MONROE, Ohio — Monroe City Council voted
5-0 Tuesday to stop using Flock Safety license-plate cameras, end the city’s contract when it legally can, and bar new spending on the system. The Ordinance directs the city manager to send Flock written notice of non-renewal, deactivate cameras in Monroe as soon as practical, stop collecting new vehicle data, and cut off the city’s access to the Flock platform. The ordinance also forbids future appropriations for Flock cameras, software, leases, maintenance, or similar services. Council first approved 23 Flock cameras in April 2024. A July 2024 amendment added $2,200 for two stand-alone poles. The contract runs 24 months and renews automatically unless the city gives at least 30 days’ notice. The ordinance takes effect immediately. It says the city must not break the existing contract and must end the agreement at the earliest lawful date. Mayor Keith Funk and Vice Mayor Christina McElfresh were absent. Voting yes were Council members Michael Graves, Todd Hickman, Tom Hagedorn, Jordan Brown, and Molly Cloyd. Residents split over privacy and public safety. Deborah Ridenour, a 20-year military veteran, urged Council to shut the cameras off. She said she took an oath to defend the Fourth Amendment and called the cameras a “digital dragnet” residents never consented to. Another veteran, speaking for the first time at Council, asked members to keep the cameras. He said they help solve crimes around the clock, deter offenders, and cost less than hiring more officers. He argued there is no reasonable expectation of privacy for a license plate on a public road and asked Council to put the question on the ballot if members were unsure.

Brian Curlis, a Monroe resident since 1999 and also a veteran, said public safety is a core job of local government. He cited Ohio Attorney General comments that license-plate readers help find violent criminals and missing children, and he said Monroe’s police chief previously told Council the system helped intercept someone coming into the city with a weapon. Austin T. said about 40 people had signed a petition to end the contract and that more could not attend because of work and bills. He said the cameras log more than plates — color, dents, bumper stickers — and can reconstruct where people go. He cited U.S. Supreme Court cases on location privacy and asked Council to pass the ordinance. Before the vote, Brown said Ohio law allows residents seek a referendum within 30 days if they disagree with an ordinance. He said cameras were installed by Council without a public vote, so Council should decide whether to keep them. Graves called it the hardest issue he has faced on Council. He said he trusts Monroe police but worries about what larger government could do with the data. Cloyd said the I-75 corridor is known for human trafficking and that the cameras can help in missing-person cases. She also said residents were “opted into something that they did not have a choice for” and favored a pause so the city can review how the data is used. The city manager has 10 days to give Council the contract, key dates, invoices since April 2024, and confirmation that non-renewal notice was delivered.

 

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COLUMBUS, Ohio--The Ohio Department of Education has released the state report cards for public school districts. Ross Local Schools, Lakota Local Schools, and the Talawanda School District achieved the highest scores of the county with a 4.5 out of 5 rating. Monroe Local Schools and Fairfield City Schools achieved a 4.0 rating. Hamilton City Schools, Edgewood City Schools and Madison Local Schools received a 3.5 score. New Miami Schools had a 3.0 rating, meeting state standards. The only district to fall below state standards was Middletown City Schools, which received a 2.0 rating with a "Needs support to meet state standards" designation. The district received only 1/5 stars in the Early Literacy and College, Career, Workforce, and Military Readiness categories.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has signed legislation sponsored by Butler County State Rep. Thomas Hall that creates new protections for first responders working at emergency scenes. House Bill 20, sponsored by Hall, R-Madison Township, and Rep. Phil Plummer, R-Dayton, creates a new offense of harassing an emergency service responder. Under the law, a person can be charged if, after being warned, they remain within 15 feet of a first responder performing official duties and either interfere with the responder's work or threaten the responder with physical harm. The legislation also increases penalties for obstructing official business. A violation that previously was a second-degree misdemeanor becomes a first-degree misdemeanor. If the violation creates a risk of physical harm to a first responder, it can be charged as a fourth-degree felony. The bill also expands the definition of an emergency service responder to include probation officers. “I'm grateful to see this commonsense bill signed into law,” Hall said. “It will directly increase the safety and wellbeing of our communities and our first responders by making sure they are able to do their jobs.” Hall represents Butler County and is a volunteer firefighter with the Madison Township Fire Department.

