Two Cincinnati police officers accused of covering up a fellow officer’s auto accident while he was allegedly under the influence appeared in Hamilton County court yesterday. You can see the original CityBeat story here, but the main points: In March 2015, Sgt. Andrew Mitchell crashed his car along West McMicken Street while he was off-duty. Instead of investigating that accident, prosecutors allege responding officer Jason Cotterman drove Mitchell to CPD District 5 headquarters, ignoring a witness who said Mitchell appeared to be under the influence. Prosecutors also allege another officer, Sgt. Richard Sulfsted, oversaw Mitchell’s removal from the scene in an attempt to protect the fellow officer. The trial, overseen by Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Josh Berkowitz, involves charges of dereliction of duty and obstructing justice for Cotterman and Sulfsted. Berkowitz is expected to spend about a week on the trial and will issue a verdict. We’ll continue to update as the case goes on.
• A crowd of more than 100 showed up to Peaslee Neighborhood Center in Over-the-Rhine last night for a wide-ranging discussion from academics, neighborhood residents, housing advocates and others who have lived in, worked in or studied the quickly changing neighborhood. Presenters provided wider historical and political context for recent heated debates about housing prices, displacement of some residents and cultural change in the neighborhood. Some presenters held an activity around a recent housing study that shows that while the neighborhood’s housing has become more economically diverse between 2000 and 2015, 73 percent of the neighborhood’s most affordable rental units became unavailable to low-income renters during that time. You can hear recordings of all the presenters here.
• Just down the street in OTR, the city of Cincinnati held an event at the Woodward Theater discussing possible changes to Liberty Street, which bisects the neighborhood. The road is wide — some crosswalks across it span 70 feet, double the norm in the neighborhood — and has a high traffic volume. That, some say, is impacting the neighborhood’s walkability and keeping its northern section from experiencing development that has taken off in the southern half. The city last night released results of a survey of neighborhood residents, who seem to prefer either two options that would narrow Liberty significantly as well as adding bike lanes and other changes.
• This is cool. A sustainability group and cooperative in Price Hill has plans to open up a new community center, homesteading store and bar to serve as a spot for community-building in the neighborhood. Enright Eco Village has purchased the former Paradise Lounge at West Eighth Street and Enright Avenue in West Price Hill and is currently rehabbing it for its yet-to-be-named store. Organizers of the store hope to host public events there and foresee opening it this summer.
• Well, this is a big one. Or two. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have thrown their endorsements to former Ohio Governor and U.S. Senate hopeful Ted Strickland in his Democratic primary bid to take on incumbent Republican Sen. Rob Portman. The big endorsement comes as Strickland tangles with Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld for the party’s nomination. Strickland is definitely the favorite in the race — he polls well above Sittenfeld and fellow contender Kelli Prather, also of Cincinnati — but that hasn’t stopped Sittenfeld from hitting him hard on gun issues and other concerns. Obama and Biden’s endorsement is a sign that Democrats are doubling down on efforts to re-win control of the Senate in 2016 and see known entities like Strickland as the way to do that.
• OK. Super Tuesday. I’m going to be quick. On the GOP side of the presidential primary election fest that went down yesterday across 11 states, Trump won seven states, walloping rivals U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, who won three, and U.S. Sen Marco Rubio, who won one. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and surgeon Ben Carson won… zero. That’s sent election-watchers on both sides of the aisle into all sorts of fits as Trump’s path to the nomination becomes more and more likely. On the Democratic side, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton safely coasted past Bernie Sanders, taking seven primary states to his four. You can see the commanding leads the front runners are taking in the delegate counts here.
• Speaking of The Donald, he was in Ohio briefly yesterday for a rally ahead of the state’s March 15 primary. He talked a lot about immigrants and making America great again, both topics he seems to be fixated upon. He didn’t, however,say much at all about Kasich, a sure sign Trump doesn’t see the Ohio guv as much of a threat. Kasich has polled behind Trump among GOP voters in the state and has just 28 delegates so far to Trump’s 285.