACE OFFICERS’ MEMORIAL
Among other things, the bill will:
coming events Require that custodial interrogations in de-
tention facilities be electronically recorded
Place restrictions on how photographic
and live lineups are conducted
Necessitate the collection and retention of
biological evidence for certain crimes
place, and he saw it peak in 2007, when it seemed
every prosecution team in the country wanted
DNA evidence to present.
Today, Greene said, there’s a better understanding
of when and where science plays a part.
“BCI has been conducting DNA analysis for 11
years, and there is a gradually developing realiza-
tion that it has its place in certain investigations,
but not in every investigation,” Greene said. “If
there is biological evidence present at a crime
scene, in most cases you want to test it for DNA.
But testing blind samples for DNA may produce
mixtures that cannot be interpreted or that yield
results that create other unanswerable questions.”
Other than increased staff within the lab units,
Greene believes databases have been the Lab scene evidence, unidentified human remains,
Division’s biggest contributor to crime-fighting in
the past three decades.
“Databases allow us to develop suspects from
a laboratory setting. But that is not to say that
investigations by law enforcement agencies are
no longer needed,” he said. “Just because a search
has produced an AFIS (Automated Fingerprint
Identification System) hit or a CODIS hit, you do
All of the new law’s provisions take effect July 6,
2010, except for the collection of DNA samples
from arrestees, which takes effect July 1, 2011.
The Attorney General’s analysis of these and
other issues will be covered in the June issue of
Criminal Justice Update and posted on the Web
at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Services/
Enforcement.
laboratory basics
The Bureau of Criminal Identification and
Investigation’s forensic labs in London, Bowling
Green and Richfield provide all services free of
charge to law enforcement agencies, prosecutors
and courts. In 2009, the Lab Division worked
30,681 assignments for 777 Ohio agencies.
not necessarily have the right person of interest. It
could mean that person was there at some point
in time, but additional investigation is needed to
further prove the hit is viable.”
Of the available databases, CODIS is the star, at
least in Greene’s view.
“CODIS is the model for a forensic database,”
he said. “The FBI developed it and continues to
administer the entire program through coopera-
tion with local and state CODIS laboratories. Every
CODIS lab in the U.S. and internationally uses the
same software and the same guidelines. Because
of that, it’s all very interactive.”
In addition to housing the DNA profiles of convict-
ed offenders, CODIS includes profiles tied to crime
missing people and relatives of missing people.
While Ohio currently logs the DNA profiles of
anyone convicted of a felony or sexually oriented
misdemeanor, newly enacted Senate Bill 77 will ex-
pand that to include any adult arrested on felony
charges. (See related story.)
A recent $1 million expansion at BCI will allow
the CODIS databasing lab to process convicted
offender samples in-house for the first time, saving
the state an estimated $500,000 a year that had
been spent on outsourcing and related quality-
assurance measures.
Diane Gehres, director of the CODIS databasing
lab, said the addition of lab space and robotics will
enable the staff to process up to 100,000 convicted
offender samples per year, twice the number that
had been outsourced.
“The robots are freeing the scientists to do other
things while they’re running,” Gehres said. “In the
databasing lab, instead of 20 samples, the robots
are working 89 convicted offender samples in a
shorter period of time than we could do manually.
Continued on Page 7
1
 From the desk of
the Ohio Attorney General
Dear Colleagues,
Almost nothing in life is certain. But a DNA test
that has only a one in 96 trillion chance of being
wrong is pretty darn close.
That is the degree of certainty to which the Ohio
Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation
(BCI) was able to link a convicted killer, Robert
Buell, to the 1981 murder of Tina Harmon, a
12-year-old Wayne County girl.
Buell was tried, convicted and executed for the
1982 murder of another girl, 11-year-old Krista
Harrison, also of Wayne County. Fibers from
the Harrison and Harmon cases matched, and
investigators concluded in the 1980s that Buell was
responsible for both crimes. But in recent years,
Harmon family members wondered whether new
technology might erase their lingering doubts.
