Cleveland, OH

They’re everywhere and they’re writing tickets, left and right. If you’re driving on I-90 or I-480, try not to put the pedal to the metal. Otherwise you’ll end up driving away with a ticket. I first noticed the state troopers all spanned out across both 480 and 90, just recently. Some had already caught some speeders and others waiting on their prey.

Via NewsNet5:

The Ohio State Highway Patrol hopes that more than 2,700 speeding tickets issued in recent weeks sent a strong message to drivers to slow down.

Troopers will end a Cleveland-area crackdown Friday night after spending five weeks policing parts of Interstates 480 and 90.

The program was an attempt to decrease the number of deaths on Cuyahoga County roadways, where more accidents occur than in any other part of the state.

During the crackdown, troopers stopped more than 3,400 drivers and issued nearly 700 warnings.

That ought to bring in some serious revenue, I’m sure the state will be happy with that. It’s a good thing that the crackdown is ending, but I’m sure the speeding won’t.

Cleveland Heights Police Officer Jason West was gunned down by Timothy Halton, Jr, May 25, 2007. The suspect has claimed that he always wanted to kill a police officer. The disturbance started over a woman and ended in the death of this brave officer, just after he stepped out of his cruiser.

Halton, 27, of South Euclid, is in Cuyahoga County Jail awaiting his arraignment Wednesday.
He has a long history of mental illness and has been diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic.

Per Cleveland.com, the prosecution is looking for the death penalty:

Ohio law virtually mandates a death-penalty charge when an aggravated-murder victim is an
officer killed on duty. West, 31, had pulled up to the driveway of an Altamont Avenue
home in response to a reported street brawl and had just stepped out of his cruiser when
he was shot, police and witnesses said. He died shortly afterward.

This is a terrible shame and you can share your condolescences with the family here. Jason West served with the Cleveland Heights Police Department for seven years and is survived by his parents and sister.

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