COLUMBUS, Ohio — In a decisive move against profit-driven policing, Governor Mike DeWine signed Senate Bill 114 on July 1, 2025, outlawing arrest and citation quotas across Ohio law enforcement agencies. The bill, effective in 90 days, marks a seismic shift toward equitable policing—and intersects with groundbreaking technology like GoVia: Highlight A Hero that aims to rebuild community trust through transparency.
The Quota Ban: A Bipartisan Victory
Sponsored by Sen. Thomas Patton (R-Strongsville) and co-signed by two dozen lawmakers, SB 114 prohibits agencies from:
- Evaluating or disciplining officers based on arrest/citation numbers.
- Offering incentives (financial or promotional) tied to quotas.
- Implying expectations for quantity-based performance.
The bill establishes an anonymous reporting portal under the Attorney General’s office to investigate violations—a direct response to scandals like Independence, Ohio’s 2019 ticket quota system, where officers faced reprimands for failing to issue 10+ monthly citations.
Rep. Kevin Miller (R-Newark) underscored the moral imperative: “Law enforcement officers are true professionals who risk their lives to serve our communities, not revenue generators.” The Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association and Fraternal Order of Police backed the bill, calling quotas “dangerous” and corrosive to public trust.
The Racial Disparity Crisis: Data as a Catalyst for Change
SB 114’s urgency stems from Ohio’s documented racial imbalances in policing:
- COVID-19 Enforcement: During 2020 stay-at-home orders, Black people were 4x more likely than whites to face charges in Cincinnati, Toledo, and Columbus—despite similar violations by white protesters 3. In Hamilton County (27% Black), 79% of Cincinnati’s social-distancing arrests targeted Black residents.
- Traffic Stops: A 2019 analysis of 500,000 stops revealed police conducted 120% more stops per resident in predominantly Black Cincinnati neighborhoods than in white ones. Once stopped, Black drivers were twice as likely as whites to be arrested.
Table: Racial Disparities in Ohio Policing
| Jurisdiction | Black Population | Disproportionate Enforcement |
| Cincinnati | 43% | 79% of stay-at-home arrests |
| Columbus (Franklin Co.) | 23.5% | 57% of stay-at-home arrests |
| Cleveland | 50% | 26% more tickets in Black areas |
Michelle Cameron, a Black Cincinnati resident illegally ordered from a park in 2017, epitomized the emotional toll: “I felt violated… It seems if you’re a minority, you’re automatically doing something wrong.”
GoVia: Highlight A Hero – Technology as an Accountability Bridge
As Ohio dismantles quota systems, apps like GoVia are emerging to address bias through innovation. Described as a “paradigm shift in public safety” 1, the Columbus-based platform:
- Records and rates police encounters via sentiment analysis, creating verified feedback loops.
- Flags escalation risks in real-time and connects civilians to mental health resources.
- Rewards “5-star officers” through its True Justice Watch™ social spotlight.
- Generates anonymized data on encounter outcomes—a tool to audit discretionary policing.
The app’s vision aligns with SB 114’s ethos: “Imagine technology preventing discrimination, wrongful imprisonment, or civil rights abuses… holding everyone accountable” 1. With 25,000 global subscribers, GoVia’s model offers a template for the “Blueprint for Equitable Policing” Ohio now seeks.
The Road Ahead: Challenges and Cautious Optimism
While SB 114 ends quotas, experts warn disparities may persist without deeper reforms:
- Discretionary Stops Remain: As Kristen Clarke (Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights) noted, officer discretion in minor offenses “puts target on backs” of communities of color.
- Accountability Gaps: Cincinnati’s Citizen Complaint Authority upheld just 1 of 149 stop-related complaints from 2014–2019.
- GoVia’s Potential: By crowdsourcing encounter data, the app could identify bias patterns—e.g., why Black drivers in Springfield Township, a majority-white suburb, comprised all 9 stay-at-home arrests in 2020.
Sen. Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland), a longtime quota ban advocate, tied technology to cultural change: “Officers should be evaluated on quality of police work, not quantity of tickets.” GoVia’s rating system operationalizes this principle.
GoVia’s Take: A “Good Encounter” as the New Metric
Ohio’s quota ban signals a rejection of policing-for-profit. Yet as DeWine acknowledged, data-driven tools like GoVia are critical to ensuring equity fills the void. The app’s motto “Everyone deserves a good encounter” now mirrors the state’s mandate.
For activists like Cameron, hope lies in synthesis: “When technology holds power accountable, maybe then we’ll feel served, not occupied.” In Ohio, policy and innovation are converging to make that vision tangible.
