CLEVELAND, Ohio -- As Clevelanders fumed over Art Modell’s decision to uproot the Browns and move the team to Baltimore in the 1990s, then-Ohio Sen. Dennis Kucinich became the architect of a law designed to keep future sports franchises from betraying taxpayers by relocating.
We’re talking about the aptly nicknamed Art Modell law and how delighted Kucinich is to see the city invoke it again, on Today in Ohio.
Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour news podcast, with editorial board member Lisa Garvin, politics editor Rick Rouan and impact editor Leila Atassi.
You’ve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom text account, in which he shares what we’re thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up here: https://joinsubtext.com/chrisquinn.
You can now join the conversation. Call 833-648-6329 (833-OHTODAY) if you’d like to leave a message we can play on the podcast.
Here’s what else we’re asking about today:
Why did Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb decide not to sign a ceasefire resolution about Israel and Palestine that was passed by the city council?
We talked yesterday about lawmakers not moving to change the marijuana law, but the rulemaking body for marijuana is busy. What has it proposed?
Dennis Kucinich wrote Ohio’s Art Modell law requiring pro sports team owners to offer them for sale before moving them, and that gives him a unique perspective over Dee and Jimmy Haslam’s seemingly bogus claim they might build a new stadium in Brook Park for the Browns. What did Kucinich tell reporter Sabrina Eaton?
Speaking of a domed stadium, Data editor Rich Exner looked back to 1984 at the efforts to build a domed stadium in Cleveland. Was the effort then more serious than the nonsense we are seeing today?
In a move that should surprise no one, a judge has rejected a pretty audacious request from Sam Randazzo involving his trial on corruption and bribery charges from his days as Mike DeWine’s utilities chief. What happened?
What is the U.S. marshal’s missing children task force doing to give it some recent successes in tracking down kids in danger?
Has the Ohio Supreme Court changed the rules on defendants in criminal cases having a right to confront their accusers in court? What’s the ruling in a case where a witness testified via video rather than in person against a rapist?
A guy who ran the bank accounts for all sorts of Republican candidates in Ohio is charged with stealing from them liberally. Who is he, who is accused of stealing from, and what is he charged with?
Given how Ohio legislators regularly betray the citizens of the state with their ridiculous lawmaking, it’s appropriate to have a depiction of the Dante level of hell for those who are treacherous. The Cleveland Museum of Art now does. What is the piece?
We have an Apple podcasts channel exclusively for this podcast. Subscribe here.
Do you get your podcasts on Spotify? Find us here.
RadioPublic is another popular podcast vehicle, and we are here.
On Google Podcasts, we are here.
On PodParadise, find us here.
And on PlayerFM, we are here.
Read the automated transcript below. Because it’s a computer-generated transcript, it contains many errors and misspellings.
Chris (00:02.346)
The big weekend the Cleveland has been waiting for is here the NCAA women’s final four games get played the Semi-final games get played this afternoon Monday hopefully the Sun will be shining for a while and we’ll get to see the eclipse followed by the Guardians home opener Cross your fingers Cleveland’s in the eye of the world It’s today in Ohio the news podcast discussion from Cleveland comm and the playing dealer
I’m Chris Quayne. I’m here with Rick Ruwan, Leila Tassi is back and Lisa Garvin. Let’s get started. Why did Cleveland mayor Justin Bibb decide not to sign a ceasefire resolution about Israel and Palestine that was passed by the city council, Leila?
Leila (00:45.693)
Yeah, Bibb returned the resolution to city council unsigned, which means it does take effect. Had he vetoed it, he would have had to explain himself before council and then council would have had the chance to override his veto with a two thirds majority vote. But Bibb did issue a statement along with his decline to sign the resolution. He said that neither the city council resolution nor the United Nations ceasefire resolution that was passed the same day.
adequately reflects his views of the conflict. He said Israel has a right to defend itself and while he recognizes the great civilian suffering that’s happening in Gaza, the main obstacle to peace is Hamas’s refusal to release the remaining hostages. He called that the fundamental obstacle to peace, which in my view betrays a pretty simplistic and shallow understanding of the history of that conflict.
