Hardin County Sheriff’s Office Among 16 Agencies Recertified for Meeting Statewide Policing Standards

The Office of Criminal Justice Services announced today the recertification of 16 Ohio law enforcement agencies for state standards established by the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board.

Agencies completing the process have recertified their adherence to the initial two standards regarding use of force and hiring and recruitment. The recertification process takes place on a revolving, three to four-year cycle.

Please see list below of recently recertified agencies:

• Columbus Division of Police (Franklin)
• Goshen Township Police Department (Clermont)
• Granville Police Department (Licking)
• Hardin County Sheriff’s Office
• Medina Township Police Department (Medina)
• Metro RTA Transit Police Department (Summit)
• New Bremen Police Department (Auglaize)
• New Lebanon Police Department (Montgomery)
• Oxford Township Police Department (Butler)
• Painesville Police Department (Lake)
• Perrysburg Township Police Department (Wood)
• Ravenna Police Department (Portage)
• Terrace Park Police Department (Hamilton)
• Toronto Police Department (Jefferson)
• Wadsworth Police Department (Medina)
• Wayne County Sheriff’s Office

Overall, there are 634 certified agencies throughout Ohio that have met the initial standards. Additionally, 29,825 officers (representing 90.70% of all law enforcement officers in Ohio, including most of Ohio’s metropolitan areas) are employed by an agency that is involved in some form of the certification process.

The Collaborative was formed in 2015 to create uniform standards for Ohio’s law enforcement agencies. The first two standards were developed by the Collaborative in 2015 to improve the trust between citizens and law enforcement officers.

Additional standards established by the Collaborative address community engagement, bias-free policing, body-worn cameras, vehicular pursuits, telecommunicator training, employee misconduct, mass protests, agency wellness, interaction with minors, interaction with people in crisis, property room management and evidence control, and ballistic evidence testing. The standards are the first of their kind in Ohio and were developed and established by the Collaborative as part of the state’s efforts to strengthen community and police relations.

The state has partnered with the Buckeye State Sheriffs’ Association and the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police to help certify Ohio’s 900-plus law enforcement agencies on a process to ensure that they are in compliance with Ohio’s standards. The complete list of agencies who have and have not been certified can be found at by accessing the Collaborative website.