Tag Archives: Ohio

Law & Crime reports: A racist “White Lives Matter” member firebombed an Ohio church that planned to host a “Drag Queen Story Time,” federal prosecutors say. Ohio resident Aimenn D. Penny, 20, faces up to 30 years imprisonment if convicted on two charges of malicious use of explosive materials and possession of a destructive device in the March 25 attack. …

Vice News reports: A high school athletics department in a small town in central Ohio is raffling off powerful firearms—including an AR-15—to raise funds to buy equipment for the track team. The gun raffle, in aid of the Upper Sandusky Rams Track and Field, has been so popular that this week the organizers announced all 500 $10 tickets have been …

Cleveland’s Fox affiliate reports: A local church says it was vandalized on Friday ahead of its drag show brunch and story hour planned for April 1. The Community Church of Chesterland said in a press release that its sign was destroyed by Molotov cocktails leaving minimal damage to the church, which was unoccupied at the time, and no injuries. “Despite …

The Washington Post reports: Ohio is suing Norfolk Southern after one of the railroad’s trains that was carrying toxic chemicals derailed, leading to an environmental disaster. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) announced the lawsuit in a news conference Tuesday afternoon. A Norfolk Southern train was carrying hazardous chemicals such as vinyl chloride and butyl acrylate when it derailed in …

The Geauga Maple Leaf reports: Dennis W. Laferty, a pastor at Thompson United Methodist Church in Thompson Township, is accused of sexual battery against one or more minors. Laferty, 37, who lives in a home Trustees of Thompson Methodist Church own at 6724 Madison Road, is facing multiple felony counts. Laferty was charged with five counts of third-degree felony sexual …

The Ohio Capitol Journal reports: After more than nine hours of deliberation, a jury on Thursday found former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and state Republican Chairman Matt Borges guilty of felony racketeering charges in connection with a billion-dollar utility bailout that was passed in 2019. Both men face maximum sentences of 20 years. U.S. District Judge Timothy Black will …

The Hill reports: Norfolk Southern will pay for temporary relocation for people who live within a mile of the site of a train derailment that spilled hazardous chemicals, amid ongoing cleanup efforts. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said in a Sunday update that the company will provide “additional financial assistance” that may include “ temporary lodging, travel, food, clothing, and …

The Guardian reports: In leaked audio heard by the Guardian, a manager for one of the US’s largest rail companies can be heard explaining to a former carman that they should stop tagging railcars for broken bearings. The manager says doing so delays other cargo. The disclosure comes as federal agencies investigate the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. A wheel-bearing …

Cleveland’s Fox affiliate reports: A former local rabbi will spend 6 months in jail after he pled guilty to sex crimes. Stephen Weiss, 61, was sentenced on Monday. He faced up to 2.5 years behind bars. The longtime rabbi is accused of sending explicit messages to a police officer he thought was a 15-year-old boy. The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office …

Bloomberg News reports: President Joe Biden instructed federal agents responding to the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, to go door-to-door to conduct health surveys with impacted families, a White House official said Monday. Representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention visited approximately 350 household over the weekend, according to …

The Hill reports: A Youngstown, Ohio-based law firm has announced a class-action lawsuit against Norfolk Southern Railroad over the derailment of a train in East Palestine, using a strategy it says echoes the state’s 1990s lawsuit against tobacco companies. The firm, Johnson and Johnson, is partnering with class-action law firm Hagens Berman on behalf of all residents within 30 miles …

Axios reports: The crew of the Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, attempted to stop it after receiving a “critical” alert about an overheating wheel bearing just before the crash, an investigation found. The preliminary findings from the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation released Thursday came as residents push for answers from officials over the health dangers. …

NBC News reports: The Environmental Protection Agency announced a sweeping enforcement action against Norfolk Southern on Tuesday, compelling the rail company to conduct and pay for cleanup actions associated with the Feb. 3 derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio. “The Norfolk Southern train derailment has upended the lives of East Palestine families, and EPA’s order …

The Associated Press reports: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wants the nation’s freight railroads to immediately act to improve safety while regulators try to strengthen safety rules in the wake of a fiery derailment in Ohio that forced evacuations when toxic chemicals were released and burned. Buttigieg announced a package of reforms Tuesday — two days after he warned the railroad …

ABC News reports: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg sent a letter Sunday to the CEO of Norfolk Southern, warning that the freight rail company must “demonstrate unequivocal support for the people” of East Palestine, Ohio, and surrounding areas after a fiery train derailment. “Norfolk Southern must live up to its commitment to make residents whole — and must also live up …

“Hello, folks. Here. Here I am. I’m in Palestine, in Ohio, here with the train derailment. Had great meetings with Norfolk Southern, had an opportunity to speak with the mayor, EPA officials. We talked about the issues that the people that the 4,800 residents are faced with here in East Palestine as it relates to water and or air quality. …

Axios reports: Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) said Thursday that he has requested additional federal assistance — including from health agencies — over the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that resulted in the venting and burning of carcinogenic chemicals. DeWine said he made the request after speaking with the White House Thursday morning. Earlier in the week, he said …

The New York Times reports: Hundreds of Ohio residents gathered in a school gym on Wednesday night to demand answers about the ongoing fallout from a derailed train carrying hazardous chemicals, transforming what had been billed as an informational meeting into a heated town hall where officials with the railroad company didn’t even show up. The mayor pleaded with the …

NBC News reports: For days, authorities have been telling residents of the area around East Palestine, Ohio, that it is safe to return home after a 150-car train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed Feb. 3. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources said the chemical spill resulting from the derailment had killed an estimated 3,500 small fish across 7½ miles of streams …

Lever News reports: Before this weekend’s fiery Norfolk Southern train derailment prompted emergency evacuations in Ohio, the company helped kill a federal safety rule aimed at upgrading the rail industry’s Civil War-era braking systems, according to documents reviewed by The Lever. Though the company’s 150-car train in Ohio reportedly burst into 100-foot flames upon derailing — and was transporting materials …