Columbus news

• Limousine service operator charged in crash that killed 20

  10-10-2018 22:48
  
  LATHAM, N.Y. (AP) — A limousine service operator was charged Wednesday with criminally negligent homicide in a crash that killed 20 people, while police continued investigating what caused the wreck and whether anyone else will face charges.The operator's lawyer said that the man wasn't guilty and that police were rushing to judgment.The company, Prestige Limousine, has come under intense scrutiny since Saturday's crash outside Albany killed two pedestrians and 18 people in a super-stretch
  
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• Judge sides with Ohio again over voters purged from rolls

  10-10-2018 22:44
  
  COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal judge rejected a voting rights group's latest arguments Wednesday that voters were illegally purged from Ohio's voting rolls.U.S. District Judge George C. Smith largely sided with the state's arguments defending confirmation notices sent to voters that set off a removal process tied to failure to participate in the election process, in another blow to the A. Phillip Randolph Institute.The institute's broader argument that Ohio's election administration proce
  
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• Family of murder victim devastated by release of accused killer just before trial

  10-10-2018 22:28
  An accused killer is being released from jail, after a last-minute discovery just as he was about to go on trial.Sharla Spangler's murder in 1985 sat unsolved for 32 years. Last year, Columbus Police Cold Case Detectives charged Doug Krumlauf in the killing.But Tuesday, a judge released him after a surprising courtroom announcement.Prosecutors say they got a call from BCI, the state crime lab, just before jury selection.They told the judge BCI had discovered that some DNA evidence recovered from
  
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• PC: Far North Police Substation Groundbreaking

  10-10-2018 22:01 via youtube.com
  
  
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• Security for gun rights walk, protest costs Kent State $65K

  10-10-2018 21:57
  
  KENT, Ohio (AP) — Officials at Kent State University say the school spent about $65,000 on security for what turned out to be a mostly peaceful demonstration and counter-protest over gun rights in late September.The Kent-Ravenna Record-Courier reports the university's cost included paying for additional campus police and dispatchers, supplies, communications and other expenses.More than 300 officers were on hand, including some from the State Highway Patrol, Kent police, campus officers fr
  
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• 2 female polar bears from Columbus Zoo moved to Maryland Zoo

  10-10-2018 21:39
  
  The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium announced that young female polar bears, Amelia Gray and Neva, left the zoo Tuesday and arrived at their new home at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.The Association of Zoo and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan recommended the move for both polar bears and Neva’s twin brother Nuniq, who moved to the Henry Vilas Zoo in Wisconsin last month.“While these young polar bears will be greatly missed by the Zoo’s dedicated animal care team and the Central
  
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• Former middle school teacher pleads guilty to child porn charge

  10-10-2018 19:44
  A teacher who was formerly employed by the South-Western City School District pleaded guilty to a child porn charge in Franklin County Common Pleas Court Wednesday.Michael Walsh, a former teacher at Pleasant View Middle School, pleaded guilty to one count of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor. Eight other charges were dropped.A district spokesperson told 10TV that district officials were not aware of the investigation until Walsh’s arrest. He was immediately placed on adm
  
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• Know Your Neighborhood: Things to Do in the Brewery District

  10-10-2018 19:30
  The Brewery District neighborhood, just south of Downtown and parallel to German Village, earned its name well before the establishment of the modern businesses we know of today. The district’s first brewery, City Brewery, opened in 1836. By the late 1850s to early 1860s, there were five breweries located in the area inhabited by mostly working-class families. […]
  
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• Semi crashes into retention pond, leaks fuel in Union County

  10-10-2018 18:50
  
  UNION COUNTY – A semi-truck involved in a crash on U.S. 42 Wednesday morning landed in a retention pond and spilled fuel, prompting a road closure.The Union County sheriff said the crash occurred at 6 a.m. when a 2013 Ford F-150 was struck by a semi. Preliminary investigation revealed the F-150 was westbound on Jerome Road and did not yield to a stop sign.After the initial impact, the semi traveled off the road and into a retention pond. The driver of the semi was able to climb on top of t
  
