Five members were elected to new Executive Board positions at the Annual General Meeting.

Second Vice President - Trace Lawless

Board of Directors - Jeff Heft

Board of Directors - Clifford Mason

Board of Directors - Todd Owens, CFI

Board of Directors - Bruce VanDorpe, CFI

Congratulations to these members! Their contact information can be found on the Officers page.

Attention all members,

We are currently in the process of updating all of our membership records. During this process, we have discovered that we don’t have up to date information, specifically email addresses, for several of our members.

Please email your updated contact information to secretary@ohioiaai.com

This includes your name, the organization you’re associated with, your preferred mailing address, and your preferred email address. We are attempting to email as much information as possible to reduce mailing costs.

Thanks in advance for your help!

The Ohio Chapter would like to congratulate Past-President Scott Bennett on being elected to the Board of Directors of the International Association of Arson Investigators! Scott is a longtime member of the Ohio Chapter and has held many offices within our Chapter. We look forward to working with Scott at the International level! Congratulations again, Scott!

By KANTELE FRANKO, Associated Press

Updated 11:01 am, Saturday, January 19, 2013

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio is joining the few states that require convicted arsonists to register with authorities, hoping it will help solve more cases, deter repeat offenses and prevent deaths and property damage.

The new law will require people convicted of arson-related offenses to register annually with their local sheriffs for at least 10 years after they're released from prison or, if not imprisoned, sentenced. It applies whether the offenders were convicted in Ohio or elsewhere, but it doesn't cover those who already completed their sentences.

"It's just another tool in the toolbox for our investigators," state Fire Marshal Larry Flowers said.

California keeps an arson registry, and Louisiana recently established one. Montana's registry of violent offenders includes nearly 90 arson convictions. Illinois passed a law in 2004 to create an arson registry, but that has been held up because some law enforcement agencies there don't yet have access to the shared information system known as I-CLEAR, a state police spokesman said.

The Ohio measure signed by Republican Gov. John Kasich in late December doesn't take effect until July 1, giving the state attorney general's office more time to deal with the logistics of incorporating the registry into the information network used by the state's law enforcement agencies. The cost of operating the registry — a concern raised about similar efforts elsewhere — will be funded through registration fees.

It's hard to measure the effectiveness of such legislation, but proponents say it's a good tool to have.

"If this database helps solve one arson crime and helps to give a family closure, I think it's worth it," said Lt. Slade Schultz of the Lancaster Fire Department, who heard about the idea from inspector Jason Coy and worked with him to bring it to the attention of a firefighters union and their state senator, Republican Tim Schaffer, the bill's sponsor.

Ohio reported more than 8,000 arsons each year from 2007 to 2011, including blazes whose causes remained under investigation or undetermined. Those fires are associated with hundreds of millions of dollars in damage, more than 450 deaths and more than 3,000 injuries to first responders and civilians, according to the fire marshal's office.

Schaffer said the registry will be beneficial in targeting repeat arson offenders because they tend to follow the same patterns or methods in setting blazes. Officials investigating a suspicious fire could check the registry to determine if any arsonists live or work nearby and might be worth a closer look.

"It doesn't mean they committed this crime, but it just gives us somewhere to start," Coy said. He said making the registry available only to authorities, not to the public, should help protect offenders and make sure the public isn't jumping to conclusions based on the list.

Mansfield Fire Chief John Harsch, whose department investigated a rash of more than three dozen suspicious fires with no clear motive in a five-month span last year, said he thinks the registry is a good idea but noted more information is needed to solve cases.

"It's still not going to prove the crime, and arson is notoriously tough to prove," he said.

Retired Dayton fire investigator Scott Bennett, who is on the board of the International Association of Arson Investigators, praised Ohio's registry law and said he planned to seek the board's support for similar measures covering each state, either through state legislation or at the national level.

Lawmakers in Texas and Washington state and in Congress have made unsuccessful attempts to create arson registries. Legislation to start a national registry was approved by the U.S. House in 2007 and again in 2009 but wasn't passed by the Senate.

Lawmakers from California pushed that legislation, spurred by a 2006 arson that killed five U.S. Forest Service firefighters and a deadly 2009 fire near Los Angeles.

___

Associated Press writer Ann Sanner contributed to this report.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/news/crime/article/Ohio-joins-states-tracking-arsonists-on-registries-4207831.php#ixzz2IXNNCwKC

Ohio Chapter Members,

I would first and foremost like to express my thanks to Lee West for his service to the Ohio Chapter. Mr. West is a dedicated individual with a passion for the fire investigation field. Mr. West contacted me with his concerns regarding the amount of time he could give to the Chapter due to his responsibilities with his employment and family. I tried to encourage him to continue to lead the Chapter but understood why he was stepping down. It was a difficult decision for him and your support of that decision would ease his mind.

According to our current governing document, I will be stepping in and serving as Chapter President until August and then continue with my year as President in normal succession. Trace Lawless with be doing the same with the First Vice President Position.

Vice President Lawless and I have been in discussion as to filling the Second Vice President position as well as filling the open Director position created by Director Sharp. We will report on this in the near future.

I would like to extend the following to all Chapter members. The Ohio Chapter of the IAAI is an important Chapter nationally and has been a leader in the organization, as well as a Chapter with influence. The IAAI has opened its voting period for IAAI officers and issues. The privilege of voicing your choice and opinion in such an important organization is one of the reasons you are a member. On-line voting takes only moments and if you have never exercised your voting rights, then visit the IAAI website www.firearson.com and see how it works.

While I personally appreciate your taking the time to read this letter, I would also request and encourage you to send me suggestions and requests on what the Board can do for you as a Chapter member. Erica will be sending out your invoices for dues, please remit promptly and include your current preferred email address so we can keep in contact with you.

I will be in contact soon with updates. Please check the website often and remember to take advantage of submitting Chapter awards and scholarships for training. This includes the Ohio Arson School in August. The Ohio Arson School is also the site for the Annual Chapter Meeting.

My contact information is below, do not hesitate to contact myself or any of the Directors or Board Members, their info is on the website. If you are interested in serving on a committee or have something to offer Chapter members such as local training, forward it to Erica and we will get it out to the Chapter. Training is Training and is important in all areas of the service, even if it’s not fire investigation training.

Sincerely,

Robert C. Cabral IAAI-CFI

Ohio Chapter President

I was just advised that the Florida Chapter of the IAAI, in injunction with the IAAI and NAFI, will be holding a certified vehicle fire investigator class (CVFI) June 18-20 in Clearwater Beach, Florida. The cost is $150.00 for the class and $90.00 to NAFI to take the CVFI certification test. The hotel is $95.00 a night.

 

The Florida Chapter advised me today that they have 5 openings left. If anyone from Ohio is interested in attending, they can contact me at the below email address and I will get them with the right person in Florida.

 

Also, The Indiana Chapter president advised us today that Indiana is hosting 2 expert testimony classes this year and that they would allow Ohio to have 2 slots. Anyone needing the expert court room testimony course, email me. The class will be in Ft. Wayne, Indiana in the fall.

 

Scott Bennett, IAAI-CFI, CFII, CFEI

Fire & Explosion Consultants

7490 Bridgewater Road

Dayton, Ohio 45424

Office (937) 237-4000

Direct (937) 414-0274

Fax (937) 237-4022

ScottBennett@FEC-Fire.Com

http\\www.fec-fire.com