Thursday, October 8th, 2026

Welcome to Thursday’s edition of The Pennant. To listen to this newsletter, click the “Listen Online” link in the top right corner of this email.

On this day in 1945, Percy Spencer filed a microwave patent after radar melted a candy bar in his pocket. Since then, more than 1.7 billion microwaves have been produced.

Top of the Fold today: Dayton police find a sixth child from a boarded-up home, and charges are dismissed against the grandfather in the Vinton County child endangerment case.

And with early voting underway, no debates are scheduled in Ohio's governor or Senate races. Today's editorial tells the candidates: It's a job interview. Show up.

DAYTON — Police have located a sixth child from the family whose five younger siblings were found living alone in a boarded-up Delphos Avenue home without food or electricity on Oct. 1.

 The oldest, a 15-year-old boy, wasn't home when officers arrived and missed school the next day, but officers found him at school Tuesday. 

He has been placed with Montgomery County Children Services, where his siblings were taken. 

The youngest, 4, has since been placed with a relative. The investigation continues.

MCARTHUR — Child endangerment charges against Gary Siders Sr., 73, the grandfather of 16 children rescued from a Vinton County home in June, have been dismissed after he was found incompetent to stand trial. 

The dismissal is without prejudice, meaning charges could be refiled, and the court keeps jurisdiction until civil commitment proceedings can begin. 

His wife, son and daughter-in-law remain jailed on 19 counts of child endangerment each, and their cases continue.

COLUMBUS — The Ohio Supreme Court ruled 6-1 Tuesday that the Ohio Department of Transportation can't be held liable for the 2017 death of Marquise Byrd, a car passenger killed when a teenager dropped a sandbag from a Toledo bridge onto I-75. 

The court said ODOT's decision not to use protective fencing during the bridge's reconstruction was a policy choice protected by immunity. 

Justice Jennifer Brunner dissented, calling it a negligent failure to follow ODOT's own policy. The case will be dismissed.

COLUMBUS — The candidates for Ohio attorney general will debate Oct. 19 at Youngstown State University, the first statewide debate scheduled this election season.

Republican state Auditor Keith Faber and Democrat John Kulewicz, a retired attorney and Upper Arlington City Council member, announced the agreement Tuesday. In a joint statement, they said they look forward to "a free, fair, and informative debate for Ohio voters."

The debate, hosted by the Youngstown Press Club with YSU's Office of Government Affairs, begins at 2:30 p.m. in the Williamson College of Business Administration auditorium. Retired journalist Tony Paglia, a longtime reporter and editor at The Vindicator, will moderate.

Early voting began Tuesday, and the election is Nov. 3.

Ohio voters are choosing a governor and a U.S. senator in two of the most closely watched races in the nation. With early voting underway, not a single debate is scheduled in either race.

We've seen this before. In 2024, Sherrod Brown and Bernie Moreno both said they wanted to debate but never agreed on terms, and each blamed the other. A candidate who can't handle 90 minutes of questions has no business running a state or casting votes in the U.S. Senate.

Democrat Amy Acton led Ohio's health department when the state closed schools and businesses at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. She resigned in June 2020 amid protests at her home and legislative efforts to curb her authority. She should defend those decisions in front of voters. She should also address the Bexley police report Republicans have made a campaign issue, which her campaign says has been misrepresented.

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy deserves credit for accepting debate invitations. But a billionaire who has never held elected office owes voters an explanation of his business practices and why that experience qualifies him to run state government. He could also tell us why a campaign camera crew was in the hospital room to film him kissing his newborn. Why not just use a cellphone, like the rest of us?

In the Senate race, Republican Sen. Jon Husted faces questions about his ties to FirstEnergy, the company at the center of the House Bill 6 bribery scandal. He has never been charged with wrongdoing, but he owes voters an account of how it happened on his watch as lieutenant governor. Brown voted for the Affordable Care Act and the Inflation Reduction Act and supported Biden-era border policies. Where either man's positions have shifted, he should tell us why.

Ohio families face issues that affect their quality of life, and they want to know how each candidate would fix an unmanageable property tax system. They want to know whether they'll have a choice in where their children go to school, and whether vouchers will help them make it. They want to know where the candidates stand on parents' rights, and whether girls should compete against biological boys in school sports. Culture drives politics now, so own it. Answer in plain English, not campaign-speak.

Pennant readers have jobs. They go to work. They don't have the option of skipping uncomfortable conversations. This is a job interview. The least you can do is show up.

The Pennant welcomes your feedback. Share your view at [email protected].

The Pennant welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns from readers. Submissions may be edited for length, clarity, and AP style. The Pennant reserves the right to verify all information contained in submissions before publication.

Please send all submissions to [email protected]