Ohio

Judge orders transfer of gorilla from sanctuary to zoo; bacterial infection could aggravate trip

A federal judge in San Francisco has ordered that Ndume the gorilla be transferred from a California sanctuary to the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden this week amid a dispute over the advisability of travel. U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg ordered the transfer of Ndume in two orders. In his…

Jun 11, 2019 7:00 AM CDT

Lawyer previously suspended for wine theft is disbarred for breaking promise of free representation

A Cincinnati-area lawyer has been disbarred in Ohio for sending a woman an invoice for nearly $10,000 for his legal services after he had agreed to represent her for free. The Ohio Supreme Court disbarred lawyer Rodger William Moore of Alexandria, Kentucky, in a May 30 opinion. The Cincinnati Enquirer…

Jun 3, 2019 7:30 AM CDT

GOP lawmakers in Michigan and Ohio win SCOTUS stay in political gerrymandering cases

On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed court rulings ordering Michigan and Ohio to create new electoral maps because they were drawn to benefit Republicans. The Supreme Court granted the stays as it considers partisan gerrymandering cases in North Carolina and Maryland, report Courthouse News Service, the New York Times…

May 28, 2019 9:15 AM CDT

Federal court strikes down map of Ohio congressional districts for ‘invidious partisan intent’

A special three-judge court has struck down a map of Ohio’s congressional districts because it was drawn with “invidious partisan intent” by Republican lawmakers.

May 6, 2019 9:15 AM CDT

Trial between Oberlin College and a local bakery tackles First Amendment questions

A shoplifting incident at a bakery in Oberlin, Ohio, created a controversy for the community and led to a lawsuit against the college.

May 2, 2019 1:15 PM CDT

Father and daughter who graduated law school together await bar results

Sarah Smith credits her father and an LSAT study guide for her interest in law school. Tim Smith was working with an LSAT study book in early 2014 when his daughter picked it up and started doing some of the problems. “I thought the questions were fun, and it piqued…

Mar 28, 2019 8:15 AM CDT

Book chronicles how coach Pat Summitt supported teen’s Title IX quest to shoot baskets

In the 1970s, Tennessee was among about a half-dozen states that restricted the way high school girls could play basketball. Instead of playing “five-on-five” basketball, girls played on six-player teams in which the three players in the forward position stayed on half the court, and the three guards stayed on…

Mar 20, 2019 1:41 PM CDT

District attorney says testing rape kits is ‘our moral imperative’

In less than four years, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s national rape kit testing program has led to 186 new arrests and 64 new convictions, including 47 felony sexual assault convictions. Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance Jr. also announced that more than 55,000 rape kits have been tested in 32…

Mar 14, 2019 3:42 PM CDT

There’s no due process right to perform abortions, says en banc 6th Circuit in funding case

An en banc federal appeals court has upheld an Ohio law that bans the state from providing health funds to abortion providers.

Mar 13, 2019 12:15 PM CDT

Lawyer who created digital child porn as expert witness owes $300K to women whose photos he used

An Ohio lawyer’s expert witness work on behalf of accused child pornography defendants has created a $300,000 liability for him that cannot be excused in bankruptcy, a federal appeals court has ruled. The bankruptcy appellate panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Cincinnati ruled against lawyer Jack…

Feb 19, 2019 10:00 AM CST

Extreme cold causes widespread court closures in Midwest; one governor says US is ‘getting soft’

Many courthouses throughout the the Midwest announced closings Wednesday as an arctic blast settled on the region. Both local and federal courthouses reported closings. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Chicago announced a Wednesday and Thursday closing, along with courthouses in the Northern District of Illinois. Also closed…

Jan 30, 2019 3:42 PM CST

When judges get angry, the most vulnerable suffer; one judge sees his behavior as reminder

Trial judges should be “a model of dignity and impartiality” who are able to control their tempers and emotions, according to ABA standards on special functions of trial judges. Too often, however, judges exhibit anger and unprofessional behavior, Rewire News reports. And the targets of their wrath often are the…

Dec 17, 2018 7:00 AM CST

Ex-judge who got reduced sentence in wife beating is arrested in her stabbing death

A former Ohio judge who served nine months in prison for beating his wife so severely that she needed reconstructive surgery is now a suspect in her fatal stabbing. Lance Mason, a former judge in Cuyahoga County, was arrested Saturday in the fatal stabbing of Aisha Fraser Mason, a Shaker…

Nov 19, 2018 12:31 PM CST

Ballot measures give felons the right to vote, overturn Jim Crow-era jury law and legalize marijuana

Beyond the fight for Congress, voters across the country were presented with major criminal justice reform initiatives on Tuesday's ballot.

Nov 7, 2018 9:33 AM CST

Judge sued for denying name changes to transgender juveniles wins case dismissal

A federal judge in Cincinnati on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit that claimed an Ohio judge discriminated against transgender juveniles by denying their name change requests. U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman ordered the dismissal of the suit against Judge Joseph Kirby of Lebanon, Ohio, report the Cincinnati Enquirer and the Dayton…

Nov 1, 2018 4:50 PM CDT