So Wayne County Sheriff Thomas Maurer and
Prosecuting Attorney Martin Frantz reopened
the case. With the help of BCI scientists and DNA
testing, they were able to definitively prove it was
Buell who killed Tina Harmon.
OHLEG Connects to debut this summer
New tool will enhance law enforcement communications
From staff reports
A soon-to-be-introduced feature of the Ohio Law
Enforcement Gateway (OHLEG) will link Ohio
law enforcement agencies through a common
communications system for the first time.
OHLEG Connects, which the Ohio Attorney
General’s Office will roll out this summer, will
allow OHLEG users to share information, send and
receive e-mail, and form groups within their own
or among multiple agencies.
Created in 2003, OHLEG is a Web-based platform
that provides law enforcement officials with a
number of tools and applications to help solve
and prevent crime. In 2009, local and state law
enforcement accessed its search engine more than
3.8 million times.
“Other than the search engine, OHLEG Connects
will be one of the most used features on OHLEG,”
said Steve Raubenolt, deputy superintendent
of identification and OHLEG with the Bureau of
Criminal Identification and Investigation (BCI).
“Officers will be able to find one another and
2 7
Such are the scientific feats turned in every day by
the staff of BCI, which is part of the Ohio Attorney
General’s Office. BCI serves as a force multiplier for
local law enforcement by providing laboratory,
investigative and identification support to
agencies across the state.
In this edition of Criminal Justice Update, we take a
comprehensive look at the lab services BCI offers
and how those services — available free of charge
to every law enforcement agency in the state —
can help peace officers do their vital work.
We know it is important for local law enforcement
agencies to get quick, efficient and effective results
from BCI labs. When I took office in January 2009,
the evidence backlogs were substantial, and we
quickly developed plans to reduce them.
In the DNA casework unit, we used robotics,
outsourcing and administrative changes to cut
those backlogs 34 percent by the end of 2009.
Similar measures helped bring the forensic biology
unit’s backlog down 68 percent. In the Combined
communicate back and forth freely.”
The introduction of OHLEG Connects follows the
enactment of House Bill 10, which among other
things stipulates that information shared through
OHLEG is confidential. The new law also makes it
a fifth-degree felony to use OHLEG for anything
other than official business.
“For law enforcement to be able to communicate
effectively, they need to be able to talk about
investigations, procedures, uncharged suspects.
OHLEG Connects will let them to do that,”
Raubenolt said.
Raubenolt said the Attorney General’s Office is
working to make OHLEG Connects as effective and
user-friendly as possible, and it’s counting on law
enforcement to help perfect it.
“That’s how we’ve developed OHLEG over the last
six years — with input from users,” Raubenolt said.
“And that’s what we want and expect to happen
with OHLEG Connects.”
DNA Index System (CODIS) databasing unit,
robotic instruments have helped us maintain a
turnaround time of less than 45 days. We also
expedite lab work any time an agency informs
us of special time constraints.
These are significant improvements that
help law enforcement and prosecutors solve
crimes and put criminals behind bars. You can
be sure that my staff will continue to look for
advancements so that we can help bring old
cases — such as that of Tina Harmon — and
new cases alike to definitive conclusions.
Sincerely,
Richard Cordray
Ohio Attorney General
About Criminal Justice Update
Criminal Justice Update is published six times a
year by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office for
members of Ohio’s criminal justice community.
To share story ideas, e-mail
Mary.Alice.Casey@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov
or call (614) 728-5417.
Volume 2, Issue 2
April 2010
Copyright 2010
by Ohio Attorney General’s Office
30 E. Broad St., Floor 17
Columbus, OH 43215
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov
COVER story
Forensic scientist Abby Schwaderer places samples on the Tecan Freedom EVO 150 robot for DNA
analysis in the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation’s CODIS databasing lab.
