Report Homeland Security Concerns
Call: 877-OHS-INTEL (877-647-4683) - or - Email:[email protected]
The Mission of the Division’s Homeland Security Section is to provide a safe environment for the citizens of Central Ohio and to foster resilience within the community to withstand challenges that lie ahead. The goals of the Homeland Security Section are to (1) establish and maintain a Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), (2) gather, analyze, and distribute intelligence about threats to Columbus and the Central Ohio Homeland Security Region 4, and (3) coordinate the efforts of local, state, federal and private agencies to address all potential hazards.
What is Terrorism Early Warning Group? (TEWG)
The Terrorism
Early Warning Group (TEWG) concept was implemented in the Central Ohio area in
2006 in order to address information sharing concerns as it relates to
terrorism in the Central Ohio area, with the goal of uniting local, state and
federal law enforcement with other public and private organizations aimed at
detecting, deterring and responding to terrorist threats. The TEWG is composed
of members of public safety, public health and representatives of our area’s
critical infrastructures and key resources (CI/KR). The Columbus Police TEWG is
called the Counter Terrorism Unit.
The concept of
interagency information sharing became a topic of discussion within the Los
Angeles County Sheriff’s Office in the mid-1990’s when it became evident that
agencies in the county often possessed information that was not being forwarded
to others that had a “need to know”. To address this problem, an inter-agency
information sharing network was established to address this loophole.
The events of
9/11 brought forth the consequences of what can occur when agencies fail to
share information as it relates to our national security. As a result, various
Homeland Security Presidential Directives were implemented to address the
loopholes in our countries information sharing network. Looking at the Los
Angeles information sharing group as a model, the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) implemented the concept of the Terrorism Early Warning Group.
The Central Ohio
TEWG will encompass Ohio Homeland Security Planning Region 4, which encompasses
Franklin, Fairfield, Pickaway, Fayette, Madison, Union, Logan, Hardin, Marion,
Wyandot, Crawford, Delaware, Morrow, Knox and Licking Counties. Each county has
an Information Liaison Officer (ILO) who shares information related to national
security with the Statewide Terrorism Analysis Crime Center (STACC) in
Columbus.