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Dewine In Athens To Officially Open New BCI Office
By: Cheri Russo
Posted on:
Ohio's Attorney General is in Athens today to mark the opening of the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation office.
The office on Columbus Road will serve local law enforcement agencies in several counties of Southeast Ohio.
The idea is to make it easier for police and prosecutors to deliver evidence to be processed by the BCI lab and to give them access to full-time polygraph services.
"As Attorney General, I made a commitment to make BCI the premier crime lab in the country for the protection of all Ohioans. The BCI Athens Office, with its full-time presence in Southeast Ohio, brings BCI closer to that goal," said DeWine.
In 2010, law enforcement agencies in southeastern Ohio counties submitted 1,180 cases to the BCI London laboratory for examination.
In Athens County, the Sheriff's Office submitted 99 cases and the Athens Police Department submitted 51 cases.
"In law enforcement, time is of the essence in getting criminals off the street. Having full-time evidence intake facilities accessible in all areas of Ohio means that law enforcement can utilize evidence to identify suspects more quickly," DeWine said.
The BCI Office in Athens joins the BCI Main Office in London; the other regional offices in Bowling Green, Richfield, and Youngstown; and the part-time evidence intake facility in Cambridge.