The Columbus Dispatch
If it’s local you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports, as well as “Weekend Exclusive” content to help you navigate your lives. So enjoy your Sunday reading filled with stories that will inspire, educate, inform and entertain you.
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Iran says it will exert authority over strait
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei signaled April 9 that the country will continue to exert authority over the Strait of Hormuz, an outcome experts fear could lead to higher fuel prices for the foreseeable future. “We will definitely...
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ODOT planning a record $3.4B of roadwork in central Ohio in 2026
The Ohio Department of Transportation plans to spend a record-breaking $3.4 billion on nearly 1,000 construction projects in 2026, including dozens of projects in central Ohio, the department has announced. The 977 projects involve 739 bridges and...
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Trump threats to Iran more hostile
President Donald Trump, ahead of his April 7 deadline for Iran to make a deal, issued a stark warning that a wave of expected U.S. military attacks on critical infrastructure would leave the country unable to recover. “A whole civilization will die...
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Trump promised massive Ohio power plant, but doubts linger
Armed with gleaming shovels, federal and local officials hoisted dirt at a groundbreaking for a $33 billion natural gas-fueled power plant in Pike County on March 20. Under a backdrop of U.S. flags, there was live music, speeches and seemingly endless...
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CCS spends $33M on buildings it will close
Columbus City Schools has spent over $20 million in improvements since 2020 on four buildings it plans to demolish. According to records obtained by The Dispatch, the district has spent $33.3 million in total across eight schools it plans to close or...
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When it comes to senior living, one size does not fit all.
As a life plan community, Ohio Living Westminster-thurber’s campus is designed to provide the housing option that’s right for you, right now.
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2 U.S. fighter jets downed over Iran
Two days after President Donald Trump vowed in an address to hit Iran “extremely hard,” two U.S. fighter jets went down over Iran, according to the White House and media reports. One crew member was rescued from a two-seated F-15E fighter jet that was...
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Going from unhoused to a home
During the past four months, dozens of unhoused people moved from living outside to rooms in a local hotel, and then to their very own apartments. The reduction in unhoused people locally is thanks to a seasonal program that provided hotel rooms to...
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‘IT’S GOING REALLY WELL’
Daren Griffin is taking over as president and CEO of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority at a pivotal moment for air travel in central Ohio. h Construction crews are building John Glenn Columbus International Airport’s new $2 billion terminal...
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Who is at fault?
By early May 2024, multiple people had accused a teacher of dealing drugs and sexually preying on women at a state prison in Dayton. A hidden camera finally installed in August captured the teacher — who had previously served time for trafficking —...
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‘A bad situation’
Corrections officer Barbara Devine grew nervous at the sight of the K-9 unit as she walked through security at Chillicothe Correctional Institution. h The dog was sniffing everyone entering the prison that morning in late 2022. But Devine had a good...
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Thousands turn out for ‘No Kings’ protests
Thousands of demonstrators turned out March 28 across central Ohio as a part of the national “No Kings” protests against President Donald Trump’s actions and policies in his second term. Events took place across central Ohio, including in many...
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When it comes to senior living, one size does not fit all.
As a life plan community, Ohio Living Westminster-thurber’s campus is designed to provide the housing option that’s right for you, right now.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Front, Mound streets are torn up Downtown
Crews working for the Ohio Department of Transportation tore up the intersection of Front and Mound streets in downtown Columbus earlier this week, snarling traffic near Interstates 70 and 71. Front Street is down to one lane in either direction near...
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Upward trend
Central Ohio’s population continues to outpace the growth of its big-city counterparts, Cincinnati and Cleveland, fueled by a diverse workforce, massive construction projects and net migration. In fact, without the greater Columbus area, the state...
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EX-OSU football player pleads guilty in crash
A former Ohio State University offensive lineman appearing in court on March 25 admitted to having a blood alcohol level more than three times the legal limit and driving more than 125 mph when he caused a crash in Dublin that killed a 24-year-old...
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City police, fire face steep overtime cuts
In 2025, Columbus’ police and fire divisions spent $51 million on overtime. This year, the divisions must cut that to $28 million. The Columbus City Council’s public safety committee chair called that “a difficult target to hit.” Police and fire...
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ALMOST READY
ASHVILLE – Almost six football fields could fit within the Arsenal-1 building, located near this Pickaway County village just south of Rickenbacker International Airport. And by the end of this month, production of unmanned military aircraft will begin...
