To Keep Bad Cops Off Streets, States Consider Police Licensing

Government officials in at least a half-dozen states want to make it easier to end the policing careers of abusive officers by making it hard for them to start fresh in new jurisdictions.

“Now is the time, I believe, to begin treating peace officer certificates more like licenses,” said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R).

“The only way the state can revoke a peace officer certificate today is if that officer is convicted of a felony,” he said in unveiling a proposal to beef up statewide oversight of law enforcement. “There is no mechanism in Ohio to revoke a certificate for ...