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• Anthony Pardon defense team could challenge DNA at murder trial

  10-10-2018 18:44
  COLUMBUS - Defense attorneys for twice-convicted rapist Anthony Pardon said Wednesday that they could possibly challenge DNA testing during his upcoming capital murder trial.In what prosecutors have called a crime of opportunity, Pardon is accused of entering the Columbus apartment of 24-year-old Rachael Anderson in late January and raping and killing her. Authorities have said the two did not know each other.Shortly after his arrest, Columbus police announced that Anderson had been tortured and
  
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• Jury's $289M award in Roundup cancer suit heads to court

  10-10-2018 18:35
  
  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A jury's $289 million verdict in favor of a school groundskeeper who says Roundup weed killer caused his cancer will face its first court test Wednesday.Agribusiness giant Monsanto will argue at a hearing that Judge Suzanne Bolanos should throw out the verdict in favor of DeWayne Johnson. Attorneys for the company say Johnson failed to prove that Roundup or similar herbicides caused his lymphoma, and presented no evidence that Monsanto executives were malicious in mark
  
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• Restaurant Roundup: News from Condado, High Bank Distillery & more

  10-10-2018 18:00
  Columbus has so many new restaurants, expansions, menu updates and other changes, sometimes it’s hard to keep up with everything. That’s why our Restaurant Roundup series was designed to keep you informed with the latest and greatest updates. Here’s what’s new in the local dining scene: High Bank Distillery The Grandview bar and restaurant has […]
  
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• Man tied to gun that killed 2 Westerville police officers facing 5 years

  10-10-2018 16:52
  
  COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Family members of two Westerville police officers killed responding to a domestic violence call this year are asking for the toughest sentence for the man who provided the gun used in the shooting, saying he helped rob them of futures with their loved ones.By contrast, friends and family members of defendant Gerald Lawson are asking for leniency, saying Lawson is remorseful and prison time would harm his own young family.Lawson, 31, is scheduled for sentencing Oct. 18
  
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• Chemical spill prompts evacuation, closure of government building in Waverly

  10-10-2018 16:29
  
  A government building in downtown Waverly was evacuated Wednesday morning due to a chemical spill.The Waverly Police Department was called to the Pike County Government Center near U.S. 23 a little after 9 a.m.Pike County Commisssioner Fred Foster stated that the evacuation and closure of the building were ordered as a precaution for the safety of employees and the public.Pike County EMA says the chemical, MECT5, is an inhalation hazard and the spill has been contained to a storage room at the b
  
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• Restaurant Review: Mac’s Proper Pub

  10-10-2018 16:00
  Mac’s has stood for a long time in the Short North. And while stalwarts such as Rigsby’s and Betty’s have moved on in recent years, Mac’s remains. In fact, it’s dug in deep, as the business recently completed a renovation project that updated its interior. In recent weeks, the city has launched exterior renovations projects, […]
  
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• Board of Elections Reassigns Nearly 3,000 Voters Placed in Wrong Congressional District

  10-10-2018 15:55
  The complexity of congressional districts has led some voters to be placed in the wrong one, according to the Franklin County Board of Elections (FCBOE). Some 3,000 individuals have recently received a memo from the Board, alerting them that they were “inadvertently assigned to the wrong congressional district.” “Rest assured that votes you have cast […]
  
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• Marijuana is set to become legal across Canada

  10-10-2018 15:53
  
  DELTA, British Columbia (AP) — Mat Beren and his friends used to drive by the vast greenhouses of southern British Columbia and joke about how much weed they could grow there.Years later, it's no joke. The tomato and pepper plants that once filled some of those greenhouses have been replaced with a new cash crop: marijuana. Beren and other formerly illicit growers are helping cultivate it. The buyers no longer are unlawful dealers or dubious medical dispensaries; it's the Canadian governme
  
