Common Pleas

New Cases

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Michael John Franklin, Rogers; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Farr Street, Rogers property.

Huntington National Bank, Columbus, vs. Matthew Bertolette, Prospect Street, Columbiana, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought.

Mariner Finance, LLC, Nottingham, Md., vs. Kevin Selby, St. Clair Avenue, East Liverpool, et al.; collection sought of $4,200 debt.

James Gamble, as the personal representative of the estate of Janet Gamble (deceased), vs. Valley Oaks Care Center, et al.; appeal filed with Seventh District Court of Appeals by Gamble over dismissal of Common Pleas case.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. unknown heirs, etc. of Jeffrey Crowe, Irondale, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Main Street, Wellsville property.

Kendra Gallagher, Maple Lane, East Liverpool, and Daniel Gallagher, Midland, Pa.; dissolution sought.

MidFirst Bank, Oklahoma City, Okla., vs. Paul Smalley, Pritchard Avenue, Lisbon, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Barbara A. Smith, Ohio Avenue, East Liverpool; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Ohio Avenue, East Liverpool property.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Michael Cozza, Crestview Road, New Waterford, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Washington Street, Leetonia property.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Guy Taylor, East Liverpool, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Oakland Avenue, East Liverpool property.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Edward Edling Jr., Maryland Avenue, Salem; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Ohio Boulevard, Salem and Maryland Avenue, Salem properties.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Edward Edling Jr., Maryland Avenue, Salem; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Maryland Avenue, Salem property.

LVNV Funding LLC, Greenville, S.C., vs. Angela Ginier, state Route 164, Lisbon; collection sought of $20,866 debt.

Magerick, LLC, Santa Ana, Calif., vs. Justin Matthew Randolph, College Street, East Liverpool, et al.; land installment contract foreclosure sought.

Premier Bak, Youngstown, vs. Brandy Humphrey, state Route 517, Lisbon, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought.

Docket Entries

Amber Williams vs. Chase Williams; divorce granted.

Marjorie Leyman vs. Shawn Viets, et al.; case settled and dismissed.

Velocity Investments, LLC vs. Roger Kreps; $15,029 judgment granted to plaintiff.

Rocket Mortgage LLC vs. Jordan Spencer, et al.; foreclosure complaint dismissed.

Brittany Wooley and Cody Wooley; dissolution granted.

Anthony Maraldo vs. Amber Maraldo; divorce granted.

County Treasurer vs. Thomas White Jr., et al.; payment plan completed, case dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. Bridgett Melvin; payment plan entered, case stayed, taxes for one parcel paid, with that parcel dismissed from complaint.

County Treasurer vs. Piper Tunno, et al.; payment plan entered, case stayed.

County Treasurer vs. Michael Crane, et al.; payment plan entered, case stayed.

County Treasurer vs. Robert Green, et al.; payment plan completed, case dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. Geoffrey Mathey; delinquent property tax foreclosure ordered for Bank Street, Salem property.

County Treasurer vs. Philip Reidy; delinquent property tax foreclosure ordered for state Route 170, East Palestine property.

County Treasurer vs. Brian Devore, et al.; payment plan entered, case stayed.

Marriage Licenses

Nicholas Gardner, 24, Minerva, landscaper, and Sara McKinnon, 27, East Liverpool, cashier.

Municipal

LISBON — In Columbiana County Municipal Court, a case against Rylan Polojac, 25, Youngstown, was bound over to the county grand jury for fifth-degree felony receiving stolen property for allegedly using a stolen credit card at Rich Oil in Wellsville on Dec. 25, 2023.

A pretrial was set Aug. 1 for Ronald Roach, 54, state Route 170, East Liverpool, charged with violation of a protection order for allegedly sending several threatening text messages to a man in violation of a protection order on June 20, June 21 and July 18, also sending a voice recording calling the man names on July 22.

A pretrial was set July 30 for John Hamilton, 36, East Fourth Street, Salem, charged with domestic violence for allegedly grabbing a woman by the neck and throwing her into the front door on July 22 in Salem.

A pretrial was set Oct. 28 for Donavin Hanna, 33, Pine Street, Leetonia, charged with criminal mischief for allegedly throwing a child’s toy at the windshield of a car, breaking the passenger side window during an argument on Dec. 20, 2023 in Leetonia.

A pretrial was set July 30 for Elizabeth Looper, 25, Ohio Avenue, Salem, charged with domestic violence for allegedly slapping a man, grabbing him by the leg causing a scratch and throwing a steel toe shoe at him on July 23 in Salem.

A pretrial was set Sept. 30 for Nathaniel Paul Beck, 45, Kent, charged with engaging in prostitution and possessing criminal tools for allegedly being involved in a sex for hire case, arriving in East Palestine on July 24.

