COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A legal dispute over changes to voting rules in swing state Ohio is now in the hands of a federal judge. At issue are a series of Republican-backed revisions that Democrats allege disproportionately burden black voters and those who lean Democratic. The state’s Democratic Party is among the plaintiffs suing the state’s Republican elections chief over …

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — State officials preached road safety Tuesday in anticipation of heavy end-of-year holiday travel, as Ohio already has dozens more traffic deaths this year than in all of 2014. State Highway Patrol statistics show 1,023 traffic fatalities confirmed so far in 2015, with several dozen more not yet verified. Ohio had 981 traffic deaths in 2014. The …

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Gov. John Kasich said Tuesday that he wants further cuts to the state’s income tax — even after a year that saw certain small-business taxes reduced to zero and across-the-board reductions statewide. “We have to lower the income tax more,” Kasich, a Republican presidential contender, said during year-end remarks to the Westerville Chamber of Commerce. “With …

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (AP) — Authorities say an early morning crash in northwest Ohio has left two people dead. The Sentinel-Tribune reports a Saturn SL didn’t yield for a stop sign while making a turn in Lake Township and collided with another car just after midnight Sunday. The driver and passenger of the Saturn were trapped and had to be …

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — A European wind developer will take the lead on building a new wind farm project in Lake Erie that’s designed to show the potential for alternative energy along the Ohio shoreline. Backers say the $120 million pilot project is expected to be up and running in 2018. Lake Erie Energy Develop-ment Corp. announced that Norwegian-based Fred.Olsen …

CLEVELAND — A Cleveland-area teen missing for nearly a month was found at a house in eastern Missouri where she was held captive by a 41-year-old man she met online, authorities said Wednesday. Federal prosecutors said the man had sex with the 15-year-old girl several times, destroyed her cellphone and told her to change her appearance and use a different …

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio transportation agency is expected to use nearly $7 million in federal money to upgrade technology of rural transit agencies and increase broadband Internet access in areas with insufficient service. More than 30 rural transit service areas will receive upgrades under the Transit Tech Ohio project, The Columbus Dispatch reported (http://bit.ly/1Simju9), including software, broadband access, …

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Patrons at basketball games and other sporting events can soon buy alcoholic beverages throughout an Ohio State University arena. The Columbus Dispatch reports that beer and wine will be available at the Jerome Schottenstein Center to visitors beyond the venue’s club level. Fans will be able to get alcoholic drinks in the entry and terrace levels …

TIFFIN, Ohio (AP) — Police say an Ohio man was drunk when he had his 9-year-old neighbor drive him to a gas station to buy barbecue sauce for their chicken dinner. that the boy drove the man to the gas station Saturday evening, but clerks wouldn’t let the child drive home and reported the situation. Police say the 27-year-old man …

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Republican majority in the Ohio House is taking a serious look at the issue of medical marijuana and discussing potential legislation, the House speaker said Wednesday, a day after voters rejected a broader pot legalization proposal. House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger told reporters that legalizing marijuana for medical use has support within his GOP caucus, and …