Continued from Page 1
“We would never have been able to start
processing those samples in-house without
the robots,” she added.
Federal grant programs designed to reduce
DNA backlogs nationwide covered the cost
of the robots and also provided funding for
overtime and outsourcing to reduce the Lab
Division’s pending cases and speed turn-
around times.
Also, the addition of 13 scientists in fall 2008
allowed BCI to split the DNA casework and
forensic biology staffs into distinct units.
“Prior to the split, all the DNA analysts would
do both the biology and the DNA work, so
there was this constant back and forth be-
tween different tasks,” said Amy Wanken, di-
rector of the forensic biology unit. “The DNA
work is on a molecular level, so you’re dealing
with tubes, chemicals and instrumentation.
And in biology, you’re working with large
pieces of evidence and rape kits. So they rely
on different types of lab techniques. Now the
PHOTO BY BRAD DAUGHERTY
FIVE WAYS TO USE BCI LABS
TO THEIR FULLEST POTENTIAL
Directors of the Bureau of Criminal
Identification and Investgation’s Lab Division
scientists are dedicated to either one unit or the units offer these suggestions :
other, and there’s a gain in efficiency.”
Submit evidence as quickly as feasible; do not
hold it until a trial date is set.
Five lab units — CODIS, Firearms/Toolmarks,
Latent Prints, Questioned Documents and Poly-
Request the analysis that your crime
graph — met the goal of turning submissions
investigation indicates is likely to have the
around within 45 days during each quarter of
most probative impact.
2009, and Greene said other units are working
hard to hit that benchmark.
Keep the lab informed of developments
such as trial dates, custody issues, additional
In forensic biology, the number of pending cases
analysis needs or if tests are no longer
fell from a high of 1,563 cases in 2009 to 446 as
needed because a plea has been reached
of January, while the backlog in DNA casework
or charges have been dropped. Request
fell from 1,146 to 640 by the first of the year.
expedited analysis if a trial date is imminent.
And while the lab follows a first-in, first-out
Submit whole items rather than swabs
policy in its handling of assignments, work is
whenever possible.
expedited when necessary.
Contact BCI about missing persons or
“When the labs are provided with a trial date
unidentified human remains cases. Project
or other date crucial to the investigation,” Greene
Link uses CODIS and DNA samples from
said, “that case receives a priority assignment.”
remains or relatives to solve such cases.
Mary Alice Casey is senior editor in the Ohio
Attorney General’s Office.
 OPOTA is coming your way
Departments give thumbs up to regional training lineup
By Mary Alice Casey
The Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy is on the
move, and law enforcement agencies around the
state appear to like the direction.
As part of an initiative to bring instruction closer to
the agencies it serves, OPOTA is offering free, half-
day regional training sessions on selected topics.
Sessions updating officers on criminal procedures
and drug trends are ongoing, while trainings
focusing on gangs are planned in urban areas of
the state later this year.
“Training budgets are obviously very limited for
all law enforcement agencies. They can’t always
afford to break their officers loose or to cover
travel expenses to an OPOTA facility in London
or Richfield,” said OPOTA Executive Director Bob
Fiatal, who coordinated the trainings as deputy
director of law enforcement services. “By offering
half-day sessions closer to them, we’ve constructed
it so they can fit the training and travel time into
an eight-hour shift. And the sessions are free.
Some officers are signing up on their days off.”
Nearly 1,000 peace officers had signed up for the
criminal procedure updates around the state by
the end of March, and registration is still open
for several of the sessions. The trainings address
search and seizure, right to counsel and DUI laws
and procedures.
The positive response prompted OPOTA to offer
sessions in other areas of the state and to schedule
additional sessions in Perrysburg and Richfield,
where demand exceeded expectations.
The Attorney General’s Office and OPOTA are
collaborating on the trainings with other agencies.
