Grand Jury

LISBON — Two drug defendants were served Tuesday with secret indictments issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury for alleged possession of drugs.

Hallie Whitman, 53, Whinnery Road, Salem, was charged with aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine on Nov. 5, 2022.

Josh Luketic, 28, Wilderson Avenue, East Palestine, was charged with possession of fentanyl-related compound, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing fentanyl on Sept. 7, 2021.

Common Pleas

New Cases

Dalton Hampson, Montgomery Road, Kensington, vs. Tricia Hampson, state Route 9, Kensington; divorce sought.

Docket Entries

Eric Gustafson vs. Ohio Department of Job and Family Services; appeal over unemployment benefits overpayment denied.

Credit Acceptance Corporation vs. Kiarra Caine; case dismissed.

One-man Financial Group LLC vs. Glenn Dennis; case dismissed.

Farmers National Bank vs. Estate of Stephen Bauman, deceased, et al.; mortgage foreclosure ordered for West School Street, Salem property.

County Treasurer vs. Wayne Washington, et al.; delinquent property taxes paid, case dismissed, crossclaim by defendant against Shani Jones remains pending.

County Treasurer vs. Darlene Vantilburg, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure orderer for St. Clair Avenue, East Liverpool property.

County Treasurer vs. unknown heirs Alice Siebert, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure orderer for Michigan Avenue, East Liverpool property.

County Treasurer vs. Dorothy Shepherd, et al.; delinquent property taxes paid, case dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. unknown heirs Charles E. Jones, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure orderer for Maple Street, East Liverpool property.

County Treasurer vs. David Jackson, et al.; crossclaim of Hancock County Savings Bank dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. Denver Parker Sr., et al.; delinquent property taxes paid, case dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. Lacy Bicksler, et al.; payment plan entered, case stayed.

Court News

LISBON — A Youngstown man accused of trying to harm two Columbiana police officers during a traffic stop on Dec. 9, 2021 was sentenced to prison for an indefinite term of four to six years, plus an additional two years for a failure to comply charge.

James Tinsley, 43, appeared for sentencing recently in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court for: two counts of felonious assault, a first-degree felony; failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer, a third-degree felony; two counts aggravated possession of drugs, one a second-degree felony and one a fifth-degree felony; possession of cocaine, a fourth-degree felony; and misdemeanor operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Specifications for forfeiture of money in a drug case were included.

Charges of tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, obstructing official business, a fifth-degree felony, and misdemeanors of failure to disclose personal information and two counts of operating a vehicle while under the influence of a listed controlled substance or listed metabolite of a controlled substance will be dismissed.

All the prison/jail terms were ordered served concurrent, at the same time, with the exception of the 24 months or two years for the failure to comply, which was ordered served consecutive to everything else.

His driver’s license was suspended for 10 years. He was also fined $7,500.

All the charges stem from an incident Dec. 9, 2021 which started out as a traffic stop at state Routes 7 and 14 in Columbiana. The vehicle reportedly smelled of marijuana and suspected marijuana was observed, with Tinsley allegedly attempting to conceal the bag, failing to disclose his personal information and then putting the vehicle in drive and accelerating hard.

Court documents said the defendant was held at gunpoint for a brief moment before accelerating and hitting an officer with the driver side mirror of his vehicle, causing the officer to move quickly to avoid being struck. Tinsley then led officers on a pursuit and at one point struck the front of a police cruiser. The pursuit ended when Tinsley’s vehicle struck a spike strip.

Drugs allegedly in his possession included methamphetamine, cocaine, Etizolam, with marijuana and cocaine in his system and $447 for forfeiture.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Derek Craig, 51, Lotze Drive, East Palestine, pleaded guilty to cruelty to companion animals, a fifth-degree felony, third-degree felony tampering with evidence and misdemeanor obstructing official business, with sentencing set for Jan. 26. A misdemeanor charge of cruelty to companion animals will be dismissed. Craig was accused of shooting a woman’s chihuahua/miniature pinscher puppy with a shotgun on Sept. 11, 2022, with deputies finding a pink tote containing the deceased dog off of Hadley Road. The defendant admitted to shooting the dog with a 20-gauge shotgun and tossing the shotgun off of the road in an undisclosed location, an affidavit said.

— JonTay Johnson, 29, Franklin Avenue, Salem, pleaded guilty to third-degree felony domestic violence and misdemeanor obstructing official business, with sentencing set for Nov. 16. On April 5, 2022, Johnson was accused of choking a woman and pushing her head into a wall, causing bruising. When police approached him, he fled on foot and failed to listen to commands to stop, and was located several blocks away and taken into custody.

— Zackary McFarland, 25, Prospect Street, Salem, was sentenced to nine months in prison for tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, and misdemeanor illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia related to a traffic stop in Columbiana Aug. 22, 2021 when he was a passenger and attempted to hide a glass pipe. He received credit for 96 days served.

— James Lamp, 48, Jennings Avenue, Salem, was ordered to remain under community control after his intervention plan was dishonorably terminated for violations for a charge of aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on June 1, 2021.

— Danielle Simons, 48, Richmond, Va., pleaded guilty to aggravated possession of drugs, a third-degree felony, with sentencing set for Jan. 29. Simons possessed methamphetamine on Dec. 3, 2020 in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk.

— Steven Shannon, 52, Lisbon Street, East Liverpool, was placed on a treatment plan for two years after pleading guilty to aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on Jan. 10, 2022.

— Andy Yoder, 28, Bergholz, was placed on a treatment plan for two years after pleading guilty to aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on Jan. 21, 2023.

Municipal

A pretrial was set Jan. 29 for Heather Ponziani, 40, Milton Street, East Liverpool, charged with driving under suspension.

A pretrial was set Nov. 2 for Joseph Barcey, 48, Alliance, charged with stopping at a railroad grade crossing.

Derrick Hooper, 42, Youngstown, was fined $45 for speeding, with a driving under suspension charge dismissed.

Mark Razo, 40, Canfield, was fined $30 for no seat belt.

Wyatt Reeves, 18, Buzzard Road, Wellsville was fined $50 for unauthorized plate.

Wyatt Morris, 19, state Route 39, Salineville, was fined $50 for unauthorized plate.