Tornadoes touched down in at least 11 Ohio counties Sunday
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Survey crews with the National Weather Service say tornadoes touched down in at least 11 Ohio counties during a storm outbreak over the weekend.
Nearly all of those were in the state’s northern half where tornadoes and straight-line winds on Sunday left a trail of damaged businesses and homes.
There haven’t been any serious injuries reported from the storm in Ohio.
The weather service says there were three tornado touchdowns in Seneca County and two in Mercer County.
Tornadoes also were on the ground in Ashtabula, Ashland, Sandusky, Crawford, Columbiana, Erie, Wayne, Huron and Clark counties.
Ohio: More than 500 police agencies meeting new standards
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The state says law enforcement agencies representing nearly eight of every 10 Ohio officers have been fully certified on new standards governing the use of deadly force and other policies.
An advisory board commissioned by Republican Gov. John Kasich created the standards after a series of fatal police shootings in Ohio and nationally.
Agencies that don’t meet the statewide standards as minimum policies will be listed as noncompliant on an annual list. Standards also include recruiting and hiring.
The Department of Public Safety announced Monday that North Royalton Police Department in suburban Cleveland and Riverside Police Department in suburban Dayton are the latest departments to comply with the standards.
The agency says 506 departments employing over 27,000 officers have either met the standards or are in the process.
Ohio boy, 12, charged over school threat posted on Instagram
NORTON, Ohio (AP) — Police say a 12-year-old Ohio boy accused of posting a threat to his middle school on social media has been suspended and charged with making false alarms.
Administrators of Norton Middle School near Akron were notified about the threat Monday morning, and the student was taken into custody on his school bus when it arrived in the parking lot.
Police and the school didn’t publicly identify the student or share specifics about the threat made on Instagram. Investigators determined the boy didn’t have the means to follow through with the threat.
WOIO-TV reports the student wasn’t armed.
Ex-player’s NFL concussion payment would go to restitution
CLEVELAND (AP) — If former Cleveland Browns wide receiver Reggie Rucker gets money from a potential settlement between the NFL and athletes who suffered concussions, he’ll have to use it to pay restitution for stealing from his nonviolence nonprofit groups.
Rucker’s attorney previously said the 70-year-old intends to pay restitution using whatever payment he might get from a class-action settlement in the concussions matter. Cleveland.com reports a federal judge recently made that an order.
Rucker was sentenced last year to 21 months in prison and ordered to pay $110,000 for using the charities’ money to pay gambling debts and personal expenses. Part of his NFL pension payments also are being garnished for restitution.
His attorney blamed Rucker’s actions on a gambling addiction caused by football-related brain injuries. Prosecutors scoffed at that argument.
Teen pleads guilty to shooting Ohio sheriff’s deputy
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — An 18-year-old has pleaded guilty to charges related to the shooting and wounding of a sheriff’s deputy in northwestern Ohio following a search near the Michigan state line.
Jeshua Gilmore, of Toledo, entered a guilty plea Monday to several counts that include attempted aggravated murder and grand theft of a motor vehicle.
Authorities say Gilmore shot Deputy Jeremy Simon twice July 31 after leading the officer on a car chase in Lyons. The Blade reports the teen fled the shooting on foot, stole a vehicle and was arrested about 17 hours later in Toledo.
Simon recovered from his injuries and returned to work Aug. 29.
Gilmore faces more than 20 years in prison during sentencing.
Woman killed, man injured after Ohio house explosion
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Officials say a woman has died and a man remains hospitalized following a home explosion in central Ohio.
Neighbors called emergency responders about the explosion in southeastern Columbus around 4 a.m. Monday. The Columbus Dispatch reports neighbors pulled the woman from the rubble, and the man was found in the driveway after he was ejected from the home.
Investigators identified the woman as 54-year-old Shelly Williams. WBNS-TV reports 59-year-old Stewart Bell is at Wexner Medical Center in fair condition.
Fire officials say a family dog crawled out of the debris, and it has been taken to a vet.
A spokeswoman for Columbus Gas of Ohio says crews turned off the gas line at the home.
Fire officials have yet to determine the cause of the explosion.
Power outages force Ohio counties to find new polling places
CLEVELAND (AP) — Election directors in northeastern Ohio have been scrambling to find new polling locations after a severe storm over the weekend knocked out power across the region.
Damage from the storm on Sunday along with the power outages has closed some schools and churches that were supposed to be polling sites Tuesday.
Electricity in some areas isn’t expected to be back on until Wednesday.
Election officials held emergency meetings on Monday to decide what to do.
Portage County has moved two polling locations in Aurora while Geauga County is relocating four polling sites.
In Cleveland, Cuyahoga County elections officials asked utility crews to put a priority on restoring power to two polling places that were without electricity Monday afternoon.
Ohio college offers drug prevention education workshop
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Wright State University in southwest Ohio is offering a workshop on drug prevention education for teachers and school administrators.
The Wednesday morning program covers tools for opioid and drug prevention in schools, and learning more about what’s called the HOPE curriculum. That stands for Health and Opioid-Abuse Prevention Education.
The workshop is aimed at providing K-12 lesson plans, instructional materials, and resources for teachers and administrators including connecting with parents and community resources.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s Start Talking! initiative is a co-sponsor.
The workshop is free to educators, who can register on site Wednesday.
