Chairperson Butler, Members of the Committee
I am Commander Gary Cameron.
On behalf of Chief Jacobs and the Columbus Division of Police, thank you for this
opportunity to provide testimony in support of House Bill 283. I’d like to give a
special thank you to Representative Fedor and the co-sponsors of this bill.
Our effort to expand DNA testing began in 2013. As the Narcotics Bureau
Commander, I supervised the Division’s Vice Section and Human Trafficking Task
Force personnel and at that time, law enforcement across the State sought to
expand human trafficking investigations and enforcement. Collaboration within
the criminal justice system was, and is still today, at an extraordinarily high level.
During a brainstorming session among my peers on reducing the instances of men
seeking to purchase sex, the idea of DNA expansion took hold.
In 2014, I gathered together experts within the Division of Police; Police Crime
Lab, Sexual Abuse Detectives, Legal Advisor and Human Trafficking Detectives to
pose this question, “Can we obtain DNA samples from those arrested for
misdemeanor prostitution offenses and, why would we want to?”
With me today are City Attorney Deana Overking and Sgt. Ryan Chrysler. They will
answer this question through their areas of expertise.
For my part, I can tell you that the panel of CPD experts overwhelmingly
concluded that this valuable investigative tool is much needed by law
enforcement but, to my surprise, not for what we originally had considered back
in 2013; as a means to deter men from buying sex. Instead, our focus shifted to a
much more heinous crime, Rape.
Columbus averages more than 600 reported rapes annually. These reports range
from date rapes to serial rapists with numerous victims. We know that the
warning signs of a sex offender’s deviant and criminal behavior are typically public
indecency and voyeurism offenses. We know that a percentage of sex offenders,
unsatisfied with self-arousal, will escalate to touching and assaulting others. For
instance;
Columbus police detectives labeled a man as the “Naked Photographer” for
exposing himself to passers-by and taking a picture of their reaction. He did
escalate into touching and grabbing his victims before his arrest.
Our worst sexual offenders, serial rapists, are incredibly calculating in their
efforts to identify victims and avoid apprehension. During interrogation,
many of them readily admit that their sexual lifestyle involved buying sex
from prostitutes. Serial rapists who successfully avoid law enforcement and
apprehension are also those same persons who become serial murderers of
young women.
Many of these serial rapists are also responsible for raping prostitutes.
Prostitutes are particularly vulnerable because they are often drug
addicted, less likely to report and their testimony is devalued in the criminal
justice system.
Expanding DNA collection and testing for the misdemeanor crimes of Voyeurism,
Public Indecency, Soliciting, Loitering and Prostitution will greatly improve law
enforcement’s ability to identify and prosecute deviant sexual offenders. We
believe that within the larger pool of misdemeanor offenders are rapists, serial
rapists and those who prey on women prostituting themselves.
 Expanded DNA collection will hasten our efforts to identify serial rapists
and those whose criminal behavior is escalating toward that level.
 Expanded DNA collection will provide further evidence to corroborate the
testimony of a woman who prostituted herself and was also the victim of a
rape.
Before I yield this time to my colleagues, I’d like to make one proclamation
regarding prostitution. I am a father who has raised three daughters in Columbus,
Ohio. I can tell you that no young girl enters adulthood seeking a career as a
prostitute. Somewhere in their past, these women have been victimized either
through drugs or violence. They have been forced into prostitution as a means of
survival and we, as part of government, owe them all due respect and the legal
means to prosecute their attackers.