Heroin from raid said worth $120K

        A heroin bust this week by undercover Cincinnati officers left them concerned about the increasing flow of the drug into the city.

        Members of the police department's Street Corner Unit found 5.5 ounces of heroin Monday at a Daly Road home in College Hill. They think the two people arrested there were delivering the drug to Over-the-Rhine, said Capt. Vince Demasi, commander of the Criminal Investigations Section.

        The drug has a street value of $120,000, Capt. Demasi said: “That's an intermediate-level dealer.”

        The bust is more proof that heroin is increasingly popular, he said. This stash is believed to have come from South America.

        Investigators also found 81 Oxycontin pills, two loaded guns, more than $4,700, five digital scales and a Cincinnati police radio. Officers are still trying to figure out how the radio ended up there, Capt. Demasi said.

        Arrested were Tosha Sprawl, 33, charged with felony drug possession and drug trafficking; and Arnold Thompson, 38, charged with illegally having weapons after a previous drug conviction. Mr. Thompson also was wanted on two outstanding warrants.

Officer who rescued children is honored

        COLUMBUS — A Lebanon police officer was recognized as a hero Wednesday for rescuing two unconscious toddlers from a house fire last November.

        Detective Don McKinney received the Attorney General's 2002 Distinguished Law Enforcement Valor Award honorable mention for crawling through dense smoke to pull 3-year-old Mario Lara and 2-year-old Aracely Lara from their burning apartment on East Silver Street.

        The award was presented at a luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

        “Detective McKinney's quick thinking and uncommon bravery saved the lives of two young children,” Attorney General Betty Montgomery said.

        The Lara children had been left home alone while their parents were working. They suffered smoke inhalation as a result of the electrical fire and were released a day later from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

        Their father, Refugio Martinez Lara, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor child endangering charges and returned with the family to Mexico in February.

Mason clerk now on unpaid leave

        MASON — The city's clerk of courts was stripped of his pay this week as his drunken driving case continued through the court system.

        Neal Huffman, 29, initially was placed on paid administrative leave after Mason police arrested him Sept. 21 on charges of drunken driving and operating his Jeep without headlights.

        He refused a breath alcohol test, but police said Mr. Huffman failed field sobriety tests when he was pulled over at 1:21 a.m. on U.S. 42.

        A court official said that Mr. Huffman was placed on an unpaid suspension after a pretrial hearing on Tuesday.

        Mr. Huffman is scheduled to plead in a hearing Oct. 22 before a visiting judge.

Robbery suspect among 63 indicted

        HAMILTON — A Butler County grand jury on Wednesday released 63 indictments, including one against a man who was subdued by two would-be victims.

        Curtis A. Berry, 23, no address available, was indicted on charges of aggravated robbery and aggravated theft in connection with an Aug. 11 incident in the 1200 block of Edison Avenue, Hamilton.

        A police report says two men were held at gunpoint and ordered to relinquish their money and wallets. But the men overcame their attacker and held him until police arrived.

        Also among the indictments: Carol J. Huston, 31, of the Oxford area, charged with obstructing justice. She is accused of disclosing the identity of an undercover Butler County sheriff's officer to a potential drug defendant on Aug. 6, officials said.

Visitors welcome at fire stations

        HAMILTON — The city fire department will hold two open houses in conjunction with National Fire Prevention Week.

        The events are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and again on Oct. 12, with free hot dogs, chips and drinks offered from noon to 1 p.m. both days.

        The city's fire stations, all of which are participating, are:

        Station 1: 220 N. Brookwood Ave.
        Station 2: 77 Pershing Ave.
        Station 4: 605 Main St.
        Station 5: 335 N. Erie Highway.
        Station 6: 651 Laurel Ave.
        Station 7: 1224 Shuler Ave.

Ex-county deputy convicted for crash

        LONDON, Ohio — A former Hamilton County sheriff's deputy has been convicted of causing an accident that killed one inmate and injured 11 as he drove them to the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville.

        Timothy L. Moss, 38, pleaded no contest Monday to a charge of vehicular manslaughter and will be sentenced Nov. 26 in Madison County Municipal Court, a court clerk said Wednesday.

        Mr. Moss faces up to 90 days in jail and a $750 fine. He is free on bond.

        Mr. Moss, then a deputy, was transporting the prisoners in a van on Oct. 26, 2000, when he ran a red light in dense fog on Ohio 38. The van was struck by a lawn-care service truck, and the impact crushed the side, trapping the shackled inmates inside until firefighters freed them.

        Lois Hamilton, 56, of Norwood, died in March from head injuries she suffered in the crash.

Prison employees plan to picket

        TURTLECREEK TWP. — Employees at two state prisons here will picket today to protest alleged unsafe conditions and threats of benefit cuts.

        The protest, to be held at the entrance to the Warren Correctional Institution(WCI) on Ohio 63, comes after complaints by the Ohio Civil Service Employees Association that staff cutbacks, crowding and a recent rash of violent incidents jeopardized safety.

        Union officials cited several incidents, including a July 11 lock-down at Lebanon Correctional Institution (LCI) in which three corrections officers were injured when a “near riot” involving 200 inmates erupted in the dining hall.

        According to a prison incident report, a response team from WCI was placed on standby outside LCI while guards inside took control of the situation.

        The union, which represents 10,000 state prison workers, has urged legislators to rethink millions in budget cuts that recently caused the elimination of 56 correction officer jobs and shut down 660 beds. WCI lost 24 jobs and 128 beds in the cutbacks.

Drug firms' gifts to docs draw scrutiny
Issue 1 faces trouble on ballot
Buyers OK price of ATP site
County adds 250 acres for parks
Heart attack survivors say Huggins has long road back
New organ donor list benefits 3
Parents hope to help police find killers of young people
Tristate A.M. Report
HOWARD: Some Good News
PULFER: Ruth's greeting
RADEL: Bengals
Butler Co. lawyer suspended
Clermont commission on the road
Farmers get public seats on panel
Middfest 20 years of togetherness
Principal gets reprimand for handling of complaints
Wanted man held after wrecking victim's car
Co-worker: Suspect speculated about victim
Crash in suburb kills pilot
Man arrested year and half after officer's hit-skip death
Men get 10 years in bar death
Kentucky News Briefs
Patton office looking for 'tipster'
Ruby proposes firefighters memorial in N. Kentucky
UK gets $22M grant for math, science