Cleveland Law Library Weblog

Wearing an "Idiot" Sign is "Punishment for Cleveland Woman Who Drove on Sidewalk to Pass a School Bus Full of Children

The Cleveland Municipal Court has issued a creative sentence for a woman who drove onto a sidewalk in order to pass a school bus full of children-she will have to wear an "idiot" sign.  ABC news reports that the woman, who the bus driver caught on video, will have to wear a sign that says "Only an idiot drives on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus" next Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at the intersection of East 38th and Payne in Cleveland. The sign has to be on white poster board with capital letters in black marker. This situation makes me think of Bill Engvall and "Here's Your Sign."

Beachwood Attorney Files Class Action in Ohio Supreme Court Over Cleveland's Red Light Cameras

Local Attorney Paul Greenberger has filed a class action suit in the Ohio Supreme Court over Cleveland's red light cameras. According to news reports, the suit is being brought on behalf of drivers who have paid their tickets as well as those who have not yet paid the fines that were imposed. The case has been assigned docket no. 11-0235, and the Complaint is already available online. The case is apparently based on a jurisdictional argument that the City "violated Ohio law by usurping the municipal court's jurisdiction and assigning a hearing examiner within the Parking Violations Bureau to handle the camera citations." If successful, the suit could allegedly recover fines paid by 40 million drivers.

City Loses Suit Alleging Nuisance by 16 Banks

Yesterday, the Plain Dealer reported that Akron federal District Court Judge Sara Lioi dismissed the City of Cleveland's lawsuit alleging nuisance against 16 banks in connection with the nation's "subprime lending and foreclosure crisis," which has disproportionately hit the greater Cleveland area. The docket and opinion dated 5/15/09 in the case can be found on PACER under Case No. 1:08-cv-00139SL. The docket also reflects that the City already appealed the Judge's decision to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.

'Concealed Carry' Guns Allowed in Public Parks

On Thursday, the Ohio Supreme Court struck down an attempt by the City of Clyde, Ohio to ban concealed weapons from its public parks (Ordinance 955.07). Rejecting the doctrine of home rule by a 4-3 margin, the Supreme Court held that the state Legislature intended Ohio's concealed carry law (contained in O.R.C. sec. 2923.126) to apply uniformly, state-wide. As a result, the Court preempted the issue, thus preventing cities and other governmental entities from narrowing the law. According to an article on newsnet5.com, this decision threatens gun bans in Independence and Cleveland Heights, as well as ancillary gun prohibitions in the City of Cleveland. Click here to read the decision in the case, and click here to read the Court's Press Release.

Copley Is Banning Ice Cream Trucks

Like most kids, my children used to love buying ice cream from ice cream trucks that drove through our neighborhood. Now, the kids who live south of Cleveland in Copley Township are going to have to get their ice cream somewhere else. According to newsnet5.com, Copley has recently banned all transient vendors and is going to use the law to deny renewal permits to ice cream truck vendors at the end of August. Two reasons a Township trustee cited in support of the law were safety issues for children, who often run at the trucks, and the lack of screening for the ice cream truck drivers.

Lakewood Bans Pit Bulls

In a vote Monday night, the Lakewood City Council has banned pitbulls. This new law, Ordinance No. 58-08, amends Section 506.12 of Lakewood's Codified ordinances.  Click here to read a short article about the new local law from newsnet5.com. The last City we reported to have banned pit bulls was Garfield Heights, which did so in October of 2007.

North Royalton Considering Outdoor Smoking Ban

The City of North Royalton, Ohio is considering passing a new ordinance to prohibit smoking in parks, fields, and outdoor seating areas. Newsnet5 reports that the ban was proposed in response to complaints about smoking around children at their sports games. The City' Council's Safety Committee will hold a public hearing on the issue on April 15th. North Royalton already has an ordinance (#620.04) that prohibits smoking in indoor, public places. The entirety of Chapter 620 is devoted to clean indoor air, but section 620.06 contains various exceptions, some of which may conflict with Ohio's anti-smoking laws.

Parma School Board Seeks AG Opinion on Public Records

The Parma, Ohio School Board has requested an opinion from the Ohio Attorney General in connection with a taping at one of their meetings. The request asks the AG's office to determine whether any public records (and presumably open meetings) laws were violated when Board President Rosemary Gulick directed that a tape which was being made be stopped and rewound when the Board discussed the Superintendent's employment contract. The AG's office provides a page on Ohio's Sunshine Laws as well as an online Open Meeting Complaint form. Click here to read a Plain Dealer article about the controversial deal the Board was potentially offering to allow the School Superintendent to retire and be re-hired, thereby collecting salary and pension at the same time.

Judge Rules Euclid Violated Voting Rights Act

Crain's Cleveland Business reports that local federal District Court Judge Kathleen O'Malley held a hearing on a preliminary injunction on August 21, 2007 and ruled that the City of Euclid's method for electing the members of City Council violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In particular, Crain's indicates that Judge O'Malley commented that Euclid's conduct violated Section 2 of the Act. The Minutes of the proceedings in this case, Case No. 1:06-cv-01652-KMO, are not available yet from PACER on the Internet.

Olmsted Falls and Olmsted Township to Consider Merger

According to the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission blog, the leaders in Olmsted Falls and Olmsted Township have started dicussing a merger of their two communities. According to the blog, Olmsted Falls Mayor Robert Blomquist "wants to conduct a study and create a committee of residents." Both Blomquist and his City's Council President believe that merger would achieve costs savings and allow the Township to lower its property taxes. Although the communities have a joint school system, they have separate police, fire and service departments. If they were to merge, the Plain Dealer estimates that the joint population would reach 19,000, which is about the size of Rocky River, Ohio. In the 1970's Olmsted Falls merged with the Village of Westview.