Here are your morning headlines for Monday, August 19:
- Warren newspaper purchases Vindicator name;
- Brown calls for gun background checks;
- Storms knock out power in NE Ohio;
- UA releases salary for new president;
- Summit County jail reopens two libraries, asks for donations;
- Man accused of threat to Youngstown Jewish center arrested;
- Dayton mayor receives threats after Trump meeting;
- Ohio State to aid farmers needing emotional, financial help;
- Proposed changes would reduce water monitoring samples taken;
Warren newspaper purchases Vindicator name
A daily newspaper in Warren has purchased the name and subscriber list of The Vindicator in Youngstown, which is publishing its final edition Aug. 31. Vindicator owner and general manager Mark Brown said The Tribune Chronicle is also buying the Vindy.com website and will publish a Mahoning County edition under The Vindicator masthead starting Sept. 1. Brown announced July 5 The Vindicator would cease publication because of financial struggles just days after the paper celebrated its 150th anniversary. Tribune Chronicle publisher Charles Jarvis said The Vindicator edition will include many of that paper's features. The Tribune Chronicle announced plans for increased Mahoning County coverage and a separate edition after The Vindicator closing announcement. The Tribune Chronicle's two county editions are expected to reach more than 50,000 households.
Brown calls for gun background checks
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown held a rally in Cleveland over the weekend to urge the U.S. Senate to pass a bill to expand background checks for gun sales. Brown was joined at the Boys and Girls Club by advocates, survivors of gun violence and Northeast Ohio Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan. The group is calling on Senate President Mitch McConnell to call the Senate back into session to vote on the measures, which have passed the House. McConnell has said he’s open to taking up the bills but not until lawmakers return from summer recess in September.
Storms knock out power in NE Ohio
Many in Stark, Summit and Portage counties are without power Monday morning as strong storms moved through the region early Sunday evening. Downed trees toppled on homes and blocked roads in Akron’s Ellet neighborhood and in Tallmadge, where quarter-sized hail pounded the area coupled with strong winds.
UA releases salary for new president
The University of Akron has released the salary of its new president. Gary Miller will make $475,000 a year for five years when he takes over October 1. Another $25,000 will be placed in a deferred compensation plan each year, and he will earn the lump amount at the end of the contract term if he is still president. He will receive monthly stipends for housing and a vehicle. The university will also pay Miller, who served the last five years as the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, moving expenses up to $36,000. The annual salary for Todd Diacon, who took over as Kent State University’s president this summer is $475,000.
Summit County jail reopens two libraries, asks for donations
The Summit County jail is reopening its two small libraries Monday and is asking the public for help. The Beacon Journal reports it wants people to donate all types of books for inmates. The jail closed the libraries a decade ago over funding cuts. They’re reopening a year after a county commission recommended ways to improve inmate services and conditions at the facility. In addition to the libraries, the jail has reopened the gymnasiums for recreational activity, added an Alcoholics Anonymous program and started a Narcotics Anonymous program for women.
Man accused of threat against Youngstown Jewish center arrested
Police said a man accused of making what they believe was a threat to the Jewish Community Center in Youngstown on Instagram has been arrested on telecommunications harassment and aggravated menacing charges. New Middletown police said they arrested 20-year-old James Reardon, Jr., at his home Saturday. Reardon allegedly posted a video last month of a man shooting a semi-automatic rifle with the caption: "Police identified the Youngstown Jewish Family Community shooter as local white nationalist Seamus O'Rearedon." Police said rounds of ammunition, semi-automatic weapons and anti-Semitic information were found at his house. He’s scheduled to be arraigned Monday.
Dayton mayor receives threats after Trump meeting
The mayor of Dayton, where nine people were slain in a mass shooting, said a round-the-clock security detail was assigned to her because of hate-filled messages she received following verbal sparring with President Donald Trump after his visit to a Dayton hospital earlier this month. The Dayton Daily News reports Trump after his Aug. 7 visit called a news conference Mayor Nan Whaley held with Ohio's Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown "a fraud." Whaley responded in an interview with CNN that Trump is a "bully and a coward." The newspaper reports it reviewed dozens of messages regarding Whaley that contained abusive language and expletive-laced insults. The messages prompted city officials to assign Whaley the police security detail. Dayton police said there were no specific threats directed toward Whaley.
Ohio State to aid farmers needing emotional, financial help
Ohio State University is creating a new way to help farmers dealing with the stress and strain of keeping their farms running. It's called the Rural and Farm Stress Task Force. The university said the task force will help connect farmers with specialists who can help them learn more about keeping their businesses afloat or find jobs off the farm. Specialists also will be able to help farmers find mental health providers. Ohio State University Extension said farmers are facing more challenges with slumping grain prices, tariffs and an extremely challenging weather year. One of the leaders of the task force says that farmers are always dealing with challenges and that sometimes their perseverance brings with it a resistance to seek help.
Proposed changes would reduce water monitoring samples taken
Ohio's EPA is proposing changes to its water quality monitoring program that would reduce the amount of samples taken from the state's rivers and streams. The Columbus Dispatch reports the Ohio EPA is proposing to fold the 98 watersheds now surveyed into 37 larger "project areas." The agency said having fewer sampling areas should enable more frequent testing. The newspaper reports it can sometimes take 20 years or more years for researchers to get back out to some of the current survey sites. The agency anticipates being able to test the project areas once every 12 years under the proposed changes. A probability survey would be used to estimate water quality statewide. Critics argue the changes would provide less data on which to base water quality decisions.