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• Early voting is now underway in Ohio

  10-10-2018 15:45
  
  NORWOOD, Ohio (AP) — In-person voting has begun in swing-state Ohio for the Nov. 6 elections for governor, U.S. Senate, House seats and a host of other state and local offices and issues.Registration closed Tuesday, and county voting centers opened Wednesday morning.Central Ohio Voters Guide: What's on your ballot? | Nov. 2018Seventy-eight-year-old retiree Rod Sommer was first in line in Hamilton County. He said he was there an hour before doors opened at 8 a.m. EDT. He described himself a
  
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• Hunters & anglers in Ohio can now buy multiyear licenses from the state

  10-10-2018 15:29
  
  COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio's Department of Natural Resources said the sale of multiyear licenses to state residents began Tuesday. Anglers and hunters can purchase 3-year, 5-year, 10-year and lifetime hunting or fishing licenses.All single-year and multiyear licenses can be purchased online at wildohio.gov and at participating agents. An Ohio driver's license or state identification must be associated with the customer's account.Lifetime licenses can be purchased online or at any of the de
  
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• Supercharged overnight, Hurricane Michael menaces Florida

  10-10-2018 15:07
  
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Gaining frightening fury overnight, Hurricane Michael closed in Wednesday on the Florida Panhandle with potentially catastrophic winds of 145 mph, the most powerful storm on record ever to menace the stretch of fishing towns, military bases and spring-break beaches.With more than 375,000 people up and down the Gulf Coast warned to clear out, the hurricane's leading edge began lashing the white-sand shoreline with tropical storm-force winds, rain and rising seas bef
  
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• Supercharged hurricane threatens Florida with 150 mph winds

  10-10-2018 15:07
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Gaining fury with every passing hour, Hurricane Michael closed in Wednesday on the Florida Panhandle with potentially catastrophic winds of 150 mph, the most powerful storm on record ever to menace the stretch of fishing towns, military bases and spring-break beaches.With more than 375,000 people up and down the Gulf Coast warned to evacuate, the hurricane's leading edge began lashing the white-sand shoreline with tropical storm-force winds, rain and rising seas be
  
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• Michael makes landfall in Florida Panhandle as Category 4 with 155 mph winds

  10-10-2018 15:07
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Supercharged by abnormally warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Michael slammed into the Florida Panhandle on Wednesday with potentially catastrophic winds of 155 mph, one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S. mainland.Michael came ashore near Mexico Beach, a tourist town about midway along the Panhandle, a lightly populated, 200-mile stretch of white-sand beach resorts, fishing towns and military bases.Its winds roaring, it battered the coastlin
  
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• Michael charges into Southeast after slamming north Florida

  10-10-2018 15:07
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — The most powerful hurricane on record to hit Florida's Panhandle left wide destruction and at least two people dead and wasn't nearly finished Thursday as it crossed Georgia, now as a tropical storm, toward the Carolinas, that are still reeling from epic flooding by Hurricane Florence.A day after the supercharged storm crashed ashore amid white sand beaches, fishing towns, and military bases, Michael was no longer a Category 4 monster packing 155 mph (250 kph) wind
  
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• Hurricane Michael slams into Florida, charges into Southeast

  10-10-2018 15:07
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Hurricane Michael slammed into the Florida Panhandle with terrifying winds of 155 mph Wednesday, splintering homes and submerging neighborhoods before continuing its destructive charge inland across the Southeast. It was the most powerful hurricane to hit the continental U.S. in nearly 50 years and at least one death was reported during its passage.Supercharged by abnormally warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the Category 4 storm crashed ashore in the early afterno
  
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• 'Catching some hell': Hurricane Michael slams into Florida

