Former Procter & Gamble Chairman Robert McDonald vowed an aggressive series of reforms during his first three months as head of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, telling a Senate committee today that “the seriousness of this moment demands action.”

NEWARK, Ohio — A former Newark High School assistant band director pleaded guilty today to 13 counts involving inappropriate sexual contact with three students. Anthony J. Miller could be sentenced to up to five years on each sexual battery count, and faces additional prison or jail time on each of the other counts. Ten of the 13 counts also are sexually oriented offenses, meaning Miller likely will have to register as a sex offender. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug.15.

Calling Russian President Vladimir Putin “Czar Putin,” Rep. Pat Tiberi today urged President Barack Obama to step up efforts to export natural gas to Europe to encourage European countries to back tougher economic sanctions against Russia.

It took dental records to make a positive identification, but the Pickaway County sheriff’s office now knows for certain who was killed in a crash Sunday just north of Circleville. Danny Unger, of Beechton Road in Madison Township in eastern Franklin County, died when his Chevrolet Cavalier slammed into a bridge abutment and burst into flames just after 3 p.m.

In his most pointed charges to date, Democrat David Pepper accused Attorney General Mike DeWine today of “running a massive pay-to-play operation” out of his state office. Pepper focused on contracts awarded by DeWine’s office to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid debts owed the state. In a press conference at Ohio Democratic headquarters, he blasted DeWine for rigging the contract award system to reward individuals and firms that give money to his political campaign.

Despite rising poverty, the number of Ohioans receiving public assistance continues to drop, raising questions about how the state helps the poor. A report released today by Policy Matters Ohio notes that those working in some of Ohio’s largest occupations – cashier, home health aide, food service – don’t make enough to support their families and escape poverty.

AKRON — The University of Akron plans to spend about $375,000 to renovate its presidential home. It will be the first major update since the university bought the house in 1999 for $850,000. Scott Scarborough, who started his presidency this month, is required to live in university-provided housing. He is expected to move with his wife, 6-year-old daughter and his wife’s parents.

TOLEDO — A Toledo mom pleaded not guilty in Toledo Municipal Court yesterday after she was accused of locking her children in a car while she shopped. Latasha Flowers, 35, was charged with one count of child endangering.

A National Park Service report shows that the 2.4 million visitors to Ohio’s seven national parks in 2013 spent $149 million and supported 2,300 jobs in the state. “National park tourism is a significant driver in the national economy, returning $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service,” said Patricia Trapp, acting director of the agency’s region that includes Ohio.

CINCINNATI — An elderly Ohio couple’s claims that police illegally broke into their home and intentionally inflicted emotional distress on them were revived in an appeals court decision yesterday that said officers conducted “a violent, traumatic invasion” with “an alarming and unnecessary show of force.” The decision from a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati overturns a federal judge’s ruling dismissing the entire lawsuit filed by Essex and Annie Hayward, a Cleveland couple in their 80s, and their son against the Cleveland Clinic, the medical center’s police department and a number of officers.

NEWARK, Ohio — A mosquito infected with the West Nile Virus was discovered in a trap in eastern Licking County, in the village of Hanover.

DAYTON — The death of a 7-month-old Indiana boy who was attacked and killed by a dog in Ohio has been ruled an accident. Jonathon Quarles Jr., of Indianapolis, died of blunt-force injuries, according to preliminary findings from yesterday’s autopsy, the Montgomery County coroner’s office said.

Stephanie Ranade-Krider, former legislative director of Ohio Right to Life, has been named executive director of the organization after a six-month stint in Gov. John Kasich’s administration.

An Ohio Court of Claims magistrate has recommended a $22,554 settlement for a Chillicothe woman who sued Ohio University after claiming that a campus police officer broke her thumb during a drunken-driving arrest.

With two young children and a third on the way, Chanel Fleming and Terrence Phillips say keeping food on the table and a roof over their heads has gotten harder this year. “We try to save every penny we can, but it’s not happening,” Phillips, 24, said of efforts to make ends meet with only a part-time job. Last week, the family learned its landlord had not paid property taxes on the house they are renting. Now, it is being foreclosed and they have to move.

In one fell swoop, Mark Schuster will open a grand equestrian training center and one of central Ohio’s largest banquet facilities. Schuster purchased the 105-acre Irongate Equestrian Center in February from Rachel Longaberger-Stukey for $1.6 million and decided that, to support the horse operation, he would tap the massive arenas and expansive land for events such as weddings and conferences.

An Ohio University student's video about the dangers of texting and driving could win him as much as $20,000 in scholarships, and be featured as a public service announcement across the country.

DAYTON —Police in Dayton say a dog has attacked and killed a 7-month-old baby.

The state has a new eye in the sky, and its first mission could be to keep watch over two Warren County prisons. The Ohio Department of Transportation spent $180,000 on a “blimp in a box” that officials say could be used by a number of state agencies. The device is a tethered, unmanned helium balloon that monitors an area via cameras for as long as three days at a time.

ATHENS, Ohio — Indicted Athens County Sheriff Pat Kelly is off the job right now, but his conduct continues to raise questions. The latest issue involves ammunition.

A fracking company made federal and state agencies that oversee drinking-water safety wait days before it shared a list of toxic chemicals that spilled from a drilling site into a tributary of the Ohio River. Although the spill following a fire on June 28 at the Statoil North America well pad in Monroe County stretched 5 miles along the creek and killed more than 70,000 fish and wildlife, state officials said they do not believe drinking water was affected.

Courts in at least six Ohio counties could be on the hook for tens of thousands of dollars each after the company that handled their new case-management software abruptly shut down its justice-systems division in June.

WASHINGTON — The latest skirmish in the protracted power struggle in the Republican Party is being waged over a little-known federal agency created to help U.S. companies sell products abroad.

A man was killed when his car hit a bridge abutment and burst into flames about 3 miles north of Circleville yesterday afternoon, the Pickaway County sheriff’s office said.

DAYTON — The University of Dayton is preparing for a $12 million renovation of its chapel.