Ohio sees record number of concealed carry permits issued

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — State officials say a record number of concealed carry licenses for handguns were issued last year.

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office said Wednesday that nearly 118,000 new permits were issued in 2016 along with 41,000 renewals. The total of 159,000 permits is the highest number since the state began issuing concealed carry licenses in 2004.

The previous high for new and renewed permits was 145,000 in 2013.

The state also saw new highs last year for the number of licenses suspended after someone was arrested or charged with certain crimes, licenses revoked and license applications denied.

Each county sheriff must report concealed handgun license statistics to the state on a quarterly basis.

Deputies suspect drugs caused man’s death at SW Ohio jail

XENIA, Ohio (AP) — A southwestern Ohio sheriff says a man arrested after a traffic stop died at the jail, and deputies suspect he had ingested a baggie of drugs that led to his death.

Greene County Gene Fischer says the 32-year-old man was a passenger in a vehicle that was stopped Tuesday morning, when deputies found drugs inside it. Fischer says the man was booked into jail in Xenia, east of Dayton, and was being monitored after dinner when he took a turn for the worst.

Emergency responders repeatedly gave him an overdose reversal drug and tried unsuccessfully to revive him. An autopsy was anticipated.

The circumstances of the man’s time in custody are under internal review, though Fischer says it appears that all deputies involved followed protocol.

Maintenance man sentenced after cameras found in apartments

LEBANON, Ohio (AP) — A maintenance man at an apartment complex in southwest Ohio has been sentenced to four years in prison for putting hidden cameras in bathrooms of five women’s apartments.

Prosecutors in Warren County say 66-year-old Gerald Rowe, of Milford, admitted to putting the cameras in bathroom vents after being confronted by detectives.

He pleaded guilty to five counts each of burglary and voyeurism last month and was sentenced Wednesday.

His attorney declined to comment.

Prosecutors say a woman who lived at the Deerfield Township complex contacted authorities last May after finding one of the cameras.

Rowe will have to register as a sex offender after his release from prison for 15 years.

Akron-area Democrat plans to leave Ohio House for county job

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A Democratic state lawmaker from northeast Ohio says she’s leaving her elected office to take a job in Summit County government.

Rep. Greta Johnson, of Akron, announced Thursday that she will step down at the end of March. Johnson says she’s taking a job as deputy director in the county’s law department under County Executive Ilene Shapiro, who has been a mentor to her.

A statement from Johnson says the House Democratic Caucus will soon announce a process for choosing her replacement.

Johnson was elected to the Ohio House in 2014 and says she is proud of the work she has done to advocate for the working class and women’s rights.

She previously worked as a prosecutor in Mahoning and Summit counties and in the city of Akron.