For the criminal justice sessions, those partners
are the Ohio Department of Public Safety
and Ohio Department of Health. The Franklin
County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio High Intensity
Drug Training Area are assisting with the drug
education effort. And police departments in Akron,
Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and
Toledo are contributing to the sessions on gangs,
as are the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification
and Investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office,
the Mid-Atlantic Great Lakes Law Enforcement
Network and Ohio Department of Rehabilitation
and Correction.
Some of the state’s basic peace officer training
schools and local law enforcement leaders have
provided sites for the sessions.
“Any training that I can put my deputies through
helps them,” said Harrison County Sheriff Joe
Myers, who arranged to host a drug education
session at the Harrison Career Center. “Law
6 3
trainings
enforcement is held to a higher standard than
other professions, and to meet that, you need
training. You never can be over-trained.”
Although Myers sends deputies to training
sessions at OPOTA’s Richfield campus as his budget
allows, he appreciates the regional offerings.
“We don’t have a big budget here. This gives
deputies and police in the area a chance to get
training, and it’s not going to cost us a lot of
money,” he added.
Worthington Police Chief Michael Mauger is
glad to see the trainings address important law
enforcement basics.
“Officers are more likely to fail in their mission
when they lack the knowledge of law changes,
search and seizure, and use of force,” Mauger said.
“Too often we spend more time on trendy training
topics than we do on the core matter. I agree we
have to bring issues that are new to our officers’
attention, but we should not forget the basics.”
Fiatal said OPOTA will base plans for future regional
trainings on the success of the current offerings.
Questions? For more information or to express an
interest in hosting a regional training, contact Bob
Fiatal at Robert.Fiatal@OhioAttorneyGeneral.
gov or (740) 845-2700.
UPCOMING Training Sessions
AROUND THE STATE
Criminal Procedure Update
May 12: Youngstown State University
June 2: Great Oaks Police Academy, Cincinnati
June 23: Lima FOP Hall
July 15: Mansfield FOP Hall
Still to be scheduled: Marietta and Defiance
Operation: Street Smart
Drug Education Training
May 4: Wood County Sheriff’s Office
June 29: Harrison Career Center, Cadiz
Aug. 10: Centerville Police Department
Oct. 19: Ohio Department of Transportation,
Columbus
To register for any of these sessions, which
are provided at no cost to law enforcement
agencies, visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.
gov/OPOTA or call (740) 845-2700.
To register for these and
other trainings, visit the Web at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Events
and view the trainings column. All
courses are at the Ohio Peace Officer
Training Academy, 1650 Ohio 56,
London, Ohio, unless otherwise noted.
Finding Words
May 10–14
Tuition cost: $200
The five-day course teaches investigators and
prosecutors how to interview child abuse victims.
It qualifies social workers for Con­tinuing Education
Unit (CEU) credit and attorneys for Continuing Legal
Education (CLE) credit.
Electronic Surveillance Training
May 18–19, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.
Richfield OPOTA Campus
Tuition cost: $100
The two-day course provides legal, administrative,
practical and technical training to certify
investigators and prosecutors to conduct
wiretapping and electronic surveillance. An
application for pre-approved CLEs is pending with
the Ohio Supreme Court.
BASICS
June 13–18
Tuition cost: Free
The weeklong course instructs victim advocates
on issues related to child abuse, domestic violence,
crisis intervention, legal advocacy, trauma care and
death notification. CEUs are available through the
Counselor, Social Worker and Marriage and Family
Therapist Board.
Elder Abuse Training for Law Enforcement
June 21–22, Aug. 19–20, Sept. 30–Oct. 1
Tuition cost: Free
This course helps law enforcement protect the
elderly from physical abuse, mental anguish,
financial loss and violation of rights. Continuing
Professional Training credit is available.