Joel Edward Lucas, 55, Spartanburg, S.C., was fined $750 and received a suspended 90-day jail term for engaging in prostitution and possessing criminal tools. He was buying out 20 hours community service and was ordered to complete a 12-hour online prostitution prevention course. Lucas was accused of responding to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website and arranging for sexual activity with a female for $140, then arrived in East Palestine on April 3 for the meeting.

A pretrial was set Oct. 31 for Kirk Price, 56, Eighth Avenue Lacroft, East Liverpool, charged with telecommunications harassment for allegedly harassing a woman with phone calls and text messaging even after being told to stop in July in Madison Township.

David Gasior, 51, listed as homeless, East Liverpool, was fined $100 and sentenced to five days in jail, with credit for one day served, leaving four days still to serve in jail, for disorderly conduct. The jail term was ordered served consecutive to any sentence currently being served by Gasior. Gasior was intoxicated, stumbling and almost falling in East Liverpool on July 23.

A pretrial was set Oct. 1 for Vanessa Burnside, 34, West Wilson Street, Salem, charged with theft for allegedly stealing $10.02 worth of items from Dollar Tree in East Liverpool on July 19.

Hadden Michael Pistory, 20, Marble Road, Kensington, was fined $150 and given a suspended 30-day jail term for improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle. Pistory was buying out 20 hours community service. A stop sign violation was dismissed. Pistory was accused of denying having a weapon in his possession when a firearm with a loaded magazine was concealed in the glovebox during a traffic stop.

Jerry Malone II, 44, West Fifth Street, Salem, was fined $150 and sentenced to 10 days in jail, with credit for two days served, leaving a balance of eight days to serve in jail for illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia for possessing a container for the storage of dangerous drugs during a traffic stop on July 23 in Salem.

Michael Beaver, 36, last known address Opal Drive, Wellsville, was fined $500 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with credit for one day served, leaving 179 days to serve in jail for theft, driving under suspension and no license. Beaver was accused of taking scrap metal from the Hall China site to Six Recycling on July 22 in East Liverpool. A second charge of theft was dismissed. Beaver was also fined $200 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 60 days suspended and credit for one day served, leaving a balance of 119 days to serve for aggravated menacing, but to be served at the same time as the theft sentence. He was ordered to complete 20 hours community service and to stay away from the victim in the menacing case. Beaver was accused of sending the female victim a threatening text message on June 9,

Jessica Cross, 42, Wilbert Avenue, East Liverpool, was fined $250 and given a suspended 90-day jail term for theft. She was ordered to complete 20 hours community service and to stay out of Walmarts in Columbiana County. Cross was accused of failing to scan and pay for one item valued at $22.98 at the Calcutta Walmart on April 29.

A sentencing hearing was set Oct. 22 for Zachary Davis, whose date of birth was not listed, Maplewood Avenue, East Liverpool, who pleaded guilty to six counts of failure to pay city income tax for failing to remit payment for East Liverpool city income taxes from 2018 through 2023.

A pretrial was set Oct. 1 for Greg Dray, 66, Longs Church Road, East Liverpool, charged with maximum permissible height of weeds for the grass and weeds being higher than 12 inches at an East Liverpool property on Chester Avenue on June 3.

A pretrial was set Oct. 1 for Eric Beagle, 44, Mullins Street, Salem, charged with operating a vehicle impaired first offense, OVI breath first offense and a turn signal violation.

A pretrial was set Oct. 28 for Richard Zumbar, 57, South Lincoln Avenue, Salem, charged with OVI first offense, OVI breath first offense and forfeiture.

A pretrial was set Oct. 1 for David Vaughn, 62, West Main Street, Salineville, charged with OVI second offense and marked lanes.

A pretrial was set Oct. 28 for John Pierre Dunlap Jr., 40, Oakland Avenue, East Liverpool, charged with OVI first offense, OVI breath first offense and speeding.

A pretrial was set Oct. 31 for John Burlini, 44, Poland, charged with OVI first offense and reasonable control.

Stonier Sutton-Lydel Dewitt, 28, Winona Road, Salem, was fined $295 for driving under suspension and speeding.

Steven Michael Gilbert, 63, Irish Ridge Road, East Liverpool, was fined $200 for two counts of speeding.

A charge of parental responsibility was dismissed against April Stradford, 45, Oak Street, East Liverpool.

A pretrial was set Oct. 28 for Angelica English, 51, Ravenna, charged with speeding.

A charge of driving while texting was dismissed against Cathy Groom, 64, Andrew Avenue, Salem, who was ordered to pay costs and already completed a distracted driving safety course.

Court News

LISBON — A Lisbon man accused of hitting and injuring a boy with a belt over a three-year period was ordered to prison for two years.

