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Ohio State Issue 1 headed for supreme defeat as Women's March Cleveland braces for a win as to defeating Issue 1....Women's March Cleveland, Ohio Congresswoman Shontel Brown comment.....By Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's leader in Black digital news

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Above picture: Women's March Cleveland leads some 2,500 women and their supporters via a protest for reproductive rights and abortion access held on Oct. 2, 2021 at Market Square Park in Cleveland, Ohio, a sister march to marches held in cities across the country that day spearheaded by Women's March National out of Washington, D.C. ( Photo by David Petkiewicz of the Cleveland Plain Dealer Newspaper and Cleveland.com). Ohio's largest grassroots women's rights group, Women's March Cleveland and its supporters  rallied and marched again on June 24, 2023 outside of Cleveland City Hall, a year after the Supreme Court, on June 24, 2022,  overturned Roe v Wade.

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com

CLEVELAND,Ohio-Ohio State Issue 1, the ballot issue that would have increased the threshold for future amendments to the Ohio Constitution from the currently required simple majority to a 60 percent super-majority, is headed for supreme defeat, early election results on Tuesday reveal.


With 26 percent of the Ohio vote counted, unofficial results show that  Issue 1 is failing 61.6 percent to 38.7 percent. a likely win for pro-abortion advocates who say they will now turn their attention to November 2023 when a constitutional amendment to enshrine abortion in the Ohio Constitution will be determined by voters in the state of Ohio, which will again become a pivotal

state on Tuesday if voters across partisan lines defeat Issue 1.


While statewide results of the election are not expected until late into the night on Tuesday or early Wednesday Issue 1 opponents remain elated after CNN predicted an outright defeat of the controversial measure in its nightly news segments.


Led by county Democratic Party operatives, the heavily Democratic Cuyahoga County, which includes Cleveland and is Ohio's second largest county, led the way for Democrats as usual as 74 percent of voters in the 29 percent Black county said no to Issue 1. The voter turnout in the county was at 37 percent, down three points from the 2022 turnout for the state's gubernatorial election, where countyvoters turned out at 40 percent.


"We united and overcame this hurdle," said Women's March Cleveland head organizer Kathy Wray Coleman, a longtime Black Cleveland activist and organizer who has spearheaded more than a dozen reproductive rights marches in Northeast Ohio and Cleveland since 2018. "It shows the power of the ballot box on public policy issues in Ohio and we shall utilize this momentum to carry us to victory in November as we continue our fight for abortion access for all women in Ohio."


i want to thank the voters and supporters in Ohio who showed up and showed out ," Rep Shontel Brown, a greater Cleveland Democrat and former chair of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party, told CNN Tuesday night. She added that" this was about freedom," and she called Ohio "the pathway to victory when it comes to politics."


Democrats in general called Issue 1's defeat, "a major victory for democracy in Ohio."


Early last month, volunteers from across the state, led by a coalition of abortion advocates, processed petitions for the abortion ballot initiative  in Ohio's biggest cities like Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and Toledo and in some suburban and rural areas. and the initiative made the ballot as organizers collected nearly double the more than 415,000 signatures needed. In turn, Republicans, led by Gov Mike DeWine and Secretary of State Frank LaRose, pushed the Republican-dominated state legislature to put Issue 1 on the ballot this summer in an attempt to derail the abortion issue on the November ballot. The strategy unnerved voters across partisan lines and could have implications for the 2024 presidential election id it fails badly, sources predict.


Polling shows that the reproductive rights amendment to enshrine abortion in the Ohio Constitution would likely pass with somewhere between 50 to 60% support but the win on Issue 1 for abortion supporters has heightened that standard, sources say.


Hundreds of women in greater Cleveland, led by Women's March Cleveland. Ohio's largest grassroots women's rights group that has been fighting for reproductive rights since 2017 when Donald Trump took office as president for a first term, rallied and marched outside of Cleveland City Hall on  Sat., June 24, the one-year anniversary of  the overturning of Roe v wade by the U.S. Supreme Court. These same women's advocates, and others, are the one's pushing for a constitutional amendment for abortion access in Ohio.


