Kidnapping case will stay in juvenile court

        HAMILTON — The case of a Fairfield teen accused of running off with her cousin's 6-week-old baby for more than 30 hours in September will remain in Butler County Juvenile Court.

        The 15-year-old teen is charged with felony counts of auto theft, burglary and kidnapping. She is also facing interfering with custody, theft and child endangering charges, all misdemeanors.

        In a brief hearing Friday, Butler County Juvenile Court Judge David Niehaus ruled that the teen could be better served by the juvenile system. He set a pretrial hearing for Nov. 26.

        The teen is accused of running off with the baby after the mother gave her the child. The teen had said she was taking the infant to Fairfield High School for a school project, but never showed up at school.

| ZOOM | MORNING HOUSE FIRE: Kishia Brown (top) seeks to comfort her mother, Joy Brown, after the two escaped a house fire at 1613 Russell St. in Covington. No one was injured in the fire that broke out about 7 a.m. Friday. Below, a firefighter works from an upstairs window at the house. (Patrick Reddy photo)

| ZOOM |

        That prompted a massive hunt for the teen and the baby. The pair was found in Woodlawn more than a day later. The infant girl was unhurt.

Roach wants criminal record expunged

        Cincinnati Police Officer Stephen Roach wants his criminal record expunged.

        He'll return to court Monday to ask a judge to officially remove the accusations of negligent homicide and obstructing official business from his record.

        The hearing will take place before Municipal Judge Ralph E. “Ted” Winkler, who acquitted Officer Roach Sept. 26.

        Officer Roach stood trial in the April 7 shooting death of Timothy Thomas. The two men met in a darkened alley. Mr. Thomas, who was not armed, was fleeing police to avoid arrest on warrants for traffic violations.

        According to court testimony, the officer told officials he was startled by the unarmed man and his gun went off. Mr. Thomas' death sparked days of civil unrest and riots in Cincinnati.

        The hearing will take place at 10:30 a.m.
       

Morgue photograph civil suit dismissed

        The class-action civil suit against Dr. Jonathan Tobias and Thomas Condon, both of whom were convicted last month on multiple counts of abuse of a corpse, has been dismissed.

        Attorneys for family members of the deceased who were pictured in photographs taken by Mr. Condon intend to refile their civil suits in federal court.

        On Oct. 16, a jury convicted Mr. Condon, a commercial photographer, and Dr. Tobias, a former pathology fellow at the Hamilton County Coroner's Office. Mr. Condon was found guilty of eight counts of gross abuse of a corpse. Dr. Tobias was convicted of two counts of gross abuse of a corpse.

        Prosecutors said Mr. Condon took unauthorized photos of corpses posed with inanimate objects. Dr. Tobias was accused of helping him.

        The two men are scheduled for sentencing Dec. 13.

UC law class has top statewide pass rates

       Graduates of the University of Cincinnati College of Law posted top statewide pass rates in the mid-year bar exam, Dean Joseph Tomain said Friday.

        Among first-time test takers, UC's rate was 91 percent. Including repeaters, UC's rate was 90 percent.

        Statewide averages were 83 percent for first-timers and 76.2 percent overall for the nine Ohio law schools.

        This is the ninth consecutive year UC has topped Ohio schools in this exam, Mr. Tomain said.

Parrish Avenue project complete

        NORTH COLLEGE HILL — Road improvements on Parrish Avenue between Emerson Avenue and Galbraith Road are now complete. The $611,000 project installed new curbs and added catch basins, storm sewers and water mains to nearly a half-mile stretch of road.

        The city funded about $120,000 of the project, with the remaining costs paid by state grants and the Cincinnati Water Works, said Jerry Thamann, the city's safety service director.
Anderson group deals with parenting issues

       ANDERSON TOWNSHIP — Organizers call it “Hometown Help for Parents.”

        A new support group has formed to help parents of teen-agers facing serious mental health and substance abuse issues tap into advice from professionals and experienced parents.

        The group's first project is a series of monthly seminars on teen issues scheduled through April. Topics include anxiety disorders (Nov. 27), obsessive-compulsive disorder (Dec. 11), peer pressure (Jan. 15), substance abuse (Feb. 19), suicide and violence (March 19) and eating disorders (April 17).

        Meetings will be at 7 p.m. at Beech Acres, 6881 Beechmont Ave. For information, call co-founders Marianne Solzsmon, 531-9794, or Becky Kopp, 474-7100.

Cincinnati State offering child care

        Cincinnati State & Technical College is extending its child care to help low-income parents attend the Clifton school.

        Spokesman Bruce Stoecklin said its first $28,302 federal grant will provide in-home child care for 15 children by graduates of the college's child care course.

        Cincinnati State provides on-campus care in a center staffed under contract with the Salvation Army. It enrolls 12 infants, 15 toddlers and 35 preschoolers. The waiting list is more than 100 children.

        Mr. Stoecklin said the Salvation Army will choose a person to oversee the home care. Youngsters will be chosen from the waiting list.

        Mr. Stoecklin said the federal at-home care grants will continue for at least five years.
       

Driver dies after crash into building

        A 45-year-old Westwood man was killed Friday when he lost control of his sport utility vehicle and crashed into the front of an apartment building on Central Parkway near downtown.

        Cincinnati Police Officer Paul Grein said the man, whose name was withheld pending notification of next of kin, apparently suffered a seizure while traveling north about 5:30 p.m. The vehicle veered off the right side of the road and into an apartment building at 1702 Central Parkway.

        The driver was trapped for about 20 minutes before rescue crews were able to cut him free. He was taken to University Hospital, where he later died from a ruptured aorta caused by blunt trauma to the chest, Officer Grein said.

        Police reported no other injuries from the accident. The Red Cross responded to help families possibly displaced at the apartment complex.
       

Cleveland project will help sewage woes

        CLEVELAND — A regional agency plans a $519 million project to build 40 miles of tunnels and sewers to reduce raw sewage going into Lake Erie.

        The project announced Thursday will alleviate problems caused by heavy rains overwhelming sewer lines before the sewage can flow to a treatment plant.

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