Sexual Assault Training
June 24–25, Cambridge
Oct. 14–15, Marion
Dec. 16–17, Chillicothe
Tuition cost: Free
Training consists of two sessions: Non-Stranger
Sexual Assault Response and Investigation,
aimed at peace officers with minimal experience
investigating sexual assault; and Identifying Sex
Offenders: Tools for Interview and Interrogation.
Officers are encouraged to attend both days; that is
required for second-day participation.
News & notes
Fiatal named executive director
of training commission, academy
The Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission
has named Bob Fiatal executive director
of the comission and Ohio Peace Officer
Training Academy, effective April 22.
Fiatal, 59, replaces Ron Ferrell, who is
returning to his previous position as police
chief for the city of Mason.
This is Fiatal’s fourth assignment within
the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. He has
served as deputy director of law enforcement
services for OPOTA since February 2009. Prior
to assuming that post, he served briefly as
the academy’s acting executive director and
led the Bureau of Criminal Identification and
Investigation (BCI) from October 2007 to
January 2009.
An attorney and former FBI agent, Fiatal
brings a strong combination of skills to the
office’s law enforcement responsibilities,
Attorney General Richard Cordray said.
“Bob Fiatal has been instrumental in Valor Award, honoring officers who have
bringing regional training to local law
enforcement, which agencies strapped
for personnel and budget welcome and
appreciate,” Cordray said. “I am confident
that the outstanding work Chief Ferrell has
undertaken to serve the training needs of
local law enforcement — and the important
work done every day by our top-flight
instructors — will continue moving forward
with the innovation and professionalism that
local law enforcement deserves.”
Ohioans seek record number
of concealed handgun licenses
Ohio’s county sheriffs issued a record number
of concealed handgun licenses last year. In
all, 56,691 handgun licenses were issued to
Ohioans in 2009. That tops the previous high
of 45,497, set in 2004 when the concealed
handgun law went into effect.
Totals for other years were:
22,487 in 2005
18,781 in 2006
22,103 in 2007
33,864 in 2008
County sheriffs report the statistics
quarterly to the Ohio Peace Officer Training
Commission, part of the Attorney General’s
Ohio consumers’
top 10 complaints
Every year, the Ohio Attorney General’s Consumer
Office. The office posts the statistics and other Protection Section compiles a list of the top 10
resources at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/ categories of complaints. Here is the breakdown
ConcealedCarry.
for 2009:
Law Enforcement Conference
scheduled for Sept. 14-15
The Ohio Attorney General’s Law Enforce­
ment Conference is Sept.14-15 at the Greater
Columbus Convention Center. This year’s theme is
Partnerships in Crime Prevention.
The event will include workshops, plenary sessions
and networking opportunities for state, county
and municipal law enforcement. Attorney General
1
Richard Cordray also will present Ohio Distin- Motorized vehicles
guished Law Enforcement Awards to officers from
across Ohio.
2
Nominations will be accepted through May 28 for Collections, credit
the awards, which include: reporting and financial
The Mark Losey Ohio Distinguished Law
Enforcement Service Award, recognizing services
law enforcement officers who demonstrate
outstanding commitment to their community in
3
the pursuit of justice
The Ohio Distinguished Law Enforcement Household goods and
property improvement
distinguished themselves above and beyond the
call of duty
The Ohio Distinguished Law Enforcement Group
4
Achievement Award, recognizing a group’s Internet and phone
accomplishment of a mission
The Ohio Distinguished Law Enforcement
Training Award, commending training officers’
5
impact on law enforcement Shopping, food
and beverages
To nominate individuals for awards, visit www.
OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/LEConference.
Registration for the conference will open in June.
6 Mortgages
Opinions focus on prosecutors’ offices,
housing of out-of-state prisoners
7 Computers and electronics
The Opinions Section of the Ohio Attorney
General’s Office provides guidance on legal
questions for state agencies, county prosecutors,
home rule township law directors and others.
