Here are your morning headlines for Friday, June 26:
- Ohio youth see virus surge
- NFL cancels Canton’s Hall of Fame game
- Initial jobless claims rise slightly as recovery continues
- Prosecutors drop curfew violation charges against Cleveland resident
- Cedar Point will keep its waterpark closed this summer
- Cleveland Mayor signs off on discount dollar store moratorium
- Ohio Supreme Court upholds administrative foreclosures
- U.S. Supreme Court move ends relaxed Ohio signature rules
- Lebron James launches new media company
- AAA forecasts fewer road trips this summer due to COVID-19
Ohio youth see virus surge
Ohioans were cautioned Thursday to return to being vigilant about social distancing, mask-wearing and hand-washing, after cases of COVID-19 hit their highest mark since mid-April. According to figures from the Ohio Department of Health, the latest round of cases disproportionately struck younger Ohioans, with 60% being reported among people 20 to 49. The average age of Ohioans getting the disease once thought to be a particular threat to the elderly has now dropped to 42. Gov. Mike DeWine called Thursday’s numbers, including 892 new cases and 17 more deaths, “chilling.” Increased testing doesn't entirely explain the increase.
NFL cancels Canton’s Hall of Fame game
The NFL has canceled the Hall of Fame game that traditionally opens the preseason in Canton. The Aug. 6 exhibition game between the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers is the first on-field event the league has canceled during the pandemic. Enshrinements for 20 men scheduled for this year now will occur next August, with the 2021 inductees going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame the next day. The Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce estimates that the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival brings 700,000 people to Stark County and produces an economic impact of $40 million locally and $65 million for the state.
Initial jobless claims rise slightly as recovery continues
Ohio says initial jobless claims rose slightly in the last week, bucking a trend that had seen the numbers slowly track downward. The Department of Job and Family Services reported 34,553 claims to the U.S. Department of Labor for the week ending June 20, compared with 32,788 claims last week. Job and Family Services also says continued jobless claims went down for the eighth week in a row. Agency spokesman Bret Crow says that's a sign that people are going back to work. Meanwhile the state continues to monitor increases in the number of positive coronavirus cases.
Prosecutors drop curfew violation charges against Cleveland resident
Cleveland city prosecutors are dropping charges against a resident who was arrested for violating the city’s Downtown curfew earlier this month despite living and working there. Police stopped Anthony Body twice on the Monday after the city’s May 30 demonstrations. Although Body showed an ID with a downtown address, officers arrested and jailed him. In a court filing this week, prosecutors wrote they’re dropping the charges after reviewing the facts of the case. Body’s attorney, Eric Long, says he believes there wasn’t probable cause to arrest his client. The city’s curfew order made exceptions for Downtown residents.
Cedar Point will keep its waterpark closed this summer
Cedar Point in Sandusky says it won’t open its 18-acre outdoor waterpark this summer, according to updated information on the park website. The waterpark, which requires a separate admission from the amusement park, was expanded and rebranded as Cedar Point Shores in 2017. The interactive attraction Forbidden Frontier on Adventure Island also will not open in 2020. Cedar Point, meanwhile, continues to prepare for its July 9 opening.
Cleveland Mayor signs off on discount dollar store moratorium
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson has signed off on a moratorium of new discount dollar stores through this fall. Cleveland.com reports there are slightly more than 100 such stores in Cuyahoga County, with 70 in Cleveland. The moratorium prevents new ones from opening until November 1 so that the city can tighten regulations. Council members say many of the businesses don’t take care of their buildings, clean up their property or provide adequate security for customers or employees.
Ohio Supreme Court upholds administrative foreclosures
The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that a foreclosure process that sells homes without compensating owners for their equity is legal. At issue before the court was a process known as administrative foreclosures, according to the Ohio Center for Investigative Journalism in an article transmitted via cleveland.com. Elliot Feltner, a Cleveland landowner, sued the Cuyahoga County Board of Revision in 2018 arguing that the process was an unconstitutional government seizure without compensation. The court rejected Feltner’s argument “because the board of revision did not patently and unambiguously lack jurisdiction when it proceeded in the foreclosure action at issue.”
U.S. Supreme Court move ends relaxed Ohio signature rules
The U.S. Supreme Court has denied an effort by Ohio ballot campaigns to win access to more flexible signature-gathering rules during the coronavirus pandemic. The high court denied the campaigns’ application without comment Thursday. That leaves in place a decision by the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals blocking relaxed restrictions on the signatures ordered by a lower court. Backers of the voting rights package suspended their campaign last week. Thursday’s decision gives little leeway to the remaining campaigns promoting a minimum wage increase and marijuana decriminalization ahead of the state’s now-unchanged signature deadline of June 30.
Lebron James launches new media company
Akron native NBA star LeBron James is launching a new media company with his business partner and childhood friend, Maverick Carter. The SpringHill Company is designed to empower diverse creators and audiences whose voices have been marginalized. They launched the company after raising $100 million.
AAA forecasts fewer road trips this summer due to COVID-19
AAA predicts Americans this summer will take 700 million trips -- 97% will be by car. That number is down nearly 15% compared to last July through September, and is the first decline in summer travel since 2009. Air travel is expected to decrease by about 74% amid the pandemic. AAA booking trends show that as Americans return to making travel plans, they are doing so cautiously and more spur-of-the-moment. AAA says it has a COVID-19 travel restrictions map on its website.
