Time has come for DeWine’s reform plan

In the wake of the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial — and yet another fatal shooting by Columbus police — Gov. Mike DeWine is once again trying to make the case to his sensible police-reform proposals. Mr. DeWine argues that Democrats and Republicans should be able to come together on the plan and he’s right.

The governor, whose background as a former prosecutor and attorney general give him good insight in the issue, has proposed a smart and comprehensive package of measures that would make Ohio’s law enforcement officers and the communities they protect safer.

DeWine’s police-reform proposal, which he initially introduced in 2020, calls for psychological testing for officers, body cameras for all police officers as well as more state aid to fund them.

He’s called for creation of databases to track use-of-force complaints and officer discipline.

Mr. DeWine also would require law-enforcement agencies to follow standards created by the governor’s Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board for issues such as body-camera use and antibias training.

The plan would help communities improve their police

departments and make rules and training consistent across the state.

It’s full of good ideas and state aid to implement them.

And just as with his sensible gun-safety reform measures, the Republican faction controlling the General Assembly has petulantly ignored it.

In the meantime, only a small portion of Ohio’s nearly 900 law enforcement departments can afford body cameras for all their officers or the kind of training that would help police officers on the streets.

There have been eight fatal police shootings in Columbus since January, 2020. The most recent, the killing of 15-yearold Ma’Khia Bryant on the very afternoon of the Chauvin verdict in Minnesota, has once again ignited protests, undermined confidence in police, and drawn national attention.

If now is not the time to move ahead with proposals to make Ohio a safer state for both police and the civilians they serve, then when?

The shooting in Columbus should be a wake-up call that better policies and better funded statewide resources for law enforcement could potentially prevent the next tragic loss of life.

Republican leaders in Columbus should dust off the governor’s police-reform proposal and get it moving through the General Assembly.

If now is not the time to move ahead with proposals to make Ohio a safer state for both police and the civilians they serve, then when?