That is his reasoning, Chris.
Chris (01:43.142)
I wonder if he would have done something differently just two days later based on what has happened this week with Israel basically killing people who were there for aid. And if you read the accounts of that, it’s terrible. They had photos of the cars that were struck by drone missiles. And it has energized Joe Biden this week. He’s called on them. It’s like, stop this immediately. Don’t wait for the hostages.
Lisa (02:00.282)
Hmm.
Leila (02:06.773)
Mm-hmm.
Chris (02:11.01)
this is ridiculous. I mean, it’s so over the top what happened this week that it changes this by enough of a degree. I wonder if he would have thought, you know, I should just sign it. I was talking to Courtney about it and she pointed out, well, this resolution doesn’t specifically mention the things you talked about with Hamas. It does support the UN resolution that does. So it’s implicit in the resolution.
Leila (02:36.293)
Yeah, I guess that’s what it is. I mean, I was a little perplexed because the resolution was, I thought, quite even-handed and didn’t call for a ceasefire overtly. It said, Cleveland and Clevelanders of all faiths and backgrounds have expressed profound concern for the innocent civilians suffering and are alarmed by the loss of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinian and American lives due to the war in Gaza. It goes on to say that council supports all efforts to resolve the tragic conflict.
Lisa (02:42.206)
because
Lisa (03:02.462)
that supports all efforts to resolve the tragic conflict and further supports the resolution, as you said, adopted by the US Security Council, so that is implicit. That calls for a halt to the fighting and for the release of all passengers who are impacted on the children’s side, which to me seems like it should have checked the boxes for just a bit, but I guess not. I don’t know if you know, I don’t know if you’re saying.
Leila (03:04.901)
and further supports the resolution, as you said, adopted by the UN Security Council, so that is implicit, that calls for a halt to the fighting and for the release of all hostages taken captive on October 7th, which to me seems like it should have checked the boxes for Justin Bibb, but I guess not. I don’t know. Who knows? I don’t know if his mind has been swayed by the developments over the past couple days, but I doubt it. I don’t know. He seems pretty well-rooted in this opinion.
Lisa (03:33.938)
rooted in the shipping industry.
Chris (03:35.286)
Well, I do think there’s an argument to be made that this is not city business, and that’s why he has not gotten involved in this debate. But the wave has overtaken the nation. This is one of the last cities to do it.
Lisa (03:48.934)
Yeah, but this is pointless virtue signaling. As you said, it has nothing to do with city governing, and it forces government bodies that have nothing to do with it to take a stand. And you really can’t take a stand that appeases both sides here. Ceasefire notwithstanding. I mean, I...
Chris (04:05.714)
There is the ability though to stand up and say, in Cleveland, we believe in peace and we do support an absolute ceasefire. The death, the injuries should stop right now and move into a phase where this is figured out. I don’t really see an issue with that. Look, we have large populations of Palestinians and Jewish people in Northeast Ohio. I mentioned this to Courtney yesterday,
Fox News is trying to get Ohioans all bollocksed up about the southern border, but you don’t really talk about the southern border in Cleveland unless you watch Fox News and artificially believe it’s an issue. But what people in Cleveland are talking about is this. From the day this started, people in Cleveland are talking about it. So calling for peace, how is that a bad thing? It doesn’t really put you in a bad spot.
Lisa (04:44.775)
Mm-hmm.
Chris (05:02.158)
It doesn’t sound like the council and BIB talked about this resolution before the council passed it, which probably is unfortunate because maybe they could have worked something out. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. We talked yesterday about lawmakers not moving to change the marijuana law, but as Rick pointed out earlier in the week, the rulemaking body for marijuana is busy. What has it proposed, Rick?
RIck Rouan (05:26.794)
So we got a new 45 page batch of rules proposals this week that includes several pretty interesting ideas. They’re considering whether to allow online ordering, for example, and they’ve also thrown in the potential for extended hours for marijuana dispensaries, self-serving kiosks, and potentially some curbside service. It also suggests how businesses might be required to dispose of unwanted or deteriorated marijuana product.