Last year, on June 24, 2022, the nation's high court, in Dobbs vs Mississippi Health Organization, ended access to abortion for women nationwide and gave individual states the authority to legislate abortion, including to restrict or outright outlaw the procedure all together, causing a firestorm of protests throughout the country.


More than 14 states have near-total abortion bans during any point in pregnancy in effect, and at least six states have implemented abortions bans with other limits from six to 20 weeks bans. Ohio has a six-week abortion ban dubbed "the heartbeat bill" that is on hold per a judge's ruling .

 

Ohio would become the seventh state in the country to vote on abortion rights behind Kansas, Michigan, Kentucky, Vermont, Montana and California. All those states had either proposals that enshrined the right to an abortion, or allowed the state to regulate abortion.


Ohio will become the seventh state in the country to vote on abortion rights behind Kansas, Michigan, Kentucky, Vermont, Montana and California. All those states had either proposals that enshrined the right to an abortion, or allowed the state to regulate abortion.

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Last Updated on Tuesday, 15 August 2023 15:48

Cleveland City Council supports partnership with Cleveland Division of Police and U.S. Marshal Service to Combat heightened city crime.... Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader

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CLEVELAND, Ohio- Cleveland City Council learned earlier today of Operation 216, a planned partnership announced this afternoon between the Cleveland Division of Police and the U.S. Marshals Office to combat violent crime. The rise in violent crime this summer has unnerved many community members in the largely Black major American city of Cleveland.


Council President Blaine A. Griffin, an east side councilman,  said in a city council press release issued on Tuesday that he has confidence in U.S. Marshalsand  the city's police department and its leadership team under Police Chief Wayne Drummond and Mayor Justin M. Bibb.


, "I have a longstanding relationship with Chief Drummond and U.S. Marshal Elliot. I am confident they will build a comprehensive plan to apprehend the bad actors and that they will effectively get to the root of violent crime in our city. Clevelanders deserve safe neighborhoods. Safety is the top priority that our city can provide."

City Council Safety Committee Chair Mike Polensek, a Ward 8 councilman, and seasoned city lawmaker,  gave the following statement:


, "I thank the Cleveland Division of Police, US Marshal Pete Elliott, his team, and other law enforcement agencies who are involved in this initiative. I have been in contact with his office for months over the growing level of violence in this city. On July 27, I officially requested along with Council President that the US Marshals come to assist the Cleveland Division of Police in its efforts to combat the dramatic increases we have been experiencing in violent crimes and civil disobedience in our neighborhoods across the city. Again, we are thankful for their commitment and engagement to Cleveland. " (Click here to read Chair Polensek's letter to Marshal Elliot.)


Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com the most read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio and in the Midwest Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 09 August 2023 00:13

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, Ohio's leader in Black digital news

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Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com the most read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio and in the Midwest Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Former president Donald Trump indicted for a third time, pleads not guilty to all charges at arraignment....

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Former President Trump (pictured) was indicted on four counts Tuesday by a grand jury convened by special counsel Jack Smith over alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. He was arraigned in federal district court in Washington, D.C. on Thursday and pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com the most read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio and in the Midwest Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Last Updated on Tuesday, 15 August 2023 14:39

Black Cleveland activists say the city of Cleveland's prosecution of former Judge Pinkey Carr is selective and racist and demand that corrupt White judges are prosecuted.... By Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader

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Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com

By Kathy Wray Coleman, associate publisher, editor-in chief.....Investigative article below

By Kathy Wray Coleman, associate publisher, editor-in chief.....Investigative article below

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Black Cleveland activists are calling out the city of Cleveland for bringing misdemeanor falsification charges against former Cleveland Judge Pinkey Carr, whom the Ohio Supreme court disbarred and removed from the bench last year, and leaving corrupt White judges alone

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"it is symptomatic of the prejudice we routinely see against Blacks in our courts, whether the people they are after are politicians or ordinary people." said activist Alfred Porter Jr of Black on Black Crime Inc and the Black Man's Army .


Porter said that activists want White crooked judges prosecuted too, or the charges against Carr dropped.


Porter added that "we do not intend to permit a double standard in Cleveland where Black judges are prosecuted and crooked White judges are allowed to continue to do as they please to the detriment of Black people."


Community activists want the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Marshals to investigate the municipal and common pleas courts of Cuyahoga County, courts they say "are as a whole plagued with systemic racism and sexism, and public corruption."