8 Professional services
Several recent opinions focus on the work
of county prosecutors and assistant county
prosecutors. These include opinions 2009-045,
9 Health and beauty
2009-049, 2009-050, 2009-053, 2009-055 and 2010-
010. Another, 2010-004, deals with the authority of
a county to enter into a contract to house out-of-
state prisoners.
10 Utilities
The full text of the office’s opinions appears at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Opinions.
 Serving every victim, every time
Two Days in May conference to examine invisible crimes
By Allison D’Aurora
Elder abuse and human trafficking are among
society’s most distressing crimes — and some of
the hardest to detect.
The Ohio Attorney General’s 19th annual Two
Days in May Conference will address obstacles
in recognizing these and other less-researched
crimes and identify ways to effectively reach out
to victims. The conference, set for May 24–25 at
the Columbus Hyatt Regency, features workshops,
speakers, award presentations and networking
opportunities.
“We have to be able to stay cutting-edge to assist
the many victims we serve,” said conference
coordinator Venica Miller of the Attorney General’s
Crime Victims Assistance and Prevention Section.
“Ohio does not yet have case law to help with the
prosecution of perpetrators of human trafficking
under the human trafficking specification. With
elder abuse, recognizing the signs is so important
because abuse can be mistaken for common
health issues in elderly victims.”
The conference, which last year drew about 500
attendees, gives participants an opportunity to
build networks, exchange ideas and sharpen
Prosecutors to
sharpen their
capital case skills
Two-day session planned this fall
By Allison D’Aurora
There are no small decisions for a prosecutor in a
capital case. Even the first one — “Should this be
a capital case?” — has wide-ranging and lasting
ramifications. And once a prosecutor decides to
seek a capital indictment, every step must be
carefully measured because it will be scrutinized
by state and federal judges for years to come.
To prepare prosecutors for such cases, Ohio
Attorney General Richard Cordray’s office will host
a free, two-day training in capital litigation Sept. 30
and Oct. 1 at Cleveland’s Wyndham Hotel.
“This training will help to bring prosecutors up to
date on legal developments, and it will help the
county offices get their new prosecutors trained
on the fundamentals,” said Matt Kanai, general
counsel for law enforcement with the Ohio
Attorney General’s Office. “Also, we’ll be providing
4 5
skills. Lori King, a victim advocate with the Ohio
Department of Rehabilitation and Correction who
has attended the conference since 1997, said Two
Days in May provides her with an affordable way to
continue her education in advocacy.
“You always walk away knowing you are learning
from some of the best in the state and, in some
cases, in the United States,” King said. “It is an
opportunity to network with new and old friends
and share ideas to build relationships with
community partners. It is a chance to gather
materials that can be used as an everyday guide to
the best practices in the field of advocacy.”
Attorney General Richard Cordray formed the
Ohio Trafficking in Persons Study Commission
to examine the scope of human trafficking in
the state and recommend ways to identify and
prosecute cases, assist survivors and prevent
victimization. He established the Ohio Elder
Abuse Commission to improve the justice system’s
responsiveness to older adults and identify
funding, research and programming needs.
Both commissions will provide updates on their
work at Two Days in May.
unique information on what kind of forensic
investigation is available and how prosecutors can
use it in their trials.”
Kanai points out that capital cases can be won or
lost at literally every phase of the trial:
With improper or uninformed jury selection
In applying the death qualification, which allows
for the exclusion of a juror based on his or her
views of the death penalty
If opening and closing remarks cross into
improper arguments
When evidence is complex and overwhelms or
fatigues the jury
During the penalty phase — a second trial at
which the jury decides whether to impose the
death penalty. Federal courts reverse more
capital sentences based on the prosecutor’s or
defense counsel’s conduct at the penalty phase
than at any other part of the trial.
Kanai landed a $100,000 grant from Department
of Justice’s Capital Case Litigation Initiative to
fund this offering and a smaller, advanced training
on the topic planned for 2011. Both will provide
participating attorneys with free continuing legal
education hours.
