Here are your morning headlines for Thursday, June 5:
- Summit County Sheriff's Office investigates death of an inmate;
- Three female Cleveland Community Police Commission sue director;
- Akron bar owner sues the city and police officers for 2016 raid;
- Cleveland Orchestra's music director sits out summer kickoff;
- Groups file singatures for two fall ballot issues;
Summit County Sheriff's Office investigates death of an inmate
The Summit County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of a 35-year-old inmate last week. Brittany Berry Schlarb was jailed on drug charges, and her family tells the Beacon Journal that they are worried she didn’t receive adequate treatment for withdrawal. The jail’s medical staff took Schlarb to Cleveland Clinic Akron General on June 25, where she died. Inmates addicted to drugs are placed in different units to allow for more frequent checkups and the jail has a contract to provide medical services on site. If there is a need for more services, inmates are temporarily taken to a hospital for treatment. It's unclear what prompted jail staff to take her to the hospital.
Three female Cleveland Community Police Commission employees sue director
Three female employees allege in a lawsuit that they were repeatedly sexually harassed by the executive director of a Cleveland commission intended to give community input on policy as police reforms are made. Cleveland.com reports the Cleveland Community Police Commission director, Jason Goodrick, couldn't be reached for comment about the lawsuit filed against him Tuesday by the former employees. A spokesman for the city said it doesn't comment on pending lawsuits. The city put Goodrick on paid leave for a month while investigating concerns about sexual harassment and his work. The lawsuit says a commissioner told the women Goodrick didn't "do anything serious." He returned to work, and the three women resigned. The city-funded commission was required under a court-monitored agreement between Cleveland and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Akron bar owner sues the city and police officers for 2016 raid
A bar owner is suing the city of Akron and a handful of police officers for a raid in 2016. Joe Salem tells the Beacon Journal that officers harassed his customers and used excessive force when they came into Hibachi Express for a surprise liquor inspection. Security camera footage shows officers questioning customers while one grabbed Salem and arrested him in his office. He was charged with carrying a concealed weapon—which he says was licensed and legal—along with failing to display a liquor permit. Charges were later dropped, and Salem says the city and police department failed to respond when asked why.
Cleveland Orchestra's music director sits out summer season kickoff
The Cleveland Orchestra says Music Director Franz Welser-Möst has a bacterial hand infection and will not be leading its concerts Friday and Saturday that kick off its summer season. Assistant Conductor Vinay Parmeswaran will instead conduct Friday's Star-Spangled Spectacular concert in Downtown Cleveland. On Saturday at Blossom, former Music Festival Director Jahja Ling will step in for the opening night concert: Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Welser-Möst has been with the orchestra for 16 years. The Orchestra has not said when he will return.
Groups file signatures for two fall ballot issues
It was a busy holiday for groups that want voters to approve two new constitutional amendments this fall.
Backers of the Neighborhood Safety, Drug Treatment, and Rehabilitation Amendment submitted more than twice the 305,000 signatures needed. That amendment would reclassify the lowest-level drug felonies as no worse than misdemeanors and require more state money for addiction treatment. The other, the Kidney Dialysis Patient Protection Amendment, would require annual inspections of clinics, limit how much they can charge and impose penalties for overcharging patients. A group of dialysis clinics and medical groups are opposing that union-backed effort as deceptive and unnecessary. And opponents of the drug crimes amendment say state lawmakers should handle that, because it doesn’t belong in the constitution.
