Rig carrying beer overturns on I-71

        A semi-tractor-trailer rig filled with cases of beer overturned Thursday morning just outside the Lytle Tunnel on Interstate 71 downtown.

A semi-tractor-trailer rig filled with cases of beer overturned on southbound Interstate 71 on Thursday. (Glenn Hartong photo) | ZOOM |

        The truck driver was ticketed for failing to control around a curve. The 4 a.m. wreck shut I-71 and the entrance ramps from Columbia Parkway and U.S. 50. One I-71 lane was opened by rush hour but the rest were closed until mid-afternoon, said traffic unit Sgt. Bill Coombs.

        Jeffrey Allen Walters, 31, of Sterling Heights, Mich., was headed south when the truck rolled onto its left side. He was hauling the beer for Schneider National Truckers, Ottawa, Ill.

        Mr. Walters suffered minor injuries, but declined emergency aid.

        Officials from the Ohio Department of Transportation examined the roadway for damage.
       

8 birds test positive for West Nile virus

        Seven dead crows and one blue jay in six Ohio counties have tested positive for the West Nile virus, the Ohio Department of Health announced Thursday.

        None of the eight dead birds came from Southwest Ohio counties and no human or horse cases have been found in the state.

        “This is no surprise. Finding evidence of West Nile virus in the spring is consistent with our expectations,” said Dr. J. Nick Baird, ODH director. “It should, however, serve as reminder to Ohioans that the virus is here.”

        Ohio is one of a dozen states to detect West Nile in 2002.

        West Nile was first found in the United States in New York City in 1999, when the virus infected 62 people and killed seven. Still, the risk to humans remains low.

        The West Nile virus is spread to people only through the bite of an infected mosquito. It cannot be spread person-to-person, Dr. Baird said.

        If anyone finds a dead crow or blue jay, they should contact their local health department, officials said.
       

Pleasant Ridge man sentenced in break-ins

        A 42-year-old Pleasant Ridge man was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison Thursday for burglarizing houses in his neighborhood and in nearby Kennedy Heights.

        Appearing before Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Norbert Nadel, Larry Williams claimed innocence despite being convicted of multiple break-ins.

        In one instance, DNA testing was used to prove that blood found at one of the crime scenes belonged to Mr. Williams, who would enter the homes by breaking a window or forcing a lock.

        The burglaries took place in September and October. In one case a knife was held to an occupant's throat and $510 was stolen.

        Most of the residences were occupied at the time of the break-ins, according to court records.
       

Toddler critical after near-drowning

        MIDDLETOWN — A toddler remained in critical condition Thursday at Children's Hospital Medical Center following a near-drowning in a Middletown swimming pool.

        Martin Dale Ary III, almost 3, “may have stood on a lawn chair and toppled into (a) pool,” Wednesday night, police said.
       

Victim identified in one-car crash

        LIBERTY TWP. — Authorities have identified the victim of a fatal one-car crash on Ohio 129 Thursday morning as Venita Ramsey, 42, of Bellbrook, Ohio.

        Ms. Ramsey's eastbound 1999 Chrysler crashed into a guardrail on the right side of the road after she apparently overcorrected when her vehicle went off the road's left side, the Butler County sheriff's office said.
       

Group collecting plastic flower pots

        Instead of throwing away unneeded plastic flower pots, consider recycling them.

        Keep Cincinnati Beautiful will collect plastic flower pots for donation to the Civic Garden Center in Avondale from 9 a.m. until noon Saturday.

        Drop them off behind the Kroger store at Western Hills Plaza, 6150 Glenway Ave., or the College Hill Kroger, 1606 W. North Bend Road.

        Mixed paper, including cardboard, cereal boxes, junk mail, magazines and newspaper will also be accepted for recycling.

        Information: Keep Cincinnati Beautiful, 352-4380 (today) or www.keepcincinnatibeautiful.org.
       

Hearing arguments on boycott lawsuit

        A Hamilton County Common Pleas judge will hear arguments at 2 p.m. Wednesday on a motion to dismiss the Cincinnati Arts Association's lawsuit against a boycott group asking entertainers not to play downtown.

        The attorney representing the Coalition for a Just Cincinnati filed the motion, arguing the lawsuit was without merit.

        The arts group, which manages the Aronoff Center for the Arts, Music Hall and Memorial Hall, sued the coalition in March, claiming the boycott group is interfering with legal contracts between the association and performers.

        The coalition also filed suit, alleging the CAA tried to intimidate it into silence with a threat of legal action.

Foundation holding rally for peace

        The Three Square Music Foundation will host a “Push for Peace” rally on Saturday from 12-6 p.m. at the Burnett Woods bandstand in Clifton. Angela Leisure, the organization's board chairwoman, will be the featured speaker at the event, co-sponsored by the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission. Entertainment will consist of poetry readings, drill team dances and musical per formances. For information call: 731-3227.
       
       

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