Archive for March, 2011
State may reverse rule on prescription transfers
COLUMBUS — Ohio regulators are moving to reverse a rule that limits a consumer from transferring a prescription between pharmacies more than once a year. The restriction approved by the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy took effect this year, but the board has filed paperwork that would reverse it. The Columbus Dispatch reports the limit [...]
Cavs get their revenge against LeBron, but not before blowing 23-point lead
CLEVELAND — It could have been one of the biggest meltdowns ever. That it wasn’t made victory even sweeter. The Cavaliers blew every single bit of a 23-point lead Tuesday night at Quicken Loans Arena, but never fell behind and stormed back to beat LeBron James and the Miami Heat 102-90 in front of a [...]
More than a half-dozen Democrat-led councils pass resolutions against union bill
COLUMBUS — A Republican-backed Ohio bill to limit collective bargaining for public workers has been promoted as a way give cities more flexibility to manage their finances but is drawing opposition from some city leaders, mostly Democrats, who say the change isn’t needed. The bill would prohibit 350,000 public workers from negotiating health care, sick [...]
Ohio abortion bill backers call effort ‘invitation to overturn Roe’
COLUMBUS — Backers of an Ohio bill that could impose the most restrictive abortion limit in the nation are telling reticent state lawmakers to embrace potential legal challenges. Linda Theis is one of four past presidents of the state Right to Life chapter speaking out in favor of the bill, which would outlaw abortions at [...]
Marshal’s office: Exact cause of fatal Ridgeville fire undetermined
NORTH RIDGEVILLE — The cause of a major fire that took the life of a local woman last week will be ruled undetermined, according to the State Fire Marshal’s office. Investigators were unable to eliminate a number of possible accidental causes for the blaze that claimed the life of Dorothy Anderson, 72, who died of [...]
Driver killed in Amherst crash was drunk, police say
AMHERST — The Amherst driver who died after a four-vehicle crash March 10 on state Route 2 had a blood-alcohol content more than three and a half times the legal limit, according to police. Richard Haag, 60, was the driver of a 1996 Chevy Silverado that triggered the crash that took his life and injured [...]
Report identifies Wellington as MS disease cluster area
Wellington has been designated as a disease cluster area for multiple sclerosis, according to a report released yesterday by the National Resources Defense Council. A 1998 study by state and local health departments found residents of Wellington were three times more likely to develop multiple sclerosis than the rest of the country, the report said. [...]
Former state prisons director asks Kasich to spare death row inmate
COLUMBUS — A former Ohio prisons director and a Cincinnati civil-rights attorney have urged Gov. John Kasich to spare the life of an Ohio man condemned to die for killing a fellow inmate in a fight. The Ohio Parole Board has unanimously recommended against clemency for 49-year-old Clarence Carter. He’s set to be executed April [...]
Tom Ganley pleads not guilty to sexual assault allegations
Car dealer and former congressional candidate Tom Ganley pleaded not guilty this morning in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court to charges he sexually assaulted a woman who wanted to volunteer on his campaign in 2009. Ganley, 68, has denied the allegations before, which had already pending as a civil case when he was indicted earlier [...]
EMH company shortening its name
ELYRIA — EMH Regional Healthcare System is shortening its name by a few words. EMH Healthcare, the new name the company announced Monday, should roll off the tongue better. But hospital officials said they will not be shortchanging patients on the care they receive. The name change may seem like a small gesture, but it [...]
Public workers around the state push for new contracts before bill takes effect
CINCINNATI — Some Ohio public employees whose contracts expire soon have been rushing to finalize new deals before the potential approval of a bill to limit their collective bargaining rights. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports the quickened pace lets workers and local governments seek contract details, benefits and concessions that might not be negotiated if the [...]
2011 baseball preview: Clearview’s Ian Mezlak dominates all parts of the game
Ian Mezlak was priceless to his team in a tournament semifinal three summers ago in Tennessee. No, he didn’t have a great game as far as statistics are concerned. Just his presence in uniform and on the field was enough for the North Coast Vipers that day. It was a quarterfinal game in one of [...]
2011 high school baseball preview
The top players Tyler Beck, Avon Lake Hit .500 with 12 doubles and 29 runs batted in last year. The All-Ohio first-team selection will attend Ohio University in the fall. Struck out only four times in 91 plate appearances in 2010. Cory Fox, Vermilion Left-hander struck out 48 and went 5-0 as the Sailors’ No. [...]
