Municipal Court

LISBON — In Columbiana County Municipal Court, a preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Jan. 2 for Alayah Thornton, 25, Commerce Street, Wellsville, charged with fourth-degree felony assault on a peace officer and misdemeanor drug paraphernalia for allegedly kicking an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper after being placed under arrest during a traffic stop on Dec. 20 in Fairfield Township. She also allegedly possessed a broken glass smoking pipe with burnt white residue during the initial traffic stop.

A preliminary hearing was set Feb. 20 for Nicholas Todd Evans, 26, Niles, charged with third-degree felony compelling prostitution, fourth-degree felony attempted unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and fifth-degree felonies of importuning and possessing criminal tools for allegedly requesting sexual conduct from an undercover agent he believed to be a 15-year-old girl for an agreed upon price of $80, and then driving to Salem on Dec. 15 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

A preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Jan. 2 for Johnathan Glen Vinkler, 48, Youngstown Pittsburgh Road, Petersburg, charged with third-degree felony violation of a protection order, fourth-degree felony strangulation and misdemeanor domestic violence for allegedly pushing, grabbing, punching and choking a woman with both hands while allegedly threatening her life on Dec. 21 in East Palestine

A preliminary hearing was set Jan. 2 for Amy Jo Haines, 33, East Chestnut Street, Lisbon, charged with fourth-degree felony domestic violence for allegedly causing or attempting to cause physical harm to a man on Dec. 23 in Lisbon, causing visible lacerations to his neck.

A preliminary hearing was set Jan. 2 for Briana Jo Carlson, 28, New Castle, Colo., charged with fifth-degree felony unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for allegedly taking a woman’s vehicle for longer than permitted from Columbiana County sometime in late August. She was allegedly taken into custody on Sept. 3 in Indiana while in possession of the vehicle, which was reported stolen.

A pretrial was set Feb. 27 for Anthony James DiBiase Harris, 33, Youngstown, charged with engaging in prostitution and possessing criminal tools for allegedly responding to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website and arranging for sexual conduct with a female in exchange for $200 and marijuana, then driving to East Palestine on Dec. 21 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession, along with marijuana.

Jeffrey Knoblock, 26, Taylor Road, Rogers, was fined $400 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 176 days suspended and credit for four days served for misdemeanor domestic violence amended from a felony and misdemeanor disorderly conduct amended from felony disruption of public services. He was ordered to complete 60 hours of community service. He was accused of causing issues while intoxicated on Dec. 19 in Middleton Township, knocking the phone out of a man’s hands when he was attempting to call 911 and having a physical altercation over the phone and then continuing to yell and make threats after the victim ran into a bedroom and locked the door to continue dialing 911.

Kurtis Materna, 44, East Fifth Street, Salem, was fined $500 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 165 days suspended, leaving a balance of 15 days to serve in jail for theft. He was ordered to complete 80 hours community service and an Ohio theft awareness course and to have no contact with the victim. Materna stole a camera from an East Fifth Street, Salem residence on June 19, 2024 and was seen on the video camera footage before stealing the camera.

A pretrial was set Feb. 13 for Kimberly Reash, 63, Boardman, charged with domestic violence for allegedly hitting a man in his face during a domestic incident Dec. 22 on state Route 45, Lisbon.

A pretrial was set Jan. 6 for Anthony Kelly, 36, Wood Street, East Palestine, charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct for allegedly arguing with a man about a dog that came on his property, screaming and cursing causing neighbors came out to investigate. East Palestine police officers told him to stop several times and he did not, then allegedly resisted when officers were taking him into custody on Dec. 22 in East Palestine.

Matte DeJane, 40, Southeast Boulevard, Salem, was fined $150 for disorderly conduct amended from domestic violence. She was accused of hitting a man with a broom during a domestic on Dec. 17 in Salem, with the broom broken in pieces at the scene.

A pretrial was set March 24 for Damien Phillips, 22, Ohio Avenue, Salem, charged with resisting arrest, obstructing official business and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia for allegedly fleeing on foot from police attempting to take him into custody on a warrant on Dec. 22 in Salem. An officer was able to grab him and he attempted to pull away multiple times and was taken to the ground. He also allegedly possessed a glass pipe with burnt residue.

A pretrial was set Jan. 6 for Christina Seybert, 38, Beaver Falls, Pa., charged with criminal trespass and drug paraphernalia for allegedly trespassing at a New Waterford property and possessing two glass smoking pipes with residue and a small bag containing a crystal substance on Oct. 1, 2022. She’s also facing a probable cause hearing for an alleged probation violation on a 2022 theft charge.

A pretrial was set March 13 for Caiden Grace, 18, Sherwood Avenue, East Liverpool, charged with theft for allegedly stealing five or six vape pens from the Marathon gas station in East Palestine on Dec. 20.

A pretrial was set March 27 for Michael Gill, 37, U.S. Route 30, Minerva, charged with possession of drugs for allegedly possessing Suboxone strips during a traffic stop on April 10 in Knox Township.

A court trial was set March 24 for Thomas Clark, 32, Lacroft Avenue, East Liverpool, charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly engaging in fighting in St. Clair Township on Oct. 12.

A pretrial was set Feb. 18 for Nehemiah Bennett, 25, Youngstown, charged with failure to comply and marked lanes after allegedly driving away from a traffic stop on Nov. 29 in Columbiana.

Jodi Stone, 61, Weirton, W.Va., was fined $1,025 and sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 87 days suspended and credit for three days served in a driver intervention program for operating a vehicle impaired and speeding. Another OVI charge and a head lights violation were dismissed. Her driver’s license was suspended for one year, with driving privileges granted. She was ordered to complete 40 hours community service.

