Columbus Dispatch. Aug. 8, 2021.

Editorial: Ohio’s unfair bail system is akin to debtors’ jail

You can never get a day back.

We imagine that reality is not lost on people such as Anthony C. Wofford III.

Before being acquitted on April 16, he was stuck in jail for nearly 1,156 days on charges accusing him of killing his boyfriend.

And when Wofford was found not guilty, he got nothing to compensate him for the loss of more than three years of his life.

As in the rest of this nation, you’re innocent in Ohio until proven guilty before Lady Justice, her scale, sword and blindfold.

That technical fact does not mean you won’t find yourself trapped for days, months or even years in what is the modern day equivalent of a debtors’ jail. If you can’t afford bail, you sit and wait for a judge or jury to decide your fate – or you plead guilty to a crime you may or may not have committed.

“Incarcerating nonviolent offenders pretrial is a needless waste of taxpayer money,” Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor said in May. ”(Bail) was not meant to be a mechanism to keep people in jail pretrial.”

Congress outlawed debtors’ jails in 1833, but here in Ohio, people with means routinely buy their freedom with bail money. The poor – a disproportionate number of them people of color – are left to sweat it out behind bars.

In 2017, the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction found that more than 35% of local jail inmates were there awaiting trial. The bulk of them could not come up with bail money.

Lawmakers know this fact well.

“Under our current (bail) system, a rich and dangerous defendant can pay to secure their release, while poor defendants languish in jail pretrial, losing their job, their housing, and even in some cases, the custody of their children,” State Rep. Brett Hudson Hillyer, R-Uhrichsville, wrote in a recent guest column. “How does such a system promote public safety and equal justice under the law? As a practicing attorney, I have seen this all too often in different counties across the State.”

Hillyer is the co-sponsor of the House version of a bill that would end wealth-based detention for non-violent crimes. It would require courts to start from a presumption that most people deserve to be released while awaiting trial.

A March poll from the ACLU of Ohio, Ohio Conservatives for Bail Reform and other groups found that 75% of Ohio voters think Ohio’s criminal justice system needs reform.

Sixty-seven percent of respondents supported “reforming Ohio’s bail system so that release decisions are based on individual circumstances and cases, and not how much money someone has.”

As part of the proposed overhaul of the cash bail system, a hearing would be held within 48 hours of a suspect’s arrest. That was favored by 77% of those who took the poll.

“This presumption can be rebutted by evidence that the accused is unlikely to appear at trial or poses a safety threat. If the accused is a flight risk or safety threat, the judge can hold a hearing setting up conditions of the defendant’s release or a hearing on detaining the individual pretrial if they are eligible,” Hillyer wrote.

The proposed changes from a bipartisan group of lawmakers would not apply to violent crimes or in circumstances in which prosecutors believe someone to be a danger to the community.

It is clear that more also should be done to reduce the likelihood that innocent people are harmed due to the two-tier system of justice when it comes to felony crimes.

Neither Senate Bill 182 nor House Bill 315 would have helped Anthony C. Wofford III or the two others acquitted of murder charges in the past four months after spending more than two years in the Franklin County jail.

This is why we say lawmakers should go beyond bail reform.

Wofford maintained he acted in self-defense when he stabbed 27-year-old Kendrick Wilkerson May 31, 2018.

Cellphone video seen by jurors showed Wilkerson attacking Wofford before the stabbing.

Among other things, Wilkerson slammed Wofford’s head against a door and dragged him across the floor by his hair. Wofford eventually lunged toward a kitchen where he grabbed the knife used in the stabbing.

“Even though our client was acquitted, this was such a miscarriage of justice,” defense attorney Brian Joslyn said after the verdict.

Wofford, 28, had no previous felony record, was held in the county jail for nearly three years on a $500,000 bond.

That was a relatively low bail.

Ohio judges routinely set bail at $1 million or more in murder cases. Bail bond typically requires a 10% payment, meaning a defendant would have to come up with $100,000 on a $1 million bond.

