Kevin Cronin, Ohio Attorney

Former Cleveland Judge and Cuyahoga Council President stepped down from her work for Judge4yourself.org, which hosts a series of interviews and recommendations from various Bar Associations for less well-known judge seats. She was accused of being partisan against Trump, with Republicans alleging she could not be balanced. Among Connally's comments were "any Black person who attends a Trump rally deserved to be “kicked in the a--." I can certainly think of worse things. Republican attorney John Mitchell, who co-chaired the group with Connally commented, “Our personal political views do not impact the work of the coalition ... Judge Connally was an important contributor to the coalition’s mission, and I never saw her express any bias towards any candidate, regardless of political party affiliation.” A lot of nothing, lawyers arguing, imagine that.

Make a day of it, visit us on Saturday, 12-4pm, at the Cozad Bates House and learn vital Ohio history, then enjoy restaurants and shops along Mayfield Rd. in Little Italy or any of the other great museums offered at University Circle. What a day!

Cozad-Bates Interpretive Center The Cozad-Bates House is the only pre-Civil War home remaining in University Circle. A new interpretive center will open in 2021 to highlight this area’s history as center of anti-slavery activism and honor those seeking freedom through indoor exhibits an

The relatively obscure area of law, known as "home rule," is the balance of the power of state legislature to enact laws under the Ohio Constitution and local government power to enact laws of local concern, also under the Ohio Constitution. The Ohio Senate voted Wednesday to override the Governor's veto. The override will prohibit local governments from enacting to***co policies stronger than those of the state and establishes that the state is the regulator, not cities. This pre-emption of local laws blocks Columbus’ local ordinance that prohibits the sale of flavored to***co within its borders. Off to Court to solve this one. Will Courts accept that cities and counties deserve stronger home rule authority to protect their residents? If Courts defer to the state, it seems like voting Judges out of office or an Ohio Constitutional amendment vote are the next steps.

A watch dog group reports that the two coal plants in Ohio and Indiana that continue to be subsidized by Ohio ratepayers under Ohio’s House Bill 6 were at one point losing between $150,000 to $175,000 a day, according to recently revealed emails from utility officials. (Checks and Balances Project)

During the holidays, it's easy to lose track of things, so I want to praise the local news for criticizing the state legislature for undermining local power and "Home Rule."(PD 12/29) "Home Rule" is the Ohio Constitution authority to enact laws given DIRECTLY to LOCAL government for issues that affect LOCAL government. Normally, laws are written by the state legislature and apply throughout the state, but for home rule cities and counties like ours, they are supposed to be able act to protect their residents ... EXCEPT it doesn't always work that way. City of Columbus wants to enact modest gun limits for safe streets - courts say no, that's the Legislature's job. Cleveland trying to limit flavored to***co sold to kids? Again, no. Local covid prevention measures? No, again. Ohio residents need to consider and enact a more powerful "home Rule" standard in the Ohio Constitution, to allow Cleveland, Columbus and other cities and counties the power to enact strong, local health and safety laws. Yes, Ohioans need to go back to the Constitution for additional reform. if the Legislature and Courts don't consider solutions, the state-wide ballot initiative is the only citizen option.

Home rule rights are the people’s rights. Lawmakers need to start honoring that: editorial When state legislators take office in Columbus, they swear to uphold, not undermine, the Ohio Constitution, one of whose pillars is city and village home rule. That means that the Senate, which may soon vote on Gov. DeWine's July veto of state pre-emption of local to***co sales regulation, should up...

This happy new year witnesses new laws in several states (but not Ohio), protecting public safety with reasonable and acceptable limitations on guns, which are not in conflict with the US Constitution:
*California implements prohibition on carrying guns in most public places, listing more than two dozen places like libraries and sports venues, following a federal appeals court ruling accepting the law.
*Minnesota becomes the nineteenth state (and DC) to enact “red flag” laws allowing law enforcement to ask courts for the temporary authority to remove a gun from a household when there is a family or credible third party report that the gun is a risk to the gun owner or others, while referring the individual to counseling. Next month, a red-flag law will take effect in Michigan ( #20), while also adding broader background checks and a safe gun storage law in homes where a child is present.
*Washington State expands its 10-day waiting period to purchases of any gun, not only semiautomatic weapons. Gun buyers will also have to show that they have passed a safety training program within the last five years, or provide proof of an exemption.
*Illinois bans high-powered semiautomatic rifles and high-capacity magazines.
*Colorado law goes into effect to prohibit “ghost guns,” those assembled from kits to bypass registration.
Reasonable restrictions are possible. Have a safe new year.

