The Cincinnati Enquirer from Cincinnati, Ohio • Page 13

INSIDE Letter: Planning official should step down. B3 SECTION FN Editor: Julie Engebrecht, jengebrechtenquirer.com, 513-768-86QO WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, BOOB TRACK STORMS IHcD 1 O) mmHmmmMrmtfhm a.ttnf JLm? mmm Sheriff: 'Desperate criminals' planned to chisel out 1 1 A Connect Uberty.com To start or join a discussion about this story, get the latest headlines or post your own news, go online to connectLiberty.com Johnson Douglass Candidate By Sheila McLaughlin smclaughlinenquirer.com HAMILTON-Aconfiden-tial tip helped thwart an apparent breakout attempt by four high-profile Butler County inmates, Sheriff Rick Jones said Tuesday. Two convicted killers, an alleged bank robber and a man accused of terrorizing his ex-girlfriend's family at knifepoint in West Chester Township planned to scrape their way out through the jail's concrete walls, then use the same "crudely-made" tools to take hostages, he said. All were housed in the maximum-security wing at the Hanover Street jail. Two of Monte Mayer.

"It's safe to say they are no longer in close contact with each other." Jones applauded the actions of his staff for foiling the breakout The slight damage mortar was scraped away from the concrete wall blocks in the cell that Bedinghaus and Douglass shared did not compromise security at the jail, he said. No other damage was found, and Mayer wouldn't say what roles Johnson and Candidate are alleged to have played in the escape plan. He wouldn't describe the type of tools used, but said they were "fabricated from materials that were normally found in the pods." Douglass, of Middletown, is to be sentenced June 11 for the stabbing death of Sabya-sachi Debnath, 31, at the Tri-County Inn in West Chester. He faces life with parole eligibility after 20, 25 or 30 years, or life with no possibility for parole. Candidate was headed to trial June 16 on more than a dozen charges, including multiple counts of kidnapping, aggravated burglary, grand theft, robbery and felonious assault for allegedly slashing his ex-girlfriend's father.

"They are dangerous and desperate criminals," said sheriffs spokesman Sgt them have a history of escape. Harvey Johnson 33; James Bedinghaus 34; Michael Douglass, 18; and Ter-rence "Alabama" Candidate, 23, now face additional charges involving the escape plan, which corrections officers said they uncovered Monday. Johnson is due to be sentenced to life in prison Friday summer in Fairfield Municipal Court Bedinghaus has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the Jan. 23 robbery of First Financial Bank in Hamilton and a Feb. 1 standoff with police after he escaped from officers and allegedly held two people hostage at their Hamilton home.

for killing his girlfriend, Kiva Gazaway of Liberty Township, and dumping her body in a Blue Ash ravine. A Butler County jury last month declined to give him the death sentence. Johnson already has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for grabbing a bailiffs gun and trying to escape during a hearing last When severe weather threatens, you can track storms on our Web site. Forecasts, radar images, storm warnings and other weather facts are easy to find. Visit and click on the weather icon.

lews Briefs Cincinnati to host round of cornhole tournament After the smoke clears, 2 homicides uncovered Fire intentionally set to conceal bodies, police say ipvm iim- -iff. I I By Eileen Kelley ekelleyenquirer.com EASTWALNTJT HILLS -A fire in one unit of an apartment building Tuesday may have been deliberately set in an attempt to cover up a double homicide, police said. Cincinnati firefighters were called to 2521 Hackberry St at 3:36 p.m. Shortly after arriving, they found Vernon Allmond, barely clinging to life. The 49-year-old resident died at the scene.

After heading back into the building to fight the blaze, firefighters discovered the body of another resident a -t Tfi- By Howard Wilkinson hwilkinsonenquirer.com This could have been big trouble for Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland when he runs for re-election in two years: Holding a statewide cornhole tournament without a single match played in Cincinnati, which, to many cornholers, is to cornhole what St. Andrews is to golf the ancestral home. How many votes on Cincinnati's West Side could that cost him? An item popped up on the Ohio Democratic Party's Web site this week announcing details of Ted Strickland's 2008 Cornhole Tournament Tour, a round-robin affair that will take place in eight Ohio towns in July and August with the state championship to be held in September at the governor's annual birthday celebration in his home town of Lucasville. Cincinnati didn't make the list Alex Goepfert, a spokesman for the governor's campaign committee, said Tuesday that will soon be rectified.

"There will be a Cincinnati round, and the time and date will be released in the next day or two," said Goepfert Cleveland is not on the list of tournament towns, either, but Cleveland doesn't claim the affinity for cornhole that Cincinnati has. The game of tossing corn-filled bags into holes on wooden game boards has been a staple of family picnics for generations, especially on Cincinnati's West Side. According to the Web site of the American Cornhole Association based in Warren County-no one is quite sure how the game began, but some people trace it back to 14th-century Germany. It was rediscovered about 100 years ago in the hills of Kentucky. Kentuckians brought it with them when they moved north of the Ohio River generations ago.

