Local troopers help keep Republican convention safe

WAPAKONETA - Five troopers with the highway patrol's Wapakoneta post were part of the large security force that successfully kept the peace at the recent Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

The five troopers volunteering were Clayton Williams, Benjamin Kohli, Wesley Ditto, Adam Cramer and Sgt. Rodney Kiefer.

Williams, 34, Celina, said he and his 3,300-plus fellow law enforcement officers teamed up to make the convention a relatively peaceful event.

"There were no riots. It was nothing like (the riots in) Ferguson," Williams told the newspaper. "We didn't have the issues that they thought we would because everywhere you looked, there was a police officer.

"It was almost too quiet," he added. "I don't think there was a single window broken."

The troopers went prepared, having completed extensive training. Williams, Kohli and Ditto are members of the patrol's mobile field force, which was developed several years ago to handle crowd control.

"Basically it's for crowd control and maintaining civil obedience," said Williams, who has been with the patrol since 2007. "They said 'we're putting together a team for crowd control and who wants to do it?' "

Williams immediately signed up. He said the unit has 100 members from around the state, but more manpower was needed for the convention. So other patrol officers were added several months ago.

"We trained a lot," Williams said. "Every three months we went through our training to make sure everyone had their roles down with the team."

When they arrived in Cleveland, Williams said he and other officers talked about last-minute preparations.

"I basically wanted them to know to have each other's back and keep their head on a swivel," he said. "You don't get complacent, because that's when something can happen."

In light of the recent murders of police officers in Dallas, Texas, and Baton Rouge, La., Williams said it was important for officers to be vigilant.

"It's a terrible thing to know that you're a target; you're out there to protect everyone," he said, noting officers were careful to monitor parking garages and windows for possible snipers.

Williams was a grenadier assigned to the unit to operate guns that could shoot gas or smoke canisters to disperse crowds. However, members of law enforcement never needed to use their weapons, he said. A combat veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who served in Iraq, Williams added the gun is similar to the one he used in the military.

He noted officers made few arrests and reported no major confrontations at the convention, but a few tense moments did arise. He said he was disturbed when he had heard about a protester's attempt to burn a U.S. flag near to where he was stationed. However, he did not witness the incident.

Another disturbance was quelled when some protesters attempted to disrupt a crowd watching Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's speech on a large screen outside Quicken Arena, Williams said.

"We ended up pushing them down Fourth Street," he said.

The officers also seized opportunities for positive interaction with the crowds.

"We would go out of our way to high-five a child or shake hands," he said. "We spoke to the protesters, even the ones who were anti-law enforcement. It's their opinion. It's their First Amendment right."

Williams said the officers heard many positive remarks during their duty.

"We received a lot of thank-yous," he said. "People said 'Thanks for keeping us safe.' "

He said he was particularly impressed by the officers on bicycles.

"We really enjoyed working with the bicycles," he said. "Not only did the bikes provide a means to quickly move from place to place in downtown Cleveland, they also served as a deterrent to protesters.

"Those bikes are the best tool, when they got off the bikes, they (officers) could use them as a fence," Williams said.

The trooper also expressed respect for Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams, who frequently joined his officers on a bicycle.

Williams said in this time of high tension with law enforcement, he wants the public to understand officers are just trying to do their jobs.

"We're not above them (the public), we just have a job to do," he said. "We want to go home to our families at the end of our shifts, like they do when they get off work."

Williams is looking forward to his next major assignment, noting he was invited to help at the presidential inauguration in January.