Shorr McNight home on Franklin featured by Cleveland Restoration Society. Deservedly so!

Ohio residents were whipsawed in the legislative redistricting efforts this year. the Commission came up with maps, the Governor says he didn't review them though he is on the Commission, the Ohio Supreme Court found them repeatedly deficient and violative of the Ohio Constitution that prohibits political motivations in the process, but the federal courts bailed out the legislative leaders by imposing a deadline for action (or inaction as it turned out) and the default maps, already rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court, were reinstated. What's worse is we will have to go through this all over again. Can we create a better process? Read my article, from the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Assoc. journal about how we can start (I can't link to a specific page, the article is page 18).

JulAug22_BarJournal

Thris the hit and run vehicle police are looking for after slavic village area collision on 7/21. Mororist severely injured two cyclists and killed a child. See below for more details, including potential reward.

Researchers released a new study (American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology), identifying that prior to the heartbeat bill taking effect in Ohio, 89% of pregnant people seeking an abortion had the procedure after six weeks. The study examined more than 1,100 abortion patients in Ohio from 2020 to 2021. While the majority of patients were able to determine they were pregnant before six weeks, about 25% discovered the pregnancy after. The study author said low income and less educated patients were more likely to learn of their pregnancies later than others and, as a result, terminated their pregnancies later. With lower access to health care in low-income minority communities, are Ohio abortion restrictions violations of US Constitution's 14th amendment right to equal protection under the law? Hmmm

Go to parks, raise curious and adventuresome kids for life skills. (my steady advice to families in Juvenile Court).

Rocks come in all shapes, sizes and colors! Come explore the Ledges area during our Jr. Ranger Junior program called Really Big Rocks to discover our rocks. July 15 from 9:30am - 11:30am. For ages 4 - 6.

Register on Eventbrite: http://ow.ly/aiWo50JRtUf

Photo Credit: NPS/Rosser

I've written a lot about the value of "red flags" laws, testifying twice in Columbus, but this time I"ll let some law enforcement critics who have experienced a change of heart do the talking.
Red flags critics change their views: Dolores County (Colorado) I've written a lot about "red flags" laws, twice testifying to the Ohio legislature, but this time I'll let some critics, who have had a change of heart, do the talking. Sheriff Don Wilson said red flags made it easy take a person’s guns away, when it passed in 2019. Dolores County and at least 36 other counties declared themselves “Second Amendment sanctuaries” after the red flag law was introduced. That changed when, in August 2020, a man threatening to kill his neighbors and himself pointed a semi-automatic rifle at a deputy. Wilson petitioned for and was granted an extreme risk protection order to remove the man’s weapons. “If a gentleman pulls a rifle on my deputy and then comes and threatens to shoot up my courthouse and kill me, kill the judges, and kill the district attorney,” Wilson said, “I’ve got a problem with that person having a gun.”

Petitions for protection orders have been filed in 20 of the 37 sanctuary counties, often by the very sheriffs who had previously denounced the law. In the first year of the Colorado red flag law, 85% of protection orders granted by judges had been filed by law enforcement.

Weld County (CO) Sheriff Steve Reams has been one of the more vocal critics of the law, saying he’d rather go to jail than enforce it. Nonetheless, 12 petitions were filed in Weld County, including two by municipal police departments.

Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock, one of the most outspoken proponents of the Colorado law, said his office filed four protective orders in the first year of the law. “Most of the time when we have people who have extreme mental health crises, unfortunately, there’s an outcome of either su***de or homicide,” he said. “The four cases that we’ve done, all four of those individuals are alive today and are productive members of our society and are working toward a healthier life.”

Let's go Ohio, pass a strong Red Flags law now!
https://khn.org/news/article/red-flag-law-colorado-sheriffs/?fbclid=IwAR2kpiBUWKXW0zmain-bxHIBHkdk8JOmE1CX2wwvI1zdUDbiMmS0GdqzhTg

Sheriffs Who Denounced Colorado’s Red Flag Law Are Now Using It Petitions for protective orders under Colorado’s red flag law have been filed in more than half the counties that opposed it and declared themselves “Second Amendment sanctuaries.”

While many (myself included) are livid over the Roe overrule, I am writing about the other devastating Supreme Court decision, on guns, deciding that NY was excessive in limiting guns openly carried outside of the home, that the Constitution protects the right to carry anywhere for self-protection. The S Ct decision was a resounding conservative reaffirmation that the Constitution's 2nd amendment establishes broad rights for individuals to carry guns. Does that mean other gun laws, like a red flags law, go too far as well? I would argue no.