We’ve already had a handful of different packages pop up as the state is working to stand up the recreational marijuana program. The state law passed last year kind of spells out the big picture, but it left it to state regulators to iron out the regulatory details. We’re expecting to see a lot of these things kind of thrown at the wall. Some’s gonna stick, some’s gonna get tossed aside. There’s a pretty long road left here, but.
If all goes according to plan and the proposal released this week, recreational dispensaries will be licensed September 7th, open shortly thereafter. In the meantime, they’re going to decide on things like whether dispensary should be allowed to remain open until 11 p.m. instead of 9 p.m., which is the case under the current rules for medical marijuana. Under the online ordering proposals, a user would be allowed to place the order on a website, but you would still have to.
go pick it up in person, show ID. The new marijuana law requires that you be at least 21. The same goes for kiosks and drive-throughs. I thought the waste disposal stuff here was kind of interesting too, though it doesn’t kind of directly affect consumers. The rule says that disposal has to be done under video surveillance, and the marijuana has to be ground up with non-cannabis waste, such as paper, cardboard, food, and a variety of other things.
Chris (07:17.962)
Yeah, that was very detailed. I guess maybe there have been problems elsewhere where stale marijuana isn’t disposed of properly. So they’re being very, very careful about it. I got to tell you every time we have a story like this on our website, it goes way up to the top of the charts. There’s a huge interest in this among Northeast Ohio readers, which is more of a clue that this should be hastened. People are waiting for this to become
available. I think they’re tired of driving to Michigan to get their weed. This won’t change any of that though. The timing remains probably the end of this year to early next year, right?
RIck Rouan (07:58.274)
Yeah, I would say so. I mean, earlier this week, you had Jason Steven saying that they’re not going to touch this in the house until at the very earliest June, which is when the applications are supposed to go out for recreational dispensaries. And at that point, you’ve only got basically the summer to get through before they plan to start giving out those licenses. Anyway, the legislature is going to go on break during the summer at some point, too. There’s going to be other priorities.
So my guess here is that the timeline is the timeline now.
Chris (08:30.678)
All right, you’re listening to Today in Ohio. This is my favorite story of the day. Dennis Kucinich wrote Ohio’s Art Modell Law requiring pro sports teams’ owners to offer them for sale before moving them. And that gives him a unique perspective over Dee and Jimmy Haslam’s seemingly bogus claim that they might build a new stadium in Brook Park for their Browns. What did Kucinich tell reporter Sabrina Eaton? Lisa?
Lisa (08:56.11)
Yeah, let’s first let’s go back to 1996 when Dennis Kucinich was an Ohio state senator. And this was also the year that Art Modell moved the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore. That’s when Kucinich authored that budget amendment that passed unanimously through the legislature and was signed by then Governor George Voinovich. Just to recap, you know, teams and tax supported stadiums must play their home games there unless the host city agrees otherwise and the owners have to give six months notice of their intent to relocated.
relocate the team and the departing owner has to give the city or the local residents a chance to buy the team. So as we know, Cleveland city councilman Brian Casey invoked the art model law and Kucinich was delighted. He says Brook Park could use that law to avoid investing hundreds of millions of dollars only to have the team leave. And he said he doubts a city with a 20,000 population can provide the taxpayer funded investments needed for a $2 billion dome stadium.
He says, my concern is that they’re using Brook Park as a foil and they may be looking elsewhere, meaning the Haslams. He says, this law protects taxpayers where they live. And he says, this is a law that must be abided by. I didn’t know this. He’s campaigning for Congress. He’s running for the District 7 Congressional seat that’s currently held by Republican Max Miller of Rocky River. And that’s of course where the stadium is gonna be in District 7.
Kucinich is worried that there are environmental concerns because I believe there was a Ford plant on that property. Right. And they’re worried about the proximity to Hopkins making it a bad fit.
Chris (10:26.322)
Yeah, it’s an auto plant for 50 years. Of course, there are environmental concerns.