A recent Dispatch investigation found that 41 defendants were held in pretrial detention for more than two years in the Franklin County Jail. Eighteen were charged with murder or aggravated murder. The rest faced rape, human trafficking, and high-level drug offense charges. These are the most serious offenses.

To be sure, the public must be protected from dangerous criminals, but suspect rights should not be trampled either.

Lawmakers should seek solutions to ensure that bail is not excessive, the true nature of the allegations are considered and that defendants receive speedy trials.

There is a system in place to compensate people who have been wrongfully convicted, but there is no compensation for those who are acquitted.

Ohio must take immediate action to make sure that people do not lose time they can never get back because they were wrongly penalized before they even had their day in court.

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Lorain Morning Journal. Aug. 7, 2021.

Editorial: Commissioners make right decision to expose inappropriate relationship

Lorain County commissioners correctly fired two employees this week for inappropriate behavior.

But one of the decisions was more surprising than the other.

Commissioners Matt Lundy and Dave Moore voted 2-0 on Aug. 3 following a lengthy executive session to terminate Lorain County 911 Director Harry Williamson and Lorain County Job and Family Services Director Tim Carrion.

Commission Board President Michelle Hung abstained from voting on the terminations.

Now, we know why.

Moore and Lundy confirmed in a joint statement to the media Aug. 4 that Williamson was fired due to an inappropriate relationship with Hung.

It’s not clear how long the relationship has lasted, because Hung and Williamson have not discussed it.

Lundy and Moore’s statement indicated that for some time, they operated with the understanding there was a “friendship” between Hung and Williamson.

Then Hung made a “public admission” of a more significant relationship between herself and Williamson.

While the commissioners cannot discuss what was said in executive session, Lundy and Moore are committed to transparency with the public and acted swiftly when they became aware of a more involved relationship between Hung and Williamson.

Lundy and Moore said a relationship involving a superior and a subordinate requires immediate action.

The commissioners insisted the matter was not treated differently, it was addressed promptly and in the best interests of Lorain County.

Lundy and Moore cited that the county personnel policy manual states that county employees are expected to maintain the highest possible ethical and moral standards.

They believe conduct that interferes with normal business operations brings discredit to the office and county.

This relationship between Hung and Williamson certainly met that threshold.

Hung, as a Republican North Ridgeville City Councilwoman before voters elected her commissioner in November, should have known about morals and ethics governing office holders.

Nevertheless, Lundy and Moore sought a legal review and consultation and felt Williamson’s termination was warranted.

In a phone interview with Morning Journal reporter Kevin Martin, Moore said he decided to release the statement in the spirit of bipartisanship and honesty with the community in the midst of a difficult situation.

Moore, a Republican, reiterated he and Lundy, a Democrat, have to be very careful about personnel issues and executive session.

They felt that if they released a joint letter, it would let residents and taxpayers know that there were no politics governing their decision.

The commissioners figured it would be more effective to let the public know there is no cover up and they were trying to be as transparent as legally possible.

Moore and Lundy did not call on Hung to resign.

Lundy also believe that he and Moore took the responsible action very quickly to move the county forward.

Addressing the termination of Carrion, Lundy and Moore wrote the former director received multiple disciplinary warnings and cited his last chance agreement which stated he was to “refrain from taking any actions or making verbal remarks that may be construed as retaliatory toward any employee or former employee who has alleged that I engaged in inappropriate behavior.”

Carrion received a formal written warning May 11 by Lorain County Administrator Tom Williams following three separate complaints about inappropriate hugging, according to public records obtained by The Morning Journal.

A second violation on Jan.10 just after taking up the role involved a disparaging voicemail left for Lundy in which Williams described Carrion as having expressed his disdain for the commissioner based on hearsay, and questioning his “integrity and honesty” and that “he should be a man” and advising him there is “no reason for my (your name) on your (his) mouth.”

In a statement to The Morning Journal, Carrion said he found it unfortunate that a political agenda hampered the progress being made at Lorain County Job and Family Services.

