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Council approves OCJS grant to build assault-notification platform; privacy questions remain
Summary
Council adopted Ordinance 26 to accept an OCJS reimbursement grant to implement a VersaTerm assault-notification platform. Department staff said the platform will send messages to victims and others, but council members asked for clarity on who can access the system and how privacy will be protected.
Canton City Council adopted Ordinance 26 to accept a grant from the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services to establish what staff described as an assault-notification or community-connection platform and to contract with VersaTerm for implementation.
During finance committee review, a department representative explained the award is a reimbursement grant and that the city must appropriate funds in advance and later seek reimbursement. The clerk’s summary listed the award as $85,536; the department representative stated, during discussion, that the amount notified by OCJS was $85,005.36 and that the grant period would run Dec. 1, 2025, through Nov. 30, 2027.
A council member asked whether the platform would be private and whether individuals outside the case could access messages; the director replied, "it will enable them to send messages to the victims and other individuals involved in a certain platform so that they know what's going on with their case," and offered to obtain a complete answer from the police chief.
The council adopted the ordinance on roll call; the clerk recorded 12 yeas. The resolution requires staff follow-up to provide technical details and privacy controls for the VersaTerm platform and to complete required appropriations and fund renaming to receive reimbursement.
Next steps: staff said they would obtain clearer technical and privacy answers from the police chief and complete the financial housekeeping necessary to draw down the reimbursement grant.
