The city of Dayton kept its police recruiting program dark for nearly a year and unfunded despite spending more than $550,000 settling a federal lawsuit calling for the city to hire a more diverse pool of police and fire candidates.

The city is being forced by the U.S. Department of Justice to diversify its safety departments as it scrambles to replace a mass exodus of officers set to retire beginning next year.

The city is also paying about $400,000 in relief to black applicants who took the civil service test in 2006, but did not pass or were not hired. It also paid a California-based testing firm $150,000 to revamp the test.

Gov. Ted Strickland spared the life of Richard Nields, a Finneytown man who was slated to die next week for murdering his girlfriend.

Strickland opted to give him life without parole. He agreed with the 4-3 vote of the Ohio Parole Board.

Nields, 60, was scheduled to be executed June 10.

The majority of the seven-member board said medical examiner testimony at the 1997 trial was faulty and the appeals court continually had expressed trouble over whether the case had merited death-penalty consideration.

One of the scariest moments experienced by all too many of us is the call from our doctor saying that we should come in for additional cancer screening.

So imagine how Newton mother Lisbeth Ceriani felt when her doctors told the 42-year-old breast-cancer survivor and mother of an 8-year-old that she should be tested for the ovarian cancer gene, only to learn that a private corporation, Myriad Genetics, owns the patent on the gene in question (the BRCA gene) and was charging more for diagnostic testing than Ceriani could afford to pay.

Fortunately for Ceriani and the rest of us, a Federal judge this week upheld a lawsuit filed by the ACLU and the Public Patent Foundation challenging the government practice of granting patents to corporations that try to capture and “own” the DNA in our bodies.

The decision is good news not only for women at risk for breast and ovarian cancer, but also for men who carry the gene mutation that raises their risk for prostate, pancreatic, and other types of cancer. Since 20 percent of all human genes have already been patented and may be affected by the Court’s ruling, the decision also offers hope for new research and access to treatment for people afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease, muscular dystrophy, colon cancer, asthma and other illnesses.

A new teen court makes youthful offenders accountable to their peers and offers participants a hands-on learning experience on the justice system.

The program, designed for first-time juvenile misdemeanor and status offenders, was launched last month at the Mahoning County Juvenile Court in the Martin P. Joyce Juvenile Justice Center.

Ten other Ohio counties have teen courts.

It serves as a peer-sentencing court for cases such as shoplifting, disorderly conduct, harassment, truancy and fighting.

The state Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections wants to know how Lawrence Reynolds, a prisoner on death row, obtained drugs sufficient to cause an overdose on the eve of his scheduled execution. The questions hardly stop there. Once Reynolds gained the drugs, when did he ingest them? Authorities insist they were monitoring closely his moods and actions.

The machinery of capital punishment has a dismaying record in Ohio. A federal court of appeals has pointed to ”alarming difficulties” involving a protocol (now changed), the execution team, for instance, in a prolonged search for a vein to carry the lethal injection. A new protocol has been used effectively three times. Reynolds is scheduled to be the fourth prisoner put to the death, his execution now set for next week, pending his recovery in a Youngstown hospital.

Few people missed the absurdity, the state rushing to save the life of an inmate it intends to execute. Now the question arises: What about the extent of his care? Just enough so that he can be put to death?

Officials say an Ohio death row inmate was attempting suicide when he overdosed on pills two days before his scheduled execution.

Spokeswoman Julie Walburn said today that the determination was made by prisons department mental health staff.

She says investigators are exploring whether Lawrence Reynolds Jr. had any visitors before the overdose and if he stockpiled medication prescribed for him, as suggested by Gov. Ted Strickland.

Reynolds was to have been executed yesterday but was found unconscious in his cell Sunday and hospitalized. He’s back in prison on suicide watch, with his execution rescheduled for March 16.

Prison officials have not identified the drug Reynolds took.

The investigation is being handled by the prisons department with the Highway Patrol.

During this time of increased budget consciousness, I can understand Sheriff Larry Sims’ request to allow double-bunking at the county jail (“Sheriff seeks state OK to double-bunk inmates,” Feb. 18). While government officials should make the system as efficient as possible, we must be certain the safety of guards and inmates is not sacrificed to save a few dollars.

Double-bunking may pose serious health and safety risks. Overcrowding can result in increased violence among inmates or toward guards. Also, these facilities often become breeding grounds for contagious diseases that could wreak havoc on inmates’ health, as well as the medical budget for the jail.

Lost in the discussion has been the fact that Warren County’s overcrowding problem is not unique in Ohio. Many facilities have far exceeded their capacity because of the state’s outdated “tough on crime” policies that lock up low-level offenders without providing rehabilitation. Lawmakers were poised to pass needed reforms as part of the state budget, but dropped the language at the last minute.

We must ensure prisons and jails don’t become dangerous for prisoners and guards. But if we intend to make lasting changes to our overcrowded system, lawmakers must reform our broken criminal justice system.

Christine Link

Cleveland

Ms. Link is executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio.

The syndicated story criticizing the ACLU’s request for documents relating to the federal government’s use of drones was grossly off-base (“ACLU has strayed far from its mission,” February 19, 2010.)

The ACLU has had a long history of ensuring government officials do not operate in the shadows and are subject to full accountability from the American people.

The right to know is perhaps one of the most fundamental rights granted under the Constitution. In order for democracy to function, the people must have unfettered access to information about government programs, policies and actions. Without consistent oversight from the people, there is a greater chance of corruption, wrongdoing or negligence.

In addition to advocating for full government transparency, the ACLU continues to address a variety of civil liberties issues in the courts, legislature and community.

