Here are your morning headlines for Thursday, August 30:
- Suspected fentanyl exposure sends guards, inmates to hospital;
- FirstEnergy Solutions to close remaining coal plants;
- Inmate found dead, another unconscious at Cuyahoga County jail;
- Kent State tells former student to stop advertising open carry rally;
- Chief Wahoo protestor ordered to repay $77,000 for fraud;
- One dead, one injured in overnight Akron shooting;
- City of Alliance to pay $27,000 for violating open meetings law;
Suspected fentanyl exposure sends guards, inmates to hospital
Two dozen guards and inmates at an Ohio prison were rushed to hospitals Wednesday for possible drug overdoses. A State Highway Patrol spokesman says 23 staff members at Ross Correctional Institution in Chillicothe and one inmate were affected. They were given the antidote naloxone for what’s believed to be exposure to fentanyl.
FirstEnergy Solutions to close remaining coal plants
Akron-based FirstEnergy Solutions is closing its last coal-fired power plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania. The utility said Wednesday it plans to shut down its remaining four coal plants by 2022. The three Ohio plants are on the Ohio River in Stratton. Its last Pennsylvania coal plant is in Shippingport. The company says it can't compete in the regional wholesale markets. FirstEnergy announced earlier this year it would shut down its three nuclear plants.
Inmate found dead, another unconscious at Cuyahoga County jail
An inmate at the Cuyahoga County jail has died and another found unconscious in his cell. Cleveland.com reports that both incidents are under internal investigation and little information has been released, including the mens’ names. The inmate who died was booked in the jail overnight on Monday and was found dead on Tuesday afternoon. The second inmate was found unconscious a few hours later. Two inmates at the jail had died earlier this summer – one from an overdose another from hanging.
Kent State tells former student to stop advertising open carry rally
Kent State University is telling a former student to stop advertising for a gun-rally she’s planning on campus. Kent State has notified Kaitlin Bennett that the rally does not comply with university policy. Kent State says events on campus must be sponsored by a university organization, and the open carry rally has not been registered or obtained approval. Bennett responded in a tweet that she still plans to hold the rally next month. Her spring graduation photo that showed her with a cap and gown and armed with an assault weapon went viral on social media.
Chief Wahoo protestor ordered to repay $77,000 for fraud
A man who has held protests saying the Cleveland Indians' Chief Wahoo mascot is racist has been sentenced in federal court for stealing money from federal grants aimed at helping Native Americans. Robert Roche received four months in prison followed by four months of home confinement on Wednesday. A judge ordered him to pay $77,000 in restitution, the amount he was accused of stealing. Roche stole was intended for mental health and wellness programs.
One dead, one injured in overnight Akron shooting
There was a deadly shooting in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood last night. Police say one man was killed and another injured in the double shooting inside John’s Barber Shop. No names have been released. The shooting is under investigation. There was a shooting at the same business last August when it was called the Barber House.
City of Alliance to pay $27,000 for violating open meetings law
The city of Alliance in Stark County will have to pay $27,000 for violating Ohio’s open meetings law. A lawsuit alleged council failed to follow the proper procedures when it met in a private executive session in April, 2017 and failed to preserve the notes taken during the council meeting. The city had agreed to pay a $1,500 penalty and this week a judge ordered the city to pay attorney fees totaling $26,000.
