Sheriff: Couple, young daughter killed when truck runs light
CAMDEN, Ohio (AP) — Authorities in western Ohio say a tractor-trailer ran through a red light and struck a car, killing a couple and their three-year-old daughter.
The Preble County Sheriff’s office says the three killed in Tuesday’s crash are Melissa Hudson and her husband, Schon Hudson and their daughter, Emerie.
All three were from the village of Camden, where the crash happened. The couple has two older children who weren’t in the car.
Authorities say the truck’s driver was in serious condition at a Dayton hospital.
The sheriff’s office says the truck hit two other cars when it went through the light. The drivers of those vehicles were treated at the scene.
Online charter school in legal battle seeks new designation
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio’s high court has agreed to consider an enrollment dispute the state’s largest online charter school says could determine the fate of the entire industry.
The Ohio Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear an appeal from Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow, commonly called ECOT.
The school is challenging how the Ohio Department of Education tallied student log-ins when it determined that ECOT must repay $60 million for misrepresenting enrollment in 2015-16.
The state contends ECOT didn’t provide adequate documentation of student participation to justify the nearly 14,000 students for which it was compensated. The school argues the state wrongly changed reporting criteria.
ECOT is one of the largest online charter schools in the U.S. It announced last month that it was applying to be designated a dropout prevention school.
Ohio county auctions off 1920s-era machine gun for $90K
NEW PHILADELPHIA, Ohio (AP) — A northeast Ohio county Sheriff’s Office has auctioned off a 1920s-era Thompson submachine gun for $90,000.
The New Philadelphia Times Reporter reports bidding began at $40,000 Monday night at the Tuscarawas County Justice Center in New Philadelphia. An anonymous buyer purchased the gun with an appraised value of $37,000.
The Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office bought the Thompson Model 1921 submachine gun in 1934.
Sheriff Orvis Campbell attributes the high auction price to support for his agency. He says he thinks the buyer was someone local who wanted to keep the weapon in the area.
The auctioneer provided his services for free.
Campbell says auction proceeds will be used to buy equipment for his deputies.
New Philadelphia is about 85 miles (137 kilometers) south of downtown Cleveland.
Retired Ohio professor sentenced for camera in locker room
CINCINNATI (AP) — A retired Ohio professor and particle physicist has received six months in jail on voyeurism and child pornography charges for placing a miniature spy camera in a women’s locker room.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reports 77-year-old Brian Meadows was led from a Cincinnati courtroom in handcuffs Tuesday. A judge required him to complete a treatment program and register as a sex offender.
A prosecutor said Meadows streamed images to his cellphone last year from a camera set up outside the women’s toilet and shower area of a health club. Court records said four women and two girls were recorded.
Meadows apologized in court. His attorney said he has mental health issues.
Meadows stopped teaching in May 2016 while continuing research using the Large Hadron Collider built beneath the French-Swiss border.
Couple says thief stole TVs, jewelry and pet mini pig
CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland police are investigating a reported break-in after a couple said someone came into their home and stole jewelry, TVs, a camera and a 15-pound pet pig named Spam.
The owners say they suspect the thief is planning to sell the miniature pig, which they say could be valued at as much as $1,000.
Valerie Couch posted about the missing pig on Facebook and says she hopes her public plea will lead the thief to return him.
Cleveland police say a detective will be assigned to the case.
Police: Teen, child wounded by gunfire in Cincinnati
CINCINNATI (AP) — Police say a 12-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy have been shot in Cincinnati.
Neither shooting victim has been identified after the shooting Tuesday night in the city’s Mount Airy neighborhood. Police say their wounds don’t appear to be life-threatening.
Cincinnati police say officers learned of the shooting after responding to a call about a fight around 9:15 p.m. The girl was taken to a Cincinnati children’s hospital. The 17-year-old was taken to a hospital by a private vehicle.
No details about the shooting have been released.
WLWT-TV has reported that nearly a dozen shell casings were found at the scene.
Woman facing deportation moves into church
CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio woman scheduled to be deported to Mexico has moved into a makeshift apartment inside a suburban Cleveland church that offered her sanctuary.
The Plain Dealer reports 42-year-old Lenora Garcia, of Akron, was supposed to be deported this week but immigration officials say they will not try to remove her from Forest Hill Presbyterian Church in Cleveland Heights.
Garcia has lived in the United States without documentation for more than 20 years and has four American-born children. Her husband was deported in 2011.
The pastor of the church said the decision to house Garcia was made after a discussion with the congregation. He says she has no criminal record and is involved in the community.
Trial date set for Ohio man charged with killing 2 women
ASHLAND, Ohio (AP) — A 2018 trial date has been set for an Ohio man charged with abducting and killing two women.
Shawn Grate has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated murder and kidnapping in the deaths of 29-year-old Elizabeth Griffith and 43-year-old Stacey Stanley. He could face the death penalty if convicted.
Police arrested Grate in September 2016 after finding the women’s bodies in an Ashland home where another woman said she was held captive.
Investigators say Grate admitted killing at least two other women elsewhere.
The Ashland Times-Gazette reports a judge has set an April 9, 2018, trial date for Grate.
Grate’s attorneys aren’t permitted to comment because of a judge’s gag order.
Coroner tracks spike in overdose deaths for Columbus area
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The coroner serving the greater Columbus area says overdose deaths blamed largely on opioids continue to spike compared to a year ago.
Franklin County Coroner Dr. Anahi Ortiz said Tuesday the county in central Ohio saw 268 overdose deaths through June of this year.
That’s an 88 percent jump from the same period a year ago.
Ortiz says four of every five are opioid-related deaths and more than half involve the synthetic painkiller fentanyl, which has been blamed for many overdose deaths in Ohio and across the country.
Ortiz says the majority of victims continue to be men, while overdose deaths among blacks are rising.
The state says a record 4,050 Ohioans died of overdoses in 2016.
