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| What you need to know Wednesday, March 2, 2022 WEATHER
Gray skies are in the forecast, with chances of showers in the afternoon and highs in the mid-40s. Winds will be calm. Rain showers remain possible before midnight, becoming a mix of rain and snow after midnight. Temps will drop to the low 20s. Read more. OVERNIGHT
Congressional plan: If Republicans want to keep the 12 Ohio congressional seats they currently hold, they will have to compete for them under a new GOP-drawn plan introduced Tuesday. The map would favor Republicans to win 10 of Ohio’s 15 congressional districts, while Democrats would be favored to win the other five. But two of the Democratic-leaning districts -- anchored by Cincinnati and Toledo -- are hotly competitive, making them more accurately thought of as toss-ups, Andrew Tobias reports.
Police monitoring: A monitoring team overseeing the reform of the Cleveland police department has praised the unit that investigates citizen complaints against officers but stressed that more training and resources are needed. John Caniglia writes that a report filed in U.S. District Court in Cleveland says the Office of Professional Standards administration “should be lauded for taking a program that was clearly broken and ineffectual and making it into a program that can be the subject of legitimate evaluation with specified areas of improvement.” But a backlog of cases is growing and more must be done to support the officers working those complaints.
TODAY IN OHIO Bipartisan election officials at Ohio’s 88 boards of election are joining the call for state lawmakers to move the election to a later date. So why are Bob Cupp and Matt Huffman reticent to change it? We’re asking on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast.
STATEHOUSE & POLITICS Gun bills: The Ohio House is set to pass legislation today to allow people in the state to carry a concealed handgun without a permit and no longer require them to proactively tell law enforcement during traffic stops that they’re armed. Jeremy Pelzer reports Senate Bill 215, which passed out of a House committee on Tuesday, is one of several GOP bills under consideration that would loosen gun restrictions in Ohio. Pelzer also reports the number of concealed-firearm permits issued last year in Ohio jumped 20% over the previous year, thanks to a record number of license renewals. State of the Union: Danielle Robinson of Columbus, whose husband died of a rare autoimmune disorder and lung cancer after being exposed to environmental hazards during Ohio National Guard duty, was invited to the State of the Union, as was Galloway, Ohio, progressive care nurse Rafynd Duro, and the CEO of Intel, Patrick “Pat” Gelsinger, reports Sabrina Eaton.
Housing help: The head of a Cleveland non-profit housing development group told a congressional committee that the government should expand efforts like the Low Income Housing Tax Credit to increase the nation’s affordable housing supply, reports Sabrina Eaton.
Protected status: A bipartisan group of U.S. Congress members, including several Northeast Ohio representatives, are asking President Joe Biden to give Ukrainian nationals in the United States on nonimmigrant visas “Temporary Protected Status” so that they won’t have to return to their country while it is under attack by Russia. Sabrina Eaton reports Democrats Marcy Kaptur of Toledo and Tim Ryan of the Niles area joined with Republicans Dave Joyce of South Russell and Anthony Gonzalez of Rocky River in a letter asking Biden to “use all available pathways under the law” to protect Ukrainians in the United States.
Russian sanctions: U.S. Sen. Rob Portman said Tuesday that the U.S. should step up its sanctions on Russia and provide additional military assistance to the Ukrainian government, reports Sabrina Eaton. Portman, a former U.S. trade representative and current co-chair of the bipartisan Senate Ukraine Caucus, was among a group of U.S. Senators who met Monday with Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markova to discuss the situation in Ukraine and what the United States could do to help.
Ukraine lighting: Gov. Mike DeWine directed the Ohio Department of Transportation to illuminate the state’s two lighted bridges in blue and yellow to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Laura Hancock reports that includes the George. V. Voinovich Bridge, which carries I-90 traffic over the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland.
Timken hires: U.S. Senate hopeful Jane Timken announced Tuesday she’d hired two former top-level advisers to former President Donald Trump to aid her campaign. Timken, the former chairman of the Ohio Republican Party, brought on former 2016 campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and 2016 deputy campaign manager David Bossie, reports Seth Richardson.
METRO Shotspotter: Over the past two years, the Cleveland police department has been using a technology called ShotSpotter to detect gunshots, saying it allows officers to respond to shootings more quickly. Olivia Mitchell reports the technology aims to help officers respond to crime scenes quickly and allow them to gather forensics and other valuable information.