Attendees will hear from experienced capital
case litigators, Attorney General’s Office staff
“As advocates we need to be aware of these
issues in order to assist crime victims,” King said.
“We need to have a better understanding of the
dynamics of these crimes and know where to
gather resources in order to better serve victims.”
The conference’s keynote speakers, Celia
Williamson and Cathy Collins-Taylor, also will
focus on these important topics.
Williamson is an associate professor in the
University of Toledo’s Department of Social
Work. She serves on Cordray’s Trafficking in
Persons Study Commission and co-chairs an
annual conference on human trafficking.
Collins-Taylor heads the Ohio Department of
Public Safety. She spent 26 years as an officer
with the Columbus Police Department, where
she established the Exploited Children’s Unit.
Allison D’Aurora is an intern with the Ohio Attorney
General’s Office.
TO REGISTER FOR TWO DAYS IN MAY
Registration forms may be downloaded at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/TDIM.
Cost of the conference is $50 per person.
Details on the elder abuse and human
trafficking commissions can be found at www.
OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/ElderAbuse
and www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/
TraffickingReport.
and Bureau of Criminal Identification and
Investigation specialists on how to effectively
conduct capital trials from beginning to end.
They will discuss deciding whether to indict
for capital murder, handling Brady material —
evidence favorable to the defendant — and
succeeding during the penalty phase.
The training also will address how best to
present forensic evidence to juries affected by
what prosecutors call “the CSI effect.”
“Shows like ‘CSI’ have given the general public
the unrealistic belief that all crimes result in
physical evidence, that all that evidence can be
conclusively tested — usually within minutes —
and that those tests can always be conclusively
linked back to one person,” Kanai said. “None of
those things are true.”
The Attorney General’s Office will send
registration information to all of Ohio’s county
prosecutors later this spring. In the meantime,
those interested in more information can
contact Assistant Attorney General Seth Kestner
of the Capital Crimes Unit at (614) 644-7233 or
Seth.Kestner@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov.
Allison D’Aurora is an intern with the Ohio Attorney
General’s Office.
in the courts
Rulings address timing, clarity of
Miranda warnings
Two recent United States Supreme Court rulings
— Maryland v. Shatzer and Florida v. Powell —
address Miranda warnings.
In Shatzer, the court establishes a 14-day cooling-
off period that prevents law enforcement from re-
interrogating a suspect who previously invoked
his right to counsel.
In 2003, Michael Shatzer was incarcerated in a
Maryland correctional institution when local
authorities interrogated him about a crime. After
being advised of his Miranda rights, he invoked
his right to counsel, and the interrogation ended.
Two and half years later, police again questioned
Shatzer about the same criminal activity after
providing Miranda warnings, which he waived.
The Maryland high court, relying on the U.S.
Supreme Court’s ruling in Edwards v. Arizona,
concluded that Shatzer’s 2003 invocation of his
right to counsel still applied and he could not be
questioned in 2006 unless the state provided him
with counsel first.
The U.S. Supreme Court reversed, finding that
a break in custody plus the passage of 14 days
is a sufficient cooling-off period to allow law
enforcement to re-interrogate because it provides
the suspect time to return to his normal routine
and talk with friends and family. The high
court also found that if the suspect is already
incarcerated on an unrelated charge, returning
him to his normal incarceration is a “release” from
Miranda custody.
The recent decision provides a simple-to-apply
rule: If a suspect invokes his right to counsel, law
enforcement must cease interrogation or provide
him with counsel. If the suspect is released and
law enforcement picks him up for questioning
about the same crime within 14 days, the
interrogation is presumptively involuntary even
if the suspect waives his right to counsel in the
second interrogation. If more than 14 days have
elapsed since the release and the suspect waives
his right to counsel, his statements are voluntary.
Law enforcement officers are advised, therefore,
not to re-interrogate a suspect who has invoked
his right to counsel until 14 days have passed
from his release from custodial interrogation. Any
re-initiation should be prefaced with Miranda
warnings and waiver.
