Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey Tuesday promised an investigation of the neo-Nazi demonstration between Lincoln Heights and Evendale earlier this month as well as law enforcement's response to the hate group.
McGuffey said her office has been in contact with the FBI, the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office, and other agencies about that inquiry.
She also said the Sheriff's Office and other agencies are working to identify the roughly dozen masked neo-Nazis who demonstrated on a highway overpass between Lincoln Heights and Evendale Feb. 7 in order to keep tabs on hate groups. She said she believes they came from outside Greater Cincinnati.
"We do have intelligence — a great deal of it," she said. "We're working that intelligence, getting information from other agencies and other people who are watching these groups. We are working right now to identify these men."
The sheriff also said her office is handing over body camera footage and other materials to Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich for an investigation into law enforcement's response to the incident. Hamilton County commissioners, State Rep. Cecil Thomas and others have called for an investigation into the response that day.
"Connie Pillich's office has agreed to research legal and constitutional issues that may apply here," McGuffey said. "And our internal affairs office is conducting an administrative review."
Questions over police response
The demonstration sparked a counter-protest from residents of Lincoln Heights, who confronted the hate group. The neo-Nazis quickly left, but some Lincoln Heights and Lockland residents still have questions about why none of the demonstrators were charged with any crimes.
Law enforcement officials in statements have said the main focus the day of the demonstration was on keeping the peace, not issuing citations for minor violations like riding in the back of a U-Haul.
Other questions have emerged about how the neo-Nazis' U-Haul ended up on a street just outside Lockland Schools immediately after the demonstration.
Security footage provided by Lockland Local Schools and viewed by WVXU shows a police cruiser and the U-Haul exit southbound I-75 at Lockland. Both vehicles cross South Cooper Avenue and pull into an alley between the school parking lot and a convenience store.
The officer exits his vehicle and appears to talk with people in the front of the truck.
“When we look at the timing of this, they were here four minutes — from dismissal of every preschool through fourth grade student that we serve in our school district,” Superintendent Bob Longworth says. “These are men that are carrying symbols of hatred to install fear in the hearts of those who we serve. And we take that very personally.”
McGuffey declined to answer questions about the Evendale Police Department's response to the incident. WVXU has reached out to the city of Evendale for a response to Lockland Schools' statement, but has not received an answer.
McGuffey called the roughly dozen masked hate group members who waved swastika flags and carried assault rifles "cowards." She said the Ohio General Assembly should pass stricter laws regulating having guns in public while wearing a mask.
"I'm calling on the Ohio legislature to give us options, to put some laws in place, so that we can take action on these individuals, so we can identify them, so we can prohibit them from wearing masks, so we can confront this hate speech in an appropriate and concise way," she said.
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