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Former state Sen. Nina Turner and Gov. John Kasich listen to Ohio Department of Public Safety Director John Born speak during a press conference about the Ohio Task Force on Community-Police Relations's report on May 4, 2015 at Cleveland State University's Wolstein Center. Turner and Born are co-chairs of the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board, which developed statewide standards for police use of force and hiring practices.

(File photo)

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- More than 500 Ohio law enforcement agencies have implemented or started to adopt statewide standards designed to improve the relationship between communities and their police departments.

So far, 506 of the state's 877 law enforcement agencies have adopted or are working toward adopting statewide standards for use of force, use of deadly force and the recruitment and hiring of police officers, according to a new report from the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board.

The full report is available at the bottom of this post.

"This is a landmark moment for the state of Ohio," John Born, the director of the state's Department of Public Safety and co-chairman of the advisory board, said Thursday in a phone interview. "This makes Ohio a national leader in community-police relations."

Gov. John Kasich created the advisory board in 2015 in the wake of the U.S. Justice Department's blistering report on the use of force by police in Cleveland, and the high-profile police shootings of Tamir Rice in Cleveland and John Crawford III in Beavercreek. The advisory board worked with community and law enforcement partners to create statewide standards designed to improve the relationship between police departments and the communities they serve.

The 506 agencies that have begun to adopt the statewide standards employ nearly 80 percent of the state's law enforcement officers and serve nearly 80 percent of the state's residents, the advisory board said in its report.

Former state Sen. Nina Turner, who is co-chairwoman of the advisory board, said she is hopeful other agencies will adopt the statewide standards in the future.

"Every law enforcement agency in this state should be able to meet, or exceed, [the standards]," she said in a phone interview.

In Cuyahoga County, 55 of the 69 law enforcement agencies are in the process of certification. In Summit County, 21 of the 26 are working toward implementing the state standards.

The Cleveland Division of Police has not adopted the statewide standards because it is focused on meeting the terms of an agreement, known as a consent decree, with the U.S. Justice Department, Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said.

Cleveland will begin the statewide certification process after it reforms its policies and practices through the consent decree, she said.

"The Cleveland Division of Police remains focused on modifying and creating the new policies necessary to attain compliance with the existing settlement agreement," Ciaccia said in a statement. "The new policies are not only in line with the state minimum requirements, but in most cases do exceed the minimum requirements."

Departments in other large cities such as Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Dayton and Akron have already completed the certification process, according to the report.

The following Cuyahoga County and Summit County law enforcement agencies have adopted the statewide standards:

Cuyahoga County: Bay Village, Beachwood, Berea, Broadview Heights, Brook Park, Brooklyn, Case Western Reserve University, Chagrin Falls, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Heights, Cleveland Metroparks Rangers, Cleveland State University, Cuyahoga County Community College, Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Department, Cuyahoga Heights, Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, East Cleveland, Euclid, Fairview Park, Garfield Heights, Gates Mills, Glenwillow, Greater Cleveland RTA, Highland Heights, Hunting Valley, Independence, Lakewood, Mayfield Heights, Mayfield Village, MetroHealth, Middleburg Heights, Moreland Hills, Newburgh Heights, North Olmsted, North Randall, North Royalton, Notre Dame College, Olmsted Falls, Olmsted Township, Orange Village, Parma, Parma Heights, Pepper Pike, Richmond Heights, Rocky River, Seven Hills, Shaker Heights, Solon, South Euclid, Strongsville, University Circle, University Heights, Valley View, Walton Hills, Westlake.

Summit County: Akron, Barberton, Bath Township, Boston Heights, Copley Township, Cuyahoga Falls, Fairlawn, Hudson, Monroe Falls, New Franklin, Northfield, Norton, Sagamore Hills, Springfield Township, Stow, Summa Health System, Summit County Sheriff's Office, Summit Metro Parks Rangers, Tallmadge, Twinsburg, University of Akron.

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