Convenience store employee shot and killed in northwest Ohio

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Police say a convenience store employee has been shot and killed in Toledo.

Toledo police say 42-year-old Kamal Awwad was shot in the chest during a robbery Saturday night on the city’s south side. Awwad died at a hospital.

Police say they responded to the activation of a robbery alarm at the store and a call about shots being fired.

No suspects have been arrested in the slaying. Anyone with information about the shooting is being urged to contact Toledo police or Crimestoppers.

Officer, neighbor help save family from Ohio house fire

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A Columbus police officer and a neighbor are being credited with rescuing a family of six trapped inside a burning home.

WCMH-TV reports Chris Adams responded to a cry for help Thursday night and urged a woman inside the burning home in southwest Columbus to drop her five young children from a second-floor roof so he could catch them.

Columbus police officer Rufus Goodwin then arrived and entered the burning home after the woman found herself unable to escape. Goodwin says he called out to her inside the smoke-filled home and led her to safety.

Goodwin and family members were treated for smoke inhalation. Goodwin tells WCMH he was in the right place at the right time.

The home was destroyed. The Red Cross is assisting the family.

Estevez dramedy about library standoff to film in Cincinnati

CINCINNATI (AP) — An independent movie directed by and starring Emilio Estevez is going to be shot in southwest Ohio.

The ensemble dramedy called “the public” begins filming in Cincinnati in January. It co-stars Alec Baldwin, Jena Malone, Taylor Schilling and Che “Rhymefest” Smith.

Kristen Schlotman of Film Cincinnati tells WCPO-TV that the film is currently in pre-production. It’s based on a screenplay written by Estevez.

The film centers on a standoff involving police and library officials when library patrons stage a sit-in during a life-threatening cold snap. Many of the patrons are homeless or mentally ill.

Estevez and Malone play librarians. Baldwin plays a crisis negotiator. Schilling’s character helps expose the truth of the situation while the corrupt media spin the story for ratings. Smith plays a homeless patron.

Northern Ohio bishop asks governor to end death penalty

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — The head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo is calling on Ohio Gov. John Kasich to end the death penalty in the state.

The request comes as Ohio takes steps to carry out an execution in January that would be the state’s first in three years.

Bishop Daniel Thomas has sent a letter to the Republican governor saying the Catholic faith opposes the death and affirms the sacredness of all life.

Thomas says there will be a candlelight prayer vigil next month for abolishing the death penalty.

The Toledo diocese serves 320,000 Catholics in 19 counties across northern Ohio.

Ohio high court overturns murder conviction in 2012 shooting

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court has overturned the aggravated murder conviction of a man convicted in a bar fight and shooting in Cleveland that left one man dead.

Cleveland.com reports the court ruled 4-3 Friday to throw out Dajhon Walker’s conviction. The ruling says Cuyahoga County prosecutors didn’t prove “prior calculation and design” or that Antwon Shannon’s killing was carefully calculated, when arguing for the aggravated murder conviction.

Walker and two others were convicted in the 2012 bar fight. Authorities said Shannon tried to break up the fight and was fatally shot.

Walker received 25 years to life in prison. The Maple Heights man’s case is expected to be sent back to Cuyahoga County for resentencing.

The prosecutor couldn’t be reached for comment.

Authorities: 3 dead, 1 critical in Ohio crash

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Three people have been killed and a child is in critical condition following a crash on Interstate 270.

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says the driver of a Ford Explorer traveling eastbound in Jackson Township around 3:40 p.m. Saturday lost control and crossed a grass median, entering the westbound lanes. A Honda Civic with three occupants then hit the vehicle.

The SUV driver, 38-year-old Loren Colombini of Columbus, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Honda’s driver and a front passenger, 39-year-old James Music, and 41-year-old Suni Music, both of Columbus, were pronounced dead at a hospital. A child in the backseat, 8-year-old Mylee Music of Columbus, is in critical condition at a hospital.

Authorities say alcohol and/or drugs may have played a part in the crash.