In September 2020, former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder returned to the House chamber for the first time after being charged with overseeing a $60 million bribery scandal. He defended the $1.3 billion House Bill 6 bailout as “good legislation.” “I think that, you know, in the United States, we believe that you’re innocent until you’re proven guilty. And that day has not occurred,” Householder said then. “And so, I am innocent. I am going to defend myself vigorously.” Does vigorously include testifying in his own defense? Federal prosecutors rested their case Monday after weeks of testimony about dark money, political campaigns and checks slid across tables. The defense called its first witness. Jurors may expect to hear directly from the accused. Politicians used to giving speeches may believe in their ability to explain their actions to the jury. We’ll have to see if Householder – and his co-defendant, Matt Borges – decide to take the stand. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
|
|
Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder waits to retrieve his personal items last month after going through security at Potter Stewart U.S. Courthouse during his federal trial in Cincinnati. (Joshua A. Bickel, Associated Press file photo) |
|
|
Taking the stand: With prosecutors wrapping their case Monday, the defense team began presenting its case for ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder. Will Householder testify in his own defense? He’s said he plans to. But Andrew Tobias reports attorneys say that a defendant taking the stand is a risky move. Householder trial: As the government’s final witness in the trial against former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, political operative Tyler Fehrman told jurors Monday how a lobbyist tried to bribe him for inside information about a campaign to repeal a $1.3 billion bailout of a FirstEnergy subsidiary. Fehrman said he was offered money for private information on the number of signatures the repeal campaign gathered, reports Jake Zuckerman. Today in Ohio: Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer dropped the Dilbert comic strip Friday after creator Scott Adams went on a racist ran on his Coffee with Scott Adams online video show. While editor Chris Quinn said it was not a difficult decision, he was inundated with messages, including some vitriol. We’re talking about hate on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
|
|
Pandemic unemployment: The Ohio Inspector General announced Monday that a contract employee improperly cleared several Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims, including two that belonged to her relatives, resulting in more than $20,000 in overpayments. Sabrina Eaton reports that between the start of the coronavirus pandemic and last August, the state has found that it paid more than $1 billion in fraudulent claims, mostly for federal COVID-19 unemployment benefits. Train derailment: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials announced Monday that they’ve lined up facilities in Grafton, Ohio, and Roachdale, Indiana, to accept liquid and solid waste from East Palestine’s rail derailment, on top of previously announced disposal centers in Vickery and East Liverpool, Ohio, Sabrina Eaton reports. Meanwhile, a lawsuit involving the train derailment says Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine “made a mockery” of residents by toasting a homeowner with tap water days after the disaster. |
|
|
Council spending: As Cleveland City Council considers whether it wants to give its 17 members more tax dollars to directly control, council on Monday voted to drastically loosen the rules around how members are allowed to spend those tax dollars. Courtney Astolfi reports council members Monday night unanimously approved the proposal from Councilman Richard Starr, who’s been pushing in recent weeks to increase the amount of money that flows into council members’ discretionary accounts and give council greater flexibility in how it spends that money. Housing advocate: Inez Killingworth, a Mississippi sharecropper’s daughter, became an internationally recognized advocate for housing issues, including Cleveland’s spotlight as “Ground Zero” for the housing crisis. Brenda Cain reports that because of Killingsworth, many lenders signed agreements reducing foreclosures, improving mortgage terms and treating African-American borrowers equally. Education salaries: While a teacher’s salary is about $2,000 less now than a decade ago when adjusting for inflation, there is still a wide gap between positions in education, especially between early- and higher-education positions. Zachary Smith reports Cleveland is among the top 10 metropolitan areas for three positions - short-term substitute teachers ($54,400), museum technicians and conservators ($56,660) and postsecondary social work teachers ($87,920), according to federal data. Garage explosion: Police say 18-year-old Nathan Greger died in a garage explosion in Wickliffe Sunday morning. Molly Walsh reports officials said fireworks were stored in the rear of the garage and were “consistently going off for over 10 minutes after the initial call.” |