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Behind the scenes at Nationwide Arena
The grinding blast of noise inside the kitchen area of Nationwide Arena came without warning. A reporter asked Derek Smith, general manager of the arena who just showed off the massive refrigerators. “That’s just the compressor. It’s the...
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Dispatch reporter covers state government, politics
Editor’s note: Beat notes is a weekly feature from Dispatch journalists who share what’s been happening in their area of coverage and upcoming events. This week we hear from Haley Bemiller. There’s something new every day at the Ohio Statehouse. I...
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SHOWING LOVE, SUPPORT
AMANDA − The March 12 deaths of six United States service members in Iraq are personal to Ohio Air National Guard Capt. Justin Rainier. He knew three of them, including Fairfield County’s Capt. Seth Koval, 38, for whom a memorial service was held...
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HEARTBREAK FOR THE BUCKEYES
ABOVE: Ohio State Buckeyes forwards Amare Bynum (1) and Brandon Noel (14) react after losing to the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs during a first-round game of the men’s NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South...
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‘A HIDDEN GEM’
The shiny black car door, hood, tire and other assorted parts to a 1978 Chevy Monte Carlo drew Colton Saunders inside the once-abandoned Franklinton building like a trail of metal and rubber breadcrumbs. He’d trudged past the former school building on...
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Standing up for the ‘real people’ involved
After months of defending Haitian residents in their city, Springfield leaders are traveling to Washington, DC, to “beg” the U.S. Supreme Court to let them stay in the city and the nation. The Ohio city of 60,000 to the west of Columbus has been in...
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SEPARATING SIBLINGS?
When Khaula Zafar sees her three children playing “restaurant” or “school,” or even toggling buttons to build a virtual farm together, she feels sorrow along with joy. h That’s because she can imagine her son sharing the same loving bond with his...
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If it’s local you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports, as well as “Weekend Exclusive” content to help you navigate your lives. So enjoy your Sunday reading filled with stories that will inspire, educate, inform and entertain you.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
WHEN GAMING BECOMES A PROBLEM
A Northeast Ohio man was playing blackjack at a Florida casino when his phone rang. h It was a friend who had nudged him into Gamblers Anonymous two years before. h When the Ohio man answered – with the ding, ding, ding of slot machines echoing behind...
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Bellamkonda named OSU’S new president
“We often hear that Ohio State is a large place, one of the largest universities in the country, and that we are. But consider this, when excellence happens at the scale of Ohio State, we create an impact that is unmatched in its transformative...
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Route is dividing Ohioans
ABOVE: Traffic backs up along U.S. 23 near the Orange Township pedestrian bridge on Aug. 11, 2025. A proposed connector route between U.S. 23 and Interstate 71 is dividing Ohioans. Many northwestern Ohioans want one while many north central Ohioans...
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Dewine focuses on protecting children
In Gov. Mike Dewine’s final State of the State address, he stayed true to the message he’s preached all along: Invest in the state’s children, their safety and their futures. Dewine endorsed a proposed law to double recess time for schoolchildren,...
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Ohio State president resigns, admits to an inappropriate relationship
After just over two years on the job, Ohio State University President Ted Carter has resigned from the university after admitting to the board of trustees that he had an inappropriate relationship. Carter, 66, resigned over the weekend after a rare...
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COMPETITION IS STRONG AT FEST
The Arnold Sports Festival took place March 5-8, primarily at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, with a few events at other sites. The event was cofounded in 1989 by actor and former bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger and then-worthington Mayor Jim...
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If it’s local you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports, as well as “Weekend Exclusive” content to help you navigate your lives. So enjoy your Sunday reading filled with stories that will inspire, educate, inform and entertain you.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
HACKING THE GRID
Tsaman zonouz he darkness that swept over the Venezuelan capital in the predawn hours of Jan. 3 signaled a profound shift in the nature of modern conflict: the convergence of physical and cyber warfare. While U.S. special operations forces carried out...
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TRUMP TO REPLACE NOEM AT HOMELAND SECURITY Trump says he’ll help pick Iran’s next leader
President Donald Trump spoke in favor of a boots-on-the-ground attack on Iran by regional Kurdish forces and said he would take a role in choosing Iran’s next leader. “We want to be involved in the process of choosing the person who is going to lead...
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U.S.: Ground troops ‘not part’ of Iran plan
The White House on March 4 said there are no plans for ground troops in Iran, even as the Trump administration pledged more firepower in the war after officials said a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship, with reports of at least 80 people...
