Dissolving Failed Cities: Ohio Needs to Revoke Cincinnati’s Charter and Break Up the Crime-Ridden City

Cincinnati is a failed city that is no longer capable of home rule – e.g. self-governance. The state of Ohio has an obligation to revoke its charter, disincorporate it, and permanently dissolve the Queen City as it now exists. It can be done, if the Ohio legislature has the will and if the people of Ohio are repulsed enough by what Cincinnati has become.

The images coming out of Cincinnati following the brutal mob beating of the woman identified simply as “Holly” are awful. Sadly, in this era of failed cities full of feral criminals, these pictures are no longer shocking. But what is shocking is the despicable way that Cincinnati’s leadership rallied around the attackers and sought to vilify Holly as being an instigator who deserved her near fatal beating. In a time when Democrats have widely embraced “defund the police,” and with “Soros prosecutors” being elected on the promise of not incarcerating hardened criminals, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that Cincinnati’s leadership is not hiding their support for hardened criminals, including Holly’s attackers.

Infamously, Cincinnati’s woke Police Chief Terri Theetge was the first to race to the defense of Holly’s assailants, stating that, “Social media, the posts that we’ve seen, does not depict the entire incident. That is one version of what occurred. At times social media, and mainstream media, and their commentaries, are misrepresentation of the circumstances surrounding any given event.” The police chief didn’t have a word of sympathy for Holly being beaten while unconscious, as Ms. Theetge angrily lashed out at those on social media who condemned Holly’s beating. The picture below is “one version of what occurred.”

This Daily Wire piece (“‘It’s Pretty Disgusting’: Cincinnati Police Union Head Bashes ‘Victim Shaming’ After Mob Attack”) recaps some of the most atrocious statements and actions of other Cincinnati leaders, as they too rallied around Holly’s attackers, and sought to blame Holly herself for having her head kicked while she lay there unconscious. It’s important to remember that actual video shows Holly doing nothing provocative at all, she was simply trying to stop an escalating brawl.

• City Council President Pro Tem Victoria Parks wrote on Facebook that Holly “begged for that beat down!”

• Vice Mayor Jan Michele Kinsey condemned Holly for provoking her own beat down, “We condemn the violent actions of the instigator(s) of the fight as well as the violent actions of those who responded to the provocation.”

The head of Cincinnati’s police union expressed his utter disgust at how the city has become a crime-ridden city with a governing class that will not fight crime.

Progressive judges in the city have allowed criminals to walk free on small bonds in recent years, according to [Fraternal Order of Police President Ken] Kober. One of the men arrested in connection with the Cincinnati mob attack had been out of custody for just weeks after posting $400 for bond in a case in which he was arrested on felony weapons and stolen property charges.

Per this same article, the city’s police department is understaffed by several hundred officers, which is logical in its own disturbing way. A city whose leadership is pro-crime and vilifies crime victims does not need a properly staffed police force.

Ken Kober told Scott Jennings that with judges refusing to keep Cincinnati criminals off the streets, “If the Mayor, the City Manager, and the Chief, if they can't figure it out or they won't figure it out, then they do need to be replaced, absolutely."

Yes, Cincinnati’s leadership needs to be replaced, and the State of Ohio needs to make it happen.

At the same time, U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio is threatening to have federal funds cut off to Cincinnati if it doesn’t immediately take action to start protecting the civil rights of all its citizens.

“Sen. Bernie Moreno threatens to cut federal funds to Cincinnati over bloody brawl” [The Hill – 8/01/2025]

“I’m going to go down there next week. I’m going to deliver them a letter. They’re going to have 30 days to put together a plan to protect the civil rights of all their citizens, regardless of their race,” Moreno said during an interview on “The Benny Show.”

“And if they don’t do that, I’m going to ask all the federal agencies to suspend federal funding of Cincinnati, which would kill me. Because Cincinnati is a great city. I want to help Cincinnati,” he added.

As I recently wrote at The Blaze in a piece titled Time to Redraw America’s Borders — Cities, Counties, and Beyond, “Where cities have collapsed...state governments should consider carving up failed urban zones and allowing them to reorganize under fresh charters. Let those areas be resettled under new leadership, new institutions, and new expectations.”

Baton Rouge can be an example for Cincinnati. With aid from the Louisiana state legislature, much of the city broke away to create the all-new city of St. George. Law-abiding areas within Cincinnati’s current boundaries should be able to start fresh with new borders and new city charters, just like St. George did in Louisiana.

The municipal secession movement already has its “Lexington and Concord moment” in Baton Rouge and St. George, Louisiana. Fueled by failing schools and rampant crime, a section of East Baton Rouge Parish began its long, litigative battle for secession. In 2024, its work paid off. The parish successfully seceded from the consolidated county government, forging the new city of St. George, Louisiana, which is now the fifth most populous city in the state.

What would it take to revoke Cincinnati’s charter? The answer is simple – the existing legislature just needs to take action. Cities are creations of the state, and the state has the power to legislatively react. Republicans have super-majorities exceeding 60% control of both houses of the Ohio legislature, 65 of 99 House representatives, and 24 of 35 Senators. Beyond the power of drafting legislation to strip Cincinnati of its charter, with its Republican supermajorities, the legislature can even put a Constitutional amendment on the ballot for citizens to vote on.

After the state strips the city of its charter, functioning areas of Cincinnati could be re-incorporated as new municipalities. Meanwhile, the state could run the core city until such time as it is fully reconstructed and able to function at some level of home rule.

But Cincinnati as it is currently constituted has forfeited the right to govern itself. A city with leaders who rally around criminals and vilify their crime victims must be disincorporated and broken up.

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]

posted by Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM

| Access Comments