AKRON

Crash victim dies
AKRON: A 48-year-old Akron man hit by a vehicle Friday night died Monday from his injuries at Akron City Hospital.

Gregory Miller, 48, of Poe Avenue, was pushing a bicycle down the street while carrying a snow shovel in the 200 block of The Brooklands when he was struck. He was taken to the hospital.

Akron police and the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office were investigating.

No other information was released.

Bar lives up to name
AKRON: A fight outside the Busted Knuckle Saloon on South Arlington Street left one man hospitalized and several others wounded.

Akron police say the brawl involving seven people began about 2:30 a.m. Sunday in the parking lot.

A 50-year-old man was treated at a local hospital with facial injuries, including broken teeth, a cut to his hand and possible broken ribs. Two others received minor injuries.

Four others were involved in the fight. No one has been charged as police continue to sort out the melee.

Drugstore robberies
AKRON: Two area drugstores were robbed over the weekend, one for drugs, the other for cash, Akron police said.

A man robbed the pharmacy at the Walgreens at 302 S. Canton Road on Saturday afternoon.

Police say the man — described as white, in his late 40s to early 50s and wearing a maroon Carhartt coat, gray hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and tan knit hat — demanded drugs from a pharmacy worker.

The man got his drugs, apologized to the worker and left the store, police said.

Later on Saturday, a robber visited the Rite Aid at 1047 Kenmore Blvd. Police say the man acted as if he had a gun and demanded money.

He is described as black, short and slight and about 30 years old. He was wearing dark pants, a dark hooded sweatshirt and a brown stocking hat.

Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 330-375-2490. Anonymous tips for these or any crime can be made at http://ci.akron.oh.us/ASP/tip.html.

Woman hit with cane
AKRON: A woman who uses a wheelchair was beaten with her cane by her estranged husband, who had become angry over her request to fix her TV, police said.

Johnathan Joseph, 55, is charged with two counts of domestic violence, according to Akron Municipal Court records.

The woman, Deborah Goodwin, 57, of Akron, was treated at Akron General Medical Center.

Joseph went to Goodwin's apartment Friday to retrieve property after their separation, police said. As he was disconnecting cable wires, police say he became angry when Goodwin asked if he would fix the cable so she could watch TV.

Police say Joseph took the woman's cane and beat her several times. She suffered multiple bruises and bumps to her head, jaw and hands, police said.

Goodwin's daughter, Valeshia Goodwin, 27, tried to intervene and was attacked with the cane as well, police said. She had injuries to her head.

Joseph appeared in municipal court Monday. He was being held in the Summit County Jail.

Sentence in attack
AKRON: A 25-year-old Akron man who attacked a woman after she ended their relationship was sentenced Monday to 12 years in prison.

James Coplin was sentenced by Summit County Common Pleas Judge Paul J. Gallagher on charges of attempted murder and intimidation of a crime victim.

Prosecutors said Coplin choked and stabbed a woman in the abdomen Aug. 31 after she ended their relationship. Friends tried to intervene, and Coplin threatened to kill a male friend of the woman's if he called police.

The victim suffered multiple injuries requiring corrective and reconstructive surgery, prosecutors said.

Rape verdict
AKRON: A Summit County jury found an Illinois man guilty Friday of rape and aggravated burglary.

Authorities say David A. Kelley Sr., a long-distance truck driver from Chicago, was visiting relatives in Akron when he entered the victim's home and raped her.

Kelley left his wallet and other evidence linking him to the crime. He will be sentenced by Summit County Common Pleas Judge Judith Hunter on Feb. 10.

Man found guilty
AKRON: A jury Monday found Coty Frazier, 30, of Akron, guilty of charges including felonious assault, improper discharge of a firearm, domestic violence and menacing by stalking.

Authorities say Frazier went to his ex-girlfriend's apartment Oct. 8 and stole the keys to her car and apartment. He returned that night and pushed, choked and kicked her. The next day he flattened the tires on her car.

Frazier came back to her apartment again and got in an altercation with a man who was visiting the woman. Frazier then called and threatened the woman, saying he was going to shoot her in the face and strangle her.

Frazier returned that same evening and fired several shots at the apartment, where children were sleeping, and then fled. He was arrested the following day.

He will be sentenced Feb. 18 by Judge Paul Gallagher. Frazier faces up to 29 years in prison.

New Akron clerk
AKRON: The City Council voted Monday to appoint Bob Keith, Ward 8 councilman, as clerk of council.

Keith, 58, replaces Cherri Prough, who retired in December after 30 years' service to the city. He had represented Ward 8 in West Akron since January 1997.

Keith told his fellow council members that he hopes to make their jobs easier. He earned applause from them and several family members and friends who attended the meeting.

The council must now choose Keith's replacement. Applications will be accepted until 4:30 p.m. Jan. 26 and the council will pick a candidate Feb. 2. Councilman Jim Shealey will chair the committee that will consider the applicants.

Applicants must have lived in Ward 8 for a year and be at least 18. Applications may be sent to the council clerk's office, 166 S. High St., Akron, OH 44308.

Among those reportedly interested is Bruce Bolden, a former Ward 1 councilman.

Plusquellic to meet
AKRON: Mayor Don Plusquellic will be among the mayors to meet with Senate Appropriations Chairman Daniel Inouye on Friday afternoon to discuss the economic stimulus package.

Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann is setting up the meeting at Inouye's request.

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, also will be present, along with a few other mayors.

Plusquellic and the other mayors already will be in Washington, D.C., for the winter conference of the mayors group. Plusquellic plans to attend the conference and then stay for the inauguration Tuesday.

This is the latest of several invitations to Plusquellic to be among a select group of mayors to weigh in on the stimulus package. He participated in a briefing last week before President-elect Barack Obama's speech on the economy.

Ward 10 meeting
AKRON: Kelli Crawford, Ward 10 councilwoman, will have a ward meeting at 6:30 p.m. today.

The meeting will be at the Goodyear Library, 60 Goodyear Blvd.

Stop-smoking class
AKRON: Free stop-smoking classes will be offered by the Akron Health Department starting Wednesday.

The classes, to be held at Summa Health System's Cooper Cancer Center at 161 N. Forge St., will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21 and 28, Feb. 4 and 11.

To register for the program sponsored by the Summit County Tobacco Prevention Coalition, call 330-861-7179 or call Elizabeth Burke at 330-375-2109, Ext. 4401, or register online at http://www.smoke-freecommunity.org.

CANTON SCHOOLS

Contracts ratified
CANTON: The board of education Monday approved three-year contracts covering hundreds of non-teaching employees.

The agreements, retroactive to July 1, 2008, call for raises of 1.5 percent in the first year and 1.75 percent in the second year. Third-year raises of 1.95 percent depend on the availability of funds.

Employees will also pay 3.5 percent of their health insurance premiums in the second year of the contract and 6 percent in the third year.

The contracts have been approved by locals 107, 161 and 609 of the Ohio Association of Public School Employees. Represented workers include bus drivers, custodians, secretaries and school-community workers.

Also Monday the board chose James M. Carman Jr. as its president and Nadine McIlwain as vice president.

— Nancy Molnar

CLEVELAND

No bail for suspect
CLEVELAND: A federal magistrate in Cleveland has ordered a man suspected in a series of bank robberies — including four in the Akron area — held without bail while a grand jury takes the case.

The man, 33-year-old Kenneth Gibson of Cleveland, appeared Monday before Magistrate Kenneth McHargh. Gibson is in the custody of U.S. marshals.

Gibson, an ex-convict, is charged with the Dec. 29 holdup at a bank in Cleveland. The FBI says he's suspected in 11 other bank holdups dating back two months and stretching from Erie, Pa., to Toledo.

No weapon was displayed in the holdups, which were captured on clear surveillance photos.

The area banks robbed include KeyBank in Akron on Oct. 29, FirstMerit Bank in Bath Township on Oct. 29, the National City Bank in Montville Township on Nov. 10 and the KeyBank in Jackson Township on Dec. 22.

COLUMBUS

Out of funds
COLUMBUS: Ohio's unemployment compensation fund has been depleted, forcing the state to begin borrowing federal funds.

Officials say no disruptions in benefits are expected.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said Monday the federal government has already approved $500 million to be borrowed by Ohio to pay benefits in January and February. The state has requested that it be able to use $50 million of that amount to pay benefits this week.

Agency spokesman Dennis Evans said Ohio is committed to preventing the unemployment fund from missing any payments.

Ohio and many other states have seen their unemployment funds decrease drastically as the number of unemployed workers has surged amid the recession.

MEDINA COUNTY

Judges say hold off
MEDINA: The four judges of the Medina County Court of Common Pleas have an unusual request for Medina County Commissioners — don't expand the crowded courthouse.

The judges — James L. Kimbler, Christopher J. Collier, Mary Kovack and John J. Lohn — had been looking forward to a $13 million dollar project to expand and renovate the courthouse.

There was also a joint project planned with the city of Medina to build and operate a $5 million parking garage on the site.

With the economy in such great distress, the judges sent a letter dated Jan. 9 asking the commissioners to put the projects on hold.

The judges also pointed out that the county government is facing a multimillion-dollar budget deficit and expressed concern that employees may face pay cuts and layoffs.

''While our courthouse is crowded and many of its facilities are inadequate and no longer meet the needs of present day Medina County, we understand we are in the worst recession in 70 years,'' they wrote. ''Priorities must change with the times.''

SUMMIT COUNTY

Prosecutor cuts
AKRON: A Summit County assistant prosecutor will no longer attend County Council meetings, ending a long practice as government tries to curb its spending.

Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh has added Assistant Prosecutor John Manley to the list of seven staff members who have either been laid off, fired or retired as the office tries to pare $300,000 from its budget.

Manley, who was laid off, had headed the office's civil division since 2003 and worked closely with the County Council, the Board of Elections and other county agencies. Manley's salary was $84,656.

Laurie Cramer, Walsh's public affairs director, said General Counsel Mary Ann Kovach will assume Manley's tasks, which often require giving legal research and opinions to county offices. A county attorney will attend council meetings in Manley's place.

The county has ordered departments and agencies to cut 5 percent from their annual budgets to help offset a reduction in revenue.

WADSWORTH

Split lot approved
WADSWORTH: The planning commission Monday approved a lot split at Akron Road and Interstate 76 to provide sites for a new Giant Eagle, a Get Go station and a KeyBank.