Chris (10:34.518)
Yeah, I mean, he said something that I hadn’t heard said. He said, I don’t think they have any intention of going to Brook Park because let’s face it, that’s a dumb idea. But he thinks they might be looking to move it seriously far away. I hadn’t heard that. They would be vilified if they did that. I don’t think they want that kind of vilification. But it was good to see him step up. I was surprised also that Max Miller is fully embraced moving the team to Brook Park.
Lisa (10:41.621)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa (10:59.85)
To Brook Park, yeah, I found that interesting as well.
Chris (11:03.09)
What is he thinking? Brook Park is in no way ready to accommodate. They have 20,000 people in Brook Park. Think about it. We would quadruple or quintuple the number of people in Brook Park with every game. I don’t think there’s any validity at all to them looking at Brook Park. I think it’s fully a leverage move to pressure Cleveland. It’s not working. Cleveland’s not negotiating in public. Cleveland’s got an offer on the table and either they’re going to take it or not. But I just don’t see it. But
for Kucinich to come out and say, I stand by that law. It’s a good law. And it’s been tested at least once in the courts with the Hasms being involved in the soccer team down in Columbus. And he’s glad to see Casey is championing it.
Lisa (11:47.762)
Yeah, and it’s good to see that, like he said, you know, he says he feels like Brook Park is being used as a pawn in this game. And, you know, and the Brook Park officials themselves are not exactly doing hand flips over this.
Chris (12:01.366)
Look, unlike Modell, who at least bought the land when he was pulling the same move, the Hasims haven’t bought anything. They don’t have any money on the table to do this kind of blackmail move with the city. So I think this is all part of that chess game we’ve been talking about. And eventually they’ll make a deal and they’ll stay where they are. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Speaking of the Dome Stadium, Leila, Data Editor Rich Exner, look back to 1984.
at the efforts to build a dome stadium in Cleveland. I wasn’t here then, I did not know about this. Was the effort then more serious than the nonsense we’re seeing today?
Leila (12:37.313)
It seemed pretty serious. This was when George Voynovich was mayor of Cleveland. In February of 1984, Kyga County commissioners had voted unanimously to place a 25-year, $150 million bond issue on the ballot to finance what was going to be a 72,000-seat dome stadium downtown. A property tax increase would have been used to retire bonds used to finance the proposed stadium. Voynovich and Governor Richard Celeste opposed
this ballot issue, but Voinovich eventually came around on the condition that no more than half of the stadium’s cost would be financed with property taxes. But voters rejected this plan two to one, which is exactly what I think would happen today if this were put to a county vote and I would lead that effort. But political and civic leaders at the time pledged to form this united front to pursue another plan to get the stadium done. So in January of 1985,
Chris (13:18.37)
Hehehehe
Hahaha.
Leila (13:33.685)
formally backed this new effort for a dome stadium that would use some state funds and possibly require the creation of a regional sports authority. A committee came together that was charged with coming up with the plan by mid-March of that year in 1985. And the committee came back with a recommendation for this combination baseball-football stadium with a retractable roof. It would cost about $150 million and would be paid for.
with the combination of public and private funds with the public money coming from a syntax. So they formed a nonprofit, whole bunch of local official civic leaders. They called it the Greater Cleveland Dome Stadium Corporation and decided to come up with this final plan. They got some startup money, put together the funding. They got a loan from the state to buy 28 acres downtown. But then by April of 1987, trustees of the Dome Corporation voted to explore developing an open air stadium instead.
That was brought on by questions of roof technology and the cost and a desire by the sports teams to play on grass. And then of course, as Lisa pointed out, Art Modell’s shenanigans, his refusal to participate and eventual decision to move the brown side of Cleveland kind of tanked this whole thing. And even though voters did approve the syntax, as we know, the Dome Stadium, it never materialized.
Chris (14:54.434)
Well, we talk, you talk about, you think the voters would reject it. And one of the arguments that you get from people is, well, if the Browns were winning, they would, but Kansas city has won two super bowls in a row. And the voters in Kansas city just said, no way to stadium funding. I agree with you. I think this went to a vote. We wouldn’t do it. Our president, Brad Harmon has pointed out on numerous occasions, the facility that we need to invest in if we’re going to invest in something is the airport, the rickety airport that is.
used by so many more people and is a center of economic development. It’s one of the worst in the country. If we want to talk about publicly paying for facilities, that’s what we should focus on, not a stadium where they play blues 10 times a year or so. Yeah. Interesting. Nice job by Rich digging that out because I don’t think a lot of people remember that. You’re listening to Today in Ohio.
