Julie Carr Smyth, Author at The Rapid City Post

FILE – Plumes of steam drift from the cooling tower of FirstEnergy Corp.'s Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor, Ohio, April 4, 2017. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane, File)

Trial of ex-FirstEnergy executives charged in $60M Ohio bribery scheme begins

February 3, 2026

The $4.3 million that Akron-based FirstEnergy paid veteran utility lawyer Sam Randazzo in 2019 is at the center of another criminal trial tied to Ohio’s sweeping $60 million bribery scandal. Prosecutors allege then-FirstEnergy Corp. CEO Chuck Jones and then-lobbyist Michael Dowling played roles in orchestrating the hefty payout to Randazzo in exchange for regulatory favors he would later deliver to the energy company as Ohio’s top utility regulator. Both men have pleaded not guilty to felony corruption charges. They deny any wrongdoing and say the money constituted fees due to Randazzo as part of a long-running consulting arrangement. Opening statements began on Tuesday.

FILE - Vice President JD Vance, right, and second lady Usha Vance watch a demonstration by Marines during activities to mark the upcoming Marine Corps' 250th anniversary Oct 18, 2025, on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in Camp Pendleton, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, file)

Suspect charged in vandalism of Vice President JD Vance’s Ohio home pleads not guilty

January 20, 2026

A man charged with vandalizing Vice President JD Vance’s Ohio home has pleaded not guilty. William D. DeFoor on Tuesday entered pleas to three counts in federal court in Cincinnati. Prosecutors have charged the 26-year-old with damaging government property, engaging in violence in a restricted area, and assaulting federal officers. The charges could lead to significant prison time. The Secret Service reported seeing someone breach the property line and damage security enhancements valued at $28,000. DeFoor’s attorney claims the incident is a mental health issue, not politically motivated.

A patron climbs to their seat before a viewing of "Ohio: Wild at Heart" film that features the state's top-rated park system to highlight wildlife conservation efforts and the restorative power of outdoor recreation at the Robert D. Lindner Family OMNIMAX Theater at the Cincinnati Union Terminal, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

IMAX movie tells Ohio’s environmental comeback story from burning river to top-ranked state parks

January 19, 2026

When you think IMAX, chances are your mind goes to those immersive documentaries that take you inside volcanoes, deep under oceans or to distant planets. Or maybe you envision those widescreen films featuring backstage experiences with iconic rockstars or Hollywood special effects. But, this year, the state of Ohio is using the technology to tell an environmental comeback story closer to home. “Ohio: Wild at Heart” features the state’s top-ranked park system as it highlights wildlife conservation efforts and the restorative power of outdoor recreation. The $2.5 million film is drawing crowds at science museums and heads soon into classrooms.

FILE - Immigration and Customs Enforcement Deputy Director Madison Sheahan speaks during a news conference with Florida ICE and law enforcement officials at the South Florida U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices, Nov. 13, 2025, in Miramar, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

Top ICE official resigns to seek battleground congressional seat in Ohio

January 15, 2026

A top ICE official has resigned her job in a bid to oust the longest-serving woman in Congress this fall. In a campaign launch video Thursday, former ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan accused Democrat Marcy Kaptur of “excuses and failure” in Washington. The 28-year-old native of Curtice, Ohio, near the shores of Lake Erie, posted her resignation letter on X, expressing pride in the agency’s accomplishments. Incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur’s campaign said voters are tired of the “culture of lawlessness.” Republicans are once against targeting Ohio’s 9th Congressional District this year after Kaptur posted narrow wins the past two cycles.

Spencer and Monique Tepe's home in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos)

Ex-husband due in court on charges he murdered his former wife and her Ohio dentist husband

January 12, 2026

Michael David McKee, a doctor from Chicago, has been charged with the premeditated aggravated murder of his ex-wife, Monique Tepe, and her husband, Dr. Spencer Tepe, in their Columbus home. McKee is set to appear in court on Monday in Illinois, where he has been jailed since his arrest. The couple was found dead on Dec. 30, with no signs of forced entry or murder-suicide. Their young children were unharmed. The arrest ends nearly two weeks of speculation. The family expressed trust in the justice system and emphasized their commitment to protecting the couple’s children.

FILE—David Pepper, the chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party, speaks at the Hamilton County Board of Elections on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster, File)

Ohio governor candidate Amy Acton taps former state Democratic Chair David Pepper as running mate

January 7, 2026

Ohio gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton has chosen former state Democratic Chair David Pepper as her running mate. Acton confirmed her selection to The Associated Press ahead of their first public appearance together Wednesday. Pepper is a lawyer, writer and former Cincinnati City council member and Hamilton County commissioner. Acton says Pepper has a track record as a pragmatic problem-solver at the local level that will be an asset to her campaign. Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy planned a special campaign announcement in Cleveland later Wednesday. Acton and Ramaswamy are vying to succeed Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.

