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At least 11 positive COVID-19 cases can be linked to the first presidential debate organizers, Cleveland officials said Friday. The news comes on the heels of President Donald Trump’s announcement that he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the virus early Friday morning, NBC reported. Trump was transported via Marine 1 to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Friday evening “out of an abundance of caution.” “The City of Cleveland is aware of positive cases of Covid-19 following the Sept. 29 presidential debate,” according to a City Hall statement. “We advise anyone who has come in contact with...

'The City of Cleveland is aware of positive cases of COVID-19 following the Sept. 29 presidential debate,' the city said in a statement.  'In total, at this time, we are aware of 11 cases stemming from pre-debate planning and set-up, with the majority of cases occurring among out of state residents.'

Some Cleveland businesses aren't taking any chances ahead of Tuesday's first presidential debate and have started boarding up storefronts and offices over concerns of possible unrest coupled with a contentious election season. President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are set to square off at the Health Education Campus at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic in the first of three debates before the Nov. 3 election. Griffin represents Ward 6, the Fairfax neighborhood where the event will be held. Given the unrest that has gripped the country in recent months, it has some businesses in the...

Nine Ohio counties are now under red alert in the state’s coronavirus advisory system, with Cuyahoga County continuing a step lower at orange for the the sixth consecutive week, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Thursday. The red counties because of growing or lingering COVID-19 spread include the addition of five this week - Ashland, Delaware, Pike, Scioto and Stark. Four others remain there from the previous week - Butler, Mercer, Montgomery and Putnam. A week ago there were five red counties, the lowest number since DeWine introduced the four-level advisory system July 2.... Each county is graded on seven criteria. Meeting...

It all seems par for the course for Cleveland. Baker Mayfield bounced back from a rough first week to lead the Cleveland Browns over the Joe Burrow-led Cincinnati Bengals, 35-30, on Thursday night. And approximately 6,000 fans were fortunate enough to watch in person when Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced earlier this month that 6,000 could attend despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The Browns (1-1) prepared fans with a detailed video on their website that delved into social distancing and safety protocols for FirstEnergy Stadium. Everyone attending had to sign a “health promise” and had specific entry times and locations. There...

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Baker Mayfield planned to make a stand. Instead, he’ll stand. After watching the Chiefs and Texans receive backlash from the Kansas City crowd for their “show of unity” prior to Thursday’s game, Mayfield has decided he will stand for the national anthem before Sunday’s game against the Ravens after the Browns quarterback previously said he would “absolutely” kneel during the song. Mayfield is a member of the team’s 11-player social justice committee. “After reading many letters and messages… I have been showed [sic] that a gesture such as kneeling will only create more division or discussion about the gesture, rather...

Browns quarterback said not once, but twice, that he would kneel during the anthem this season. However, a message from the Miami Dolphins seems to have convinced the young signal-caller that the path to “real change,” doesn’t lie with on-the-field gestures.

Three suspects were in custody in Cleveland on Friday after an officer was shot and killed on Thursday night, officials said. Officer James Skernivitz, 53, who had been with the department since 1998, was shot and killed, officials told news outlets. Skernivitz was working on an undercover drug operation as he and his informant were ambushed while in a car, officials said. Police Chief Calvin Williams told CBS News that “Cleveland lost one of its finest” with his death. “Detective Skernivitz gave his life trying to keep danger off the streets of Cleveland. This tragedy shows once again the valor...

Skernivitz had been sworn in as a member of the Violent Crime Task Force to work as part of Operation Legend this past Wednesday. The federal operation has aimed to crack down on violent crime in several major U.S. cities. The chief described the shooting victim as an “excellent” member of the force. The shooting unfolded in the west side of the city around 10 p.m., police union president Jeff Follmer told Fox 8. The police officer had been riding in a patrol car that was fired upon several times, with the car crashing, sources told the station. The officer...

