CLEVELAND (AP) — Two little girls were killed in an apartment fire that their baby sitter said was set by a man in a hooded sweatshirt who had forced his way in, police said today.

A woman who was accidentally shot by a law-enforcement officer during a drug raid Wednesday night in Ross County has died. Krystal Barrows, 35, had been flown to a Columbus-area hospital in critical condition after she was shot, the Ross County Sseriff’s office said.

Tami Longaberger has sold her 57,000-square-foot mansion near Nashport, Ohio, for $6 million, well below the original asking price but still a record amount for a central Ohio home.

The University of Cincinnati is suing Crayola in federal court, claiming that the toy company’s popular Glow products use technology the university has patented.

A man convicted of fatally shooting his ailing wife in her hospital bed will seek clemency from the governor after his sentencing today, even if the judge follows a prosecutor’s recommendation for a lighter punishment because of the unique circumstances of the case.

CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati’s mayor backed off his seemingly immovable stance to stop the city’s $133 million streetcar project, saying yesterday that he’d support finishing the project if backers find a way to pay for operating costs that could be at least $4 million annually.

In trying to reduce the amount of lead in drinking water, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency could force cities to buy certified lead-free fire hydrants and scrap equipment they have in stock, a costly endeavor for many.

LANCASTER, Ohio — Hundreds of poor people in Fairfield and Hocking counties and the lawyers who help them with civil-court cases are bracing for the impact in the likely event that Southeastern Ohio Legal Services’ local office closes.

An educator at the Fairfield County Board of Developmental Disabilities’ Forest Rose School has been suspended with pay leave pending an investigation into allegations that she shoved a student. Bryston Lee is accused of pushing student Fartuun Waes, 18, of Reynoldsburg, down in her chair in the classroom and then pushing her down on the floor, telling her, “That’s what you get,” according to the incident report filed with the Lancaster Police Department.

An expectant mother who was raped and killed last year had turned to prostitution to make ends meet and died after answering a Craigslist ad offering $200, a prosecutor said yesterday as he pushed for the maximum sentence for her killer.

KETTERING, Ohio (AP) — An intense early morning house fire killed four people, two of them children, inside a suburban southwest Ohio home today, authorities said.

Democrat Ed FitzGerald’s prospects of beating Republican Gov. John Kasich already were tough, and the botched three-week candidacy of state Sen. Eric H. Kearney as FitzGerald’s running mate made them even more difficult, political analysts say.

NEWARK, Ohio — Don Ellington retired as Newark City Council president on Nov. 30. Come Monday, he’ll be back in his old seat at the center of the council dais. The clerk never even bothered to remove his nameplate.

GRANVILLE, Ohio — Declining golf revenues and an aging ownership group have made some realize that, without action, the vaunted Granville Golf Course might not always be a pristine open space. Last night, the Granville Township trustees took steps toward partnering with the village of Granville to place the course’s 138 acres in a conservation easement that would ensure it’s never developed.

Nearly four times as many Ohioans chose a private health-insurance plan through HealthCare.gov in November than in October, but state and national signup totals still lag the government’s original forecasts. New data released by the federal government yesterday show that 5,672 Ohioans had chosen a plan through HealthCare.gov through the end of November, up from 1,150 as of Nov. 2.

FAIRBORN, Ohio — A Marine veteran who lost his legs in Afghanistan is again being called a hero — this time for helping stranded motorists during a snowstorm.

People who live in the 740 area code should prepare to see a new area code, 220, popping up in their neighborhoods beginning in early 2015. But current 740 customers will be allowed to retain their existing numbers under an “overlay” plan approved yesterday by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

Beverly Bennett says her daughter might still be alive had legislation approved yesterday by the Ohio House been state law in 2006. House Bill 104 would empower probate court judges statewide to order outpatient treatment for people struggling with mental illness. Judges say they have few treatment options now other than committing a person to a stay in a state mental hospital.

An effort to further clean up Ohio’s voter database and ensure county election boards are not forced to purchase unneeded voting machines passed 58-32 as the House finished its final session for the year.

WASHINGTON — House Speaker John Boehner showed a rare flash of pique yesterday at outside conservative groups that have periodically served as his foil, saying the groups were “using our members and using the American people for their own goals.”

Ohio’s largest pension system has set aside $3.03 million for a new building that could be used in case a disaster strikes. The Public Employee Retirement System currently leases a facility for that purpose. But the price could increase by about seven times to nearly $500,000 a year, Director Karen Carraher told the Ohio Retirement Study Council yesterday.

The Ohio Lottery’s Classic Lotto jackpot will be $54.4 million for the drawing on Saturday. There were no tickets with the correct combination for last night’s drawing.

Ohio is “the best-looking girl at the dance” because its utility regulators are looking to expand electricity competition at a time when several other states are holding steady.

Denison University has paid $1.15 million for the Granville Inn and plans to seek historic tax credits to renovate the 86-year-old landmark.

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Police in Peru say they’ve arrested a 59-year-old man wanted in Ohio for an alleged Ponzi scheme in which $65 million was raised from at least 800 investors in the United States and Latin America more than a decade ago.