Father tries to get daughter’s killerCLEVELAND — The father of a woman killed by a convicted sex offender dived across a courtroom table to attack him Thursday shortly after a judge sentenced the defendant to death for killing three people and wrapping their bodies in garbage bags.Van Terry, the father of Shirellda Terry, had walked to the front of the courtroom to give a victim-impact statement and turned toward Michael Madison, who gave him a malicious smile. Terry lunged at Madison and was swarmed by sheriff’s deputies as Madison and his attorneys scrambled to get out of the way.Law enforcement officers dragged Terry out of the courtroom and ushered him out of the courthouse.Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Nancy McDonnell declined to clear the courtroom, and after about a 15-minute delay the hearing continued.The judge accepted a jury’s recommendation that Madison, 38, receive the death penalty. She could have chosen to sentence Madison to life in prison without parole. She said the horrific nature of Madison’s crimes far outweighed evidence presented to spare him, including an abusive and chaotic childhood.The jury convicted Madison last month of multiple counts of aggravated murder and kidnapping.

Zoo to reopen gorilla exhibitCINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Zoo will reopen its gorilla exhibit next week with a higher, reinforced barrier after a 3-year-old boy got into the enclosure, leading to the fatal shooting of a male gorilla.Zoo spokesman Michelle Curley said the outer barrier will now be 42 inches high — a half foot taller than before — with solid wood beams on top and at the bottom.The zoo said there had been no earlier breaches in Gorilla World’s 38-year history and that the previous barrier had passed multiple inspections by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums,.“Our exhibit goes above and beyond standard safety requirements, but in light of what happened, we have modified the outer public barrier,” zoo director Thane Maynard said.