Pictured are Kalvin O. Berry, who died in the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland, Ohio on October 17, 2016 following a traffic stop arrest, and Common Pleas Judge John O'Donnell, who acquits White Cleveland cops of gunning down unarmed Blacks. O'Donnell has also stolen a wealth of homes from county residents for JPMorgan Chase Bank and others, data show. A Democrat seeking a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court this month, O'Donnell has been shunned and denied an endorsement for his bid for the state's high court by the Black community of greater Cleveland, including Black elected officials, the Call and Post Newspaper, and the Black Women's PAC
By Editor-in-Chief Kathy Wray Coleman, a-24-year journalist who trained at the Call and Post Newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio for 17 years, and who interviewed now President Barack Obama one-on-one when he was campaigning for president. As to the Obama interview, CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, OHIO'S LEADER IN BLACK DIGITAL NEWS. (Note: A former biology teacher and longtime Cleveland activist, Coleman is the most read reporter in Ohio on Google Plus with some 3.1 million views)
CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, CLEVELAND, Ohio- The investigation relative to a Black man jailed in the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland, Ohio following a traffic stop arrest who was found dead in his cell last month is ongoing, authorities said yesterday, (Editor's note: Community activists had picketed the county jail at least three times since August of 2016 to call attention to illegal jail activity, including the alleged abuse of inmates, the holding of inmates even after bail bonds were paid, malicious prosecutions spearheaded by outgoing county prosecutor Tim McGinty, and the mass incarceration of Black people).
Jail officers reportedly found Kalvin O. Berry, 39, dead or unresponsive in his cell on Monday morning, Oct. 17, a city spokesperson said.
He was subsequently rushed to nearby Lutheran Hospital and was pronounced dead at 10:30 pm the same day, according to the county medical examiner.
Cleveland Municipal Court records reveal that Berry was arrested at 2:25 am on Superior Avenue at East 85th Street on Oct. 17 after police stopped him in his 2001 Chevrolet Cavalier for allegedly speeding.
A police ticket says Berry driver's license expired in 2015 and that he allegedly drove away from the traffic stop.
In spite of a city policy enacted relative to police killings of unarmed Blacks that car chases should only occur if a felony is suspected, police chased Berry's car anyway. He was ultimately charged with reckless operation, driving on a suspended license and fleeing and alluding, all misdemeanors.
Why Berry, who had a lengthy criminal history, his latest a conviction in 2015 for felony domestic violence, was jailed in the county rather than the Cleveland jail, given that he faced only misdemeanor charges, is unclear.
(Editor's note: The city policy that limits police chases to suspected felony behavior was put in place following the 2012 Cleveland police killings of unarmed Blacks Malissa Williams and Timothy Russell that followed a high speed car chase from downtown Cleveland to neighboring East Cleveland. The two victims were gunned down by 13 non-Black Cleveland cops who were slinging 137 bullets. Only one police officer at issue was indicted, former officer Michael Brelo, and he was acquitted of manslaughter charges in 2015 by Common Pleas Judge John O'Donnell, now a Democratic candidate for the Ohio Supreme Court. O'Donnell, data show, has stolen a wealth of homes from Cuyahoga County residents for JPMorgan Chase Bank and other banks and mortgage companies via illegal foreclosures and sheriff's sales, common pleas court records reveal)
The Black community of greater Cleveland, including a wealth of Black elected officials, the Call and Post Newspaper, and the Black Women's Political Action Committee, has shunned O'Donnell for an endorsement for the state's high court, some of its members, most of them Democrats, going so far as to endorse his opponent, GOP Ohio Supreme Court candidate Pat Fisher, a state appellate court judge.
(www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com). Ohio's most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog.Tel: (216) 659-0473 and Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com