From my front porch on Friday nights, I can hear the marching band play, the loudspeaker crackle and the crowd thunder from the bleachers of our high school football stadium. Life feels like a Norman Rockwell painting, bright lights beckoning the entire community to gather. But acts of violence – and worries about more – late this season have forced some Northeast Ohio school administrators to cancel games, relocate or close the gates to fans. As Ohio wraps its regular football season, experts point to the immediacy of social media and looseness of Ohio gun laws as reasons behind the violence. Officials vow to address the problem. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
Browns at Indianapolis Colts: Deshaun Watson watches from the sideline as Browns pull off a wild 39-38 victory over the Colts Northeast Ohio weather forecast: Warmer temps and a little more sunshine |
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The Sept. 29 game scheduled to be played at Euclid High School's stadium was relocated because of concerns of violence, but Euclid is hardly alone among area high school football teams facing sudden gameday adjustments in recent weeks. (Plain Dealer file photo) |
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Football violence: Throughout Northeast Ohio, high school football decision-makers cited violence, or the threat of it, to forfeit games, relocate or limit fans, John Tucker and Matt Goul report. Are Friday night lights in danger of dimming because of lurking violence, or is the recent upheaval merely a blip, destined to be forgotten once the playoffs commence? Smoking weed: If Ohio voters pass a recreational marijuana ballot initiative – and if the legislature doesn’t touch it – adults would be allowed to do something that the state’s medical marijuana program has barred since its inception: smoking. Laura Hancock reports the proposed change to Ohio law would give private property owners power to prohibit smoking on their premises. Stolen art: Proving definitively that a specific work of ancient art was trafficked in recent decades and should therefore return to its country of origin is not easy, writes Steven Litt. By the time illicitly excavated objects reach the market, they come with a laundered provenance that provides a plausible cover. These awkward realities lie at the heart of a civil lawsuit filed in federal court Thursday by the Cleveland Museum of Art challenging an effort by the New York district attorney seize a large, headless ancient Roman statue owned by the museum. Lakefront plan: Cleveland’s hard, remote, heavily paved downtown lakefront could be more accessible, equitable and beautiful, Steven Litt reports. Affordable fun, lush public spaces and a scaled-down Ohio 2 Shoreway are all part of an evolving vision spearheaded by Mayor Justin Bibb. The latest concept would lower speeds and slow commute times, while opening up new land for development by removing ramps near the Rock Hall and simplifying the lakefront road network. Police information: The Columbus Dispatch sued the city of Columbus over the police department’s refusal to reveal the identity of police officers who kill citizens in the line of duty using a state constitutional provision that voters approved in 2017, reports Jake Zuckerman. Citing Marsy’s Law, a constitutional amendment written to protect rights of crime victims, the Columbus Division of Police has said officers who shoot and kill people are “victims” whose identities are protected. Today in Ohio: U.S. Sen. JD Vance is among a GOP faction in Congress eager to support Israel in its war with Hamas without tying it to further aid for Ukraine. We’re talking about a double standard -- and historical precedent -- on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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Jim Jordan: Republicans in the House of Representatives voted behind closed doors Friday to remove conservative firebrand Jim Jordan as their speaker nominee after he couldn’t get backing from enough GOP colleagues to nail down the job. Sabrina Eaton reports the House of Representatives has been without a speaker since Oct. 3, when eight Republicans led by Florida’s Matt Gaetz – a longtime Jordan ally – united with Democrats in a vote to remove California’s Kevin McCarthy from the post. Issue 1: A new ad from the campaign trying to pass State Issue 1, the abortion-rights amendment, says that Ohio’s “abortion ban” doesn’t include an exception for the “health of the mother.” Laura Hancock reports the ad at best leaves an incomplete impression and at worst gives an inaccurate one. |