Recently, the ACLU filed a legal brief in the Ohio Supreme Court arguing that cell phones cannot be randomly searched by police officers. The Court made a landmark ruling in the ACLU’s favor in late December 2009.

As the nation’s oldest civil liberties organization, the ACLU has long been on the forefront in the fight for fairness, privacy and accountability. While the nation, courts, and lawmakers may change over the years, the fundamental rights we defend do not.

Karyn Justice

Associate General Counsel

American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio

A Republican lawmaker has introduced a bill that would subject Ohio Medicaid recipients to random drug tests in order to receive benefits from the state-subsidized health program.

[…]

Gary Daniels, associate director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, doesn’t see Balderson’s legislation going anywhere. “I have a hard time taking it seriously as an actual proposal,” he said.

Daniels called the proposed law unconstitutional. He cited a case from about a decade ago, Marchwinski v. Howard, in which a Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with a previous ruling that struck down a Michigan law that tied public assistance to drug testing.

Daniels said the approach Balderson calls for has been been proposed many times in the past by states but is too “costly and ineffective” to work. He noted that the bill doesn’t mention how the state would pay for the drug-testing program. He speculated that Balderson introduced the bill to appear “tough on crime.”

Students at Stow-Munroe Falls High School have resumed publication of their school newspaper.

The paper had been on hold since a fight early this school year over what students claimed was censorship.

The students resumed publication earlier this month after discussions between the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio and school administrators.

Students were protesting the principal’s decision to ban a photo of a student who killed himself.

The yearbook photo had been submitted by the late student’s parents.

Principal Susan Schur said last year that she feared the photo could trigger destructive behavior.

Mike Brickner, spokesman for the ACLU of Ohio, said Tuesday that an agreement allows for review of content and an appeals process to resolve disputes.

Mentally ill prisoners in Ohio are more likely to get into trouble and end up back in prison after they are released because state officials turn them loose without the follow-up care they need, a federal lawsuit claimed Wednesday.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati, asked a judge to order the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and the Ohio Department of Mental Health to provide the care necessary to help keep mentally ill offenders from returning to prison.

Advocates for prisoners and the mentally ill said they are suing to help not only the released prisoners, but also the taxpayers who must pay tens of thousands of dollars a year to keep them locked up when they commit new crimes and are sent back to prison.

After citizen outcry and threats from the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, Cuyahoga County transition leaders have decided to make all their committee meetings open to the public.

Martin Zanotti, the former mayor of Parma Heights and one of the most visible faces of the volunteer transition effort, informed The Plain Dealer of the move this morning.

The backtrack comes one day after the ACLU blasted a plan by Zanotti and county Administrator James McCafferty to hold many transition meetings behind closed doors. The committees will suggest cost-savings and other measures to a new county executive and 11-member council that will take office next year in a new, voter-approved charter government.

[…]

Christine Link of the ACLU of Ohio is pleased that transition leaders have agreed to open their meetings but promises to watch closely to make sure they are true to their word.

“We will be vigilant, as will the citizens now,” Link said. “This is an example of the system working.”

Police throughout Northeast Ohio are getting some new ”bionic eyes” to help catch criminals.

The Summit County Emergency Management Agency/Division of Public Safety is buying 15 mobile license plate readers to hand out to sheriff’s offices and police departments in nine counties.

[…]

Civil liberty concerns

Wherever the mobile license plate readers have popped up, so has some anxiety about ”Big Brother” technology moving in and civil liberties being violated. Law-enforcement officials dismissed those concerns, though, noting that law-abiding citizens have nothing to fear.

While the system might help catch criminals, it also could be used to exonerate people, they said.

”We’re looking at license plates anyway,” Summit Sheriff Drew Alexander said. ”We’re just doing it with the human eye.”

He said he likes the system because it can improve safety during traffic stops by alerting officers immediately to a potential problem.

”It gives that officer a little bit of an edge he needs,” he said.

The public has discovered the first bump in the so-called “road to reform,” and open government advocates are not pleased.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio has asked Cuyahoga County transition leaders to open up transition committee meetings to the public and media. “Transparency is absolutely essential to build public trust and ensure that officials are serving the people,” says Christine Link, executive director of ACLU Ohio.

The ACLU’s request comes a day after transition co-chairs Zanotti and Jim McCafferty appeared on WCPN’s “Sound of Ideas” radio show. During the show, Zanotti and McCafferty told host Dan Moulthrop that reporters and citizens wouldn’t necessarily be allowed into all meetings.

A dozen committees will meet throughout 2010 to craft recommendations for Cuyahoga County’s new charter government, which goes into effect January 1, 2011. Voters adopted the charter last fall during a campaign in which Zanotti and other proponents promised government reform.

“It is an inherent contradiction that an advisory committee meant to reform county government wishes to do so behind closed doors without the full participation of the public,” says Link in a news release.

Elisabeth Trisler, come on down.

The Shelby County teenager who won an oratory contest sponsored by the National Right to Life will be honored for her achievement on the Ohio House floor after all.

House Speaker Armond Budish’s decision to keep the teen from receiving a resolution in the House chamber on Feb. 3 honoring her award had brought criticism from Ohio Right to Life officials, House Republicans and even the Ohio ACLU. Trisler had been scheduled to receive a resolution from Rep. John Adams, a Sidney Republican, before the House floor session began that day.

But Budish, a Beachwood Democrat, has rethought his decision and now hopes that Trisler can come to the House floor to pick up her resolution. Trisler won the National Right to Life Oratory Contest held in Charlotte last June.