She was a typical All-American girl in high school. She attended Focus Learning Academy, was a good softball player and at one point she was a cheerleader. Donna Dalton had dreams as a girl to join the Columbus Police Department and, because she loved horses, to become a mounted police officer.

But her dreams quickly got sidetracked and turned to nightmares. She became pregnant at 18 and had two children before she was 21. She fell into toxic relationships with troubled men and began abusing painkillers and drugs. An attractive young woman, Donna supported her habit by becoming an exotic dancer at The House of Babes on South High Street. Later, her addiction dragged her into prostitution on the mean streets of Columbus's west side, on the infamous Sullivant Avenue.

Undercover in an unmarked car

There she spiraled into run-ins and arrests by the vice squad of the Columbus Police Department (CPD). Then on the tragic day, August 23, she was picked up by undercover Officer Andrew Mitchell in an unmarked police car. He drove to an isolated parking lot behind an apartment complex where "Johns" frequently brought prostitutes for business.

Tuesday, October 30, 7-9pm, Drexel Theatre, 2254 E. Main St.

We the People 2.0 is a film about the loss of democracy in the U.S. and how people are saving nature and themselves by regaining their rights to local lawmaking. A question-and-answer period following this film will discuss the Columbus Community Bill of Rights and the struggle to regain our right to Home Rule.

Discussion will be led by Tish O’Dell, Ohio Community Organizer for the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) and local leaders of the Columbus Community Bill of Rights initiative.

A $5 donation will be requested at the door.

Co-sponsored by Columbus Free Press and Columbus Community Bill of Rights.

"Dave Yost was a ghost when Ohio needed him most."

If I were creating slogans for Democrat Steve Dettelbach's campaign for Ohio attorney general, I would have put the one above on television starting on Oct. 31.

Launching the ads on Halloween would have been perfect because Republican Dave Yost as attorney general would be downright scary for Ohio taxpayers.

I would include ghastly sound effects while showing an Avenger-like Dettelbach character removing the cowering Yost ghost from the Statehouse/ECOT castle and tossing him into a dungeon with some dubious characters who resemble the Cuyahoga County crooks that Dettelbach convicted as U.S. attorney.

The ad would end with "that's scary" to depict the prospect of Yost as AG.

Great songs, fine singing and dancing, nifty special effects, beautiful scenery: What else could you ask from a Broadway musical?

Well, other than a story you actually care about. Aladdin falls short in that respect, especially compared to other Disney musicals like The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast. But for most folks who caught the touring show Thursday at the Ohio Theatre, the production’s other attributes were more than enough.

Based on the 1992 animated film and boasting catchy Alan Menken tunes such as “Friend Like Me” and “Whole New World,” Aladdin arrived on Broadway in 2014. There it was nominated for five Tony Awards but won only for James Monroe Iglehart’s performance in the showiest role, the Genie.

In the touring production, much of the attention also is grabbed by the Genie portrayer, Michael James Scott, who leaves no stone unturned in his quest for laughter and applause. Equally committed, if less showy, performances are turned in by other cast members.

Simply Living, The Columbus Community Bill of Rights, and the Columbus Free Press are co-sponsoring a screening of We The People 2.0 Tuesday, October 30, 7 PM at the Drexel Theatre, 2254 E Main St in Bexley 43209. 

The film offers a framework to understand why a successful ballot initiative to let voters decide whether to ban oil and gas operations in Columbus was approved by the Columbus City Council, but later rejected and removed from the November 6 election by the Franklin County Board of Elections.

A special Q&A discussion after the film will be led by Tish O'Dell, the Ohio Community Organizer for the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF). The local leaders of the Columbus Community Bill of Rights initiative will participate and shed further light on continuing efforts to protect our water, air, and soil in central Ohio.