DEVELOPING: 2 police officers reported shot on the Westside of Cleveland; few details available

A radio host in Cleveland has been fired for using an offensive term to describe Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris of California. During WTAM radio’s broadcast Wednesday of the Cleveland Indians’ game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, host Kyle Cornell used the term “colored” to describe Harris during a cut-in.

A radio station in Cleveland fired a news anchor this week after her referred to Democrat Kamala Harris as the nation’s “first colored vice presidential candidate,” according to reports. Anchor Kyle Cornell, 26, used the description of Harris in a news promo spot that aired during WTAM radio’s broadcast of a Cleveland Indians baseball game, Cleveland.com reported. Some baseball fans quickly posted negative reactions on social media, Cleveland's WKYC-TV reported.

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Cleveland Indians teammates took a unified approach by standing shoulder-to-shoulder in solidarity ahead of Monday’s exhibition game at Progressive Field against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The players and team staff stood next to each other with their right hand on their heart and the left on the shoulder of the person in front of them. By Chris Anderson | July 21, 2020 at 4:02 PM EDT - Updated July 21 at 4:02 PM CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Cleveland Indians teammates took a unified approach by standing shoulder-to-shoulder in solidarity ahead of Monday’s exhibition game at Progressive Field...

FBI raids offices at downtown One Cleveland Center building tied to Ukrainian oligarchCLEVELAND, Ohio — The FBI on Tuesday raided the Cleveland offices of a company with ties to a Ukrainian oligarch that owns several downtown buildings. FBI spokeswoman Vicki Anderson said agents searched the offices of Optima Management Group in One Cleveland Center at East 9th Street and St. Clair Avenue. A spokesman for the IRS also said his agency’s investigators were present....Anderson said agents also executed search warrants at an office in Miami.Federal authorities in Cleveland have been conducting a wide-ranging probe involving Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky that...

The violent protests in Cleveland on May 30 is estimated to have cost businesses $6.3 million, according to the Downtown Cleveland Alliance. Alliance President and CEO Joe Marinucci gave the estimate during a Cuyahoga County meeting Monday. Marinucci said the costs included an estimated $3.38 million in physical property damages and slightly less than $3 million in lost business due to the violent protests, Cleveland.com reported. Dozens of Cleveland businesses were damaged after protests of the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer turned into looting and violence on Saturday, May 30. The Downtown Cleveland Alliance created a...

Today, the expansion of Operation Legend was announced in Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee. Operation Legend is a sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative in which federal law enforcement agencies work in conjunction with state and local law enforcement officials to fight violent crime. The Operation was first launched on July 8 in Kansas City, Missouri, and expanded on July 22, 2020, to Chicago and Albuquerque.Operation Legend is named in honor of four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was shot and killed while he slept early in the morning of June 29 in Kansas City. The first federal arrest under Operation Legend was announced...

The Trump administration is sending additional federal agents and funding to Cleveland, Milwaukee and Detroit, expanding a program that has targeted Democratic-run cities facing increases in violent crime. The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the deployment of dozens of federal officers to the three cities to assist local law enforcement as part of Operation Legend. The administration has already sent agents to Kansas City, Mo., and Chicago as part of the program as Democratic leaders express reluctance about the government's intentions amid clashes involving the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in Portland, Ore. "For decades, the Department of Justice has...

Several Cleveland Indians players met with the team's ownership on Tuesday to discuss changing the name of the team, following the decision by Washington's NFL team to change its name. In addition to the players and team owner Paul Dolan, manager Terry Francona, president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and general manager Mike Chernoff were also all involved in the dialogue, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported. “I was really, really happy and content to just sit there and let them talk back and forth,” Francona said. “It’s one of the reasons that I speak so glowingly of our organization. Today...

Cuyahoga County is relying on complaints to enforce its mask mandate. Officials set up a hotline and website (https://tinyurl.com/ybo5tbr5) to report people and businesses not wearing masks, for workers to follow up on complaints. The hotline started at 3 p.m. Friday and had more than 500 complaints by this morning. Would you log a complaint? Do you think it's an effective way to make sure people are following the law?