ECOT loses appeal

The Franklin County Court of Appeals on Tuesday unanimously upheld a lower-court decision rejecting ECOT’s claim that the state Board of Education violated the Open Meetings Act when it voted to order the online charter school to repay $60 million in overpayments.

The three-judge panel agreed with Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Guy Reece, who ruled in July that the Sunshine Law “does not apply to quasijudicial proceedings like the one in which (the Board of Education) was engaged in.”

Appeals Court Judges Gary Tyack, Lisa Sadler and Jennifer Brunner noted that the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow had ample opportunity to present its arguments during a 10-day proceeding before a hearing officer who presented a report to the board.

A 36-year-old man has died of injuries sustained when he was struck while crossing a Downtown street on Valentine’s Day, Columbus police reported Tuesday.

Adam Zullig was crossing North 4th Street when a car turning left from East Long Street hit him in the crosswalk. It was dark and raining when Zullig was struck at 9:27 p.m., said Sgt. Brooke Wilson of the Columbus Division of Police’s Accident Investigation Unit.

Zullig was taken to OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, where he died on Feb. 20. His family donated his organs. Police did not announce Zullig’s death sooner, Wilson said, because they were delayed in receiving his death notice.

The driver of the car stopped and cooperated with investigators. No charges have been filed; the investigation is ongoing, Wilson said.

Zullig worked at American Electric Power as a garage manager.

Services were still being finalized for Saturday.