Here are your morning headlines for Monday, March 26:
- President Trump to visit Richfield Thursday to tout infrastructure plan;
- Cleveland Police Department investigates stalled sex and child abuse cases;
- Cleveland will begin to post lead warning signs at contaminated homes;
- NFL officials scout Canton as possible draft host city;
- A father and son era of Finance Directors in Barberton comes to an end;
Trump to tout infrastructure plan in Richfield
President Donald Trump plans to visit Ohio this week to promote his plans to rebuild and repair the nation's roads and bridges. Trump asked Congress in February to consider using a $200 billion federal investment to leverage more than $1 trillion in state, local and private funding to pay for improvements to the nation's infrastructure, such as roads, highways, bridges, ports and airports. Trump has promoted the plan as one that would garner bipartisan support, but it has received a cool reception on Capitol Hill. The White House said Trump plans to travel to Richfield on Thursday to promote the plan. Trump won Ohio in the 2016 presidential election by 9 percentage points.
Cleveland Police investigate stalled sex and child abuse cases, demote two officers
Cleveland Police Department internal affairs investigators are working to find out why more than 60 sexual assault and child abuse cases were stalled – some for years. Cleveland.com reports many victims and their families were outraged that their cases were not being properly investigated. Investigators found that Detective Tom Ross failed to make reports in 59 of 65 case files and did no additional investigation into any cases after he was promoted from the sex crimes unit. Ross was demoted earlier this month. Capt. James McPike—who was commander of the sex crimes unit—was also demoted.
Cleveland to post lead warning signs at contaminated home
City officials in Cleveland will begin to post lead warning signs on homes where children have been poisoned. Cleveland.com reports the signs will start to go up April 2nd. The placards are mandated by Ohio law and will be placed by city health officials on 51 homes where children have been poisoned by lead. The homes have received multiple notifications regarding lead hazards. In May 2017, the city began placing the similar signs along with orders to vacate properties on dozens of homes the health department had previously investigated.
NFL officials scout Canton as possible 2019, 2020 draft host city
NFL draft officials are set to start an exploratory trip this week to Canton ahead of the 2019 and 2020 NFL drafts. The Repository reports Canton – in partnership with Cleveland – are one of the five finalists for the next two drafts. The winners are expected to be announced during the league’s spring meeting in May. The Ohio cities are competing with Kansas City, Nashville, Denver and Las Vegas. The Pro Football Hall of Fame president Said the site visit is scheduled for Thursday. The application was submitted by the Hall of Fame, the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and the Cleveland Browns. 2019 marks the league’s 100th season.
A father and son era of Finance Directors in Barberton comes to an end
It’s the end of a 70-year-era in city financing in Barberton. At the end of this month, Finance Director Raymond E. Flicklinger is retiring. Since 1948 either he or his dad, Raymond E. Flicklinger Sr., has held the finance position in Barberton. The Akron Beacon Journal reports the duo has had such a grip on the office that nobody has challenged either at the ballot since 1968. The younger Flicklinger said it’s time to step down from the office he stepped into in 1980 after his then-72-year-old father retired. The Assistant Finance Director Jeremy Flaker will take over, but will have to run for the office in 2019 to keep the job.