1 I Freedman Gerald Freedman, 68, was found in a different area of the building. Police did not disclose the manner of death for either man. Allmond had lived in the building about five years. Fire officials said the fire was contained to one unit and put out quickly. Allmond's friends and family were overcome first with worry when they didn't see him outside the building, and then with lit fl grief after they learned of his WEATHER Tornadoes, storms roll through area Waves of storms moved through Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Tuesday, and the last watch a tornado watch for much of the area did not expire until 3 a.m.

today. At one point, there were tornado warnings in Boone, Ohio and Switzerland counties, and later in Butler and Clinton counties. At one point, Duke Energy reported nearly 20,000 outages. There were multiple reports of funnel clouds during the storms, but no reported touchdowns. The storms also featured scattered hail, high winds and frequent lightning strikes.

Storms are expected to move out of the area today. COLERAIN TWP. Home firefighters died in is razed Contractors razed the house on Squirrels Nest Lane Tuesday where two Colerain Township firefighters died April 4. Capt Robin Broxterman and Firefighter Brian Schira lost their lives battling a blaze that started in the basement of a home owned by Sharyn and Matt Cones. The couple was not injured in the fire.

TRAFFIC PROTEST Coalition fighting red-light cameras The NAACP-led coalition of groups trying to stop Cincinnati from installing cameras at red lights said Tuesday that members have collected 5,500 signatures. We Demand A Vote needs 8,600 signatures from registered Cincinnati voters by Aug. 1 to get the issue onto the November ballot Co-chairman Josh Krekeler said they haven't been checking the signatures for validity, so they don't know how many of the 5,500 will be usable. They're aiming for 15,000 signatures by July 8. ahare your news, photos and vents published! Share your news and photos on your community's page at I Cincinnati.Com using Get-Published! Post news about your family, activities, teams you name it It's easy and free.

Search: GetPubllshedl Allmond lease icu uic my uiuuiei alive. Please tell me my brother's alive," said Greg Allmond, as he escorted his 82-year-old mother up the street about 6:15 p.m. The prospect of losing her son was too much for Connie Allmond of Evanston. Not long after she arrived, Greg pleaded with her to take medication for her weak heart "I'm 82 years old," she said, explaining to her son that it was time for her to die. "I know, but you are all I've got now, Mama," Greg Allmond said.

See FIRE, Page B5 -v About the tournament The Ted Strickland for Governor 2008 Cornhole Tournament Tour is sponsored by the Ohio Com Growers Association. Strickland's tournament will include competition for individual players and two-member teams, with a $50 registration charge for singles and $100 for doubles. The governor plans to travel the state to personally kick off each tournament For more information on Strickland's tournament, go to PVIDEO Mm mi The EnquirerGary Landers Cincinnati firefighters regroup Tuesday after knocking down the blaze at an apartment building on Hackberry Street in East Walnut Hills Go to Cincinnati.Com to watch a video of the East Walnut Hills fire. Search: video Mesh 'hat' keeps Freckles from cicada snacks By Steve Kemme skemmeenquirer.com MARIEMONT To Freckles, cicadas are tasty Paul Levitas, a veterinarian at the Animal Hospital on Mount Lookout Square, said cicadas aren't poisonous and pose no serious health risk. "It's just gastro-intestinal problems," he said.

"You might have vomiting, but nothing more." With Freckles unable to munch on cicadas, she is preoccupied with another beloved activity chasing squirrels. Fortunately for the squirrels and the Aliens, the squirrels are faster. mesh net which they refer to as Freckles' hat For the past couple of weeks, the dog has been wearing her hat outside, drawing puzzled stares and laughs from onlookers. "The first few times she went out with it on, she reached up with her paw to get it off her head," Paul Allen said. "Now, she comes and sits down and waits for you to put her hat on her.

She's probably wondering why she hasn't had to wear it for the last four years." So midway through the 2004 cicada incursion, Paul Allen devised a way to prevent Freckles from eating the insects: He placed a mesh bag used for laundering lingerie over the dog's head before letting her outside. "After multiple cleanups in the house, the idea just came to me," Allen said. It worked. Just before the current onslaught of cicadas started, the Aliens bought a new lingerie morsels meant to be consumed in mass quantities. During the cicada invasion of 2004, Freckles, part golden retriever and part Australian shepherd, became sick several times from eating too many cicadas.

Her owners, Paul and Bren-da Allen of Mariemont soon grew tired of cleaning up. Provided photo Freckles wears a mesh bag as a hat when she goes outdoors to keep her from eating too many tasty cicadas. On Medicare? Have Osteoarthritis? You may qualify for a special healthcare plan. Talk to HUMANA today: 1-800-304-3151 fv10006GHA01 ERRR.