While six Supreme Court votes threw out the NY law, two (Roberts and Kavanaugh) said objective criteria are presumed to be Constitutional and valid (“fingerprinting, a background check, a mental health records check, and training in fi****ms handling and in laws regarding the use of force," Kavanaugh quoting an earlier S Ct decision). Red Flags laws rely on testimony of individuals (family members, teachers, employers, social workers) to show an individual is a risk to self or others and has access to a gun, what's "objective" about that?

Under red flags laws, a gun can be removed temporarily if a person testifies that an individual poses risk to self or others, and has access to a gun. That removal, temporarily (usually 10 days), is challenged at a full hearing in which the individual can hire a lawyer, bring evidence and witnesses. A judge makes the decision to temporarily remove a gun (perhaps 6 months, renewable to 1 year) and refer the individual for social services. There's your objective criteria and presumed validity. The judge is the decider, not someone's sworn statement.

So let's have it Ohio Legislature and Governor - let's pass a real red flags law, with a temporary order reviewed and ratified by a judge at a contested hearing, and separate guns from troubled individuals and focus on public safety and help for those in need.

I make no apologies for being a progressive Dem/budget wonk, who worked for a decade in DC on budget issues and actually wrote some budget laws. I love public participation, but this "participatory budgeting" is just a nice buzzword, hopefully generating public interest in policy debate, but errs in encouraging people and organizations to think in terms of simple solutions, when public policy is terribly complex. It’s a nice headline-grabber, but in the end, is nothing more than a press release or letter to a member of Congress or City Council. See my op-ed in cleveland dot com below. https://www.cleveland.com/opinion/2022/06/participatory-budgeting-is-a-simplistic-anti-democratic-way-to-make-spending-decisions-kevin-cronin.html

‘Participatory budgeting’ is a simplistic, anti-democratic way to make spending decisions: Kevin Cronin I support public involvement in policy discussion and education about what policy development and implementation requires. I oppose overselling, hype and the suggestion of simple solutions. The current trajectory for participatory budgeting, as I see and hear it, is heading for a crash, writes Kevin...

The Supreme Court is expected to make a decision next week whether to hear a case that will really mark how right wing this Court may go, evaluating a North Carolina case seeking interpretation of the US Constitution’s “elections clause” and how powerful state legislatures should be regarding federal elections.

The Constitution’s Elections Clause says: “The times, places and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof.” North Carolina is the asserting that means the NC legislature is all powerful, not subject to the state courts or state executive branch. Imagine the Ohio Legislature running the election map drawing, without even the threat of court action. The “independent state legislature doctrine” would give state legislatures independent power, not subject to review by state courts, to set election rules and draw congressional maps.

The North Carolina Supreme Court disagreed, firmly rejecting the argument that it was not entitled to review the actions of the state legislature, saying that would be “repugnant to the sovereignty of states, the authority of state constitutions and the independence of state courts, and would produce absurd and dangerous consequences.”

Even so, NC apparently has three votes (Justices Alito, Thomas and Gorsuch), while another (Kavanaugh) added that the issue was important and four votes determine whether they will hear the case. If they grant review, will the issue get to 5 or more? The consequences could be huge: 1) A state Legislature would be unlimited by state courts or the executive branch; and 2) If a state court interpretation took action that might be considering advantaging a group (for instance, voting or civil rights laws), could the federal courts step in and say no, beyond “elections clause” scope? We will learn soon.

In Uvalde, one of the parents was arrested and charged with interfering in an active investigation. An interesting defense would be the prosecutor can't prove that. It wasn't active, it was an inactive investigation, that was the parent's whole point.

The US Food and Drug Administration today announced a plan to ban sales of menthol-flavored ci******es in the United States, described as the government’s most meaningful action in more than a decade of to***co control efforts. The proposal will likely have the deepest impact on Black smokers, as nearly 85% of Black smokers use menthol ci******es. If effective in reducing smoking, the ban could significantly diminish the burden of chronic disease and limit the number of lives cut short by one of the most hazardous legal products available. African American men have the highest rates of lung cancer in America, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Banning menthol ci******es is also expected to reduce the number of young smokers taking up the habit. If the United States’ experience mirrors that of Canada after it banned menthol ci******es, 1.3 million people would quit smoking and potentially hundreds of thousands of premature deaths could be averted, according to the principal investigator of the International To***co Control Policy Evaluation Project.

