Four locals were among the 81 cadets.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ The State Highway Patrol has graduated the first of two overlapping classes of Ohio cadets in a move expected to beef up a personnel roster that dwindled in recent years as the agency's cadet classes didn't keep pace with its attrition rate.
Eighty-one cadets graduated from the patrol's 153rd class Friday after 20 weeks of training. More new troopers graduate with the 154th class on April 5. Local graduates include Troopers Quinn Dunn and Daniel Saultz, of Chillicothe, Eric Holbrook, of Circleville, and Jacob Landis, of Ashville.
A spokeswoman says their addition is expected to bump up staffing to around 1,600 sworn officers in the state, a level the patrol hasn't seen since 2006.
Lt. Anne Ralston says the patrol ended up short-staffed in recent years because it didn't graduate cadets in 2008 or 2010 and was losing about 60 people annually, mostly through attrition.
