More stories of U.S. anti-terror laws unfairly affecting those who have no connection to terrorists.

For months, Somalis living in Columbus have complained that it has become increasingly difficult to send money home to family members because of banking-industry fears that the funds could end up with terrorists.

Huntington, JPMorgan Chase and Charter One are among the banks that have closed accounts set up by remittance companies, said Omar Tarazi, a local lawyer who has worked with the Somali American Chamber of Commerce and several remittance companies.

Somali leaders said remittances that refugees send home are a lifeline to families and friends struggling in the war-torn African nation. It has few banks, so remittance companies are crucial to sending money home.

The leaders say banks fear being held liable if authorities discover that the money is funding extremists. The Patriot Act requires due diligence of banks in making sure that funds are tracked.

More information has come to light about the state’s attempts to alter its execution procedures and use medical professionals to advise how to best administer the drug’s properly to kill the person.

Finding medical professionals willing to advise Ohio on the best way to put condemned inmates to death is proving difficult because of ethical and professional rules, the state’s top attorney said.

The rules — which generally prohibit doctors, nurses and others from involvement in capital punishment — are deterring those professionals from speaking publicly or privately about alternatives to the state’s lethal injection process, Attorney General Richard Cordray said.

“A small number of promising leads have emerged, but identifying qualified medical personnel willing and able to provide advice to the State regarding lethal injection options continues to be challenging and time-consuming,” Cordray said in the Friday filing in U.S. District Court.

Executions are on hold in Ohio while the state develops new injection policies following a Sept. 15 execution that was stopped because the inmate had no usable veins.

The state has reached out to judges, police and lawmakers for help trying to find medical professionals willing to talk to the state, according to the filing written on Cordray’s behalf by Charles Wille, head of Cordray’s death penalty unit.

Disturbing news from Stow, where officials are censoring the high school’s newspaper from reporting on the recent suicide of a classmate.

The principal of Stow-Munroe Falls High School is censoring the student newspaper to prevent the publication of an obituary and photograph of a recent student suicide victim, going against the school’s traditional practice.

It has been the school’s policy for decades to run an obituary or article and photograph of a student or faculty member who passes away. In addition to both elements, Editor-in-Chief Lindsey Sager said the suicide victim’s mother also wrote a letter to be published in the paper thanking her son’s friends, and assuring students that if they needed anything, the family would be there.

Originally Principal Susan Schure was OK with all three elements being included in The Stowhion. Then a few days before they were to go to press, Schure insisted the obituary and photograph be removed from the paper.

Schure did not wish to be quoted for the press. She felt while students may still be vulnerable, publishing the parents’ letter was an effective way to show support for the student and his family.

And in other positive news on the medical marijuana front, legislators are drafting a bill that would allow Ohioans to use marijuana for medical purposes.

The federal government’s recent decision to ease up on prosecuting patients using medical marijuana has brought hope to activists in Ohio seeking a medical marijuana law.

But getting lawmakers here to approve therapeutic marijuana use promises to be an uphill battle.

State Rep. Kenny Yuko, a Richmond Heights Democrat, is drafting legislation with groups that want Ohio to become the 15th state to allow those who are seriously ill to use medical marijuana. While working on getting backers to unite behind a single approach, Yuko was heartened by the recent decision by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to redirect investigations away from patients in states that allow medical marijuana.

“It’s definitely good news for people who care about this issue,” said Yuko, who has multiple sclerosis but is not seeking to use medical marijuana. “I hope this gives us an opportunity to get due consideration in the House and Senate.”

But Yuko acknowledges that it’s “not going to be an easy sell” to get a medical marijuana measure through the legislature, especially with the vehement opposition of prosecutors and police groups.

The Lima News praises President Obama’s recent announcement that the federal government will not prosecute people who live in states that allow medical marijuana use.

After almost a year in office, the Obama administration made a decision this week.

The Justice Department on Monday issued a memo to federal prosecutors in 13 medical marijuana states —Michigan among them — telling them to stop enforcing federal marijuana laws against medical marijuana patients. This should result in an end to the mean-spirited and bizarre federal attacks on people treating conditions such as glaucoma and chronic pain with a natural drug that’s far less harmful than an array of hard drugs the pharmaceutical giants push like candy.

The next logical step is to eliminate marijuana from the list of drugs no doctor can legally prescribe — a step arguably called for by the Controlled Substances Act itself — and allow doctors nationwide to prescribe cannabis for patients who can benefit from it. In Ohio, state lawmakers should grant patients the same access to a treatment for painful conditions as they could find as close as Michigan.

Very encouraging news from Summit County on proactive measures they have taken to reduce their prison population and break the cycle of incarceration in their community.