  10-10-2018 15:07
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Supercharged by abnormally warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Michael slammed into the Florida Panhandle with terrifying winds of 155 mph Wednesday, splintering homes and submerging neighborhoods. It was the most powerful hurricane to hit the continental U.S. in nearly 50 years.Its winds shrieking, Michael crashed ashore in the early afternoon near Mexico Beach, a tourist town about midway along the Panhandle, a lightly populated, 200-mile stretch of whit
  
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• Melania Trump: Women accusing men should "show the evidence"

  10-10-2018 14:53
  
  WASHINGTON — First lady Melania Trump says women who make accusations of sexual abuse "need to be heard" and supported, but so do men.She says when there are accusations there needs to be "really hard evidence" and accusers should "show the evidence."Mrs. Trump was interviewed on her Kenya trip by ABC, which aired portions Wednesday on "Good Morning America." Asked whether she supports the MeToo movement. Mrs. Trump said, "I support the women, and they need to be heard. We need to support
  
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• Woman with 'emotional support squirrel' removed from flight heading to Cleveland

  10-10-2018 14:18
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Police at a Florida airport removed a passenger who refused to get off a Cleveland-bound flight after she was found carrying an "emotional support squirrel."Passengers had already boarded Frontier Airlines Flight 1612 at Orlando International Airport on Tuesday night when they were told there was a "situation" and everyone needed to get off the plane, according to passenger Brandon Nixon."Everyone was a little panicked. You expect the worst when they say something like that
  
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• Flight to Cleveland delayed after woman brings squirrel on plane

  10-10-2018 14:18
  
  ORLANDO, Fla.— Police had to remove a woman who brought an "emotional support squirrel" on a Frontier Airlines flight headed from Orlando, Florida, to Cleveland.Frontier says the passenger had noted in her reservation that she was bringing an emotional support animal with her on Flight 1612 Tuesday night. But she did not indicate it was a squirrel.The airline says rodents, including squirrels, are not allowed. The airline says police were called when the passenger refused to leave the plan
  
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• Taylor Swift wins big at AMAs and encourages fans to vote

  10-10-2018 13:47
  
  Taylor Swift kicked off her week with a rare political post on social media, and at the American Music Awards she continued the conversation by encouraging fans to vote in the upcoming midterm elections.Swift won four honors including artist of the year at the fan-voted show on Tuesday in Los Angeles, beating out Drake, Ed Sheeran, Imagine Dragons and Post Malone for the top prize."This award and every single award given out tonight were voted on by the people, and you know what else is voted on
  
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• Teen completes record-breaking 76-day flight around the world

  10-10-2018 13:25
  
  A Louisiana teenager flew for 10 ½ hours through a sandstorm over Saudi Arabia, got stuck in the Philippines by typhoons, and set three youth aviation records. Flying entirely by instruments through the sandstorm's turbulence was the worst part of the trip, 18-year-old Mason Andrews, of Monroe in northeast Louisiana, said Monday. "It seemed like a hundred hours.""The highlight was flying into Paris. I saw the Eiffel Tower on the approach — I landed at night," he said in a telephone
  
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• Trump trashes Democrats' Medicare for All plan in USA Today op-ed

  10-10-2018 12:23
  
  WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is stepping up his attack on Democrats over a health care proposal called Medicare for All, claiming it "would end Medicare as we know it and take away benefits that seniors have paid for their entire lives."Trump, omitting any mention of improved benefits for seniors that Democrats promise, writes in an op-ed published Wednesday in USA Today, "The Democrats' plan means that after a life of hard work and sacrifice, seniors would no longer be able to depe
  
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• AR-15 rifle, shotgun stolen from sheriff deputy's car

  10-10-2018 11:57
  
  CINCINNATI (AP) — Police in Cincinnati say someone stole a rifle and a shotgun from a deputy's unmarked take-home car.Hamilton County Sheriff's Office district commander Lt. Tory Smith didn't learn of the theft until Aug. 21 — and police say the guns could have been stolen as early as July 6. WCPO-TV reports the stolen items include a Colt AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, a Remington shotgun, a tactical vest, five AR-15 magazines, cases for the guns and a pocket trauma kit.Officials
  
