Cleveland, OH
Family releases statement ahead of funeral for fallen Cleveland officer Jamieson Ritter
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Fallen Officer Jamieson Ritter will be honored and laid to rest at his funeral in Webster, New York Saturday morning.
According to his obituary, Officer Ritter’s wake went from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday evening at Falvo Funeral Home.
His funeral Saturday will be at Browncroft Community Church at 10 a.m.
19 News will stream the funeral online beginning at 10 a.m.
The family of Officer Ritter released the following statement ahead of the funeral:
Several Cleveland officers will travel to Webster for the funeral.
On Monday, hundreds of people attended the memorial service to honor Officer Ritter.
Officer Ritter, 27, was fatally shot in the line of duty while serving a felonious assault arrest warrant in the 1500 block of E. 80th St. around 1 a.m. on Thursday, July 4.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Fallen Cleveland officer Jamieson Ritter’s Ohio Army National Guard unit remembers his ‘selfless service’
The procession to the Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist on Superior Avenue downtown began just after 9 a.m. Monday from Chambers Funeral Home in the 4200 block of Rocky River Dr.
Before arriving at the cathedral, the procession drove past the Cleveland Police Third District, where Officer Ritter was assigned.
Several people spoke during the memorial service; including, Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd, Sergeant 1st Class David Lucero of the Ohio Army National Guard and Officer Ritter’s partner, Cleveland Police Officer Brittany Vajusi.
“He was not just an officer,” Chief Todd said. “He was a guardian of our community, a beacon of hope, and a symbol of strength.”
Officer Vajusi said her partner truly impacted the neighborhoods they served.
“Whether it was stopping to buy kids birthday cakes when we saw them celebrating in their backyards, stopping to let little boys and girls get in the front seat of our zone car and look around,” Officer Vajusi said.
Officer Ritter will live on forever in their hearts as a hero.
“For all that he gave to everyone that he knew and didn’t know, the least we can ever do to give back to him is to remember and to share his legacy forever,” Officer Vajusi said.
Cleveland 19 News is accepting condolences for the Ritter family.
Delawnte Hardy, 24, is charged with aggravated murder for the death of Officer Ritter. He is being held on a $5 million bond at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Cleveland police officer fatally shot in the city’s Hough neighborhood, suspect charged
Hardy was taken into custody immediately after the shooting on July 4.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Bond set at $5M for suspect in fatal shooting of Cleveland police officer
Garfield Heights Police Chief Mark Kaye said Hardy is also a suspect in the shooting of his grandma, Beatrice Porter, 63, on June 29.
Porter died from her injuries on July 4.
Copyright 2024 WOIO. All rights reserved.
Cleveland, OH
1 dead, 1 in critical condition after highway shooting: Cleveland EMS
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A woman is dead, and a man is in critical condition after a shooting on the highway early Saturday morning.
Cleveland EMS told 19 News that EMS responded to I-71N and the I-490 split for a reported shooting.
EMS said a woman in her 30s was pronounced dead on the scene.
A man was taken to Metro Health in critical condition.
According to EMS, another woman in her 30s refused transport.
19 News is working to learn more about what led up to the shooting and if any arrests have been made.
This is a developing story. Return to 19 News for updates.
Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved.
Cleveland, OH
Looking back on Bills’ last trip to Cleveland
The last time the Buffalo Bills played in Cleveland, they were still raw and hungry, which is way different than the grizzled, yet youth-driven bunch that’ll be heading there for the first time in six years on Sunday.
The Bills were in excellent shape at 6-2 in Week 10 of the 2019 NFL season and rolled into town to face a Browns team that had all the hype before the season, but had lost four straight and were at 2-6.
What happened last time Bills played Browns in Cleveland?
Baker Mayfield and the Browns drove down the field in six plays for a touchdown on the opening drive, with the rival from Josh Allen’s draft class finding Jarvis Landry for the game’s first points. Austin Seibert missed an extra point, and that turned to be critical late in the game.
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Sandwiched around a run-heavy Bills touchdown drive, capped off by an Allen 10-yard scamper that gave them a 7-6 lead in the second quarter, was a very satisfying sequence for Bills fans.
On two of the Browns’ next three possessions following their opening drive, they had the ball inside the Bills’ 3-yard line for 11 plays. Cleveland had eight plays on the first possession, and even though there were a couple of penalties on the Bills, Buffalo had a goal-line stand.
The Bills stopped the Browns on three straight goal-to-go plays on the second such possession, and Cleveland lined up to go for it on 4th-and-goal. However, a false start penalty prompted them to kick a field goal and make it a 9-7 game.
Five questions before Josh Allen, Bills face Browns
Buffalo wasn’t as fortunate on the next drive, as Stephen Hauschka shanked a 34-yard field goal wide left with time winding down, leaving the Browns with their lead into halftime.
Out of the locker room, the Bills got an immediate spark. Corey Bojorquez downed a punt at the 7-yard line, then Tremaine Edmunds sacked Mayfield in the end zone for a safety on the next play to tie the game.
The Browns tacked on a field goal on their next drive to take the lead while the Bills’ offense was stuck in quicksand, with three punts and a turnover on downs on their first four second-half possessions.
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Allen got his act together and led a seven-play, 48-yard drive and ran in a score from a yard out to give Buffalo the lead back with 5:26 left. He finished the day 22-of-41 for 266 yards passing and scored twice on the ground, but was off that day.
Mayfield responded in kind, finding Rashard Higgins in the end zone to reclaim the lead after a long drive of his own. The Bills had one more shot, but Hauschka whiffed from 53, handing the Bills a 19-16 loss.
The Bills’ and Browns’ dynamics are much more different than they were in 2019, but there can be that lingering reminder of that game for Allen as the AFC playoff race nears its end.
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Cleveland, OH
Cleveland salt mine works year-round to keep Ohio roads safe
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Road safety across Ohio begins 1,800 feet below Lake Erie at Cleveland’s Cargill salt mine near Whiskey Island.
19 News made the journey under ground to Cleveland’s Cargill salt time.
Superintendent of production Andrew Staker describes the operation as a “mini-city” where about 250 employees produce the salt that clears our roads and sidewalks.
“We provide over half the salt used here in the state of Ohio. Our salt also goes all over the Great Lakes Region even Virginia,” said Staker.
Thousands of tons of salt pass through this belt, and 500-700 trucks are loaded with salt each day.
Staker said his team works nonstop.
“It’s a big misconception that the mine is only busy during the wintertime,” said Staker. “We prepare in the springtime, so it is full giddy up. We are making salt all year round.”
Just like everyone else, Staker and his time are feeling the effects of winter’s early arrival.
“We take a lot of it snowfall by snowfall, so as demand ramps up, our teams here will put in extra overtime days to be able to meet customer demand,” said Staker.
Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved.
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