Sports and global politics clash with Wimbledon announcing it will not accept application to play from players from Russia and Belarus. Media focuses on men's world #2 Daniil Medvedev of Russia and world #4 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, but it goes further, Russia has five women in the top 40 of the WTA Tour rankings, led by No. 15 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Victoria Azarenka, Daria Kazatskina, Veronika Kudermetova, Liudmila Samsonova, Ekaterina Alexandrova). In addition to Medvedev, three other Russian men are in the top 30 and will be prohibited (Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Aslan Karatsev, Karen Khachanov). While draws are not set, up to thirty Russian and Belarus athletes will be denied tournament entry.

The Wimbledon decision triggers an important debate, does punishing an individual athletes by depriving them opportunity to play further a national goal or just punish athletes, many who have criticized the invasion?

I think all are sympathetic to the athlete who loses out on an opportunity. Most Russian tennis players are critical of the invasion. Andrey Rublev wrote "no war please" on a camera lens after winning a tournament and proceeded to win the Marseilles doubles tournament with Ukrainian Denys Molchanov. Many Russian players live abroad now so it's not a financial issue.

However, the people of Russia are not disassociated from the Russian state. Russia is unit representing the public, including the athletes playing under the collective Russian name and flag. The ban is about denying a potential moment of pride for Russian government AND public. Medvedev is #2 and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus is #4. With the ban, the Russian, Belarus and world public learn a reason why they are not competing and potentially winning. Is it harshness for athletes? Yes, they are caught up in the messaging of war and consequences, but, yes, ban them.

Back to the drawing Board. Earlier today, the OH Supreme Court rejected, for the 4th time, state House and Senate maps drawn by Republicans, by the same 4-3 margin. Problems remain, even as early voting starts for statewide and countywide offices. The Sec of State says OH needs legislative maps by Wednesday, 4/20, to conduct an 8/2 primary. If the Redistricting Commission can't come up with a solution, a decision could rest with a panel of three federal judges. The court asked for new maps by May 6. (Columbus Dispatch, 4 14 22)

Here is a good video on safe road design. One of the lessons needs noting in Cleveland - an intersection and crosswalk are not defined by paint on the road. Is it an intersection? Does it have ADA curb cuts? If so, there is a crosswalk. Why cut ADA ramps if you didn't walk people to cross there? Motorists need to take particular care around schools. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii4fXlCNh8k

Why safety and vehicle speed are incompatible goals for street design Nearly all transportation agencies will tell you that safety is their absolute top priority, but if you look more closely, you’ll discover that—in practice—i...

Here in Ohio, we look to the Intel investment as good news, it is.
However, tech industry investment remains an issue of coastal dominance. The renowned Brookings Institution reports that overall, tech’s eight superstar cities (San Francisco; San Jose.; Austin; Boston; Seattle; LA; NY; and D.C.) accounted for half of the nation’s technology sector job creation during the pandemic’s first year. What’s more, these "superstar cities" slightly increased their share of the tech sector’s total nationwide employment in 2020, even as hopes rose for greater dispersion of tech work due to work at home covid response. Overall, tech fundamentally remains a “winner-take-most” employment sector even amid widespread disruption, including the national remote-work explosion. NE Ohio needs some new aggressive strategies to help remedy these pressures.

So what do we do? In 2021, Brookings proposed a federal plan to choose 8-10 non-coastal cities and target them with long-term, R&D money linked to federal labs, universities and federal research priorities. That still remains a good idea and one the non-coastals should be insisting on.

In Akron, fatal collision between impaired driver and cyclist. Local police - “This is such a preventable tragedy” Thanks for noting Paul Lopez

OSHP: Alcohol a factor in crash killing bicyclist SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WJW) — The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating a car crash that claimed the life of a 55-year-old Akron man riding a bike. It happened on Friday at around 8…

The Justice Department unsealed charges on Thursday accusing four Russian officials of carrying out a series of cyberattacks targeting critical infrastructure in the United States, including a nuclear power plant in Kansas, and evidently compromising a petrochemical facility in Saudi Arabia. The announcement covered hackings from 2012 to 2018, but served as yet another warning from of Russia’s ability and willingness to conduct such operations.

“Although the criminal charges unsealed today reflect past activity, they make crystal clear the urgent ongoing need for American businesses to harden their defenses and remain vigilant,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said in a statement. “Russian state-sponsored hackers pose a serious and persistent threat to critical infrastructure both in the United States and around the world.”

