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Engler faces challenges in winning stop-abortion suit

David Skolnick

Trumbull County Judge David L. Engler is seeking to stop abortions in Ohio through a lawsuit he filed with the Ohio Supreme Court contending the 2023 reproductive rights constitutional amendment does not provide protections for minors. Rather than asking the court to focus on that lone issue, Engler, a domestic relations / juvenile division court judge, wants an end to all abortions and a revote on the issue, approved by 57% of voters in November 2023. Engler’s lawsuit states that the reproductive rights amendment, which took effect in December 2023 as Article I, Section 22 of the ...

Why would Ohio nursing homes abandon patients at homeless shelters?

Editorials

Public officials well aware of Ohio’s problems with a shortage of accessible, affordable housing might not be aware of a growing problem related to that challenge. Nursing homes are sending patients to homeless shelters at a growing rate. A Signal Ohio report earlier this month looked at nursing homes transferring “older, poorer and medically fragile” patients to homeless shelters. In fact, seven nursing homes in Ohio have been faulted in the past few years for efforts to dump patients into homeless shelters. Eastland Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Columbus caught one ...

DuPont settlement will help keep Ohio drinking water safe

Editorials

Eight years ago, then-Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a lawsuit against DuPont, accusing the company of knowingly releasing “forever chemicals” into the Ohio River. Though a settlement was reached back in 2023, DeWine was not able to announce distribution of the $65 million settlement until this week. This time as governor, he stood with state Environmental Protection Agency Director John Logue to talk about how the money would be distributed in Belmont, Gallia, Larence, Meigs, Morgan and Washington counties. The improvements that will be funded have been a long time ...

The triumph of economic freedom?

Editorials

Prices rise. People blame capitalism. Politicians promise “solutions.” President Donald Trump wants to cap credit card interest rates. My socialist mayor wants to freeze rents. Elizabeth Warren wants politicians to decide what prices are “excessive.” So I was surprised to see economist Donald J. Boudreaux’s new book titled “The Triumph of Economic Freedom.” “Economic freedom is losing!” I shout at him in my new video. “Republicans and Democrats vote against it.” “Free markets are on the ropes,” he replies. “But when you look at history, you ...

Clarence Thomas’ great speech on the Declaration

Editorials

Many speeches will be delivered this year about the Declaration of Independence as we celebrate its 250th birthday. However, I think the greatest was just delivered by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on April 15 at the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas, Austin. The force of Thomas’ words does not just result from his deep understanding of what the United States is about, and how the Declaration of Independence defines it. The force flows from Thomas’ personal reality. He has lived what the Declaration is about. His words are not just the product of thought ...

New tool helps all to track students’ chronic absenteeism

Editorials

It’s just common sense that students who are able to attend school regularly are more likely to perform at grade level in reading and math, and eventually graduate on time. But during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school year, approximately one-fourth of Ohio students were considered chronically absent (missing two or three days per month). Addressing such a challenge will require having the information to get a handle on each student’s situations. To that end, the state has unveiled an attendance dashboard that should give schools another tool in the effort. “The goal is to spot ...