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‘GOOD, CLEAN, FUN KIND OF GAL’
In November, lurid headlines swirled around the death of Mary Kathleen Hill, whose husband fatally allegedly stabbed her and the couple’s dog, then stabbed himself after falling victim to a sextortion scheme, Upper Arlington police say. h The headlines...
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He brought ‘life into a room’
Ben Karcher was more than just the life of the party. The Upper Arlington wrestler was the party itself, a flesh and blood gathering place at which friends laughed, teammates felt seen and classmates felt cared for in a safe space where a sense of...
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Dispatch reporter covers the northwestern suburbs
Beat notes is a weekly feature from Dispatch journalists who share what’s been happening in their area of coverage and upcoming events. This week we hear from Anna Lynn Winfrey. I cover the northwestern suburbs for The Columbus Dispatch, which...
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‘A shining example of a man’
The family of a Columbus man killed in a multi-vehicle crash that stemmed from a wrong-way driver on Interstate 71 is demanding answers and accountability for those responsible. “He was a shining example of a man,” said Tequila Williams, who described...
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‘The underserved would go without’
Brenda Case and her family have seen Dr. Gregary Graves to get their glasses prescriptions and vision care for more than 25 years. h Case, a resident of Columbus’ Northeast Side, trusts him. Before Case qualified for Medicare, she had no insurance, so...
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ANALYSIS
President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 24. He delivered his address days after the Supreme Court struck down his tariff strategy and amid a U.S. military buildup in the Persian Gulf.
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SAVING LIVES
Every student in a sixth grade class at Harambee Christian School raised their hand when asked if they talked to people online via social media and other websites. h More than half of the 11- and 12-year-olds admitted to talking to people who are...
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East Central Avenue to close for 45 days for ‘Point’ project
The city of Delaware is entering the final year of a multiyear, $44 million road construction project to widen a major corridor on the city’s east side. But there will be more traffic disruptions before the project wraps up in August. The “Point”...
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Funding in flux
The future funding of a local public radio station is in question after federal disruptions and growing questions over continued Columbus City Schools support. WCBE 90.5 FM, based out of the Columbus City Schools’ Fort Hayes campus, is a...
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Dispatch reporter covers kindness and religion
Welcome back to the kindness corner of The Columbus Dispatch. My name is Sophia Veneziano, and I’m the kindness reporter for The Dispatch. This role is supported by the Center for Humankindness at The Columbus Foundation. In the fall of 2025, I picked...
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U.S. Supreme Court strikes down tariffs
WASHINGTON − A furious President Donald Trump slammed the Supreme Court after a landmark decision striking down his power to impose sweeping tariffs. “I’m ashamed of certain members of the court, absolutely ashamed for not having the courage to do...
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Former prince arrested, suspected of misconduct
Andrew Mountbatten-windsor was released from police custody Feb. 19 after British authorities arrested him on suspicion of misconduct in public life. The disgraced former prince was spotted departing from Aylsham Police Station in an image obtained by...
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Wexner on Epstein: I’ve ‘nothing to hide’
Without Ohio retail billionaire Les Wexner’s financial support, disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein would not have been able to commit many of his alleged crimes, according to members of Congress who questioned Wexner for...
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‘GOD’S INFLUENCER’
As Catholics prepare to enter the season of Lent after observing Ash Wednesday on Feb. 18, the Catholic Diocese of Columbus is hosting and honoring the heart of the first millennial saint. Nicknamed “God’s Influencer,” St. Carlo Acutis committed his...
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Ramadan costs rise
Spiking grocery costs and fluctuating tariffs are likely to take a toll on Muslims celebrating the holy month of Ramadan this year. The ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which begins Feb. 17 and ends March 19, is a time for Muslims around the world...
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‘Fascism is on the rise ... and we must be vigilant’
An otherwise routine Grove City Council meeting devolved into shouting and recrimination as community members aligned with a local progressive group and a Grove City Council member clashed over ICE. It wasn’t because ICE was surging into Grove City or...
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If it’s local you want, we’ve got it.
Our Sunday refresh offers more local news and sports, as well as “Weekend Exclusive” content to help you navigate your lives. So enjoy your Sunday reading filled with stories that will inspire, educate, inform and entertain you.
Read Full Story (Page 1)
Student informants spur academic freedom debate
Texas A&M University told philosophy professor Martin Peterson in early January that he could not teach some of Greek philosopher Plato’s writings that touch on “race and gender ideology.” The university’s local chapter of the American Association of...
