Regional Features: Archive by Date

February 2000

Is RTA Going in Circles?
Posted Tuesday, February 29
The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority celebrates its 25th anniversary this year with plans to redraw the public transportation map. But some critics think RTA is heading in the wrong direction. 90.3's David C. Barnett examines the transit system's track record and where new leadership may take it.

Trouble at River Valley High: Part Three
Posted Friday, February 25
Remedial Study Update The Army Corps of Engineers presented yesterday a long-awaited report on contamination at the River Valley School District in Marion county. As 90.3 WCPN reported earlier this week, Marion seems to be experiencing an unusually high rate of leukemia and other cancers, and this Remedial Investigation is the latest step in ongoing efforts to pinpoint the trouble at River Valley.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: Dramatic Week in the Sheppard Trial
Posted Friday, February 25
It's been a dramatic week in the wrongful imprisonment trial of Dr. Sam Sheppard. On Tuesday Sam Reece Sheppard, son of the late physician, took the witness stand. As testimony unfolds, the legal strategies of both sides are becoming apparent. 90.3's Ley Garnett reports.

When I’m 64: Aging in America: What Boomers Will Demand
Posted Thursday, February 24
Since they came of age in the 1960's, members of the Baby Boom Generation have dominated American culture. Their sheer numbers have created sweeping changes in the workplace, the economy, and in family life. Now the first wave of Boomers is heading towards retirement. Projections are that by the year 2035, seventy million Baby Boomers will be age 65 or older. What will older Boomers demand of government, of the marketplace - and of their children? As we continue our series, "When I'm Sixty-Four: Aging in America," 90.3's Karen Schaefer brings us this report.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: CourtTV Reporter Clara Tuma Talks with 90.3’s Yolanda Perdomo
Posted Wednesday, February 23
Clara Tuma is a reporter for Court TV who's been specializing in legal journalism for 14 years. She's covered some of the highest profile trials in the nation, including the trials of former au pair Louise Woodward, Long Island Railroad gunman Colin Ferguson, South Carolina's Susan Smith, and Texas cadet killers David Graham and Diane Zamora. She also covered the War Crimes Tribunal from the Hague. Prior to joining Court TV, Ms. Tuma was a reporter at Texas Lawyer, a newspaper covering the Texas legal system, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and the now defunct Houston Post. She earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Texas. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo spoke to Clara Tuma about the Sam Sheppard trial and the media coverage that has surrounded this historic case.

Mega-Farms
Posted Wednesday, February 23
So called "mega-farms" have come under fire for odors, clouds of flies and other problems related to having millions of chickens on a single farm. The Ohio Attorney General has threatened to take Buckeye Egg operators to court over environmental violations. Now the federal government is involved in the issue. The feds say Ohio isn't doing enough to protect the environment and may withhold money to punish the state. 90.3' Mike West reports.

Trouble at River Valley High: Part Two
Posted Tuesday, February 22
New information is due out this week about environmental problems in Marion, Ohio. State and military teams are investigating what appears to be an unusually high rate of leukemia and other cancers among graduates of River Valley Schools. The district is demanding the government step in to help. But the situation at River Valley is complicated. 90.3's April Baer has the second of two reports on the contamination of this former military depot, and who might be responsible for it.

Trouble at River Valley High: Part One
Posted Monday, February 21
This week families in Marion, Ohio are hoping to get some answers. In this small town of about forty thousand, graduates of the River Valley School district have been contracting leukemia at an alarming rate. For years, state officials have been looking into a possible cause. In the first of two reports, 90.3's April Baer has some background on the mystery surrounding River Valley.

Fuel Cell Technology Could Revolutionize the World
Posted Friday, February 18
For years, the development of alternative energy technologies that promise environmental benefits - technologies like wind and solar power - has remained largely outside the mainstream of American big business. But now that's changing, due in part to new environmental leadership in northeast Ohio. Recent advances in technology, combined with growing concerns about the environmental consequences of burning fossil fuels, are turning some industry leaders toward green research. The most promising of these new energy sources is fuel cell technology. As 90.3's Karen Schaefer reports, some experts predict fuel cells could revolutionize the world as we know it.

Finding the Starting Point from Welfare to Work
Posted Tuesday, February 15
The crush of people moving from welfare-to-work is weighing heavily on day care providers in Cuyahoga County. A state deadline to get people off public assistance and into the workforce has put many parents into a double bind. They must search for a job and for daycare at the same time. 90.3's David C. Barnett reports on new program that aims to solve both problems.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: Opening Statements
Posted Monday, February 14
This morning, opening statements are scheduled for the third trial involving the late Dr. Sam Sheppard....the inspiration for "The Fugitive" TV series who was convicted but later acquitted of killing his wife in 1954. Yolanda Perdomo reports.

The Future of Race Relations
Posted Thursday, February 10
At the dawn of the new millennium, people of color in America are still faced with the persistence of racial prejudice. Many whites say they don't understand why Blacks and other minorities are dismayed by the dismantling of affirmative action and other programs designed to level the playing field. But demographers predict that changes over the next thirty years will place whites in the minority and create massive shifts in the current minority populations. Are Americans ready to deal with the new diversity? 90.3's Karen Schaefer talked with three different generations in Northeast Ohio for this report on the future of race relations.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: The Sheppard Trial Media
Posted Wednesday, February 9
The public's right to know versus a person's privacy is in the spotlight again at the Sheppard trial. Judge Ronald Suster's ruling to deny access of the media during jury selection is causing concern among journalists covering this third Sheppard trial. In 1954, Dr. Sam Sheppard was convicted of killing his wife Marilyn in their Bayview home. 10 years later, an appeals court freed Sheppard after determining he received an unfair trial....and the alleged culprit was the media for excessive pre-trial publicity. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo reports on what yesterday's ruling means and how it affect's the public's right to know.

BIG IN JAPAN: the Governor’s Trade Mission
Posted Wednesday, February 9
Ohio Governor Bob Taft has just returned from a ten day trade mission to Japan, with stops in Tokyo and Osaka. His goal was to encourage Japanese companies to buy products and services from Ohio firms. This is no easy trick, since Japan's economy has been lagging over the past few quarters... Trade missions like this don't typically show immediate benefits; some times it's tough to understand how they might really help over the long run. 90.3's April Baer asked Governor Taft if the trade mission really let him do anything he couldn't accomplish from the Statehouse in Columbus....Aired February 9, 2000.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: The Sheppard Jury
Posted Thursday, February 3
Pretrial motions in the Sam Sheppard civil case is expected to wrap up this week. Work on selecting a jury may get underway as early as next week. Dr. Sam Sheppard was convicted and later acquitted on appeal of killing his wife Marilyn in the summer of 1954. Their son Sam Reese Sheppard wants his father declared innocent of the crime. The Cuyahoga county prosecutor's office and lawyers for Sam Reese have been arguing this week over the admissibility of evidence. As 90.3's/INFOHIO's Yolanda Perdomo reports, a ruling on the pretrial motions is expected tomorrow.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: The Sheppard Pretrial Part 2
Posted Wednesday, February 2
More pretrial motions are underway for the Sheppard trial. The Cuyahoga county prosecutor's office and lawyers for the Sheppard family are going over what evidence can or can't be brought into this new trial. Sam Reese Sheppard is trying to clear his father's name in his mother's murder back in 1954.

The Sam Sheppard Trial 2000: The Sheppard Pretrial Part 1
Posted Tuesday, February 1
The Sam Sheppard murder trial has started another courtroom chapter. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo tells us what went on, on day one.