Ohio residents may have heard about some of the actions local authorities are taking to reduce the alarmingly high rate of heroin overdose-related deaths occurring in the state. According to statistics, almost 1,000 residents are dying from these overdoses every year. This number is four times higher than it was in 2008. As a result, many alleged heroin dealers are facing greater enforcement from local police and prosecutors.
Overdose deaths plague Ohio
Man sentenced to life in prison for heroin says he's innocent
On Sept. 14, a man in Ohio was sentenced to life in prison after maintaining his innocence throughout the entire trial. The 33-year-old man is accused of acting as the leader of a heroin-trafficking ring in a notoriously dangerous section of Cleveland's East Side. The man is one of 60 people who were issued federal indictments in 2013 after an investigation called Operation Fox Hound.
Teen accused of underage rape removed from sex offender list
Ohio residents may be interested to learn that a 20-year-old Indiana man who confessed to having sex with a 14-year-old will be removed from the Michigan sex offender registry. The case made national headlines after the girl confessed to claiming that she was 17 at the time of the encounter.
Father wins custody of child placed for adoption
As Ohio residents may have heard, a father in South Carolina was recently granted full custody of his child after going to court in a unique case. He and his former girlfriend had conceived a child, and he was led to believe he and his girlfriend were going to live together and raise the child. Without his knowledge, the child was born and placed with an out-of-state adoptive family.
The use of plea bargains
As some Ohio residents may know, criminal courts around the country are overburdened with a large number of cases. In order to alleviate some of the problems associated with this, the process of plea bargaining is used in a great majority of situations. Deciding if a plea bargain is appropriate in a particular case depends on a series of factors.
How divorce mediation affects children
When an Ohio couple is heading for divorce, they often face court dates and meetings with attorneys. Not only can this process interrupt the daily lives of everyone involved, it can be expensive and cause stress in the relationships between the family members. For those who wish to avoid this, divorce mediation is an alternative.
New school year may merit new child custody arrangements
The start of a new school year is a good time for co-parents in Ohio to assess child custody arrangements. A custody schedule negotiated when children were younger may no longer fit the children's or parents' schedules.
Sexual battery law in Ohio
In Ohio, sexual battery is defined in the Ohio Revised Code. The codified law outlines both the type of conduct that is proscribed as well as the types of relationships between the two people that will make the behavior sexual battery. The law also makes sexual battery a third-degree felony when victims are older than age 13. It is a second-degree felony when the victim is under age 13.
The CDC on prescription drugs
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most of the prescription drug abusers in Ohio and throughout the U.S. are obtaining the substances through friends or family, as opposed to a dealer. Recent research determined that only 15 percent of the painkiller abusers interviewed actually received their drug from a stranger or dealer, rather than someone they already had an established relationship with. Users described as being at high-risk for suffering an overdose were less likely to receive their supply from a dealer.
Father's rights and frozen embryos in Ohio
A married couple who is having trouble conceiving a child naturally may choose to freeze a number of embryos for future use. However, the question of what should be done with them if the couple divorces is a legally complex one. Even if a couple has a contract spelling out who owns the embryos, it may not help decide a given case.