Leila (15:37.437)
Hear hear, hear hear.
Leila (15:44.617)
Yeah.
Chris (15:49.866)
In a move that should surprise no one, a judge has rejected a pretty audacious request from Sam Randazzo in bombing his trial on corruption and bribery charges from his days as Mike DeWine’s utilities chief, Rick, what happened?
RIck Rouan (16:04.686)
Well, anyone who’s been following the public corruption cases around First Energy know that Randazzo has been charged for the same actions in both federal and state courts. The state case is in Summit County, but the federal case is in the Southern District of Ohio, and it landed in the federal courthouse in Cincinnati. So Randazzo lives in Columbus, and he had argued for moving the case to the federal courthouse there, but Judge Timothy Black recently ruled against him.
Lisa (16:21.878)
Randazo lives in Columbus and he had argued for moving a case to the federal court house there, but Judge Timothy Black was never ruled against him. Normally that’s just a procedural issue that we might not take close attention to, but here’s why it’s a little bit more interesting in this case. Black also was the Judge Grover’s soft former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder’s direction travel about a year ago. Randazo.
RIck Rouan (16:30.398)
Normally that’s just a procedural issue that we might not pay close attention to, but here’s why it’s a little bit more interesting in this case. Black also was the judge who oversaw former Ohio house speaker, Larry householders corruption trial about a year ago. Randazzo’s charged in a separate, but related bribery case both centering on first energy. Black says that he’s best equipped to hear the case because he’s already familiar with a lot of the background after overseeing the trial of householder and his co-defendant last year.
and a new judge would have to spend a lot of time getting up to speed on the details. If you remember the householder trial, Black was a big time figure. Householders, lawyers kind of picked fights with him. Black admonished the attorneys and householder. And then when it came time for sentencing, Black gave householder the maximum 20 years. Randazzo’s filing made several arguments unrelated to the judge himself, saying he has back problems, the long drive is gonna be tough on him, his family and friends will be challenged to travel to support him.
the expense of lodging in Cincinnati, but Black rejected them all. And he even suggested that Randazzo split some accommodations nearer to the courthouse and share them with his attorneys.
Chris (17:38.866)
I gotta tell you, I still can’t believe this is gonna go to trial because the evidence is so overwhelming. He’d be out of his mind not to make a deal. It just, this is, the evidence against him is even stronger than the evidence against Householder. And anybody who’s ever dealt with federal court knows that when they’ve gotcha, the best outcome is always to make a deal. So a lot of this seems like game playing. And I love the way the judge kind of ridiculed him.
you know, his back pain. It’s not really the court’s job to use your back pain. You should go to a doctor or that kind of thing. It was amusing.
Lisa (18:12.626)
but
RIck Rouan (18:13.674)
He also pointed out that he was going to have to sit in the courtroom all day too, which might exacerbate your back pain.
Chris (18:16.858)
I’m sorry.
Lisa (18:17.648)
Aww.
Chris (18:20.966)
Yeah, I appreciate a judge that injects carefully a little bit of humor and clearly he did. Look, the thing is that he’s the judge on the case. He’s not going to give up the case and Randazzo has got to go where the trial is and nobody really is having sympathy for this guy. This was a real shot in the dark for him.
Lisa (18:40.278)
Well, and quite honestly, Judge Black, I mean, look how he handled Larry Householder, which was masterful. I mean, would you want to go to trial with that judge after he took apart Householder? Come on.
Chris (18:49.939)
No, but I look, I said this in the householder case, when they’ve got you, you don’t go to trial. You get much longer prison terms if you go to trial than if you make the deal. And they’ve got Randazzo. The utility has already pleaded guilty to doing what he’s accused of participating in. He’s out of his mind to take this to trial.
Lisa (19:11.591)
Yeah, he needs to cop a plea.
