A woman is facing charges after crashing her car on Interstate 75 in Findlay.

The Findlay Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol says Noelle L. Oliver, 32, of Detroit, was southbound on I-75 at 8:25 p.m. Tuesday when she drove off the right side of the road and struck an embankment.

Hanco EMS transported Oliver and her sons to Blanchard Valley Hospital where they were treated and released.

The highway patrol says Oliver was charged with OVI, child endangerment and possession of marijuana.

(the picture was taken from the Harrison Street overpass)

The recently formed group Stand Up, Stay Up rallied against racism and injustice in downtown Findlay on Wednesday.

Trent Williams, one of the founders of the group, implored people to get educated before showing up to rallies and protests.

“You have to research what you’re fighting for,” Williams told the group outside the Hancock County Courthouse.

“Go to the Black Heritage Library, if you’re going to be a part of this movement it’s mandatory that you know what you’re fighting for.”

The Black Heritage Library and Multicultural Center, at 817 Harmon Street in Findlay, was founded by Nina Parker who was in attendance at the rally.

Williams says the group is called Stand Up, Stay Up because people need to come together and “stay up” and make sure this movement doesn’t die out like others before.

The event also included some words from Mayor Christina Muryn and prayers from local faith leaders.

The City of Findlay says water line work will shut down a street and limit traffic on another.

The city says traffic will be limited to one lane going north and one lane going south in the 800 block of North Main Street on Thursday and Friday.

And Howard Street will be closed from North Cory Street to North Main Street on the same days.

The City of Findlay Water Distribution Department will be working on water lines in those areas.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has announced a series of recommendations and changes to improve accountability, training and transparency for police departments and law enforcement agencies in Ohio.

DeWine issued a number of recommendations to the Ohio Legislature for changes to state law that would, among other things: strengthen the standards for who can apply to peace officer academies, including a psychological evaluation; ban chokeholds unless in a life-or-death situation; mandate independent investigations and prosecutions of all officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths and institute a licensure process by which officers can be penalized or banned from service by an oversight board.

DeWine also announced that his recommendations will be instituted in agencies under the purview of the executive branch, such as the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Ohio Department of Corrections.

The governor said he believes most police officers are dedicated public servants, but admits there are some who don’t belong in law enforcement.

A man from the Lima area is heading to prison for a very long time after being sentenced for sex-trafficking a minor.

According to U.S. District Court records in Columbus, 28-year-old Nicholas Cochran was sentenced to nearly 42 years in prison.

Prosecutors say Cochran posted online ads promoting sex with a 14-year-old child on websites in the Dayton, Columbus, Lima, and Findlay areas.

Cochran was arrested in August 2019 as part of Operation Independence Day, a nationwide FBI-led sting to rescue victims from sex traffickers.

Cochran was also ordered to pay full restitution to his victim and he’ll remain under court supervision for the rest of his life.

Officials at Columbus State Community College are going to remove the large statue of Christopher Columbus from the campus.

CSCC President David Harrison released a statement about the decision, saying it’s being done as part of the school’s commitment to accelerate the fight against systemic racism.

“This decision did not emerge solely in the wake of the senseless murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery but was a years-long dialogue out of concern and support for students of color who have been harmed and traumatized by systemic racism,” Harrison said.

Central Ohio Native American groups have long called for the removal of the statue.

Harrison said a new art installation would be chosen later to be erected at the site of the statue.

(picture courtesy of CSCC)

Good news for people who have been forced to take a detour for the past three months because of the bridge deck replacement project at U.S. 68 over State Route 15 on the south side of Findlay.

The Ohio Department of Transportation says the project is on schedule to be completed in the middle of July.

On March 16th, the U.S. 68 bridge over State Route 15 closed for a scheduled four month project to replace the bridge.

Just this week crews worked overnight to pour the bridge deck and ODOT snapped the picture below.

The ramps to State Route 15 east and U.S. 68 north/State Route 15 west have remained open during the project.

State Route 15 traffic has been maintained under the bridge although periodic lane closures have been necessary.

ODOT has been required to monitor a nearby bald eagles nest for distress during the project.

Officials say the bald eagles and their three eaglets have been doing fine.

The West Ohio Food Bank has two food distributions coming up in Hancock County.

On Thursday, June 18th they will be behind 300 Davis Street at the University of Findlay, the same location a distribution was held on May 21st.

Then on Wednesday, June 24th they’ll be at Maranatha Bible Church at 10965 State Route 613 in Van Buren.

The Ohio National Guard will be helping at both locations.

Both events will go from 1 to 3.

No pre-registration is necessary.

The West Ohio Food Bank says, although some people are getting back to work, the need for food assistance is still very high as the pandemic continues.

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Ohio is having to borrow money from the federal government to pay all of the unemployment claims.

Governor Mike DeWine announced that the state is requesting $3.1 billion from the U.S. Department of Labor.

DeWine says that amount is actually more than is needed, but says the overage will be used as a line of credit in case it’s needed.

The loan ensures that those receiving a weekly check and those who apply for assistance in the future will receive benefits without interruption

The Marathon LPGA Classic has been pushed back to August.

The tournament will now be played the week of August 3-9 at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania with $2 million in prize money.

The Marathon Classic will allow fans as previously reported.

In addition, the LPGA has announced a second tournament to be played in Toledo the week before the Marathon Classic.

This tournament will be a “one-time” tournament and be called the LPGA Drive On Championship.

It will be played at Inverness Club with a purse of $1 million.

No spectators will be in attendance. It will be televised on the Golf Channel.

The Drive On tournament was created to give players, who had been idle since February, an additional playing opportunity.