Officer accused of mishandling rape cases to plead guilty, prosecutor says
A Cincinnati police officer is expected to plead guilty to dereliction of duty after investigators found he had improperly handled 47 cases including rapes and sensitive cases involving minors, prosecutors said.
According to the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office, Christopher Schroder, 54, has agreed to plead guilty to five counts of the misdemeanor, resign from the police department and surrender his state policing certificate. The certificate is required to be an officer anywhere in Ohio.
Schroder will have to change his plea in the case to make anything official. He is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. His lawyer, Mike Allen, said his client will plead guilty to the five counts. Allen said the number of instances cited by prosecutors - 47 - does not reflect what Schroder has agreed to plead to.
"He was a good cop who made a few mistakes," Allen said Friday. "We'll do the rest of our talking in court."
The prosecutor's office said two special investigators were appointed to review Schroder's cases going back to 2007 after an audit of the personal crimes section conducted in 2021 showed problems with his cases.
The office reported that 47 of the 865 cases reviewed showed "significant deficiencies." A press release outlined some of the problems:
Reports of underage pregnancies with little-to-no investigation.
Delays in rape kit submissions.
Inadequate investigation relating to vulnerable victims like young children and those with mental health issues.
Cases in which no investigation occurred.
Failures to submit DNA swabs.
Incorrect entries relating to DNA findings.
Prosecutor Mark Piepmeier said all cases with deficiencies have been referred back to the Cincinnati Police Department for further investigation.
Schroder's personnel file shows his supervisor knew about problems with how rape kits were being handled as early as 2016.
"Several rape kits were located at Children's Hospital which had been there for several months, four of these kits belonged to cases assigned [to] PO Christopher Schroder," the file states.
He was disciplined and his responsibilities were explained to him, but he remained on the job.
Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge said in a statement Friday that steps have been taken to ensure cases are handled properly.
In the personal crimes section, three investigators - instead of just one - are now assigned to every case, prosecutors said. Two supervisors have to review every case. New training and tracking procedures were implemented along with checklists, audits and regular reports to the chief.
"What this audit revealed was disheartening, troubling, and quite frankly frustrating for our entire department," Theetge said. "Schroder's blatant neglect to do his job sparked a transformation of processes and procedures ... The public can be confident that this cannot and will not happen again."
Schroder has been on administrative desk duty with no police powers during the course of the investigation. The department said Schroder's resignation will be effective following his court appearance Wednesday.
Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer Branch would have to approve any plea deal on the case and would hand down the final sentence. If he pleads guilty to call counts, he could face up to 360 days in jail.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Prosecutor: Officer accused of mishandling rape cases to plead guilty
