One-hundred-and-ninety children died in Cuyahoga County last year, according to the 2023 Child Fatality Report. That’s an “an alarming increase,” said officials, who on Tuesday presented the news. It's a 25% increase over 2022. They have no estimate of the number of deaths this year. “These are mostly preventable deaths,” said county Medical Examiner Dr. Tom Gilson. Most of those deaths are attributable to infant mortality, largely due to premature births, and homicides, related to abuse and gun violence. And most can be traced back to causes rooted in social determinants of health, including poverty, racism and social norms. Black children died at much higher rates than their white counterparts. — Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
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Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne and other community and health officials on Tuesday were at the University Hospitals Rainbow Ahuja Center for Women and Children to discuss the "alarming" rise in child fatalities in 2023. (Kaitlin Durbin, cleveland.com) |
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Child fatalities: Cuyahoga officials say the 2023 child fatality report serves as a clarion call to do better, and everyone – from health officials and policy-makers down to the average citizen – needs to step up to save children, Kaitlin Durbin reports. Opioid judgment: A state Supreme Court ruling Tuesday all but cast a death knell over a $650 million judgment two Ohio counties won from chain pharmacy operators for their role in sparking an opioid epidemic, reports Jake Zuckerman. The Ohio Supreme Court’s ruling technically isn't final, but it sides with CVS Health, Walgreens Boot Alliance and Walmart in finding that a state law passed in 2007 doesn’t allow payment of such a judgment for a products liability lawsuit. Today in Ohio: The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that if you eat a boneless chicken wing, you should reasonably expect bones. We’re talking about the “asinine” decision on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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School takeovers: Schools deemed among the poorest performing in the state could close or face a takeover under an Ohio Senate bill that is marching through the chamber during the lame duck period. Laura Hancock reports that under Senate Bill 295, charter school operators, Ohio public or private colleges or universities, or a state-approved education management organization could take charge of those poor-performing public schools. Legislative mashup: As the Ohio legislature’s two-year session nears an end, lawmakers in both the House and Senate are hastily loading up a handful of bills with a range of policy priorities, from expanding fracking in state parks to making the walleye Ohio’s official state fish. Laura Hancock and Jeremy Pelzer report Ohio lawmakers frequently rush through proposals – or, in some cases, entire bills – by throwing them into these “Christmas tree” bills, so-called because they’re adorned with a wide variety of legislation on lawmakers' wish lists. SLAPP legislation: The Ohio General Assembly is poised to enact protections aimed at blocking use of the courts by deep-pocketed plaintiffs to silence critics from exercising free speech for fear of expensive litigation, reports Robert Higgs. A House committee on Tuesday approved SB 237 to combat a civil action known as a “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” or more simply a SLAPP – a suit that claims such as defamation and invasion of privacy to intimidate people exercising their rights to free speech. Asbestos suits: The Ohio House passed legislation Tuesday that will add major new procedural hurdles for plaintiffs suing companies over exposure to asbestos, a dangerous chemical closely linked to lung cancer and mesothelioma. Jake Zuckerman reports legislation requires plaintiffs who said a company exposed them to asbestos to specify early in the legal process the specific products, exposure sites, and witnesses behind the exposure. Energy chair: Ohio Republican congressman Bob Latta on Monday lost his bid to chair one of the most powerful committees in Congress: the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over issues including healthcare, technology and energy. Sabrina Eaton reports the House GOP steering committee that picks committee chairs instead selected Kentucky Republican Brett Guthrie. Stand Your Ground: The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law does not apply to cases that happened before lawmakers passed the legislation, reports Lucas Daprile. The state’s high court considered whether the 2021 law should have applied to Jaidee Miree and Desmond Duncan after they were charged with murder in the 2019 killing of Ramses Hurley in Cleveland’s Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood. |
