School superintendent pleads guilty to drug-related charge
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The superintendent of a central Ohio school district has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor drug charge after police say crack cocaine was found in his car.
Fifty-four-year-old William Morrison III, superintendent of the Hamilton Local Schools, pleaded guilty in a Franklin County drug court Monday to possessing a counterfeit controlled substance. He received probation and a four-day jail sentence in a plea deal.
Columbus police say Morrison was arrested Friday night after bicycle officers asked why he was parked in an alley. Police say Morrison told them he was taking a woman to dinner but didn’t know her name. Officers searched Morrison’s car and found a crack rock and a crack pipe.
The school board placed Morrison on paid administrative leave Sunday.
Morrison’s attorney didn’t return messages seeking comment Thursday.
State has tested 13,000 rape kits for possible DNA matches
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The state says forensic scientists from its Bureau of Criminal Investigation have now tested more than 13,000 rape kits submitted by law enforcement agencies around Ohio to check for possible DNA matches.
Attorney General Mike DeWine released the latest numbers on Wednesday. Officials have said that testing has helped identify hundreds of alleged attackers.
DeWine launched the initiative in 2011 to check previously untested kits for evidence. Authorities from nearly 300 law enforcement agencies have submitted over 13,900 rape kits, including some that were decades old. As of Oct. 1, the state had tested 13,145 of those kits.
An Ohio law that went into effect in 2015 requires that any newly collected rape kits be turned over within 30 days after an agency determines a crime has been committed.
Ohio school losing $4.6M after nuclear plant’s value lowered
OAK HARBOR, Ohio (AP) — A northwestern Ohio school district stands to lose nearly a quarter of its yearly revenue after a nuclear plant saw its tax value lowered by the state.
The devaluation will cost the Benton-Carroll-Salem school district near Toledo $4.6 million from its annual funds.
In all, the plant will pay $6.7 million less in taxes.
The Ohio Department of Taxation reduced the value of the Davis-Besse nuclear plant for state tax purposes from $184 million to $49 million.
A spokeswoman for Akron-based FirstEnergy says the company sought the change to reflect its fair market value. The company has said it’s considering closing the plant.
The school district says it’s waiting to see if it will get any help from the state and whether it will need to seek a levy.
OSHA investigating death of worker crushed by stone slabs
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Workplace safety investigators are looking into the death of a man who was crushed by granite slabs at a stone distribution company in Ohio.
Police said Wednesday that 55-year-old Robert Schofield was killed when multiple slabs toppled on top of him Tuesday at Unique Stone Concepts in Columbus.
The Columbus Dispatch reports that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation, which is expected to take up to six months.
A Department of Labor spokeswoman says the company has no prior history with OSHA.
Police: About 70 guns stolen from home near Cleveland
GARFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio (AP) — Police are investigating the theft of about 70 guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition from a suburban Cleveland home.
Garfield Heights police say the thieves likely targeted the home because of the large firearms collection.
The resident reported that he was awoken by a gunshot last week and confronted by two men who demanded to know where his guns where.
He said the thieves grabbed the guns and ammunition from a safe and stuffed them into pillow cases before they escaped.
No arrests have been made.
Police: Man fatally stabbed during Ohio home invasion
AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Authorities say a suspect in an Ohio home invasion has died after being stabbed by a resident at the home.
Akron police say officers responded to a call about a stabbing victim inside a car around 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. The man was taken to a hospital where he died. Authorities haven’t released his name.
Police were called around the same time to a home where a resident said two armed suspects had broken in after removing an air conditioning unit and then fled when he stabbed one of them in the chest.
Police say a 24-year-old man found with the suspect who was stabbed has been arrested.
A police spokesman said detectives will consult with prosecutors to determine if the resident will face charges.
Marion County prosecutor dies from medical complications
MARION, Ohio (AP) — An elected county prosecutor in central Ohio has died from an apparent medical illness.
The Marion Star reports that Marion County Prosecutor Brent Yager collapsed at his Caledonia home Tuesday night and was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy says Yager had suffered from a medical condition the last few months that often prevented him from going to work.
Yager, a Republican, was first elected prosecutor in 2008 and won re-election in 2012 and 2016.
Longtime friend and current Assistant County Prosecutor Kevin Collins told the newspaper that Yager had a “strong sense of justice.”
The Marion County Board of Commissioners is expected to appoint an acting prosecutor Thursday. Local Republicans will pick Yager’s successor.
Yager is survived by his wife, Corrine.
