Ohio officials respond to Vance, misinformation on Haitian immigrants, crime

Immigration is one of the top issues in the 2024 election and Vice President JD Vance's claims about peculiar crimes in Ohio have started to capture the public's imagination.

Vance has accused Haitian migrants of causing chaos in his home state of Ohio, including allegations that they are responsible for stealing residents' cats and eating them, and causing diseases like TB and HIV to rise in numbers.

"In the last several weeks, my office has received many inquiries from actual residents of Springfield who've said their neighbors' pets or local wildlife were abducted by Haitian migrants," Vance said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Do you know what's confirmed? That a child was murdered by a Haitian migrant who had no right to be here. That local health services have been overwhelmed. That communicable diseases--like TB and HIV--have been on the rise," Vance continued.

The claims have prompted local officials to come out and disprove these reports, but some Republicans have continued to echo these claims.

Here's what we know.

Cat killing in Canton, Ohio sparks rumors with conservatives

A 27-year-old woman was arrested in August in Canton after police said she likely killed and ate a cat in a “residential area in front of multiple people," according to an arrest report obtained by USA TODAY.

Canton is located about 170 miles northeast of Springfield, where Vance has accused Haitian immigrants of causing damages.

The woman involved in the case was not a Haitian immigrant and instead an Ohio resident, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network.

Despite local officials' efforts to debunk the pet-eating rumors, Trump's campaign, and Republican party leaders including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz have continued to spread the claims.

No cats, or pets have been harmed by immigrants

Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck said there's no evidence of any cats or other pets being harmed or eaten by the Haitian immigrants.

"In response to recent rumors alleging criminal activity by the immigrant population in our city, we wish to clarify that there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community," the statement said.

It also addressed other rumors circulating online:

"Additionally, there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaging in illegal activities such as squatting or littering in front of residents' homes. Furthermore, no reports have been made regarding members of the immigrant community deliberately disrupting traffic."

Haitian immigrants have been moving to Springfield, Ohio

To grasp why there’s been an influx of immigrants in Springfield, it’s important to understand the city’s history. In the late 19th century, it was home to several manufacturing companies, including the Kelly Springfield Tire Co., the Springfield Engine and Thresher Co. and the Springfield Breweries.

Come the 20th century, 10 automobile companies operated in Springfield, but as the century waned, so did the manufacturing industries that had propped its coffers for so long. Residents took a hit. The median income dropped 27% between 1999 and 2014, which the Pew Research Center reported in 2016 was a bigger dip than any metropolitan area in the country.

After Pew’s report made headlines, Springfield took steps to attract new businesses. Their efforts worked: In 2022 alone, three companies announced plans to invest more than $100 million in Springfield on expansions. A Springfield News-Sun story touted the investments and the hundreds of new jobs expected to come from it as “a byproduct of years of hard work to generate more economic development and attract outside interest.”

The city’s efforts to turn the tide were widely praised until the newly created jobs began attracting immigrants.

Republican Governor of Ohio Mike DeWine on Tuesday announced measures the state is implementing to help with the influx. Among them is increased funding to local health services to help with the ongoing need for primary care and resources to help the new residents, many who do not speak English, learn the language.

"Haitians who are here are hard-working people," DeWine said.

Haitian immigrants drawn to Springfield by jobs

Mayor Rob Rue has said city officials were blinded by the influx, which he blamed on a “network of businesses” that specifically recruited immigrants for jobs that weren’t being filled by local Springfield residents.

“I’m upset at the fact we didn’t get a chance to have an infrastructure in place if there were going to be 20,000 more people from 2020 to 2025,” Rue said at a Springfield City Commission meeting. “We didn’t get to do that.”

Rue said the city is investigating to see how this all unfolded. So is Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, who said on Monday he's directed his office to research legal avenues to "stop the federal government from sending an unlimited number of migrants to Ohio communities."

Yost said the influx is "absurd."

“Springfield has swollen by more than a third due to migrants,” Yost said. “How many people can they be expected to take? What are the limits to the federal government’s power? Could the federal government simply funnel into Ohio all the millions of migrants flooding in under the current administration’s watch?"

Yost did not address the role the private sector has played in recruiting immigrants to fill vacant positions.

Why are Haitian immigrants coming to Ohio?

It so happened that Springfield added employers and jobs at the same time Haitians have sought refuge in the United States because of gang violence in Haiti.

The Haitians arriving are coming legally, contrary to some racist and xenophobic posts on social media.

In the wake of the assassination of Haiti’s president in 2021, Haitian gangs have terrorized the countryside, raping, killing and pillaging. Despite efforts by police and military to keep peace, more than 200 warring gangs caused criminal incidents to more than double from 2022 to 2023, according to the United Nations and Haitian police.

The Biden administration has allowed legal entry through a humanitarian parole program to hundreds of thousands of migrants fleeing that violence and similar crises in Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba.

Springfield officials say the surge of immigrants is thanks to the city’s “lower cost of living and available work,” per an immigration-focused FAQ page on the city’s website. Those hired at area companies have been background checked and issued Social Security numbers and work permits. They pay taxes but aren’t permitted to vote.

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Vance's Haitian immigrant remarks mischaracterize Ohio experience