|
|
Cocaine addiction: A research collaboration among four Ohio institutions has resulted in a promising drug to treat cocaine addiction: the-FDA approved anesthetic ketamine. Scientists from Case Western Reserve University, the University of Cincinnati, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, and MetroHealth Medical Center have created a novel approach to drug discovery that combines artificial intelligence with data from health records to identify existing drugs that have the potential to treat other conditions, reports Gretchen Cuda Kroen. |
|
|
Supreme Court: A man convicted of a 2013 shooting death is asking the Ohio Supreme Court to order that he receive a new hearing after a witness said he lied during the murder trial. Laura Hancock reports the court has scheduled to hear the arguments of Leelin Miller, who was sentenced to 47 years to life behind bars for the murder of Richard McCoy. Sexual abuse: Cleveland schools officials agreed to pay $120,000 to settle lawsuits brought by two former East Tech High School students who were sexually abused by a district security guard. Adam Ferrise reports Cleveland Municipal School District will pay each student $60,000, but the students have not yet settled with former security guard Derrick Dugger, who is serving a four-year prison sentence. Women in prison: Despite a decreasing trend in recent years, the number of women incarcerated in the state ticked upward last year, while the numbers for men have stayed somewhat consistent. In January, the state had 3,396 women and 40,362 men in custody. Molly Walsh reports the demand for services and treatments for formerly incarcerated women is great, and many inmates, for a variety of reasons, struggle to obtain help. Rabbi sentenced: A judge on Monday sentenced the former longtime rabbi of a Pepper Pike synagogue to prison following his arrest as part of an underage sex sting. Stephen Weiss, who for two decades served as a pulpit rabbi at B’nai Jeshurun, was ordered to serve six months in prison, reports Cory Shaffer. |
|
|
Riverdance: Riverdance comes to the KeyBank State Theater this weekend with Eastlake’s own Brandon Asazawa dancing the lead role made famous by the great Michael Flatley. Joey Morona reports Riverdance has taken the 27-year-old dancer up and down North America, across Europe and all the way to China but never back to his hometown before. Fast food sandwiches: Each fast food restaurant has a signature sandwich -- from McDonald’s Big Mac to Burger King’s Whooper and plenty in between. The Best of Cleveland team at cleveland.com recently went on the hunt for the best, ranking them based on appearance, freshness and taste. Remodeling: The Cleveland Home and Remodeling Expo is scheduled to take place at the I-X Center from March 24 to 26, with more than 225 exhibitors, reports Marc Bona. RV Rocking: Our RV-traveling pals, Jeff and Patti Kinzbach, traveled from Las Vegas to Bullhead City, Arizona, with a side trip to Oatman, where wild donkeys roam the streets. High winds rocked around the RV some. |
|
|
Men found dead in vehicles in separate shootings in Akron, police say Read more Two people slain in Garfield Heights on Sunday night, police say Read more Victim slain on Cleveland’s West Side, police say Read more Shooting in Stow sends teen male to hospital Read more Medina City Schools redistricting plan opts to consolidate elementary buildings Read more Cause of Oakwood plant explosion remains under investigation; criminal act ruled out Read more South Euclid’s Marc’s Plaza to get urgent care facility, pet hospital Read more Medina City Council takes concrete action on 2023 street repairs Read more Dawn Carbone-McDonald resigns from North Royalton City Council Read more OSU economist share insights on business climate with Rocky River Chamber of Commerce Read more Avon Lake community shares feedback on possible school bond issue Read more Parma City Schools invites public to discuss new high school interior design Read more |
|
|
NEW! POLICE BLOTTER NEWSLETTER |
Get the latest police blotter headlines from Northeast Ohio communities every weekday morning. Click here to sign up. |
|
|
Want the top headlines but don't have time to read? Listen to cleveland.com’s Today in Ohio podcast on Spotify, Google or Apple Podcasts. |
|
|
WANT TO SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER WITH A FRIEND? |
Did someone share this newsletter with you? Click here to never miss a day! |
|
|
To contact the newsrooms for any of our publications regarding technical support, news tips, classified ads and other inquiries, please click here. |
|
|
Special Offer Cleveland.com Unlimited Digital Access. |
|
|
$5 for the first month (cancel anytime) |
| |
|
$5 for the first month (cancel anytime) |
| |
|
INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING
OR SPONSORING OUR NEWSLETTERS? |
|
|
You received this email because you opted in to the newsletter. To ensure receipt of our emails, please add newsletters@update.cleveland.com to your address book or safe sender list. 4800 Tiedeman Road, Brooklyn OH 44144 Contact us | Unsubscribe | Privacy Policy |
|
|
|