When Summit County opened its new jail nearly 20 years ago, there was an immediate problem: overcrowding.

Within five years, an addition was built.

Even then, the gym had to be filled with cots and converted into a makeshift cell to house an increasing number of inmates.

A facility designed to handle 670 saw its population balloon to near 800 sometimes.

Tensions ran high. Supplies ran out. Confrontations were frequent. Political and public criticism over the dangerous housing and working conditions was heavy.

The PD once again points out some of the fundamental flaws in our broken death penalty system.

It has been 27 years since neo-Nazi Frank Spisak Jr. terrorized Cleveland State University by fatally shooting three men over a seven-month period. A year later, Spisak was convicted of the murders and sentenced to die.

Last Tuesday, Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court to argue in the latest appeal arising from Spisak’s case and the second to reach the nation’s highest court. At issue: Whether the late attorney Thomas Shaughnessy put on a sufficient defense during the sentencing phase of Spisak’s trial to permit his execution.

The mere fact that Spisak is alive and litigating is a reminder of how seriously our judicial system treats capital cases. Before anyone is put to death, he or she is given multiple chances to test the finding of guilt and to present mitigating evidence. Even vehement supporters of capital punishment probably would not want an execution tainted by doubt to proceed.

The Ohio BMV sent letters out to tens of thousands of Ohioans asking for proof that they can legally own a car. Several immigrant rights advocates contend that this may be a case of racial profiling.

Members of Central Ohio’s Hispanic community say they are the victim of racial profiling by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The BMV sent out 47,457 letters last week to vehicle owners that do no have Social Security numbers, drivers license numbers or state identification numbers attached to their vehicle registrations.

Owners receiving the letter were told they have 60 days to produce identification or their registration will be canceled. The letter follows a change in policy that closed a legal loophole allowing undocumented immigrants without insurance or a drivers license to register a vehicle using the power of attorney process.

Stripped of their valid vehicle registration, undocumented workers could be pulled over, arrested and deported back to their home country if caught driving unregistered vehicles.

“This is nothing else but racial profiling,“ said a Columbus resident who received one of the letters this week and wished to remain anonymous. The man stated he is an American citizen and an Ohio resident for 26 years. “Nobody else got a letter, only the Spanish people.“

Great news from Shelby, as the mayor acts courageously and vetoed unconstitutional legislation that unfairly promotes partiular religions.

Mayor Bill Freytag has vetoed the ordinance that would have required City Council meetings to open with a prayer.

He e-mailed council members about the decision Wednesday.

“Over the past several weeks, we have all engaged in a long and serious debate concerning legislative prayer at our council meetings. In addition, I have received numerous phone calls and letters on this issue from both residents and non-residents of the city of Shelby,” Freytag wrote. “After discussing this further with council member (Steve) Schag and Law Director (Lee) Shepherd, it would not be wise to enact this legislation under such a cloud of uncertainty.”

The ACLU mourns the loss of longtime civil libertarian and Youngstown ACLU Chapter founder Bishop John H. Burt.

The Rev. John H. Burt, 91, retired bishop of Ohio for the Episcopal Church, died Tuesday at his home on the southern shore of Lake Superior.

The Rev. Mr. Burt served seven years at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Youngstown, where he received the Arvona Lynch Human Relations Award. He was also the founding president of the city’s American Civil Liberties Union.

When he left Youngstown in 1957 to become rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, Calif., The Vindicator wrote an editorial calling his departure “a matter of public regret” and saying the city was better for his having been here.

This week, the ACLU joined several other groups arguing that laws meant to curtail child pornography may unconstitutionally limit adults access to protected information on the Internet.

The Ohio Supreme Court hears arguments Tuesday in a case that pits defenders of online child protection against advocates of free speech.

It is one of the longest running cases in the country that grapples with how states protect minors from pornography and predators on the Internet without stepping on the rights of adults and older minors to hear, see and read certain protected content.

A pair of federal laws in the 1990s pushing decency restrictions and safety online were struck down as unconstitutional, as have been a host of similar state laws — in Michigan, New Mexico, Arizona, South Carolina, Virginia and Vermont. A similar law in Utah is still pending in court.

“It really speaks to the difficulty of trying to write laws that fit constantly-changing technology,” said Carrie Davis, counsel for the Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. “Any time a legislative body tries to pass a restriction on technology, it’s difficult because technology is changing so fast.”

Another religious liberty issue percolating in the Mansfield area involves legislation approved by Shelby City Council to authorize prayer before every meeting. The mayor is currently weighing whether to veto it or not.

A controversial issue over prayer at council has left Bill Freytag with what he called “the toughest decision I’ve been faced with since I became mayor.”

Shelby’s chief administrator said he is giving serious thought to vetoing an ordinance passed Monday at council permitting prayer at the start of council meetings.

