Here are your morning headlines for Monday, January 11:
- The Browns get first playoff win in 26 years
- COVID-19 cases dip for third straight day
- More than a half dozen bars cited for COVID-19 violations
- Sen. Brown calls for Hawley, Cruz to resign; Portman to lead security hearings
- School therapist resigns after alleged involvement in riots
- Columbus basketball arena to become COVID-19 vaccination site
The Browns get first playoff win in 26 years
Baker Mayfield threw for three touchdowns and the Browns collected their first playoff victory in 26 years with a 48-37 romp over Pittsburgh. Kareem Hunt added two touchdown runs for the Browns. Cleveland was playing without several high-profile players and head coach Kevin Stefanski due to COVID-19. It hardly mattered as the Browns raced to a quick 28-0 lead then turned aside a Pittsburgh second-half rally. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger passed for 501 yards and four touchdowns but also threw four interceptions. Next up is the divisional round in Kansas City against the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs. The game is Sunday at 3 p.m.
COVID-19 cases dip for third straight day
COVID-19 cases were down Sunday for the third straight day. The roughly 6,000 new cases is below the state's three-week average. There were around 8,300 on Saturday and around 9,500 Friday. The number of Ohioans who have died with the coronavirus rose by 28 and there were about 100 new hospitalizations on Sunday, which is also below the three-week average.
More than a half dozen bars cited for COVID-19 violations
More than a half dozen Northeast Ohio bars were cited for coronavirus health violations over the weekend. The Brooklands Bar in Akron was cited after agents spotted about nine patrons drinking and congregating. Also cited was Hudson's Kepner's Tavern, D Kay’s Bar and Grill in New Philadelphia and Musical Inn in Canton. Three bars in Euclid and another in Parma Heights also were cited. The cases will go to the Ohio Liquor Control Commission for possible penalties.
Sen. Brown calls for Hawley, Cruz to resign; Portman to lead security hearings
Ohio Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown called for two fellow Congress members to resign over last week’s insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. In a tweet on Saturday, Brown said that if Republican Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Ted Cruz of Texas do not resign immediately, the Senate “must expel them.” Several other lawmakers have echoed Browns’ call, saying that objecting to the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory “incited and supported the violent mob that attacked the Capitol.”
Meanwhile, Ohio GOP Sen. Rob Portman, along with other leaders of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Committee on Rules and Administration will hold hearings and conduct joint oversight of security failures at the Capitol. Portman also tweeted that he will be introducing a bill to establish a bipartisan panel to provide transparency into past election issues and recommend best practices for the states moving forward.
School therapist resigns after alleged involvement in riots
A Cleveland school occupational therapist resigned from the district after her alleged involvement in the riots and breach at the U.S. Capitol last week. But her resignation letter cited reasons for her departure related to switching career paths to focus on exposing human trafficking and pedophilia and not wanting to take a COVID-19 vaccine in order to return to in-person school. Forty-nine-year-old Christine Priola submitted a resignation letter to the Cleveland Metropolitan School District after social media users linked her to photos taken of a violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump, who stormed the U.S. Capitol a day before and forced lawmakers into hiding in an attempt to overturn the presidential election.
Columbus basketball arena to become COVID-19 vaccination site
The city of Columbus is turning a basketball arena into a coronavirus vaccination hub. Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center plans to use the Schottenstein Center to administer COVID-19 vaccines as the public rollout begins with Phase 1B on Jan. 19. The Columbus Dispatch reports officials will be able to vaccinate more than 3,000 people a day. The medical center will conduct a dry-run on Friday with 300 to 500 employees who still need to be vaccinated.