FILE - Vice President JD Vance speaks during Turning Point USA's AmericaFest 2025, Dec. 21, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry, File)

Suspect in vandalism of Vice President JD Vance’s Ohio home is behind bars

January 6, 2026

An individual accused of vandalizing the Ohio home of Vice President JD Vance and causing other property damage is behind bars pending a Friday hearing. Twenty-six-year-old William D. DeFoor, of Cincinnati, is charged with damaging government property, engaging in physical violence against property in a restricted area and assaulting, resisting or impeding federal officers after the incident around midnight Monday. Federal authorities said DeFoor was detained by Secret Service agents assigned to Vance’s home in suburban Cincinnati after being observed entering the property armed with a hammer. Glass windows on the house were broken and a Secret Service vehicle was damaged.

FILE - Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman, right, speaks with Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, left, during "Marty Brennaman Day" prior to a baseball game between the New York Mets and the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean, File)

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a law legalizing sports betting. He now says he’s opposed to it

November 24, 2025

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine says he regrets his initial support for legalizing sports betting. In an Associated Press interview, the second-term Republican said he now wishes he hadn’t signed the 2021 law that brought the industry’s exorbitant advertising spending to his state. As two pitchers for the Cleveland Guardians became ensnared in a betting-related criminal probe, DeWine emerged as a key player in a deal announced this month between Major League Baseball and its authorized gaming operators to cap prop bets on individual pitches at $200. DeWine would prefer a ban, worrying micro bets threaten the integrity of the game.

FILE - Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb listens while appearing via video from jail for his arraignment hearing, Aug. 14, 2024, at the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas in Columbus. (AP Photo/David Dermer, File)

Trial continues for officer charged with shooting pregnant Black woman accused of shoplifting

November 12, 2025

Trial is continuing for an Ohio police officer charged with shooting a pregnant Black mother who was killed after being accused of shoplifting in August 2023. Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb is charged with murder, involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault in the death of 21-year-old Ta’Kiya Young and the unborn daughter she was carrying. Young was suspected of shoplifting when another officer ordered her out of her car. Instead, police bodycam footage showed, she rolled her car toward Grubb, who fired a single bullet through her windshield into her chest. Grubb’s statement was read into the record Wednesday.

FILE - A person arrives for a U.S. Election Assistance Commission Standards Board public meeting, April 24, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File)

Trump allies, undeterred by setbacks in courts and Congress, push anew for citizenship proof to vote

October 23, 2025

President Donald Trump’s attempts to impose a proof-of-citizenship requirement to vote in the U.S. have stalled in Congress and been blocked by the courts. Now Trump’s allies are trying through a little-known independent federal commission that’s typically worked with states to set election and voting machine standards. The independent Washington-based U.S. Election Assistance Commission received 380,000 public comments reacting to a petition to add the requirement to the federal voter registration form. The proof-of-citizenship effort is being pushed by America First Legal, a conservative group co-founded by the Republican president’s deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller. Voting rights groups say it’s unnecessary and a potential tool for voter disenfranchisement.

This photo taken from video shows, from left, Kenneth Moore Jr, Suelonnee Tingle, Shonnee Hullum, Sage Harrington and Ronnee Tingle, right front, walking to Ronnee Tingle's car after Moore and Suelonnee Tingle were dropped off by an RTA bus after school Wednesday, September 3, 2025 in Dayton, Ohio. (AP Photo/Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos)

Thousands of Ohio students left without a school bus ride as private school transport expands

September 6, 2025

A scramble is underway in Ohio over a staple of the back-to-school season: rides on the big yellow school bus. Public school districts canceled bus transportation for thousands of high schoolers again this year while in some cases still busing students to private and charter schools to avoid steep fines under state requirements. A nationwide bus driver shortage is being compounded by the effects of Ohio’s recent expansion to a universal voucher program to help more kids attend private schools. Districts have been required for years to transport voucher students, but disputes over how to do that are intensifying as the program grows.

FILE - Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, speaks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, March 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown makes it official. He’ll vie to unseat Trump-backed Sen. Jon Husted

August 18, 2025

Democratic leaders are lauding Ohio’s Sherrod Brown now that he’s launched his 2026 campaign to return to the U.S. Senate. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand on Monday touted Brown’s past advocacy for workers’ retirement and Social Security benefits and said he’ll stand up to the “chaos” and “recklessness” in Washington. Brown says he “couldn’t stay on the sideline” after passage of Republicans’ big tax breaks and spending cuts bill. The 72-year-old Brown brushes aside last year’s bitter loss to Republican Bernie Moreno. Brown seeks the seat held by Trump-backed Republican Jon Husted. Husted’s campaign says Brown pushed ”radical liberal policies” as a senator.