Pig bones: Construction workers uncovered what turned out to be pig bones Tuesday at the site of the new Sherwin-Williams headquarters in downtown Cleveland, reports Olivia Mitchell. The discovery prompted workers from Independence Excavating to delay construction as Cleveland police officers and the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene.
General fund: Cuyahoga County ended 2021 with a $17.7 million surplus in its operating budget, due to staffing vacancies and injection of federal money, reports Kaitlin Durbin. General fund revenue for the year totaled $531.3 million, while expenditures topped out at $513.6 million.
Akron council investigation: A city investigation that found Akron City Councilman Russ Neal demeaned and degraded six female employees has in recent weeks become the center of a fight that saw Neal defy council leadership’s orders and others in his camp call for an independent investigation into his actions. Adam Ferrise reports that Neal has denied the accusations and refused to meet with council leadership to discuss the city’s recommendations that he undergo sensitivity training.
High school standouts: Want to celebrate a remarkable young adult, high school teacher or coach in your community? Advance Ohio is honoring Northeast Ohio high school students, teachers and coaches for their stories of triumph in and out of the classroom, reports Alexis Oatman.
COVID-19 COVID tests: The free federal at-home COVID-19 tests made available mid-January are still being delivered to homes across the country. Zachary Smith asks if we need them anymore in Ohio? Last week, the Ohio Department of Health reported 140,000 tests across the state, down from the peak of almost 450,000 in mid-January.
New cases: The state of Ohio on Tuesday reported 1,051 new cases of COVID-19, making the 18th straight day under 2,500, Julie Washington reports. The 7,943 cases reported in the last week is the lowest seven-day total since July 3.
BUSINESS CAK: Allegiant Air is doing some traveling of its own this week, relocating back to the Akron-Canton Airport, where it will launch flights to four cities in the South with the possibility of more on the way. Susan Glaser reports the carrier is starting this week with four routes – to Sarasota, St. Petersburg and Punta Gorda in Florida, plus Savannah-Hilton Head in Georgia.
CRIME Dance instructor: A former Parma dance academy instructor pleaded guilty Monday to raping two students. Cory Shaffer reports that Desmond Beasley, 36, pleaded guilty to two counts each of rape, sexual battery and gross sexual imposition, with charges that took place over several years and involved five girls and young women, ages 13 to 18.
Death penalty: Cuyahoga County prosecutors have dismissed aggravated murder charges that would make two men eligible to face the death penalty in the 2018 torturing and slaying of a Bedford father and his 14-year-old daughter, Cory Shaffer reports.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Humanities Festival: The Cleveland Humanities Festival will focus on the theme of discourse in its schedule of more than 40 public events this spring at various venues around Northeast Ohio. Anne Nickoloff reports the events led by Case Western Reserve University feature lectures, performances and presentations by prominent makers and thinkers.
Paczki: In the early hours of Fat Tuesday, hundreds of hungry customers lined up outside of Rudy’s Strudel in Parma, ready to order dozens of paczki at the bakery’s annual Paczki Day event. At 5 a.m., a line of customers wrapped around the building, said Michael Stutz, who was DJing the fest in its early hours, reports Anne Nickoloff.
CIFF: Another peek at Cleveland International Film Festival’s lineup arrived on Tuesday, when the event announced its list of films competing in the festival’s juried competitions. Anne Nickoloff reports three competitions will feature 39 films. OTHER HEADLINES Man asks about opening account at Garfield Heights credit union, then robs it Read more
$10M earmarked for Lock 3 Park renovations in downtown Akron; fall groundbreaking planned Read more
Horseshoe Lake dam emergency breach activated twice, cost paid back to Shaker by sewer district Read more
Broadview Heights residents object to landscaping headquarters move Read more
New Cleveland Heights Sustainability Committee proposal may be reworked Read more
It’s almost baby bald eagle season in Avon Lake Read more
City of Akron’s Racial Equity and Social Justice Taskforce shares final recommendations Read more
Brecksville-Broadview Heights Schools may add more live-streamed meetings Read more
Presidents' Day Sale Cleveland.com Unlimited Digital Access. $49 for the first year. You can cancel any time. Subscribe now
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