Interference with Custody Cases Now Qualify for Reimbursement
July 16, 2025

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) – The Office of Criminal Justice Services today announced the availability of funds to help law enforcement agencies extradite violent suspects arrested on outstanding warrants.

A total of $200,000 is now available this fiscal year as part of the seventh round of the Ohio Prisoner Extradition Reimbursement Program. The program, which is open to local law enforcement agencies that have limited funds or personnel, will reimburse the cost of extraditing suspects on warrants for Tier 1 offenses who have been arrested in another state or jurisdiction.

New this year, interference with custody cases are also now eligible for reimbursement to help hold more offenders accountable for unlawfully moving children out of state. The addition of interference with custody as a reimbursable charge was recommended by Governor Mike DeWine’s Ohio Missing Persons Working Group in its May 2024 report in an effort to reunite more children with their custodial parents or guardians.

The Ohio Prisoner Extradition Reimbursement Program was developed after a 2019 study by Governor DeWine’s Warrant Task Force found that some local law enforcement agencies did not enter all felony warrants into state and federal warrant databases due to a lack of resources to extradite offenders arrested in another county or state.

Law enforcement agencies can use the grants to pay for mileage, personnel, and other travel expenses associated with transporting offenders from another state or another Ohio jurisdiction. The grant program is funded in the state’s Fiscal Year 2026-2027 operating budget that the Ohio General Assembly passed in June.

To apply for funding, law enforcement agencies must submit a grant application through the OCJS online grants management system at http://ocjsgrants.dps.ohio.gov. Information on registering and completing an application can be found at ocjsgrants.dps.ohio.gov/s/support.

OCJS is a division of the Ohio Department of Public Safety. By statute, OCJS is the lead justice planning and assistance office for the state, administering millions of dollars in state and federal criminal justice funding every year. OCJS also evaluates programs and products, develops training, resources, and recommends best practices for criminal justice professionals and communities.