Chris (19:13.814)
You’re listening to Today in Ohio. What is the US Marshals Missing Children Task Force doing that’s giving it some recent successes and tracking down kids in danger, Lisa?
Lisa (19:24.914)
Yeah, the US Marshal for Northern Ohio, Pete Elliott, has established a permanent full-time task force to more quickly find missing children. This effort will be headed up by the Deputy Marshal, Vinnie Piccoli, and he’ll be overseeing a list of missing kids in Northern Ohio, which is about 70 right now, but it’s ever-changing as children are found or taken off the list and new children are added. So Deputy Marshals are coordinating with local law enforcement. They’re already working with Cleveland, Akron, Toledo, and Youngstown.
and they want to work with every law enforcement officer. Cuyahoga County Sheriff Harold Pretel says it’s really crucial to have someone oversee this ever-changing list and give their, you know, expansive reach and resources to help local law enforcement find these kids. This marshals, without the task force, they have found 271 missing kids.
since duties were expanded by Congress back in 2015. That’s more than any other marshal’s office in the United States. So this is a way to help more quickly. Like I said, they can get resources out there more quickly. They can update the list more quickly and make sure that they have the right list. And currently, among the cases that they’re looking at now, like I said, around 70, they’re really focused on Keyshawn Williams.
a 15 year old that’s been missing since June of 2023. And marshals have been helping police in recent weeks with drone flyovers to search fields. And they’ve also been searching vacant buildings and other areas.
Chris (21:00.042)
Our Marshal’s office in Cleveland has always been one of the thought leaders for Marshals Everywhere. They were the ones that created the Fugitive Safe Surrender program to wipe out a lot of warrants without people worrying about the SWAT knocking down their doors. And it’s always good to see them in the forefront like they are here. They constantly come up with good ideas on how to do their jobs better.
Lisa (21:23.346)
And as they pointed out, you know, a lot of times kids are found, but they stay on the list. So they’re still looking for these kids even though they’ve gone back to their parents or have been found. So it’s really important for them to have an updated list so they can focus their resources accordingly.
Chris (21:38.53)
You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Has the Ohio Supreme Court changed the rules on defendants in criminal cases having a right to confront their accusers in court? Lela, what’s the ruling in a case where a witness testified by a video rather than in person against a rapist?
Leila (21:55.552)
Yeah, the court unanimously ruled that it was unconstitutional for a judge in Logan County to let this witness in a rape trial testify remotely from a video feed from his home in Minnesota. But the ruling didn’t overturn the conviction.
The court ruled that judges have to first review evidence why remote testimony is needed before they decide whether to allow it. If they don’t, they violate the US Constitution, Sixth Amendment guarantee for defendants to be able to confront their accusers. And in the Logan County case, the trial judge mentioned that the pandemic was a possible concern and...
The judge allowed the witness to testify remotely, but the Supreme Court’s ruling pointed out that the trial took place more than a year after vaccines had been made available, and every other witness testified in person. But even so, the justices also held that even if the remote testimony had been struck from the record, there was still overwhelming evidence that this defendant, Eli Carter, had committed sexual battery against the woman in the case, so his conviction stood. Carter.
was he and his wife and his brother all worked at the school in a resident, which was a residential facility for children suffering from trauma. It’s where the victim in the case was enrolled as a teenager. And the Carters befriended this girl and Carter eventually began sexually abusing her in 2007. She had reported the sexual abuse to police in 2010, but the case kind of stagnated for years and years until she asked police about it in 2017. And he was indicted and the trial began in 2022.
So the witness that was permitted to testify from his home was the former CEO of the school. And the jury eventually found Carter not guilty of rape, but guilty of sexual battery. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison, and he will be released in July. But apparently this case really highlighted differences in the US and Ohio Constitution’s over-defendants’ rights to confront witnesses. The state’s constitution guarantees the right of a defendant to confront a witness face-to-face. While the US Constitution doesn’t have that provision,
Leila (23:58.881)
And Justice Patrick Fisher noted in a separate opinion from the court that this incongruity really requires some clarity.
