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David Skolnick

Gerrymandering, big money make state legislative races in Valley noncompetitive

Gerrymandering and money — largely provided by special interest groups — mean there will be very few competitive state legislative races in Ohio, or the country for that matter. It’s no different in the Mahoning Valley. When the Ohio Redistricting Commission — consisting of five Republicans and two Democrats — unanimously approved the state Legislature maps in September 2023, its members gave the Mahoning Valley only one competitive district among the five House and two Senate seats in its boundaries. That contested seat is the 64th Ohio House District with state Rep. ...

Conspiracy theories on Acton altercation at fair condemned

While Amy Acton, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, wasn’t attacked at the Canfield Fair, we don’t know what could have happened had her security detail not intercepted an armed man heading toward her, knocking people down. But it’s disturbing to read and hear conspiracy theorists dismiss the altercation as a hoax on the toxic playground known as social media. We don’t know the intentions of Patrick Havas, the 38-year-old Canfield man accused of lunging toward Acton at the Canfield Fair on Sunday. That will be up to a court to decide. Havas faces four misdemeanor counts: ...

Supreme Court lacks clarity in dismissal of abortion case

It wasn’t a surprise that the Ohio Supreme Court dismissed Trumbull County Domestic Relations/Juvenile Division Judge David L. Engler’s lawsuit seeking to stop abortions in the state, but the justices could have at least explained why. Instead, the justice ruled 7-0 Aug. 19 that the state’s “motion to dismiss is granted. Accordingly, this case is dismissed.” Besides that, the court’s four-sentence entry declared that the matter originated with it and the American Civil Liberties Union’s motion to have more time to file a brief in support of the motion to dismiss was ...

Cutrona lets fly legislation to regulate Flock cameras

While not as controversial as data centers, Flock Safety automated license plate reader cameras are not too far behind. Originally sold to communities as a way to make it easier to catch criminals, instances of abuse and a lack of transparency and public accountability have been reported. But even worse, many people are tired of being watched with their movement tracked and fear the lack of privacy. The high-speed stationary cameras take photos of every vehicle that passes them — which can be thousands a day. Flock doesn’t just sell the cameras to law enforcement. If you’ve ...

Data centers rise as key issue in race for governor

In connection with affordability issues, data centers have emerged as a hot-button issue in politics. Data centers are needed in our digital world. Whether you are texting, checking your email, opening an app, doom scrolling, watching a video or doing anything with your phone or computer, a data center is needed. They’re increased in numbers with the major growth of artificial intelligence. Data centers also consume tremendous amounts of electricity, which adversely impacts power grids and increases costs to residents, and uses massive amounts of water to keep servers from ...

Mahoning clerk of courts attracts controversy

It’s almost as if there’s a magnetic force attracting Mahoning County Clerk of Courts Michael Ciccone to controversy. The remarkable thing is Ciccone has been in office for only about 19 months. Ciccone first garnered attention back in December 2023 when he served as the attorney for 28 voters of Jennifer Ciccone who contested the results of the Struthers Municipal Court election that she lost by 10.28%. Michael Ciccone’s complaint claimed, without providing details, that there was massive fraud in that race that James Melone convincingly won. A week after filing the lawsuit, ...