The Ohio Supreme Court decided 5-2 last year to indefinitely suspend Carr's law license of Carr, a serious action undertaken by the state's majority White and largely Republican high court that operated to immediately remove the Black judge from the largely Black 13-member municipal court bench.

On the bench since 2012 before her suspension, Carr, a former assistant Cuyahoga County prosecutor who led the prosecution as to the convictions of the late serial killer Anthony Sowell, who strangled and murdered 11 Black women at his home on Imperial Avenue in Cleveland on the city's east side and later died on death row, can apply to the court for reinstatement of her law license in two years. Her attorney had requested progressive discipline that would have permitted Carr to stay on the bench and told the court that her client began having issues only in the past two years and that she accepted responsibility for her behavior.


Sources also say that the decision to remove Carr from the bench was "racist and sexist, and politically motivated."


Similarly situated White and male judges, data show , were not treated as harshly by the office of disciplinary counsel for the Supreme Court, which recommended a two year suspension rather than an indefinite suspension. Few of the white judges who get in trouble are later prosecuted, research shows.


Carr is accused by the city of Cleveland of alleged falsification crimes, all misdemeanors, relative to three cases that form in part the basis for her suspension from the bench, though her supporters say racism is the impetus overall for the action..


In at least one case she is accused of dismissing the case without the signature of the prosecutor, something she denies Her arraignment in the falsification case is Aug 8.

In getting disbarred, Carr was accused of violating the ethical and other provisions of the Judicial Code of Conduct and the Ohio Lawyer's Professional Code of Responsibility. In its 5-2 decision to strip Carr of her judgeship and law license, Republican Justices O'Connor and Fischer, and Justice Brunner, though a Democrat, voted to suspend her indefinitely as did the two stand-in judges for Democrats Johnb Donnelly and Melody Stewart, both former Cuyahoga County judges who recused themselves from the case for that reason, they claim.

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Justices DeWine and Kennedy, now the chief justice of the court, dissented with Kennedy writing  in her dissent that it was unfair to suspend Carr indefinitely based on the data before the court, and particularly since the office of disciplinary counsel for the court only recommended a two year suspension of her law license.

It is the second time the state's high court has suspended a Cleveland judge from the bench since the  removal in 2014 of former judge Angela Stokes, a daughter of the late 11th congressional district congressman Louis Stokes and a niece of former Cleveland mayor Carl B Stokes, a late Black mayor and a former Cleveland municipal court judge himself. But Angela Stokes, who is older than Carr, was allowed to continue practicing law, and to draw upon her retirement where applicable, and she was not prosecuted by the city of Cleveland.

Carr stood accused in several complaints before the bar in past years of issuing illegal capias warrants, which is routine for municipal and county judges, dismissing cases without the approval of city prosecutors, carrying on court when Cleveland Administrative and Presiding Judge Michelle Earley thought she had closed court due to the pandemic, and of mistreating and being rude to defendants and attorneys who came before her. Still, say her supporters, and on condition of anonymity, "she did what White and other judges traditionally do and her biggest problem was being strong, Black and female, and angering White men in power." Others say Carr's style was harsh at times and that she was abrasive and sometimes had a prosecutorial demeanor, and that O'Connor, the court's second female chief justice, is fed up with out-of-control judges.

The job of judge, whether a municipal or common pleas judge of Cuyahoga County, is no easy task as judges must juggle crowded case dockets, limited resources, unruly defendants who will literally curse you out, as well as anxious and sometimes arrogant criminal defense attorneys. Some of the judges are corrupt and unfair, data show, two of them formerly on the general division common pleas bench imprisoned and kicked off the bench via an ongoing county public corruption probe.

Carr had drawn the ire of Cleveland's mainstream media, which is routine when complaints are leveled against Black judges by  prominent White men This time those of prominence who lodged complaints against her include then Chief Cuyahoga County Public Defender Mark Stanton,  who has since retired, and well-known criminal defense attorney Ian Friedman, the former president of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association.

White male judges brought up on disciplinary charges like Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Daniel Gaul, a judge who regularly hands Blacks excessive sentences, breaks the rues and often loses on appeal for murder convictions  of Blacks that occur following suspect activity at trial in his courtroom, get off easy they are rarely even disciplined research shows.