FAIRFIELD, Ohio — Fairfield Mayor Steve Miller resigned abruptly Monday night, telling City Council it was the hardest thing he has ever done, but it was time to step aside. “I’ve been around since 1997, and next year will be 30 years I’ve been in or around council,” Miller said. “And tonight, I am submitting my resignation as mayor. My time has come to an end.” Miller said he still loves the city and the job, but that in recent months he had started to lose the passion he once brought to the office. He said he had a long-standing rule of returning every call, email, and text within 24 hours and had stopped meeting that standard. “It doesn’t matter what everybody else does. It matters what I do,” he said. “I can just feel now that this time, I really need to retire for good, and it breaks my heart.” Miller is a lifelong Fairfield resident. He graduated from Fairfield High School in 1983 and from Capital University in 1987. He was first elected to City Council in 1997 as the Fourth Ward representative and later served as vice mayor. He became acting mayor in 2005 after the late Dr. Erick Cook resigned, and he was elected mayor in 2014. He said he will keep his home in Fairfield, spend more time in Florida during the winter months, and leave the work to what he called a strong council and staff. “Not one person gets anything done. It takes a team,” Miller said. He pointed to recent projects such as Riegert Square and Symmes Road as examples of work the current council completed. Miller submitted a letter of resignation effective immediately. He tearfully handed over his office keys, badge, and pin, and said he would personally pay to change the nameplates so the city would not have that expense. He said he was turning the role over to “my very capable and hopefully next mayor, Tim Myers,” and wished the city well. “I’ve given everything I’ve had to this city, and I’m very proud of what was accomplished as a group,” Miller said. “Farewell. Good night.” as he walked out the side door of the city building.

 

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Image Credit: City of Fairfield

Hamilton Police were investigating a rollover crash with injuries on Fairgrove Avenue (Ohio-4) by the Butler County Fairgrounds Thursday evening. Three people were hospitalized, including two men and a child. The road was shut down for several hours after the crash between a GMC Yukon and a Toyota Scion. 

(Photo Courtesy: Steve Ricketts)

The Butler County Fire Chief's Association will mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks with a ceremony at the Fallen Firefighter's Memorial in downtown Hamilton, next to the Soldiers and Sailor's Monument. The event will begin at 7:00, and will feature public safety officials honoring those who lost their lives in New York, Washington, DC, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
ROTC cadets at Miami University planned to run the steps at Yager Stadium to mark the anniversary.

A 16-year-old Madison Township resident has been charged in connection with a fatal traffic incident in Trenton last month that claimed the life of 16-year-old Mason Young. The juvenile driver turned himself in to the Trenton Police Department Thursday, accompanied by his parents and an attorney, police said. The incident occurred shortly after 10:30 p.m. Aug. 14 at the intersection of Dartmouth Street and Brampton Place. According to the Trenton Police report, two juveniles were riding on the trunk of a vehicle as it traveled eastbound on Dartmouth Street. When the vehicle accelerated from a stop sign, both juveniles fell from the trunk. Young was transported by CareFlight to Miami Valley Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased. The other juvenile who had been riding on the trunk suffered serious injuries, according to police. The Trenton Police Department investigated the incident with assistance from the Butler County Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team. Following the investigation, police charged the juvenile driver with aggravated vehicular homicide, a third-degree felony; two counts of vehicular assault, fourth-degree felonies; and operation in willful or wanton disregard of the safety of persons or property, a minor misdemeanor. Police said the juvenile driver was released to his parents and is scheduled to appear in Butler County Juvenile Court later this month. 

 

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