Legal instructors are urged to consider this
case when discussing invocation of the right to
counsel under Miranda.
In light of court’s ruling in Florida v. Powell, the
Attorney General’s Office is advising its law
enforcement agents of the importance of using
clear, precise and conventional language when
reviewing Miranda forms.
The court, citing the federal government’s brief,
emphasized it is in law enforcement’s interest
to state warnings with maximum clarity in order
to reduce the risk that a court will later find the
advice inadequate and suppress a suspect’s
statement. It endorsed the FBI’s standard
warning as exemplary. It reads: “You have the
right to talk to a lawyer for advice before we ask
you any questions. You have the right to have a
lawyer with you during questioning.”
In Florida v. Powell, the U.S. Supreme Court
determined that Miranda warnings that fail to
expressly state that a suspect has a right to have
an attorney present during questioning, but that
advise he has “the right to talk to a lawyer before
answering any of our questions” and the right to
exercise that right at “anytime you want during
this interview,” satisfy Miranda.
In the Powell case, Tampa police officers read
the suspect, Kevin Powell, their department’s
standard Miranda form prior to custodial
interrogation. Powell waived those rights
and admitted he owned a handgun found in
a search. He subsequently was charged with
possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.
The Florida Supreme Court determined that the
Miranda warnings suggested the suspect could
consult with an attorney only before police
started to question him.
Law enforcement agencies with questions about
how court rulings affect procedures should
contact their legal counsel. General questions
on these rulings also may be directed to Matt
Kanai, general counsel for law enforcement with
the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, at Matthew.
Kanai@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov or (614)
466-9595.
“You have the right to talk to a
lawyer for advice before we ask
you any questions. You have the
right to have a lawyer with you
during questioning.”
— FBI’s standard Miranda warning,
considered exemplary by the U.S. Supreme Court
Ohio peace officers
to honor peers who
died in line of duty
By Allison D’Aurora
The state’s law
enforcement community
will gather in May to
remember the lone Ohio
peace officer killed in the
line of duty last year and
to recognize four histor­­­­ical
honorees from the 19th
Jarod Dean and 20th centuries.
The Ohio Peace Officers’ Memorial Ceremony will
take place at 11 a.m. May 6 at the Fallen Officers’
Memorial, located at the Ohio Peace Officer
Training Academy in London.
Jarod Dean, an officer with the Boston Heights
Police Department, was killed in January 2009
while clearing debris along the roadway after an
earlier accident.
The National Law Enforcement Memorial board
also approved recognition of these fallen officers
who helped shape Ohio’s law enforcement history:
Deputy Jacob Helbert and Constable W.H. Kelly
of the Ashland County Sheriff’s Office, who were
shot in February 1888 as they attempted to
serve warrants on four men
Assistant Marshal Edward H. Davis of the
Nelsonville Police Department, who was shot in
April 1888 by a man he had previously arrested
for a traffic violation
Marshal Clem Howard of the Chauncey Police
Department, who was shot in April 1913 as he
attempted to arrest a man who had shot another
man earlier in the evening
The ceremony will feature a pipe and drum
procession of “Amazing Grace”; color guards
from across the state; a flyover; and mounted,
motorcycle and canine units. Attendees also will
hear from three speakers: Virginia Morgan, sister of
late Dayton police officer Mary Beall; Ohio Peace
Officer Training Commission Chairperson Vernon
Stanforth; and Attorney General Richard Cordray.
Peace officers are asked to wear dress uniforms
with shields and badges covered with a black sash.
To RSVP for the memorial service, visit
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/OPOTA.
A Fraternal Order of Police motorcade to the
memorial will depart the state FOP lodge at 222 E.
Town St., Columbus, at 10 a.m. that day. To RSVP or
receive more information, contact Denise Young at
(800) 367-6524 by May 3.