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Cleveland wards: Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin unveiled the city’s new ward maps Tuesday, giving residents their first look at new boundaries that undo much of the controversial gerrymandering that former president Martin J. Sweeney orchestrated a decade ago, Sean McDonnell reports. The new maps — shrinking from 17 to 15 wards because of population loss — also set up two city council elections where incumbents may run against each other in 2025. Dead-man vote: The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections found that a local man’s absentee ballot in last month’s presidential election was mailed after he died. Cory Shaffer reports the board on Tuesday voted to refer the case to the Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s Public Integrity Unit to further probe the case. The ballot was among a handful from the November election that the county elections board singled out for more investigation, representing a minuscule fraction of the more than 571,000 votes cast. Arctic blast: An arctic front is on the way, with temperatures expected to get as low as 16 degrees in the Cleveland area on Wednesday night, reports Megan Sims. Browns development: The Browns plan to surround their envisioned Brook Park stadium with two upscale hotels, 1,100 apartments, retail and 500,000 square feet of office space, the team announced Tuesday. But the exact plan for public financing is still unclear, reports Sean McDonnell. Remontant flowering: Remontant flowering is the phenomenon you may have noticed this year, where plants that typically only flower in the spring or summer bloom again in the fall. Like many horticultural happenings, the weather has a lot to do with it, writes our gardening expert. |
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Unemployment: The unemployment rate for Cleveland has dropped below 4% for the third time in the last 25 years, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The October unemployment rate for the Cleveland-Elyria metropolitan area was 3.9%, seasonally adjusted, hitting a historically low rate that had only been seen twice since the turn of the century, Zachary Smith reports. |
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Chop shop sentence: A Cleveland chop-shop operator who sold $3.1 million in stolen cars was sentenced Tuesday to three years and one month in federal prison, reports Adam Ferrise. Andre Hargrove, 28, will serve the time on top of a five-year, 10-month sentence for drug dealing in a separate case. Akron boy shot: An 8-year-old Akron boy died after he accidentally shot himself Monday afternoon, reports Lucas Daprile. Investigators believe the boy grabbed an unsecured handgun on the second floor of his home in the 1500 block of Evergreen Avenue. |
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Ask Yadi: What if someone insists on bringing food to your party? Yadi Rodriguez writes that you shouldn't take it as an insult and that a guest may want to contribute. Some of us were raised to not go to a party empty-handed. Shinto: Shinto Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar is expanding, reports Marc Bona. The restaurant, which has locations in Strongsville and Westlake, is moving east with a spot at Legacy Village. Summer tour: A trio of ‘70s and ‘80s hitmakers are teaming up for a summer tour that will have fans trying to “ride like the wind” to get tickets. Malcolm X Abram reports the show in question will take them both to “Africa” and a “Down Under” in just a few groovy hours as Toto, Christopher Cross and Men At Work come to Blossom Music Center on Aug. 8. 'Nutcracker': The Cleveland Ballet is staging a different sort of “Nutcracker” for 2024 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. Choreography, costumes and sets are all new for the dancers and audience for a run of performances Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and Dec. 19-22. The 2024 choreography was developed anew by Cleveland Ballet’s current artistic director, Timour Bourtasenkov, Paris Wolfe reports. Gingerbread chalet: Chefs at the Ritz-Carlton Cleveland have built a Gingerbread Chalet in TURN Bar + Kitchen. Paris Wolfe reports that the chalet seats up to eight guests for dinner. |
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Fantasy Flight takes Cleveland children on magical ride to the North Pole Read more Male robs Akron Subway at gunpoint Read more Sequoia Financial Group to consolidate Beachwood office in Mayfield Heights; ultimately projects $10.5 million payroll Read more CH-UH district considers renaming Monticello Middle School Read more Brecksville spending $1.9 million to rebuild Kids Quarters playground near community center Read more Cuyahoga Valley National Park temporarily closing Towpath Trail section soon Read more Metro RTA reports ridership surge in Summit County in 2024 Read more Big Fun comes home for the holidays with pop-up shop on Coventry Read more Brecksville begins reconstruction of fire-damaged service garage Read more Westlake officials' salaries to hold steady through 2029 Read more |
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