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BEHIND
Hundreds of Haitian parents living in Ohio under a temporary legal status are faced with making the impossible decision about what will happen to their children if they are detained or deported. h More than 3,000 children born in Franklin and Clark...
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Ohio cannabis industry divided over hemp law
An effort to block changes to Ohio’s marijuana and hemp law is laying bare divisions within the cannabis world. Advocates seeking to repeal part of Senate Bill 56 have launched a campaign to gather nearly 250,000 signatures by mid-march for their...
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Teen paralyzed in Ohio youth prison incident
The first sight of their 15-year-old son in a Cleveland hospital bed, unable to talk or move, shocked Tenayuh Mosby and Robert Bragg. h “I just bust out crying. I felt hurt, I felt confused, I felt angry,” she said from her attorney’s office in Toledo....
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Several OSU buildings faced renaming attempts
When Yondris Ferguson was a member of Ohio State University’s Undergraduate Student Government, he twice introduced resolutions calling for the university to remove Les Wexner’s name from campus buildings. h Wexner, the New Albany billionaire retail...
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YMCA Jerry L. Garver branch to close in May
The Jerry L. Garver YMCA branch, which has served the area around Pickerington and Canal Winchester since 1995, will be closed and demolished at the end of May. The YMCA of Central Ohio understands the branch’s value to the neighborhoods around Gender...
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He covers trending sports in Columbus
When I accepted the offer to become the Columbus Dispatch’s next breaking and trending sports reporter, I told my aunt, a devoted Michigan Wolverines fan, that I’d be covering her No. 1 enemy for a living. She got a kick out of it. I’m not from Ohio,...
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Fearful memories
SPRINGFIELD – What surprises Viles Dorsainvil most about America today is how familiar it feels. h The Haitian immigrant, along with hundreds of thousands of others in the past decade, fled his home country to escape violence and repression. He saw the...
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‘WONDERFUL YOUNG WOMAN’
Hailey Buzbee was excited about attending college and following her passions. The 17-year-old was a hard worker in every sense of the word, and she left a comforting impression on people who met her, even if it was only once. Before her disappearance...
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STILL FEARFUL
SPRINGFIELD – Celebration of a federal court ruling blocking the Trump administration’s cancellation of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians was short-lived, and the fear is enduring – at least among residents here. The TPS designation – which was...
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Haitians get 11th-hour reprieve
A federal judge issued a last-minute reprieve on Feb. 2 that blocks President Donald Trump’s attempt to end Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants in the U.S. The TPS designation, which allows about 350,000 Haitians...
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Prayers for Haitians
So many people packed the sanctuary at St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Springfield to support Haitian immigrants who soon may be forced to leave the United States that Mayor Rob Rue had to ask 150 to leave on Feb. 2. The approximately 900 people...
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‘COMMUNITY INCLUDES IMMIGRANTS’
A coalition of Columbus organizers says their belief that a community doesn’t discriminate against who belongs is driving a growing coalition of central Ohio small businesses to support families whose lives and businesses are being affected by fear of...
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A story about what a good story can do
(Editor’s note: This article is part of an occassional series featuring new Columbus Dispatch journalists and their work in our community.) Long before I learned to read, I loved words. As my mom loves to recount, 2-yearold me had quite the peculiar...
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Generational lessons
Oliver Yetman and Randy Marker are technically both seniors in college. h Yetman, an 18year-old senior at Whetstone High School, and Marker, a 69-year-old former construction executive, wouldn’t typically be college classmates for a few reasons. For...
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Water main breaks plague city, icing over streets and vehicles
In the wake of winter storm Fern, over 50 water mains have broken in Columbus and its suburbs, leading to frozen roads and vehicles encased in ice. “It’s a big issue here but in places around the country,” said Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther. “A lot of...
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Commissioner blasts growing censorship in Trump’s 2nd term
Just days after President Donald Trump retook office, the Columbus VA told Franklin County Commissioner Kevin Boyce not to mention diversity, equity or inclusion in a keynote address at a lunch honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 23, 2025,...
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American hero
She wasn’t worried. h Newly trained astronaut Judith A. Resnik was a special guest in 1979 when the NASA Lewis Research Center in Cleveland celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. h The 30year-old engineer told interviewers that...
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SHUTDOWN
Central Ohio’s biggest January snowfall since 1910 dumped a foot of snow and led seven local sheriffs to close all roads to non-emergency traffic, essentially shutting down the metro area for two days. Even worse, the Jan. 25 snow won’t melt anytime...
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