The four officials, including three members of Russia’s domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., are accused of breaching hundreds of energy companies around the world. The indictments essentially confirm what cyberresearchers have said for years, that Russia was to blame for the intrusions. None of the Russian officials accused of the attacks have been apprehended. In his warning to private companies on Monday, Mr. Biden urged them to strengthen their defenses. National security experts have said that companies should report any unusual activity to the F.B.I. and other agencies that can respond to potential breaches. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/24/us/politics/russians-cyberattacks-infrastructure-nuclear-plant.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20220325&instance_id=56674&nl=the-morning®i_id=7082579&segment_id=86512&te=1&user_id=3121d482260426b91897f62da0c4119d

U.S. Accuses 4 Russians of Hacking Infrastructure, Including Nuclear Plant The announcement covered hackings from 2012 to 2018, but served as yet another warning from the Biden administration of Russia’s ability to conduct such operations.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission took big steps to address the urgency of climate change issuing a proposed rule on 3/21 to require public companies to: 1) report greenhouse gas emissions; 2) inform investors on the dangers and risks that climate change poses to their businesses. The proposed rule is entering a public comment period. When finalized, the rule would require publicly traded companies to report on the risks they face from extreme weather. In 2021, weather-related disasters caused $145 billion in damage, according to NOAA, and that figure is projected to climb as climate change triggers more severe events. Here's more from the SEC: https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/lee-climate-change-disclosures

SEC.gov | Public Input Welcomed on Climate Change Disclosures Public Input Welcomed on Climate Change Disclosures Acting Chair Allison Herren Lee March 15, 2021

We need to tighten regulations on these larger trucks that are marketed heavily for personal use. They claim safety, but they shift safety risks to all other road users. Imagine this behemoth pulling up to a crosswalk near or near a school. How does the motorist know they can proceed safely?

Monday’s Headlines Can’t See You Up Here You could pack 578 preschoolers into the blind spots of an F-150 (Streetsblog USA), but don’t expect the trend toward bigger, taller and deadlier vehicles to reverse anytime soon, because aut…

Some new data on safe driving: Utah dropped BAC limits to .5 in 2016, amid criticism it would criminalize fun, not improve safety and kill tourism. The data's in and fatal crash rate in Utah fell 19.8% (2016 to 2019). For the rest of the country, it went down 5.6%, according to National Highway Traffic and Safety Admin. Among neighboring states, Seace Colonrado’s rate of fatal crashes fell 3.8%, Nevada’s dropped 9.7% and Arizona’s rate rose 3.1%. UT reported the average alcohol concentration for a DUI arrest was .165, more than three times the legal limit, not those at the .05% range. As for the idea of killing fun, the NHTSA study found alcohol sales and per capita consumption continued to increase after the law, as did sales tax revenue from restaurants, hotels and resorts and the number of flights to Salt Lake City also rose. Sure, the alcohol industry protests, but safety first. A near 20% decline in traffic fatalities is worth noting. Even one death on the road is one too many, For information on vision zero efforts in Cleveland, visit www.bikecleveland.org and follow Cleveland's efforts to make streets safer for all, visit: https://www.visionzerocle.org/

Vision Zero Cleveland An ArcGIS Hub site used by the Vision Zero initiative to communicate strategies to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries to road users in Cleveland.

Apple released a new version of air tags and says they have cooperated with police to rein in illegal use. They still don't go far enough. Air tags are devices placed in inconspicuous places to follow the movement of the device (or person) attached to the tag. While Apple talks about innocent uses (tracking down lost keys) these tags are tremendous stalking tools, capable of use by former spouse/boyfriend, and are a significant safety and security threat. The tags are small, no bigger than a quarter, and could easily be missed if thrown under a car seat or floor mat. Apple appears too powerful to block these products from the market, but if they are released to the public, the tag should at least be identifiable by equally powerful and available scanning software. What's more, Apple air tag changes don't help android phone users. If a spouse can place an air tag on a former spouse's car, the spouse at least deserves the protection of the software to detect it.

I've created a FB page for my legal work, where you'll see postings linked to equity, the environment, cycling/street safety, children's safety, education and health and the like. Please continue to reach out to me here or at the office if you think, I can be helpful. I'll continue the personal page for purposes of politics at the local, state and federal levels, tennis news, cycling events or other activities (and occasional baby orangutans). Thanks for the support!

Kevin Cronin, Ohio Attorney updated their phone number.