Chris (24:08.214)
Well, the clarity is that Ohio has a tighter regulation than the US does. I don’t get why that’s confusing. It sounds like this ruling was what taxpayers want from the Supreme Court. Common sense. They did not erase your right to confront your accuser, which was important, but they also weren’t going to have another trial for a guy who was so clearly guilty of what he did.
Leila (24:31.825)
Yeah, and also it sounds like this witness’s testimony could have been struck from the record and the case could have gone on and still Carter would have been found guilty. And the accuser, it seems, was present in court. I think it’s an interesting question though whether the live feed video testimony could stand in place of face-to-face testimony because obviously face-to-face meant something different at the time when
this provision was included in the Ohio Constitution. And I think that’s an interesting question to debate.
Chris (25:09.846)
Well, in a rape case where the victim is already nervous about being in a courtroom with all the people around, the video option provides a little bit of safety. So if we did change the rules to say, yeah, that’s still confronting your accuser via video, it might make it easier for prosecutors to convince some hesitant victims to testify in a case. You’re listening to Today in Ohio.
Leila (25:26.001)
Right.
Chris (25:37.546)
A guy who ran the bank accounts for all sorts of Republican candidates in Ohio is charged with stealing from them liberally. Rick, who is he? Who is he accused of stealing from and what is he now charged with?
RIck Rouan (25:50.494)
We are talking about William Curliss, a longtime treasurer to Republican campaigns in the Columbus area. So he’s charged with wire fraud for what the U.S. Attorney’s Office said was the theft of nearly one million dollars from the campaigns that he worked for. The charges were filed Thursday in federal court in the Southern District of Ohio, along with a plea agreement that was not immediately made public. But his attorney contacted us yesterday and told us that he has accepted responsibility.
U.S. Attorney Ken Parker’s office and the bill of information filed in Cincinnati don’t give firm details on who Curliss allegedly defrauded, but three Columbus area politicians have filed complaints against him with the Ohio Elections Commission in the last year. State Senator Stephanie Coonzee, who is a Republican from the Columbus suburbs, the Franklin County engineer Cornell Robertson, and former Franklin County prosecutor Ron O’Brien all filed complaints.
Those were first reported by the Columbus dispatch last year. Prosecutors say that Curliss was running this scheme for about 15 years, so from 2008 through June of 2023, and they say that he wrote checks from candidate bank accounts and a political action committee to himself.
Chris (27:03.818)
Yeah, this was a striking amount of money to have been taken all those years. And we’ve had other cases of this where treasurers take money. We have one in Northeast Ohio, not that long ago. But he’s doing the smart thing that Randazzo was not. He is taking responsibility and will cut his best deal. Sounds like he’s guilty as can be. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Given how Ohio legislators regularly betray the citizens of the state with some ridiculous lawmaking.
Maybe it’s appropriate to have a depiction of Dante’s level of hell for those who are treacherous in a state museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art now does. Lisa, what is this piece?
Lisa (27:33.458)
Thank you.
Lisa (27:43.074)
Yeah, the Cleveland Museum has purchased a small 17 by 24 inch terracotta relief sculpture by Leonardo da Vinci’s nephew, Pierino. It depicts an episode of Dante’s Inferno. It was made about 1550 and it shows the fate of an Italian count, Uglino, who was betrayed by a political rival, imprisoned, and then left to starve along with his sons. Pierino da Vinci died at 23, so very few works of his exist. This is a very rare accus-
acquisition says the museum. It’s believed to be P. Arino’s only work in an American museum. It’s also the first Cleveland museum piece that features the Divine Comedy. And it’s about the closest they’ve gotten to a work of Leonardo da Vinci in their collection.
Chris (28:27.83)
Yeah, it sounds like an interesting piece. I, and it’s just the level of hell that it portrays. It’s a good one. It’s a, it’s a good one to have here.
Lisa (28:35.386)
And it has political connections, as you said. So...
Chris (28:38.819)
So indeed it does. All right. Well, I hope the weather’s good on Monday. I hope we have exciting basketball games. This is a big weekend. Everybody have a good one. Thanks, Rick. Thanks, Leila. Thanks, Lisa. Thank you for listening today in Ohio. We’ll be back.