Firings for inappropriate behavior are justified.

Hopefully, the terminations will send a message that malfeasance in county offices will not be tolerated.

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Willoughby News Herald. Aug. 7 2021.

Editorial: Laketran ceremony on July 29 marked important milestones

July 29, 2021, deserves to be recorded as an important day in the history of Laketran.

Two milestones were achieved by the public-transit agency that day at Lakeland Community College.

Laketran debuted its new battery-operated electric bus and dedicated the Frank J. Polivka Transit Center — named after the agency’s first employee — outside the transit center on Lakeland’s campus in Kirtland.

“If you told me yesterday we’d be debuting electric buses and electric charging infrastructure right after, or possibly during, a thunderstorm, I wouldn’t have believed you,” Laketran Board President Brian Falkowski said.

Laketran is deploying 10 35-foot New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE electric transit buses in the fall, which the agency stated will transition 60 percent of its local route bus fleet to zero emission vehicles. The battery-operated bus is Ohio’s first, according to Laketran.

In addition to reducing air pollution, the buses also will cut down on noise and fuel and maintenance costs, Laketran CEO Ben Capelle said.

“These buses are equipped with some of the most modern safety and accessibility features you can get in a bus,” Capelle said. “There’s a device on this that allows a person in a wheelchair to enter the bus and press a button and get secured without the driver having to help them, which is a pretty big deal to folks who are using a mobility device.”

He said it also has a system that knows how high the bus is and when it needs to lower itself to help someone get on.

“There’s a whole bunch of computers that tell it what the right height is for the environment, which is a pretty important thing out on the road,” he said.

Among the funding sources for the electric bus program was the Ohio EPA. It awarded Laketran more than $1.5 million to replace six aging diesel buses.

Carolyn Watkins, administrator of Ohio EPA’s Diesel Emission Reduction Grant Program, said the replacement will reduce more than 1 1/2 tons of air pollution annually. That money comes from the $75 million awarded to Ohio from the Volkswagen Mitigation Trust Fund.

The charging infrastructure for the buses will be housed at the Frank J. Polivka Transit Center. The transit center opened to the public March 15 and also provides an indoor waiting area, Wi-Fi and public restrooms. The center sits adjacent to Route 306.

It serves as the central transfer point for six local bus routes, Park-n-Ride service to Cleveland, and Lakeland Community College’s Campus Loop shuttle service.

Polivka served as general manager of Laketran from 1979 to 2003. In his time at Laketran, he helped get the agency’s first levy passed in 1988 and launched the Dial-a-Ride and Park-n-Ride services.

“There’s probably not another person who has shaped transportation in Lake County as much as Frank Polivka,” Capelle said. “It’s not every day you can say ‘I started a transit system.’ ”

Capelle said that Polivka has been dedicated to alternate fuels “for a long time,” having bought some of the state’s first natural gas buses in 1997.

“I couldn’t think of a more fitting person to name this facility after,” Capelle said.

Polivka said that although the building has his name on it, it’s a culmination of “a tremendous community effort that I got to be a part of.”

“Those who know me and know me really, really well know that I can screw up a sandbox,” he said. “This is a great culmination of a career, but that career was really put together on the hard work of thousands of people who offered advice over all this time period. I’m really buoyed by their effort in guiding me.”

The News-Herald hopes that whoever is responsible for tracking the history of Laketran will catalog the ceremony hosted by the organization on July 29, 2021.

Because that event marked two major achievements by Laketran that deserve to be shared with future generations.

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Toledo Blade. Aug. 7, 2021.

Editorial: Saving a treasure

The Roche de Boeuf bridge is a spectacular sight, a treasure of history and engineering.

Built in 1908 to traverse the river for an interurban rail line, it remains one of the oldest and largest examples of an earth-filled Luten arch bridge.

The relic spans the Maumee at Waterville and Grand Rapids as the landmark terminus of the 8 mile towpath trail which follows along the remnants of Miami and Erie Canal. The rail links three Toledo Metroparks, Providence, Bend View, and Farnsworth.