Sherrod Brown, Ohio’s highest-profile Democrat, expected to seek a return to the US Senate in 2026

August 12, 2025

Former U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, Ohio’s best-known Democrat, is expected to make another run for the Senate next year as Democrats wage an uphill fight to win control of the chamber. Democrats view Brown as one of their most formidable candidates in 2026, despite his reelection loss to Republican Bernie Moreno last year. The former three-term senator hasn’t yet made a formal announcement, but several people familiar with his plans who were not authorized to speak publicly about them said he plans to run.

The Little Miami River flows in Oregonia, Ohio, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos)

JD Vance went kayaking for his birthday. Secret Service had the river level raised

August 7, 2025

Vice President JD Vance’s security detail had an Ohio river’s water level raised last weekend to accommodate a kayaking trip he and his family took for his 41st birthday. The U.S. Secret Service said it requested the increased waterflow for the Little Miami River to ensure motorized watercraft and emergency personnel “could operate safely” while protecting the Republican vice president, whose home is in Cincinnati. The Army Corps of Engineers action was first reported by The Guardian. Critics blasted Vance as entitled, pointing to the Trump administration’s government-cutting efforts. His office said Vance was unaware the river had been raised.

FILE –This Oct. 22, 2015 file photo shows U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Republican Jim Jordan deposed in federal suit tied to sex abuse by late Ohio State team doctor

July 22, 2025

A court filing shows Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan was questioned under oath about the sexual abuse of Ohio State University athletes decades ago by a team doctor. Jordan’s deposition Friday came in a federal lawsuit former student-athletes brought against the university alleging it failed to stop abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss, who died in 2005. Jordan was an assistant wrestling coach from 1986 to 1994, a tenure that overlapped with Strauss’s. Many ex-wrestlers have accused him of knowing about and ignoring the abuse. His office reiterated Jordan was unaware of Strauss’ crimes or “he would have dealt with it.”

FILE - William O'Neill, former Ohio Supreme Court Justice, speaks during the Ohio Democratic Party's fifth debate in the primary race for governor, Tuesday, April 10, 2018, at Miami (OH) University's Middletown campus in Middletown, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Ex-Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O’Neill joins race for district held by GOP US Rep. David Joyce

June 25, 2025

Former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O’Neill has announced plans to run for the northeast Ohio congressional seat held by Republican U.S. Rep. David Joyce. The 78-year-old Democrat said Wednesday he is coming out of retirement because he can’t “sit idly by as my government falls apart.” He says Joyce is “a nice guy” but he needs to answer for his votes in favor of President Donald Trump’s agenda and the government-cutting actions of billionaire Elon Musk. The U.S. Army veteran, registered nurse and former appellate judge served on the Ohio Supreme Court from 2013 to 2018.

FILE - Demonstrators hold a rainbow pride flag outside the Supreme Court as justices deliberate Obergefell vs. Hodges, the case that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, in Washington, April 28, 2015. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

What to know about the Supreme Court ruling 10 years ago that legalized same-sex marriage in the US

June 22, 2025

A landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling 10 years ago this month, on June 26, 2015, legalized same-sex marriage across the U.S. The Obergefell v. Hodges decision followed years of national wrangling over the issue, during which some states moved to protect domestic partnerships or civil unions for same-sex partners and others declared marriage could exist only between one man and one woman. In plaintiff James Obergefell’s home state of Ohio, voters had overwhelmingly approved such an amendment in 2004 — effectively mirroring the federal Defense of Marriage Act. That laid the political groundwork for the legal challenge that bears his name.

FILE - Republican U.S. Rep. Max Miller speaks before President Donald Trump at a rally in support of the campaign of Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance at Wright Bros. Aero Inc. at Dayton International Airport on Nov. 7, 2022, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

Police in northeast Ohio arrest man who allegedly menaced GOP US Rep. Max Miller on interstate

June 20, 2025

A northeast Ohio man was arrested and charged with threatening Republican U.S. Rep. Max Miller while the two were traveling along Interstate 90 near Cleveland on Thursday. Rocky River police said 36-year-old Feras Hamdan, of Westlake, voluntarily turned himself in and awaits a court appearance. A message was left with his lawyer seeking comment. Miller, who is Jewish, told a 911 dispatcher that he was on his way to work when another driver cut him off, gestured, showed a Palestinian flag and spewed antisemitic slurs and death threats. Local and federal authorities continue to investigate.

Julie Carr Smyth.