Here are your morning headlines for Tuesday, September 18:
- Akron City Council votes to shut down tent city;
- 15 Cleveland Police recruits fired for cheating;
- GOP, Dems unite behind Senate bill fighting addictive drugs;
- Libertarians: some candidates unfairly excluded from debates;
- Lawyer: Cleveland to pay $1M in lawsuit over killer's victims;
- Ohio doctor groups divided over governor's race endorsement;
- Man accused of threatening Trump is being sought in Mansfield;
Akron City Council votes to shut down tent city
Akron is shutting down a tent city for the homeless. City Council last night rejected a zoning request by Sage Lewis, whose been using his commercial property in the Middlebury neighborhood to operate Second Chance Village since January 2017. Residents have until Thanksgiving to vacate the property. Four council members voted against closing the camp. Council, meanwhile, approved a plan to work to find housing for tent city residents within 60 days.
15 Cleveland Police recruits fired for cheating
Fifteen Cleveland police recruits have been fired following claims they cheated on assignments in their police training. Investigators said the recruits shared and copied notes in violation of training policies. An initial investigation targeted half of this year’s police training class, and eventually cleared all but 15, who were fired on Friday. Nine of the recruits are suing the city to be reinstated.
GOP, Dems unite behind Senate bill fighting addictive drugs
The Senate on Monday passed a package of bills to address the nation’s opioid epidemic. It includes Ohio Senator Rob Portman’s STOP Act that would crack down on mail shipments of synthetic opioids by requiring the U.S. postal service to electronically track international parcels, identify suspicious packages, and test them for drugs. The Senate also passed Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s CRIB Act that allows Medicaid to fund recovery services for babies born addicted to opioids. Once a compromised bill is worked out, each chamber will have to pass the bill before sending it to the president for his signature.
Libertarians: some candidates unfairly excluded from debates
The Libertarian Party of Ohio said Libertarian and Green Party candidates are being unfairly excluded from gubernatorial debates. In a letter, the party said upcoming debates are leaving out Libertarian Travis Irvine and Green Party candidate Constance Gadell-Newton. They argue that violates federal and state law and they're prepared to take legal action. Dan Moulthrop is a founding member of the Ohio Debate Commission and chief executive of the City Club in Cleveland. He said there's been discussion about a possible forum with Libertarian and Green party candidates in October.
Lawyer: city to pay $1M in lawsuit over killer's victims
A lawyer representing families of six women slain by a serial killer in Cleveland says the City of Cleveland has agreed to pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit over the deaths. Attorney Terry Gilbert said Monday the payout is part of a settlement in the lawsuit alleging a police detective failed to thoroughly investigate a woman's 2008 complaint that Anthony Sowell attacked and raped her. Sowell was convicted in 2011 of killing 11 women whose remains were found in 2009. He was sentenced to death. The lawsuit claims the deaths could have been prevented if the 2008 accusation had been investigated properly. Gilbert says Cleveland denies any liability as part of the settlement.
Ohio doctor groups divided over governor's race endorsement
Doctors in Ohio are split over which candidate in the governor's race is best for health care. Nearly 200 doctors and medical students affiliated with the Physicians Action Network today said they object to the Ohio State Medical Association’s endorsement of Republican Mike DeWine. The liberal leaning physicians group says Democrat Richard Cordray is the better choice. In a letter, the group cited DeWine's opposition to the federal Affordable Care Act and an earlier statement that the Medicaid expansion would be "unsustainable." DeWine later clarified that he would preserve the expansion, but with improvements, if elected. That key shift helped secure the medical association's endorsement. The dispute comes two days before DeWine and Cordray are set to face off in the first of three gubernatorial debates. The event Wednesday is in Dayton, with other debates set for Oct. 1 in Marietta on Oct. 1, and Oct. 8 in Cleveland.
Man accused of threatening Trump is being sought in Mansfield
Authorities say a Pennsylvania man accused of threatening President Donald Trump and law enforcement officials is being sought in Mansfield. The U.S. Marshals Service says Shawn Richard Christy abandoned a stolen truck on I-71 Sunday. A federal warrant was issued in June for the 27-year-old in connection to Facebook posts threatening to shoot Trump and a district attorney in Pennsylvania.
