Clerk of courts sued for racial discrimination, retaliation and hostile work environment

July 23, 2026

YOUNGSTOWN — A woman who contends Mahoning County Clerk of Courts Michael Ciccone fired her after she reported to the human resources department that he called her a racial slur, is suing him for racial discrimination, retaliation and having a hostile work environment. Thais Scott of Girard, a former clerk of courts’ administrator who is black, filed the lawsuit in common pleas court. Represented by attorney Corey J. Grimm, Scott is seeking back pay, lost future wages, restoration of lost benefits, emotional distress damages and damages to her professional reputation. The lawsuit ...

War in Iran has cost US $37.5B

July 22, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faced questions and protests Tuesday over the U.S. war with Iran, which he estimated has cost $37.5 billion so far, as Republicans prepare a $95 billion GOP budget package to fund the military, along with other White House ...

Federal judge appoints receiver to oversee Schwebel’s

July 22, 2026

The specialist hired in March by Schwebel Baking Co. to restructure the faltering venture was appointed Monday to wind down operations of the baked goods business. U.S. District Judge John R. Adams named Jacen Dinoff as receiver in response to Spectrum Commercial Finance’s emergency motion ...

New attacks upstage diplomacy as Houthis declare new blockade

July 22, 2026

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The U.S. military said it completed the 11th night of strikes on Iran early Wednesday as attacks across the Middle East overshadowed diplomatic efforts in Pakistan to salvage an interim ceasefire deal that has collapsed. U.S. Central Command said targets included aircraft ...

Hope emerges for customers of SOBE energy

July 22, 2026

By DAVID SKOLNICK Staff writer YOUNGSTOWN — An option for downtown Youngstown businesses to get off SOBE Thermal Energy System LLC’s steam heat system involving a state treasurer program, a credit union and a contracting firm is in its preliminary phase, but a resolution could be forthcoming. Various state officials met Tuesday with some SOBE customers and others to discuss the proposal. State Sen. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, who organized the meeting, said: “This is a really great outside-the-box approach to solve a tremendous issue impacting downtown Youngstown. A finished ...

Ohio EPA rejects blanket wastewater permit for all data centers

July 22, 2026

Citing public opposition, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency rejected a request for a blanket permit for data centers to discharge wastewater and decided to consider each project individually. In a Tuesday ruling, the state EPA wrote: “After carefully reviewing the significant volume of public comments received on the draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System general permit for data centers, Ohio EPA has decided not to move forward with finalizing the general permit” that would have allowed data centers to dump wastewater into the state’s waterways. The EPA ...