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• Waverly woman dies in Pike County crash with semi

  10-10-2018 11:46
  
  WAVERLY -- A 76-year-old Waverly woman died after her vehicle crashed with a semi Tuesday afternoon according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.According to the OSHP, a semi was turning northbound onto U.S. 23 from a private drive when it failed to yield at about 6 p.m.The vehicle driven by Shannon Sparks, a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan, was traveling southbound on U.S. 23 near mile marker 14 and struck the semi.Sparks died at the scene. The crash remains under investigation.
  
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• Waverly man dies in Pike County crash with semi

  10-10-2018 11:46
  
  WAVERLY -- A 76-year-old Waverly man died after his vehicle crashed with a semi Tuesday afternoon according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.According to the OSHP, a semi was turning northbound onto U.S. 23 from a private drive when it failed to yield at about 6 p.m.The vehicle driven by Shannon Sparks, a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan, was traveling southbound on U.S. 23 near mile marker 14 and struck the semi.Sparks died at the scene. The crash remains under investigation.
  
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• Hurricane Michael develops into Category 4 monster storm

  10-10-2018 08:34
  
  The National Hurricane Center (NHC) says Hurricane Michael is packing even more punch: It strengthened into a Category 4 storm early Wednesday, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph. According to the NHC's latest advisory, Michael could produce a life-threatening storm surge as high as 13 feet and dump as much as a foot of rain in some places.Weather officials say Michael has been drawing energy from warm Gulf of Mexico waters, with ocean temperatures in the mid-80s.The NHC says for some addit
  
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• Category 4 Hurricane Michael roars nearer to Florida coast; Gov. says too late to evacuate

  10-10-2018 08:34
  PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Michael's leading edge careened onto northwest Florida's white-sand beaches as a still-growing Category 4 hurricane Wednesday, lashing the coast with tropical storm-force winds and rain and pushing a storm surge that could cause catastrophic damage well inland once it makes landfall.The unexpected brute quickly sprang from a weekend tropical depression and grew swiftly into the worst hurricane in recorded history for this stretch of the Florida coast, carrying destructi
  
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• Man charged after police seize drugs, guns during Whitehall search

  10-10-2018 03:08
  
  WHITEHALL, Ohio – A search warrant at a home in Whitehall led to police seizing drugs, guns, and money, according to police.Whitehall police executed a search warrant for a home in the 1700 block of Channingway Court on Tuesday stemming from an investigation into drug trafficking.Detectives seized 48 grams of cocaine, 42 grams of heroin, 1,000 grams of marijuana, 439 oxycodone pills, 3 guns, and $144,220 in cash. Police said one of the guns was stolen.Seaqwaun Walton was arrested and charg
  
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• Pickerington moves Independence Day fireworks to July 3 due to safety concerns

  10-10-2018 00:36
  
  Officials at the City of Pickerington and Violet Township have announced changes to the Independence Day celebration for 2019.The fireworks display will be on July 3 and once again be launched from Pickerington Central High School.The parade and community celebrating will be held July 4 at Victory Park during daytime hours.According to the news release, the changes to the event were made in the interest of public safety.“We had to make some changes to provide a higher level of security and
  
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• Courtroom bombshell: Cold case murder trial halted by last-minute discovery

  10-10-2018 00:17
  A courtroom bombshell could dramatically impact an already extraordinary case.The 1985 murder of Sharla Spangler in Columbus went unsolved for 32 years. Last year police charged a Knox County businessman with her murder.Doug Krumlauf's trial was set to begin Tuesday. But a last-minute discovery has thrown the case into question."What was relayed to me was in reviewing their testimony for this trial, they were looking and they realized that they could have done YSTR testing on some of the propert
  
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