A since removed Bedford Municipal Court judge, convicted Harry Jacob,  who allegedly pimped women in his court, ran an outright brothel, and falsified court dockets and documents, and even after criminal convictions of crimes in office, still has his law license, compliments of the Ohio Supreme Court.  Moreover, an investigation  by Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com also reveals that Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge John O'Donnell has stolen homes for JPMorgan Chase Bank from Blacks in illegal foreclosure cases before him coupled with using his power and influence to have Blacks who complained maliciously prosecuted and stalked by police at their homes and otherwise, police routinely breaking into their homes and stealing personal property include high- priced cars.

A  Democrat and three time loser as to three unsuccessful bids for a Supreme Court seat O'Donnell, however, like Gaul, remains free of any discipline from the state's highest court. And there are so many more White judges, both men and women alike, who do as they please in Ohio without consequences, and to the detriment of so many innocent and poor Black people, and others.

Municipal court judges in Ohio handle cases bound over to the common pleas court for possible felony indictments and cases involving traffic, non-traffic misdemeanors, evictions and small civil claims (in which the amount in controversy does not exceed $15,000.).


Cleveland is a largely Black major American city of some 372,000 people and a Democratic stronghold It is the largest city in Cuyahoga County, a 29 percent Black county, and also a Democratic stronghold.Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com the most read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio and in the Midwest Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Last Updated on Thursday, 03 August 2023 21:07

Booker, Padilla and Shontel Brown introduce congressional resolution declaring racism a public health crisis nationally.... By Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH),  and Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Alex Padilla (D-CA) have reintroduced a Senate Resolution to declare racism a public health crisis nationally. Brown first introduced the legislation in July 2020, and reintroduced it again in April 2021 and December 2022.


“This resolution is an important step toward recognizing the racial disparities in healthcare that have existed for far too long, while also outlining concrete action we can take now to help reverse them,” said Rep Brown. a greater Cleveland Democrat out of Warrensville Hts., Ohio and one of three Blacks in Congress from Ohio, all of them women. “Your background or the color of your skin shouldn’t determine whether you get quality, respectful care, or whether your air and water are clean, or whether there’s a good hospital nearby. This declaration will help to lay the foundation for change, so that all Americans can live longer, healthier lives.”


“Across the United States, communities of color continue to be disproportionately affected by negative health outcomes, from chronic diseases to maternal and infant mortality,” said Senator Booker. “These health inequities stem from years of discriminatory policies that have disenfranchised, neglected, and disrespected Black, Indigenous, AAPI, and other communities of color. Declaring racism a public health crisis is a small, but vital, step toward raising awareness around the racial health disparities in our country and addressing the systemic inequities affecting communities of color.”


“Over generations, racism and its compounding impacts have harmed the health and well-being of communities of color across America,” said Senator Padilla. “Our resolution declaring that racism is a public health crisis is a first step toward bringing more attention to these deep-rooted inequities but there is much more work to be done. This resolution must serve as a catalyst in the urgent need to address these disparities and deliver justice for millions of Americans.”


“For America to reach its full potential we must address the underlying racial injustices that remain deeply embedded in our nation, deepening wounds that have yet to be addressed,” said YWCA USA CEO, Margaret Mitchell. “The introduction of the resolution declaring racism a public health crisis lays the groundwork to continue building a more equitable future for people of color. YWCA applauds the introduction of this critical resolution and looks forward to working with Members of Congress to advance a public health approach that can effectively disrupt and end racial injustice in our communities.”


The resolution acknowledges the history of racism and discrimination within health care and the systemic barriers that people of color continue to face when seeking care. The resolution also highlights the effects of systemic racism on the health and wellness of communities of color, resulting in shorter life expectancy, worsened health outcomes, and enhanced exposure to harmful or dangerous environments. This resolution encourages concrete action to address health disparities and inequity across all sectors in society.

In addition to Brown, Booker, and Padilla, the resolution was cosponsored by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Tina Smith (D-MN), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Tom Carper (D-DE), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL).


Full text of the resolution is available HERE.

A full list of Supporting Organizations is available HERE.


Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former 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.

Last Updated on Sunday, 30 July 2023 17:37

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