Joseph Steven Frank, 51, Eric Drive, appeared for sentencing recently in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court where nine photos of the child victim were presented to the judge. Letters of support for the defendant were also given.

“The facts of this case are disturbing, the photographs even more so,” Judge Scott Washam wrote in the judgment entry.

Frank had originally been charged with domestic violence in county Municipal Court. He had been indicted by the grand jury for two second-degree felonies of endangering children and one third-degree felony for endangering children. One of the second-degree felonies was dismissed and one was amended to a third-degree felony, with Frank pleading guilty in the spring to two counts of endangering children, a third-degree felony.

For sentencing, the two counts were merged into one, with the judge ordering Frank to prison for 24 months or two years.

According to the indictment, the abuse started when the child was seven years old, with Frank repeatedly administering unwarranted disciplinary measures and causing serious physical harm to the child from Oct. 18, 2020 to April 6, 2023.

An affidavit filed in county municipal court when Frank was first arrested for domestic violence alleged he used a belt that left welts and bruises on the boy’s body, arms, head and neck.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Shelby Walker, 49, East Taggart Street, East Palestine, was sentenced to three years on a treatment plan after pleading guilty to fourth-degree felonies of grand theft and falsification in a theft offense for stealing funds from Norfolk Southern after the train derailment. Walker was accused of providing fraudulent falsified hotel receipts over a continuous course of conduct from April 14, 2023 through June 14, 2023 totaling an estimated $18,189 . She allegedly made a fraudulent statement on July 25, 2023. In her written response to the court when asked if there were any circumstances the court should know, she wrote “train derailment resulted in vinyl chloride poisoning for me and my family.” The issue of restitution remains pending.

— Tommy Hart, 37, Sophia Street, East Liverpool, was ordered to spend up to six months at the Eastern Ohio Correction Center in Wintersville after being placed on community control or probation for three years for fourth-degree felony attempted illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto the grounds of a specified governmental facility and fifth-degree felonies of possession of cocaine, possession of heroin, possession of fentanyl-related compound, and two counts nonsupport of dependents. Hart was accused of attempting to take drugs into a detention facility and for possessing cocaine, heroin and fentanyl on Sept. 19, 2022. He was also accused of failing to pay child support for two children from Aug. 30, 2020 to Aug. 28, 2022.

— Theodore Cassinger Jr., 46, state Route 45, Salem, was sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to prosecutor’s information for attempted weapons under disability, a fourth-degree felony, and for violating his probation on a fifth-degree felony charge of aggravated possession of drugs. He received credit for 82 days served in the county jail. The incident with the weapon occurred on May 4. The drug charge dated back to his possession of methamphetamine on Aug. 20, 2021.

— William H. Dorsey, 50, Toledo, was placed under community control or probation for two years after pleading guilty to fourth-degree felony promoting prostitution for transporting a woman to a sex for hire meeting in East Palestine on Nov. 1, 2023.

— Marcus Glasure, 50, Dillonvale, was sentenced to seven months in prison after violating the terms of his intervention plan for aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing the drug flualprazolam on May 22, 2021.

— Brandon Dunn, 39, Chester, W.Va., pleaded guilty to aggravated possession of drugs and possession of fentanyl-related compound, both fifth-degree felonies, with sentencing set for Oct. 11. Dunn was accused of possessing fentanyl and the drug 6-MAM on Feb. 13, 2021.

— Ryan Blystone, 45, Claibourne Street, East Liverpool, pleaded guilty to charges from two separate indictments, including a fourth-degree felony charge of possession of deadly weapon while under detention and misdemeanor possession of drugs and third-degree felony failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer and misdemeanors of operating a vehicle impaired, driving under suspension and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia. Sentencing was set for Sept. 20. Blystone was accused of possessing a deadly weapon, a knife, while under detention and possessed buprenorphine on March 1, 2022. During a traffic stop attempt on April 15 this year in East Liverpool, Blystone accelerated at a high rate of speed and fled before crashing on state Route 267, fleeing on foot and being found in an area of brush. He had a clear glass smoking device with visible residue in his possession.

— An indictment for a fifth-degree felony charge of obstructing official business against Markell Smith, 19, East Main Street, Salineville was dismissed, with the case returned to county Municipal Court. A pretrial was recently set Sept. 30 for a misdemeanor charge obstructing official business against Smith, for allegedly not cooperating after a traffic crash on June 3 in Salineville when he was the passenger and claimed he didn’t know the driver, later admitting the driver’s name. The driver had fled on foot.

— Roger A. Ingram Jr., 33, West Ninth Street, East Liverpool, was found incompetent and not restorable to face trial for a fourth-degree felony counterfeiting charge. The indictment was dismissed. Ingram was accused of attempting to use a counterfeit $100 bill at KFC in St. Clair Township on Dec. 8, 2022.