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Golf courses: When the Geauga Park District acquired the Orchard Hills Golf Course next to Patterson’s Fruit Farm in Chester Township in 2008, it faced a task it believed had not yet been tackled in Northeast Ohio — turning a golf course into a natural area. Nearly a decade later, several golf courses in the area have been or are in the process of converting to park space, reports Zachary Smith. The Acacia Reservation in Lyndhurst is already a park in the Cleveland Metroparks, and the Valley View Golf Club in Akron started the conversion process in 2020. Wild turkeys: The state’s wild turkey population continues to show a healthy reproduction rate, reports Peter Krouse. For the third year in a row, the poult index was above average, at 2.8 poults per hen, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Shaker 'Today': The Shaker Heights High School marching band made it to the national limelight Friday with a dazzling live performance on NBC’s "Today" show, reports Tom Jewell. The 230-member Raiders marching band took to the field at Russell Rupp Stadium before school for the “Friday Morning Lights” segment. |
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Changing views: Most Americans now believe marijuana is less harmful than alcohol, Gallup polling suggests, with the those findings especially true among young adults. Younger people are more accepting of marijuana and more wary of alcohol, reports Julie Washington. Older folks — who remember the days of boozy business lunches — are more likely to see marijuana as more dangerous than alcohol. Unemployment: Ohio added jobs in September and its historically low unemployment rate was unchanged, but the size of its labor force took a slight step back, reports Sean McDonnell. The state’s unemployment rate was 3.4% in September, unchanged from August, adding 8,400 jobs, bringing total employment to 5,639,700. Huntington Bank: Huntington announced Friday that it would close 34 of its branches in early 2024, including three locations in Cleveland and seven total in Ohio, reports Sean McDonnell. The news came out of the bank’s third-quarter earnings report Friday morning. However, Huntington said customers at these branches have already been notified. |
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Officer death: A lawsuit says a diabetic Cuyahoga County Jail officer died because his supervisors refused let him take a break to check his blood-sugar levels during a forced 16-hour shift, reports Adam Ferrise. Warren Johnson died July 3, 2022, about two weeks after he was rushed from the jail to University Hospitals with a glucose level of more than five times the normal level, the lawsuit claims. Doctor jailed: An appeals court on Thursday ruled a judge unlawfully jailed a former doctor after his lawyers had asked to change his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity in response to charges accusing him of groping his patients. Cory Shaffer reports that a unanimous 8th Ohio District Court of Appeals panel held that a judge had no legal justification to order 67-year-old Omar Massoud jailed so the court’s psychiatric clinic could determine whether he is competent to stand trial. |
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'Christmas Story': Next month, Ralphie is coming back to Cleveland. But he won’t need an official Red Ryder, carbine action, 200-shot range model air rifle. Peter Billingsley – aka Ralphie - and other actors from the classic 1983 movie “A Christmas Story” are set to converge on Cleveland for an expo marking the iconic film’s 40th anniversary, reports Marc Bona. CMA MIX: The Cleveland Museum of Art has two MIX celebrations on tape before the end of the year. Tickets already are available for the Nov. 3 event, themed “China’s Southern Paradise,” reports Paris Wolfe. The Dec. 1 theme is “Beat Street,” inspired by the 39-year-old movie that pushed hip-hop into the mainstream. MIX will celebrate 2023 as the 50th anniversary of hip-hop culture. Six Horses: Chefs Neva Justham-Bennett and Richard Bennett IV took over Six Horses Tavern and Restaurant at the Aurora Inn on Aug. 18. Two months later, the dining room has a new look and a new menu, Paris Wolfe reports. Chicken wings: We asked our readers where to find the best chicken wings in all of Greater Cleveland and they responded in droves. After sorting through the nearly 1,000 nominations, Peter Chakerian and Yadi Rodriguez narrowed it down to 20 local establishments. Now is your time to vote. House of the Week: The stately home at 10819 Magnolia Drive in University Circle’s historic district is ready for its next chapter. Built in 1913, the brick Georgian served as the headquarters of the Junior League of Cleveland for 30 years before Hawken School purchased it and used it as an academic building for its new high school, reports Joey Morona. Offering seven bedrooms and five bathrooms (two full), the home is listed for $1.3 million. |
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Masseuse at Westlake spa accused of sexually assaulting woman during massage Read more Berea considers bump up in emergency medical service fees Read more In show of support, Israeli flag flies at University Heights City Hall; Chick-fil-A back on the table for consideration Read more Berea waits as Olmsted Township landowners continue annexation fight Read more Estimated repairs skyrocket to $5 million for Brook Park rec center roof, walls Read more Pepper Pike City Council candidates share their views at Civic League forum Read more Lakewood planning Lewis Drive sewer and pavement improvements project Read more |
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