John Jones, the Chief of Oxford Police, said the grant money is given out yearly by the Ohio Traffic Safety Office under the Ohio Department of Public Safety to help reduce the number of impaired drivers in the county.
“Somebody just has to take a lead role in managing the grant money,” Jones said. “I know Oxford has done it in the past, Fairfield has done it, Hamilton has done it.”
To help with the administrative work, Oxford is contracting the help of Peter Reising, a former police sergeant who retired in 2016 from his on-duty responsibilities after 25 years of Oxford Police service. Reising has been handling OVI coordinator duties since 2015. For his efforts, Reising will be paid up to $30,000 at a rate of $60 per hour.
“[Reising’s role] is basically coordinating checkpoints, administering the grant,” Jones said.
Councilor David Prytherch commented on the relationship between the city of Oxford and Reising and was glad it would continue.
“It’s such an awesome relationship we can continue to maintain with Pete,” Prytherch said. “It’s fantastic.”
According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol website, 360 OVI arrests have been made in Butler County from Oct. 1, 2021, to Oct. 2, 2022.
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