Members of the Public Safety Committee in the Ohio House of Representatives this week heard from the sponsors of a bill who want to create a public-alert system for escaped convicts.

Rep. Bill Roemer, R-Richfield, said the basis for the bill resulted from an unsettling personal experience last year.

“Last fall, I was working away from my home — completely unaware that a dangerous individual, an escaped convict, fled from custody and was hiding on my very street,” he said during the committee’s hearing of House Bill 23.

Roemer said a neighbor who had been alerted to the incident via a local online network notified him of the circumstance.

“I simply had no idea there was an immediate public safety threat in Richfield,” he continued. “I immediately phoned my wife instructing her to secure the doors and windows — a precautionary action that should have been prompted by an official public-safety alert, not left to chance or word of mouth.”

Roemer said the realization that critical, time-sensitive information about a public threat was available but not shared with everyone led him to consider a resolution to the issue.

HB 23 would create the Escaped Convict Alert Program, which would allow law enforcement to issue timely, targeted alerts for when a person who has been convicted of, pleaded guilty to or been charged with a felony offense escapes from custody — whether from jail, a workhouse or a correctional facility.

“That moment prompted me to dig deeper, and what I found was even more alarming — a pattern of multiple escapes occurring within Summit County,” the lawmaker said. “This wasn’t an isolated event, and the system in place to alert the public was clearly insufficient.”

HB 23, which would authorize law enforcement to issue alerts at their discretion, would allow for local or regional adaptations of the alert system to ensure flexibility for jurisdictions with existing programs, testimony provided.

The legislation also would grant liability protections to broadcasters and systems that participate in good faith, regardless of whether an alert is ultimately broadcast.

“In short, HB 23 strengthens our public safety framework by enabling swift, responsible communication during high-risk situations — without imposing undue liability or operational burdens,” said Rep. Josh Williams, R-Sylvania Township.

Another provision of the bill would clarify that the alert system does not permit use of the federal Emergency Alert System unless expressly allowed by federal law.

“The public deserves better when it comes to timely, consistent and accessible warnings about immediate threats to their safety,” Roemer said. “That is why I introduced this bill — to close the communication gap and to ensure that when a dangerous felon escapes custody, Ohioans are not left unaware and unprotected.”

Thirteen House members have co-sponsored the bill, which awaits further consideration by the committee.