DeWine orders review of parole system after ex-convict accused of killing 2 Dayton kids

The conclusion: “the supervision of Walters by the (Adult Parole Authority) was appropriate and in accordance with pertinent supervision policies and administrative rules.”

DeWine said in an interview Monday that “The parole officer followed protocols but my question is ‘Are these the right protocols?’”

DeWine signed an executive order calling for nine experts to review how the 22,000 people released from state prisons each year are supervised and recommend reforms to improve public safety. The panel will be led by Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction Director Annette Chambers-Smith and former DRC director Reggie Wilkinson.

DeWine wants the group to write a statewide policy on the use of electronic monitoring, review the use of halfway houses, study the impact of Ohio’s long-standing ‘truth-in-sentencing’ law, and look at Adult Parole Authority policies.

DeWine said he would like the group to report back within 90 days.

Related: Ohio parole system under spotlight after stolen cruiser crash

Walters, 32, had been released from state prison and put on three years of post release control — supervised by the parole authority — just 16 days before the Aug. 26 incident.

Police say Walters stole a Riverside Police cruiser and drove at a high speed through Dayton before crashing into a van in front of the main branch of the Dayton Metro Library. The crash killed cousins Penelope Jasko of Dayton and Eleanor McBride of Huber Heights, and injured 10 others.

Walters is pleading not guilty by reason of insanity in the case.

Related: Stolen cruiser crash: What does not guilty by reason of insanity mean?

The 16-page internal report released by DRC details how shortly after his prison release Walters failed to report to his parole officer, Dawn Grieshop, who is in her first year as a parole officer. Grieshop tried to track Walters down and met with him the following day.

But on Aug. 15, red flags began to appear: neighbor Heather Turner told Grieshop that Walters was using drugs and referring to his father as the devil; Lloyd ‘Bear’ Walters told Grieshop everything was fine; Raymond Walters failed to report for a drug test; Dayton police were dispatched to the Walters’ home on Boltin twice that night.

On Aug. 20 and Aug. 21, efforts were made to enroll Walters in drug treatment, lining up a bed at Nova House on Aug. 28, the report said.

On Aug. 26, Dayton police were dispatched at 5:34 pm to the house on a report that Walters and Sharon Walters were using heroin; at 6:59pm Walters’ sister Jennifer Kitselman told Grieshop that her brother was delusional, believing a Mexican drug cartel was out to get him.

Grieshop told Kitselman to call police or take Walters to the hospital, the report said. The family was in the process of taking him to the hospital when Walters allegedly stabbed his father, stole the cop car and crashed into the minivan.

Most prisoners are released back into the community. Ohio DRC releases 22,000 inmates each year, 11,000 of whom are subject to some court-ordered supervision after they’re out. Supervision can include check-ins with parole officers, drug tests, employment or classes.

Related: Children killed in stolen cruiser crash ‘did everything together’

The Adult Parole Authority’s 490 parole officers supervise 37,000 Ohioans who are on parole, post-release control or probation. The governor said he wants the working group to study what an appropriate caseload is.

“I think each one of them has too many people to supervise,” DeWine said.

Grieshop, who started as a parole officer in December, supervised 65 cases, which was in line with her experience level, the report said.

Related: Gov. DeWine calls for reform of Ohio Parole Board after DDN story

The report also detailed Walters’ criminal history, which began at age 12, and has involved three prison sentences, three failed probation periods, and three failed post-release control supervision periods.

According to the internal DRC report, Walters’ criminal history includes:

2008: He took a wallet from the pocket of a 75-year-old man and shoved him to the ground.

2009: While in jail, a guard saw him retrieve Vicodin painkiller pills from his rectum and swallow them.

2011: He was arrested for domestic violence against his wife and assault against his father but neither testified against him.

2013: He stole a credit card.

2016: He stole $121.33 worth of candy from a Speedway gas station in Dayton and had a knife on him.

2019: His post release control was revoked over domestic violence against his girlfriend, Misty Adkins, who was covered in blood — fresh and dried — and had one eye swollen shut. The case was not prosecuted. Adkins died April 27, 2019 of an apparent drug overdose.