A pretrial was set March 3 for Michael Gbur, 59, state Route 45, Salem, charged with OVI first offense, driving under suspension and speeding.

A pretrial was set March 24 for Nicholas Damico, 26, Mineral Ridge, charged with failure to stop after an accident, no motorcycle endorsement and reasonable control.

A pretrial was set March 6 for Joshua Little, 31, Rochester Road, East Rochester, charged with reasonable control.

Bryan Bianchi, 40, Spaite Drive, East Palestine, was fined $150 for driving under suspension.

Erica Coil, 38, Main Street, Wellsville, was fined $170 for driving under suspension and no seat belt.

Dylan Bregar, 18, Canfield, was fined $30 for lighted lights required, with a charge of noncompliance dismissed.

Shea Lynne Ruiz, 25, Youngstown, was fined $25 for failure to yield.

Ronald Lockhart Jr., 48, Wintersville, was fined $125 for speeding and driving under suspension.

Cody Landsberger, 31, Fairfield School Road, Columbiana, was fined $400 for driving under suspension and reasonable control.

Chelsea Chadwick, 29, East Perry Street, Salem, was fined $75 for traffic control devices.

Tiffany Staggers, 25, Wilbert Avenue, East Liverpool, was fined $200 for driving under suspension and speeding.

Samantha Norris, 34, New Brighton, Pa., was fined $250 and given a suspended 30-day jail term for no valid license and unauthorized plate.

Common Pleas

New Cases

Jianna Babos, Canfield, and Justin Babos, Boardman; dissolution sought.

Kristin Youst, Strader Road, East Liverpool, and Jason Youst, Belmont Avenue, East Liverpool; dissolution sought.

Tina Wetzel, Vine Street, East Liverpool, vs. Craig Wetzel, Cain Street, East Liverpool; divorce sought.

Elizabeth Brown, Tomahawk Drive, Negley, vs. Original Roadhouse Inc., Youngstown, and Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, Columbus; appeal of claim denial.

Docket Entries

MEX 514 N Market LLC vs. Harry Yadav; possession of property at 514 N. Market St., Lisbon granted to plaintiff, other claims and counterclaims remain pending.

Tonya Taylor and Samuel Taylor; dissolution granted.

Marriage Licenses

David Miller, 47, New Cumberland, W.Va., general contractor, and Rebecca Anderson, 43, New Cumberland, W.Va., portfolio manager.

Noah Bainbridge, 25, Salem, unemployed, and Miranda Johnson, 20, Salem, home manager.

Phillip Fogle, 51, Hanoverton, chef, and Abagail Caldwell, 26, Hanoverton, cook/prep.

Grand Jury

LISBON — Several defendants were served Friday and Saturday with secret indictments issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury, including:

— Ikeima Abercrombie, 37, last known address 19th Street, Wellsville, nonsupport of dependents, a fifth-degree felony from a 2024 case for allegedly failing to pay child support for a child from Sept. 25, 2022 to Sept. 22, 2024 and possession of fentanyl-related compound, a fifth-degree felony from a 2022 case for allegedly possessing fentanyl on Sept. 23, 2021.

— De’Andrew Jwan Mar’Quez Oliver-Garden, 30, Canton, passing bad checks and theft, both fifth-degree felonies from a 2024 case for allegedly writing a bad check for $4,074 worth of merchandise from Carter Lumber on Nov. 8, 2023.

— Charlene Sias, 47, Pancake Clarkson Road, Negley, possession of fentanyl-related compound, a fifth-degree felony from a 2024 case for allegedly possessing fentanyl on June 3, 2023.

— Todd Ritchie, 47, East Fourth Street, Salem, aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony from a 2024 case for allegedly possessing methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk on March 14, 2024.

— William Barrett, 43, Grant Street, Lisbon, possession of cocaine, a fifth-degree felony from a 2024 case for allegedly possessing cocaine on July 8, 2024.

— Christopher Brink, 44, Franklin Avenue, Salem, aggravated possession of drugs, a third-degree felony from a 2024 case for allegedly possessing methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk on July 8, 2024.

Court News

LISBON — An East Palestine man accused of threatening another man and attempting to run him over was placed on an intervention plan for 24 months after pleading guilty recently to three charges in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court.

Alexander Aratari, 38, West Martin Street, entered the guilty plea to attempted vehicular assault, a fifth-degree felony, and misdemeanors of violation of a protection order and aggravated menacing. He was originally charged with felonious assault, a second-degree felony.

As part of the intervention plan, Aratari was ordered to serve 15 days in the county jail, but received credit for 15 days already served, leaving no jail time to serve.

The charges all stemmed from an incident on July 26, 2023 in Washingtonville where he was accused of attempting to run over the victim while the victim was mowing a neighbor’s yard, by driving up an embankment at a high rate of speed and barely missing him. He had also been giving the victim the middle finger whenever around and violated a protection order, causing the victim to believe he would harm him.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Randall Morris, 60, Trinity Church Road, Lisbon, was placed under community control for three years for operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse or a combination of both-OVI, a misdemeanor, and improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle, a fifth-degree felony. For the OVI, he was sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 177 days suspended and credit for three days served, leaving none to serve. He received a mandatory $375 fine and his driver’s license was suspended for 12 months. Charges of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and another OVI were dismissed. Morris was accused of possessing a loaded handgun in his disabled vehicle when a trooper found him impaired Nov. 25, 2023.

— Rishun Jones, 20, Youngstown, was ordered to serve 120 days in the county jail, with credit for 80 days served, leaving a balance still to serve of 40 days in jail for violating the terms of probation for complicity to possess fentanyl-related compound, a fifth-degree felony. Jones was accused of trying to possess fentanyl on July 8, 2022. Jones’ probation was dishonorably terminated.