‘LeBron James Returns to Cleveland, Take 2′ tonight at The Q
INDEPENDENCE — Call it “LeBron James Returns to Cleveland, Take 2.” It hasn’t received nearly the hype and doesn’t appear to contain the same venom, but James’ second trip to Quicken Loans Arena as a member of the Miami Heat has to go better for the Cavaliers and their fans than the first. Doesn’t it? [...]
Baseball: Big inning leads to nice beginning for Elyria
ELYRIA — It’s always enjoyable to win the first game of the season. “That was what I said the moment the ball went into (left fielder) Brandon Victor’s glove,” Elyria coach Mike Brandyberry said. “I told my assistants, ‘It’s good to be 1-0.’” The Pioneers won their season opener Monday, 9-1 over non-conference rival Avon [...]
Tribe: Bullpen spot is Justin Germano’s; Nix gets nixed
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — One by one, Justin Germano’s teammates stopped by his locker in the Cleveland Indians spring training clubhouse to give him a handshake or hug. Meanwhile, Jayson Nix walked to his car in the parking lot, his head down. It was clear to see who survived the final roster cuts Monday. “I can [...]
Sheriff: Theft reports up, fewer deputies to blame
ELYRIA — Lorain County sheriff’s deputies handled more calls and wrote more reports in 2010 than they did in 2009, but some key crime statistics were down in the townships, according to Sheriff Phil Stammitti’s annual report. The report, released Monday, said that the number of reports increased 3.2 percent from 3,233 reports in 2009 [...]
Official: River site likely won’t work for new Lorain High
LORAIN — A representative from the state commission overseeing the building of the new Lorain high school informed school officials Monday the Black River building site was likely untenable due to funding restrictions. Senior Project Administrator Gary Kasper of the Ohio School Facilities Commission admonished the Lorain school board after reviewing requirements for the building [...]
Kasich plan helps poorer schools, hurts rich districts
The county’s best school districts historically receive the least amount of funding assistance from the state, and the budget proposal offered by Gov. John Kasich aims to give them even less, placing more of the responsibility of educating students on local taxpayers. Take Avon Lake, for example. It’s considered a wealthier district, where taxpayers pick [...]
Family still in dark about how student died on spring break
WELLINGTON — The body of 21-year-old college student Anthony Robert Erick who died last week on spring break in Miami Beach has returned home, but his mother and four brothers still don’t know how he died. His mother, Christina Fortier, said a detective told her that her son died of blunt trauma, but he was [...]
2 women arrested for choking elderly Walmart greeter
ELYRIA — Two women from Elyria were arrested after allegedly choking a Walmart greeter and threatening to blow up the store Saturday, according to a police report. About 1:30 p.m. Ashley Jackson 21, of Elyria, and Toni Duncan, 49, of Elyria, assaulted the 71-year-old man at the store on Chestnut Ridge Road after he asked [...]
Lorain man faces child porn charges
ELYRIA — A Lorain man whose home was searched last year after his name surfaced during an investigation by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force has been indicted on charges he possessed child pornography. Steven Green, 43, is charged with pandering obscenity involving a minor, pandering sexually oriented material involving a minor and [...]
Judges order budgets, dodging county cuts
ELYRIA — The judges in the general and domestic relations divisions of the Lorain County Court of Common Pleas on Monday ordered their budgets. The move prevents the county commissioners, who have been eyeing cuts of between 3 percent and 19 percent across most of county government, from cutting the budgets of the courts unless [...]
Robert A Braden
Robert A Braden, Jr., 68, of Lorain, died Monday, March 28, 2011 at Amherst Specialty Hospital after a lengthy illness. Born May 21, 1942 in Burbank, California, he had been a Vermilion resident for 41 years moving to Oberlin for 9 years and recently moving to Lorain. Robert graduated from Vermilion High School in 1961 [...]
Margaret “Peg” Downing
Margaret “Peg” Downing, 58, passed away Saturday, March 26, 2011, at University Hospital, Cleveland, following a long illness. Peg was born in Lorain, May 22, 1952, to her parents, Eugene and Elsie (nee Bartos) Bailey. She graduated from Lorain High School and later from Ohio Business College with a Bachelor of Science in computer programming. [...]