According to Dayton police, between 1974 and 2023, half of people arrested on weapons charges are repeat offenders who have been arrested at least five times before.
Chief Kamran Afzal said a small portion of the city’s population is actually involved in violent crimes. However, recent numbers reflect a drop in incidents.
"We are down about 18% in almost every category for violent crime. For shooting into habitations over the last two years, we're down 41% that's when somebody's house is shot," Afzal said. "Those are great things but the job isn't done by any stretch of the imagination."
This is why the police and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office are working with Ohio intelligence analysts to identify where most crime happens and to identify the individuals involved.
Monday morning, Gov. Mike DeWine and other state leaders described a new multi-prong alliance called the Violent Crime Initiative. It involves several local and state agencies including the Ohio Narcotics Intelligence Center, the Ohio Adult Parole Authority and the Ohio Investigative Unit.
"Liquor control agents with the Ohio Investigative Unit enforce Ohio's liquor laws and can make arrests anywhere that liquor is sold in the state," DeWine said. "Oftentimes they'll find patrons illegally carrying guns on the premises. Every illegally possessed gun we can get off the streets is a gun that won't be used to hurt someone in the future."
Support will also come from the State Highway Patrol and its Aviation Unit, which Col. Charles Jones describes as a vital tool.
"Helping to reduce the risk and liability, and that's very, very important, reduce the risk and liability while tracking criminal activity from above," Jones said. "By working side by side with shared communication and coordinated command, we strengthen officer safety, improve our ability to respond quickly, and create a more comprehensive approach to violent crime."
Andy Wilson, director of Ohio’s Department of Public Safety, said this data based collaboration is also happening in other cities including Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo, Columbus and Youngstown and early results are positive.
"So Youngstown brought us up in 2021. They had had a rash of shootings and homicides. We took our analyst and studied what was going on. And we were able to use our analysts to track those down to six people," said Wilson. "From June 2025 to the first week of September, they had had no homicides. And anybody who knows anything about violent crime, your summer is where you have your spikes in homicide."
DeWine believes by using data, the collaboration of state and local agencies will be more effective in initiating targeted arrests.
"Under Ohio law, if you have already been convicted of a violent crime in the past, you can't carry a firearm, period. No exceptions. But so many people do it anyway," said DeWine. "So it makes sense for us to focus in on those who are breaking the law just by possessing a firearm and to get them in custody before they can use that firearm."
The state is also launching a website, publicsafety.ohio.gov/VCI.
It will post data about felony arrests, weapons collected and stolen items recovered. It will also have information about those arrested, including any prior offenses.
Meanwhile, DeWine is issuing a warning to anyone who chooses to commit a violent crime in Ohio.
"To the repeat violent offenders who continuously disregard the law and illegally carry guns, we have this as a warning today. We're using the combined expertise of every one of these agencies to find you, to put you in jail, to put you in prison, and get you out of the community," said DeWine.
This year according to the state, the collaboration of local and state resources have resulted in nearly 500 felony arrests and the seizure of more than 150 illegally possessed firearms across Ohio.
