Compiled from staff and wire reports

Hamilton man's appeal denied

MIDDLETOWN - A Hamilton man's appeal in a controversial case of "shaken baby syndrome" has been denied.

The Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld the conviction of James Neil Howard.

Howard, now 30, began serving a seven-year sentence after a jury in November 2001 convicted him of a felony child-endangering charge, saying they believed evidence showed he had violently shaken his child on April 4, 2000. The jury, however, acquitted Howard of a second charge arising from the child's life-threatening breathing problems three days earlier.

Howard claimed that his infant son's head and eye injuries could have resulted from medical conditions - including a difficult birth after failed forceps and vacuum-extraction attempts. He said doctors and other investigators failed to seriously consider those possibilities before assuming abuse was the cause, and that the syndrome has been a subject of debate in the medical community.

Ind. man killed after being tossed from SUV

GREEN TWP. - An Indiana man was killed when the sport utility vehicle he was riding in ran off the highway and rolled over him early Wednesday.

The driver lost control about 1 a.m. on Interstate 74 one-half mile west of the Race Road overpass. The SUV hit several trees, throwing passenger Mark E. Orschell from the vehicle, Hamilton County sheriff's officers said. Orschell, 21, of West Harrison, died at the scene, when the SUV rolled over him, officers said.

The driver, Matthew J. Schemer, 21, of Lawrenceburg, was treated at University Hospital and released, sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett said. The accident was under investigation. No charges were filed Wednesday.

The two were not wearing seat belts, sheriff's officers said.

Pair facing drug charges for meth lab

BETHEL - Two men are facing drug charges after Clermont County's Drug Unit broe up a suspected methamphetamine lab here.

John A. Matthew Jr., 29, of New Richmond, and David A. Bain, 41, of Bethel are charged with felony illegal manufacture of drugs.

If convicted, each could be sentenced to a maximum of eight years in prison.

The drug unit, composed of police officers from the Clermont County Sheriff's Department and Miami and Union townships, executed a search warrant Tuesday in the 2000 block of Justin Lane, Bethel. The arrests were a culmination of an undercover investigation, Clermont County Sheriff A.J. "Tim" Rodenberg Jr. said.

Investigators recovered stolen anhydrous ammonia, in addition to "finished methamphetamine, glassware, filters, hydrochloric gas generators, and drug paraphernalia associated with the abuse and distribution of methamphetamines," officials said. Both men are in the Clermont County Jail.

Monroe to seek $750K in cuts to cover deficit

MONROE - Members of City Council's Finance Committee will recommend a series of budget cuts next month totaling about $750,000 as a way for this city to cover its first budget deficit.

Monroe, a city since 1995, is facing a shortfall largely because of the sluggish economy and rapid population growth.

Trustee recovering from heart surgery

HAMILTON TWP. - Longtime Trustee Clyde Baston was recovering Wednesday after heart surgery, and is expected to be off the job for about eight weeks, township officials said.

Baston, a trustee since 1982, underwent surgery Tuesday at Mercy Hospital Fairfield to replace an aortal valve. Doctors discovered the heart problem this month after Baston suffered a fainting spell, township administrative assistant Sandy Burger said.

75-year-old killed in 2-vehicle accident

ST. CLAIR TWP. - A 75-year-old man died Tuesday in a two-vehicle wreck at the intersection of Riverside Drive and John Street.

Stanley Allen was driving a 1985 Ford Ranger pickup at 7:31 p.m. on John Street. The Butler County Sheriff's Department said Allen turned left into the path of a 1994 Plymouth Sundance operated by Lindsey Lakes, 18, of Overpeck.

Allen was taken by helicopter to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton where he was pronounced dead.

Lakes was treated at Middletown Regional Hospital and released.

A passenger was not hurt.