The end of the trail presents a breathtaking vista which rewards travelers, whether they came on foot or on bicycle. It is not to be missed and once seen, cannot be forgotten. This beautiful land-scape calls for preservation, not destruction. Federal, state, and local officials should move to save the bridge now, not later.

The bridge is a ruin, but a ruin akin to ancient Roman aqueducts. The bridge and the aqueducts speak to something beyond the transitory — history, beauty, architecture.

The Ohio Department of Transportation slated the bridge for demolition unless a buyer came forward. The bridge gained a second chance when two buyers stepped forward last week after an initial purchaser could not complete the deal.

It is remarkable that U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) has joined the cause of saving the Roche de Boeuf bridge. It’s not in her district, but it is in her heart. In this case, Ms. Kaptur acts as a citizen of Ohio who cares about her state and its history.

Ms. Kaptur offers a reasonable plan for funding to shore up the bridge. The state, along with Lucas and Wood counties, could work to-gether and contribute $1 million in funds to save the bridge — the state could contribute the $2.2 million with which it plans to demolish the bridge.

ODOT was long negligent in keeping the bridge up and failed to stabilize the edifice. Their excuses for this decision?

It would cost too much. The failure to do their job now becomes the excuse to destroy. The logic of ODOT functionaries stands as a model of illogic.

The next excuse — the bridge no longer is used for transportation. That argument, if it can be granted the status of an argument, is irrelevant.

These dolts would tear down Stonehenge if they could.

The inability to see the bigger picture and abandonment of responsible caretaking is a given — look at the roundabouts they’ve constructed which stifle plans for a second runway at the Eugene F. Krantz airport.

The travails of the bridge resemble those of another relic set for destruction — the C&O Canal and its towpath. The plan in the 1950s was to pave them over and build an expressway. The 184.5 mile towpath, with locks, old bridges and other structures now is a National Historical Park. A citizen named Justice William O. Douglas publicized the plight of the canal. Citizens across the nation joined Douglas in the endeavor. The C&O now attracts millions of visitors each year.

Like the C&O, the bridge is a treasure.

Citizens should join citizen Kaptur to demand that this bridge, a gem of the Maumee Valley be saved.

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Sandusky Register. Aug. 5, 2021.

Editorial: Stop the stall, legalize marijuana in Ohio

He was just a boy of 15, addicted to marijuana. “Yes, I remember. Just a young boy... under the influence of drugs... who killed his entire family with an axe.”

That’s an over-the-top line from among many from the 1936 anti-marijuana propaganda film “Reefer Madness.”

Opponents of medical marijuana weren’t predicting mass murder would be the result if legislators approved legalizing it in Ohio. But there were dire warnings of dire results if it happened.

People would quit their jobs.

They would line up at dispensaries.

There would be a massive demand for medical marijuana.

Life as we knew it would cease to be.

But now, four-plus years later, none of that turned out to be true. Dispensaries aren’t overrun and there is no massive addiction to medical marijuana across Ohio communities.

Today there are now two separate efforts to legalize marijuana for recreational use in Ohio.

Last week two Democratic lawmakers in the Ohio House introduced a bill to legalize recreational marijuana. House Bill 382 would allow Ohioans to purchase and use marijuana and cultivate up to 12 plants.

The measure would levy a 10% excise tax on marijuana sales, with money going to public schools along with road and bridge construction. In addition, up to $20 million would be used for clinical trials to see if marijuana can be used to treat veterans and prevent veteran suicides.

Also last week, an initiative petition asking for enactment of a law “to regulate and control adult use of cannabis” with the signatures of 1,000 Ohio voters was submitted to the attorney general’s office. It’s the first step in a renewed citizens action to put the question on the ballot.

One supporter expressed confidence the Ohio General Assembly will approve recreation marijuana. Another one said it was “inevitable.”

We say get on with it. It’s time to move past the myths in “Reefer Madness.”

END

The Associated Press