Police headquarters: Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson tells cleveland.com’s Courtney Astolfi that building a police headquarters on the city’s East Side will drive economic development along the Opportunity Corridor road project, not hamper it, as some critics have suggested. “It will be a catalyst,” Jackson said during a meeting between key members of his administration and cleveland.com editors and reporters.

County lawsuit: Cuyahoga County’s former information technology chief filed a lawsuit Thursday against the county and County Executive Armond Budish over the 19 months he had been on unpaid leave amid an ongoing corruption investigation. Cleveland.com’s Courtney Astolfi reports that Scot Rourke’s lawsuit argues extended leave is a violation of Ohio law.

This Week in the CLE: It’s the plastic bag episode of This Week in the CLE, the podcast analysis of the news by the reporters and editors at cleveland.com. Cleveland.com reporters and editors discuss the latest on the bag ban in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and Ohio, plus cover criminal reform, jail inspections and 50 new restaurants.

Criminal sentencing reform: Advocates are making a late push for and against a criminal-sentencing reform bill that could be passed by the Ohio Senate before the end of the year. Cleveland.com’s Andrew Tobias reports groups backing the bill spent $209,000 to air the ads across Ohio during the OSU-Michigan game last Saturday, and during the Browns-Steelers game the following day.

Impeach who? U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, the Champaign County Republican who is one of the nation’s most visible critics of efforts to impeach President Trump, was once a big proponent of impeachment. In 2015 and 2016, Jordan repeatedly urged impeachment of Internal Revenue Service commissioner John Koskinen and last year, Jordan led an effort to oust Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Cleveland.com’s Sabrina Eaton digs into Jordan’s past.

Life sentence: A judge on Thursday sentenced a man to life in prison after a jury found him guilty of killing a man at a car lot and then setting fire to the minivan that contained his body, cleveland.com’s Cory Shaffer reports. Jerry “J-Roc” Sims Jr., who prosecutors say is a suspected member of the 7-All and Heartless Felons gangs, will not be eligible for parole until he serves 40 years in prison.

AIDS grant: The city of Cleveland is appealing a decision by the Ohio Department of Health to not renew $1.5 million in grants for an HIV/AIDS program. Cleveland.com’s Peter Krouse has the letter the city sent to the state, after the state said the city failed to adequately address problems.

Opioid dispute: Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office has distributed a proposed state constitutional amendment, which voters would need to approve, to ensure a large part of the money obtained through a swath of opioid lawsuits would go toward treating addiction and its corresponding problems. However, cleveland.com’s Jeremy Pelzer and Eric Heisig report the odds of it making the ballot for an election in March are slim because Gov. Mike DeWine is skeptical about the timing of the proposal.

Bill rejected: Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost on Thursday announced he has rejected summary language for a proposed state constitutional amendment that would create a Nursing Facility Patients’ Bill of Rights. The amendment seeks to set minimum staffing levels for nurses and certified nurses’ aides at every nursing facility, nursing home and rehab facility in the state, cleveland.com’s Jeremy Pelzer reports.

Serial judge: A panel of appeals court judges on Thursday threw out the 2017 conviction of a Cleveland man after judges found Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Daniel Gaul improperly questioned him on the stand about his juvenile and misdemeanor criminal history. Cleveland.com’s Cory Shaffer reports three 8th District Court of Appeals judges held that Gaul acted with “bias and prejudice” against William Skerkavich Jr., and ordered a new trial on a single felonious assault charge that stems from a Warehouse District fight sparked by a snowball.

SNAP reductions: Approximately 45,000 Ohioans would be affected by a new rule in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that restricts how states can exempt people from work requirements to get food aid, cleveland.com’s Laura Hancock reports. The SNAP recipients fit into a category known as Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents. Many are believed to currently have jobs.

Vaping sickness: Eighty-one people in Ohio have suffered severe lung damage after using e-cigarettes, reports cleveland.com’s Laura Hancock. An Ohio Department of Health update says the median age of vaping sickness in Ohio is 24 years, and 70 percent of people who have become sick were men.

Lordstown plant: General Motors Co. and LG Chem announced Thursday they will create 1,100 new jobs in Lordstown for a new plant focused on the mass production of battery cells for future battery-electric vehicles. The companies will invest up to $2.3 billion in the venture, separate from the recent sale of GM’s manufacturing complex in Lordstown for the production of battery-electric trucks.

Fall Brawl: James Atkinson caught the biggest fish in the 2019 Lake Erie Walleye Fall Brawl and won a $100,000 Warrior boat. Cleveland.com’s Laura Johnston reports that on Black Friday, he hooked a 12.395-pound, 31.5-inch beast on a lure he painted himself two days before.

Construction theft: A Cleveland-based crime ring is accused of carrying out dozens of heists that targeted landscaping and construction vehicles across Northeast Ohio. Cleveland.com’s Cory Shaffer reports a secret indictment handed up last week charges seven people with racketeering, conspiracy, grand theft and other charges in the spree that included 40 incidents in over 20 cities.

Natural hair: A coalition of African-American legislators, including Warrensville Heights Rep. Marcia Fudge, is introducing federal legislation that would ban discrimination against hair textures and hairstyles commonly associated with a particular race or national origin. Cleveland.com’s Sabrina Eaton reports sponsors of the “Crown Act” describe “hair discrimination” as “widespread and pernicious." {C}{C}{C}{C}

Police cruiser: A music video released on YouTube shows a local rapper inside and on top of a Cleveland police cruiser at a city maintenance garage, reports cleveland.com’s Adam Ferrise. The video was released just days after a photo surfaced of a group posing on and inside the police cruiser earlier in the week.

Eastlake escape: A 31-year-old man slipped out of his jail cell on Thursday, grabbed his clothes and cellphone and stole a police cruiser, reports cleveland.com’s Adam Ferrise. Eastlake Police Chief Larry Reik said the escape of inmate Joey Moran “exposed holes” the department will review.

Lyndhurst standoff: Reports of gunshots at a Lyndhurst home early Thursday led to a SWAT standoff with a man, reports cleveland.com’s Adam Ferrise. SWAT officers arrested a man inside the home after a three-and-a-half hour standoff.

Kids Film It: The Russo Brothers, the directing team behind blockbusters “The Avengers: Endgame,” “Captain America: Civil War” and "Cherry,” will serve as judges at the Kids Film It Festival in Cleveland. Cleveland.com’s Anne Nickoloff reports the event is Friday, Feb. 21, at Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

What to do: Looking for something different to do this weekend? Cleveland.com’s Joey Morona breaks down 20 interesting events taking place across Northeast Ohio.

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