“I’ve been asked by one council member to use the veto, and I have 10 days to decide,” Freytag said Thursday. “Both sides have compelling arguments.”

Freytag said he met Tuesday with city Law Director Lee Shepherd, who has called the ordinance unconstitutional. The mayor said the two will meet again this week.

The ACLU was once again successful in it’s pursuit to ensure Richland County Judge James DeWeese does not inappropriately endorse one religion over another in his courtroon.

Judge James DeWeese must take down a framed poster of the Ten Commandments — for the second time.

Finding for the Ohio ACLU on Thursday in its second lawsuit against the Richland County Common Pleas judge, federal district court Judge Patricia A. Gaughan ordered DeWeese to remove the display as it unconstitutionally endorsed particular religious views over others.

DeWeese could not be reached for comment.

[…]

“We are pleased the court saw through this transparent attempt to sidestep the Constitution. Even with a few minor alterations from his original 2002 display, it was clear that Judge DeWeese’s intentions to promote a particular religion remained the same,” Ohio ACLU Executive Director Christine Link said Thursday.

“We feel very strongly about this because the First Amendment is extremely important,” ACLU attorney Mike Honohan said. “I don’t think it’s any coincidence our forefathers put the freedom of religion and speech together in the First Amendment, and we certainly don’t want to allow these rights to erode.”

A stark reminder out of the Cincinnati suburbs during Banned Books Week that many schools are still struggling with censorship.

Wyoming’s school board Tuesday night backed its superintendent’s plans to re-evaluate every non-textbook teachers recommend to students.

The decision was read to a packed audience of teachers and parents at the school board meeting.

Some teachers, students and parents criticized the extra scrutiny of teachers’ reading lists as censorship.

Martin Murray, a Wyoming parent, said the district has “set the stage for intellectual bullying” by allowing a few complaints to limit students’ reading choices.

The OSU Lantern promotes the ACLU’s Banned Books Week event in Columbus. The event was held Oct. 1, with over 70 attendees and rave reviews.

Each year, the nation recognizes Banned Book Week in honor of American authors whose works have been challenged and banned from library shelves. On Oct. 1, Columbus will celebrate the African-American authors who have been targets of censorship during “Banned Brilliance of African-American Authors.”

Sponsored by Ohio State’s department of African-American studies and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, the event will feature readings of passages from various banned books, said Morgan Patten, program coordinator for ACLU of Ohio.
“Brilliant authors such as Richard Wright, Toni Morrison and Ernest Gaines have been victims of censorship because their works contain content that many people view as too controversial and inappropriate for some age groups,” Patten said. “We hope to raise awareness of this issue.”

A great editorial from the DDN that highlights the reasons Ohio should pass legislation that promotes comprehensive sex education, access to contraception and other methods that reduce unwanted preganancies.

Stopping unwanted pregnancy should be a bipartisan goal, and yet the actions and inactions of state lawmakers go beyond failing to make progress against the problem. Legislators are actually making things worse.

First, the General Assembly required school districts to favor “abstinence-only” programs, a discredited approach that seeks only to persuade kids not to have sex until marriage. Districts that wanted to offer some frank talk — or share much practical information — about how to avoid pregnancy when sexually active found state law discouraging.

Compounding the problem, lawmakers blocked educators from establishing health education standards without legislative approval. The lawmakers were trying to assure that abstinence-only programs dominated.

A disturbing story out of Portsmouth regarding the mayor attacking a resident who requested public records.

Robert Forrey regularly skewers city officials in Portsmouth while pontificating on their perceived sins on his River Vices blog.

The self-styled government watchdog concedes that Mayor Jim Kalb is a favorite target, but he never expected the rant that landed in his in-box at 1:47 a.m. Sunday.

The e-mail was from Kalb, who informed Forrey that he could drop by the mayor’s office in the Ohio River city to pick up a public record he had requested.

The mayor went on to write, asterisks and all: “I think that you’re a worthless piece of s**t and I wouldn’t p**s on you if you were on fire You’re a poor, lonely, jealous old man with aspirations of being a writer.

Cleveland Scene files a great report on the secrecy of the death penalty in Ohio and how frighteningly incompetant the state is in performing executions.

Romell Broom achieved a macabre notoriety this past month when he became the first man to survive his date with the needle. Not just in Ohio, but anywhere.

The convicted rapist and murderer endured more than two hours of poking and stabbing before his date with death was called off indefinitely. His executioners could not find a vein to plant intravenous shunts, and they prodded him with needles at least 18 times to no avail, says Tim Sweeney, his lawyer.

The eyes of the world are on Ohio now, and many are questioning our death-penalty apparatus.