While Cleveland police continue to prepare for thousands to descend on downtown streets for the Republican National Convention, law enforcement in surrounding communities are also preparing in the case that safety and security issues arise.
And one county has 16 local law enforcement agencies collaborating in a multi-jurisdictional, county-wide effort to prepare for the RNC.
Officials in Lorain County talked to newsnet5.com exclusively about the effort.
Authorities said they knew planning a collaborative effort would be necessary following “concerns” brought up in RNC-related meetings with Cleveland law enforcement. Officials referred to the collaboration as a proactive way for Lorain County agencies to utilize more resources and shared intelligence to assist each other if they need help during the RNC.
“We try to anticipate any potential problems,” said Lorain County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Dennis Cavanaugh in a phone interview. “As a group, we discuss those and how we respond to it. We want to make sure we’re able to respond to in the right way.”
Among the law enforcement agencies collaborating in the effort are the Lorain County Metro Parks, the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office, as well as Vermilion, Amherst, Lorain, Avon Lake, Avon, Sheffield Lake, Sheffield Village and Elyria police departments, among others.
“I’ve never seen better than we have here…sometimes there are some problems that develop,” Cavanaugh noted. “Whatever’s best for the group is what we do.
It’s not about name recognition – it’s about us as a whole,” he continued. “We’re preparing ourselves for anything that comes up and [will] respond accordingly as a multi-jurisdictional approach.”
But officials said this collaboration among multiple agencies in the county isn’t new.
“We have such a good working relationship between the departments,” Elyria Police Chief Duane Whitely said, citing Barack Obama’s visit to Lorain County in 2010 as a true test of multiple agencies working together to handle high security events there. “We’re so used to working together like this – it’s second nature to us.”
He recalled a Secret Service official telling him in 2010 that he didn’t believe the department was large enough to handle security concerns surrounding Obama’s visit.
But following the event, Whitely said local law enforcement received compliments from the Secret Service about how they handled the visit. This includes local visits from Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, John McCain and a second visit from Obama 2012.
“It’s all been seamless – everybody just jumps in and helps where it needs to be done,” Whitely said.
“[The RNC] is just another reason to do this,” Whitely added, emphasizing the importance of officers not only developing information if an incident occurs, but also being able to follow through and act. “…Shared intelligence is a good thing. If officers develop source information that can assist, that’s critical.”
Whitely also said Elyria police did not necessarily undergo special RNC training, nor did they need to purchase additional or special equipment. He explained the effort is for preparation purposes and that there are no existing safety or security concerns on their radar at this time in the county, which is home to a total of 34 villages, cities and townships as well as a population of a little more than 305,000 people.
“Any time there are large scale events…the possibility that anything can happen in surround areas is possible,” Whitely said. “We anticipate, we have good communications, we share intelligence. If something does happen, as a group we decide how we can respond to that.”
Whitely explained Elyria Police has a “great working relationship” with Cleveland law enforcement and that some Elyria Police officers will be working downtown to assist during the RNC.
Officials declined to share details on specific plans and strategy -- or if the number of police offers patrolling the streets in Lorain County will increase – for tactical reasons.
Cavanaugh did say to expect normal patrols, and in light of the recent attacks in Nice, France, he said officials aren’t necessarily doing anything different than they normally would have. But he did encourage the public to call police if they see something out of the ordinary.
“We’re showing the same vigilance we always have,” he said. “Everyone knows their neighborhood the best. If you see something out of the ordinary…please report it.”
