Ohio News Briefs

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Police: Would-be hit man turned in woman who wanted ex dead

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio (AP) — Police say an Ohio woman paid someone to kill her estranged husband but was turned in by the would-be hit man.

Middletown police say Shelly Carter is charged with three counts of conspiracy to commit aggravated murder because her children also were potential targets. A judge on Friday set a $750,000 bond for Carter. The 42-year-old Middletown woman told the judge she’s trying to hire an attorney.

Police allege Carter paid someone $500 to kill her husband and promised another $500 and a car when the job was finished. Lt. Jim Cunningham says the would-be hit man contacted police.

Carter’s husband wasn’t hurt.

Cunningham says a Middletown couple who arranged Carter’s meeting with the man also are charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated murder. Their bonds were set at $250,000.

Appeals court: Ohio elections chief wrongly purged voters

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal appeals court says Ohio’s elections chief has been wrongfully removing eligible voters from the swing state’s registration list.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio and the public advocacy group Demos had challenged the state’s process for maintaining its voter rolls, claiming it illegally drops registered voters based on their failure to vote.

A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled Friday that Ohio’s process violates the National Voter Registration Act.

Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted has said the process used by Ohio for more than 20 years is constitutional and fully complies with state and federal laws.

In a July court brief, the Justice Department urged the appeals court to reverse the district judge’s decision.

Report: More than 1,000 ODs hit Ohio county in 2 months

CINCINNATI (AP) — Hospital emergency workers in a southwest Ohio county have handled an average of nearly 15 overdoses a day since a powerful drug used to sedate elephants was found in heroin in the area about two months ago.

Hamilton County Commissioner Dennis Deters tells The Cincinnati Enquirer the 1,004 overdoses indicate the area has seen a massive infusion of heroin. The overdose count released to the newspaper Thursday includes emergency room information from July 15 to Sept. 21.

The numbers include 174 overdoses that occurred over a six-day period last month, primarily on Cincinnati’s west side. Overdose runs per day have dropped since then, but continue on a pace far above what they were prior to mid-July.

The count includes possible overdoses and all overdoses — not just opioid-related ones.

Police probing after Ohio State coach Schiano hits bicyclist

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Police say they’re investigating after an Ohio State University assistant football coach hit a bicyclist, sending the student to the hospital.

The Columbus Dispatch reports police say the Buckeyes’ defensive coordinator Greg Schiano hit the 26-year-old bicyclist Thursday morning near the university’s campus.

Officials say the student was hospitalized in stable condition with a head injury. He’s expected to survive.

The man’s name wasn’t immediately available.

Police say Schiano had been turning when he hit the bicyclist. Schiano wasn’t hurt.

A university spokesman acknowledged Schiano’s involvement and says the university wants to support the student however it can.

Schiano was named national coach of the year in 2006 after leading Rutgers to an 11-2 record. The New Jersey native coached the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2012 and 2013.

Patrol: Driver of ambulance struck by SUV in Ohio dies

CLYDE, Ohio (AP) — Authorities say an ambulance driver has died after an SUV went through a stop sign and struck the ambulance.

The State Highway Patrol reports that 45-year-old Sandra L. Cline, of Holland, died Friday at a hospital in Toledo where she was taken after the Thursday night crash.

The patrol says the SUV driver and two passengers in the ambulance, including a patient, were taken to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.

The patrol says a Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, man was driving his SUV on a Sandusky County road in Green Creek Township when he went through a stop sign and hit the ambulance. The force of the crash caused the ambulance to overturn.

The crash remains under investigation.

Authorities: Car strikes, kills man in wheelchair in Ohio

SILVERTON, Ohio (AP) — A sheriff’s office says a man in a wheelchair was struck by a car and killed in Ohio as the man was operating the motorized wheelchair in a marked crosswalk.

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office says 44-year-old Robert D. Tirey was struck around 9:30 Thursday night in the village of Silverton in suburban Cincinnati.

Authorities say Tirey’s wheelchair was struck on the right side by a car that failed to yield to Tirey. The Cincinnati man was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The driver of the car wasn’t injured.

The statement from the sheriff’s office says alcohol is suspected to be a factor in the crash.

The investigation was continuing Friday.

Ex-guidance counselor gets prison for sex abuse of student

CLEVELAND (AP) — A former northeast Ohio guidance counselor has been sentenced to a year in state prison after admitting she sexually abused a student.

Ronetta Smith pleaded guilty to reduced charges last month of sexual battery and attempted tampering with evidence.

The 36-year-old was sentenced on Thursday. She must register as a sex offender and can never work in a high school again.

Smith’s attorney unsuccessfully asked that she receive probation, saying she has no criminal history and a teen daughter at home.

Smith had been a guidance counselor at Euclid High School. She resigned in March.

Prosecutors say Smith sent the student hundreds of text messages. Some referenced sexual assaults in school classrooms, in Smith’s office and the boy’s home.

Smith says she made a mistake and has apologized.

Police: 11-year-old hit by car walking to school, killed

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Police say an 11-year-old boy was hit by at least one car and killed while heading to school in Ohio’s capital city.

Columbus police say Favour Agu was headed to Woodward Park Middle School with his fellow classmates Thursday morning when he was hit.

The sixth-grader was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead.

School officials say counselors were in the school and classes weren’t cancelled. They say there were no crossing guards there at the time.

Police say they had trouble notifying the family and are reminding parents to maintain updated emergency contact information with their child’s school.

The crash remains under investigation.

Police say 2-year-old found unresponsive in Ohio pool dies

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Police say a 2-year-old child has died after he was found unresponsive in a pool at an apartment complex in central Ohio.

Columbus police say the boy was found in a pool at the Worthington Meadows apartments around 7 p.m. Thursday and died at a hospital a short time later. The child’s name wasn’t immediately released.

Columbus police Sgt. Stan Latta says the outdoor pool was still open for swimming. But he said he didn’t immediately have specifics about what happened and whether the child had been with an adult.

Latta said three patrol officers tried to resuscitate the child before a medic took him to the hospital.

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