Here are your morning headlines for Tuesday, Jan. 16:
- Invasive insect found in Lake, Geauga and Athens counties;
- Captive deer tests positive for chronic wasting disease;
- Officer who fatally shot man outside Cleveland bowling alley identified;
- Akron Public Schools prepare for influx of ECOT students;
- Perry prayer rally raises awareness of teen suicide;
- Renacci campaign accuses ex-staffer of sharing internal documents;
- Helicopter crash kills two during power line inspection;
- Man involved in hit-and-run falls into frozen lake;
- Port of Toledo saw increased cargo traffic in 2017;
- Streetsboro police pulls out of reality TV deal with A&E;
Invasive insect found in Lake, Geauga and Athens counties
State officials say an invasive hemlock-killing insect has been found recently in three Ohio counties. Ohio's Department of Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture say that the hemlock woolly adelgid has been found in Lake and Geauga counties and in southeast Ohio’s Athens County. The small, aphid-like invasive insect threatens hemlock species in the eastern US. First reported in 1951, it's now established in 20 states. The pest was first detected in Ohio in 2012. State officials say Lake, Geauga and Athens counties will be included in Ohio's hemlock quarantine. That restricts movement of hemlock materials from infested counties into non-infested counties, among other requirements.
Captive deer tests positive for chronic wasting disease
The Ohio Department of Agriculture says it has confirmed a positive case of chronic wasting disease in a captive deer and is taking steps to control spread of the disease. Department officials say that there has been no evidence that the disease has affected the state's wild deer population. Ohio officials say the positive sample was taken from a single buck on a hunting preserve in Guernsey County. The animal was transferred from a captive breeding facility in Holmes County just days before it was harvested. The preserve and the breeding farm remain under quarantine as monitoring continues. While the disease is fatal in deer, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say there is no evidence that it can be transmitted to humans.
Officer who fatally shot man outside Cleveland bowling alley identified
Police have identified the officer who fatally shot a man outside a bowling alley on Cleveland’s east side. Sgt. Dean Graziolli shot and killed a 21-year-old man at the Corner Alley in University Circle. Graziolli was working security at the bowling alley Saturday night when a fight broke out. Cleveland.com reports the man attacked Graziolli, who shot and killed him. Graziolli has been on the force for more than 20 years. He will spend three days on paid administrative leave and be reassigned during an investigation into the incident.
Akron Public Schools prepare for influx of ECOT students
Akron schools are preparing for an influx of students from the state’s largest online charter school, which could be forced to close this week. The Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow has been troubled by fines, poor attendance and the recent loss of its sponsor. A spokesman tells the Beacon Journal the district began preparations a year ago when an audit found ECOT enrollment figures were inflated. The closure of the online charter school could affect some 12,000 children. Akron is expecting about 200 students.
Perry prayer rally raises awareness of teen suicide
About 200 people gathered Monday for a prayer rally to raise awareness of teen suicide. A Perry high school student committed suicide on Friday. Perry schools have lost five students to suicide since the beginning of the school year. The Repository reports church leaders and students spoke at the event. Perry schools enroll about 4,700 students.
Renacci campaign accuses ex-staffer of sharing internal documents
Ohio’s far-right candidate for U.S. Senate is accusing a former staffer of leaking internal documents to another campaign. Rep. Jim Renacci says the staffer stole the documents to benefit Cleveland businessman and rival Senate hopeful Mike Gibbons. An investigation by the Renacci campaign found the ex-staffer forwarded supporters’ contact information to her private email. Renacci’s campaign manager claims the staffer then contacted people from the list, which included political VIPs and endorsements. The Gibbons campaign denies the theft.
Helicopter crash kills two during power line inspection
A helicopter used for inspecting power lines has crashed into a snowy Ohio field, killing the two men on board. It's not clear what caused the crash around midday Monday just south of the Ohio Turnpike in Wood County. There was no sign of fire and no indication that the aircraft hit any utility lines. A FirstEnergy spokesman tells The Blade that the victims were contractors for the utility. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to send investigators to the scene.
Man involved in hit-and-run falls into frozen lake
Authorities say a man suspected of fleeing a crash apparently ran onto a frozen Ohio lake, fell through the ice, and was unresponsive when rescuers pulled him from the water more than an hour later. The man was taken to a hospital Monday afternoon after rescue teams retrieved him from a small lake in the Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights. The man was suspected of running off after a hit-and-run crash that damaged property.
Port of Toledo saw increased cargo traffic in 2017
Port officials in northwest Ohio say the cargo moving through the Port of Toledo in 2017 increased by nearly 16 percent compared with the previous year. The Blade reports that a rebound in iron ore traffic helped to double shipments from 2016 to 2017. The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority says the port saw more than 9.6 million tons of cargo overall last year.
Streetsboro police pulls out of reality TV deal with A&E
Streetsboro's police department is among a handful law enforcement agencies nationwide that have decided not to renew their contracts to be on A&E Network's real-time police show "Live PD". Streetsboro police left "Live PD" in November after appearing in six episodes. Chief Darin Powers said that while it was good for the public to see what his officers do, there were manpower and overtime issues because officers with TV crews with them didn't have room in their cruisers to transport suspects.
