Repeat violent offenders who illegally have a gun can face federal penalties in Cincinnati

CINCINNATI — Repeat violent offenders found to illegally have a gun will be one focus of a new push to curb crime in Cincinnati, Governor Mike DeWine said during a press conference Tuesday.

The Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Force Team, DeWine said, will focus on the people currently wanted for violent crime as well as those who have served time and are now violating the terms of their post-release control. The governor said these operations focus on people who have committed arson, sexual assault, murder and more.

"Every city in this state has a relatively small number of violent criminals who cause 80-90% of the violence," DeWine said during the press conference. "These are the individuals that we are going after, and these are the individuals that we need to get off the street."

The offense that was repeated during the press conference was a felony charge of "having weapons while under disability."

"It's kind of a strange term, but that's what we're really talking about," said DeWine.

The charge means there's a reason the person is not legally allowed to have a gun.

Under Ohio law, no one can be in possession of a gun if:

• They're a fugitive from justice
• They're currently under indictment for or were previously convicted of a violent felony
• They're currently under indictment or were previously convicted of a felony drug charge
• They have a dependency on drugs or alcohol
• They have declared mental incompetence in court, have been committed to a mental institution or have a court order finding them mentally ill

Here's what DeWine and other officials said about new efforts to curb crime:

DeWine also stressed that under this new partnership, they're going to be transferring cases, involving repeat violent offenders having weapons under disability from state to federal court.

"We know that by banding together and targeting these individuals, we can make a huge difference," said DeWine.

We looked into the state and federal statutes and found that the penalties do differ.

Under Ohio statute, the prison time for someone convicted of having weapons while under disability carries a term of nine to 36 months in state prison.

However, if they're convicted in federal court, the penalty carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison.

"We can take cases where a gun is seized at a traffic stop, from a CPD officer on a violent offender, someone with prior offenses for aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary," said U.S. Attorney Dominick Gerace, Southern District of Ohio.