Common Pleas

New Cases

Franklin O’Neil III, West Clark Street, East Palestine, vs. Courtney O’Neil, New Brighton, Pa.; divorce sought.

Brian Calladine, Alliance, and Veronica Calladine, Brunswick; dissolution sought.

Linda Cuthbertson, West 14th Street, Salem, and Bradford Cuthbertson, Campbell; dissolution sought.

Docket Entries

Teanna Gearhart, et al. vs. Kimberlee Kennedy, et al.; case settled and dismissed.

Axiom Acquisition Ventures, LLC vs. Jay McFarland; $18,842 judgment granted to plaintiff.

Tina Brown and Neil Brown; dissolution granted.

Grand Jury

LISBON — A Poland man involved in a sex-for-hire sting in May in East Palestine was served Tuesday with a secret indictment issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury that includes two felony drug counts.

Joshua Hayat, 38, Poland, was charged with fifth-degree felonies of possession of fentanyl-related compound and possession of cocaine, along with misdemeanors of possessing criminal tools, engaging in prostitution, possession of drug abuse instrument and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia.

Hayat was accused of allegedly responding to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website and arranging for sexual activity with a female in exchange for currency and crack cocaine, traveling to East Palestine on May 7 for the meeting. Hayat allegedly possessed the phone used to make the arrangements, along with fentanyl, cocaine, a crack pipe and hypodermic syringes.

Also served with secret indictments were:

— Richard Simons, 24, East Street, East Palestine, aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine on April 11, 2023.

— Billie Thompson, 42, Youngstown, aggravated possession of drugs and aggravated trafficking in drugs, both third-degree felonies, for allegedly possessing and preparing for sale methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than 5 times bulk on June 26, 2023.

— Rusty Altman, 51, Cream Ridge Road, Lisbon, aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine on June 24, 2023.

— Roger Wright, 43, state Route 39, Wellsville, two counts nonsupport of dependents, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly failing to pay support for two people from Jan. 17, 2021 to Jan. 15, 2023.

Court News

LISBON — A man sentenced to 30 months in prison for violating his probation on drug charges must first serve 30 days in the Columbiana County jail after being found in contempt for a derogatory remark.

David Sisco Jr., 34, Moore Street, East Liverpool, appeared recently in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court before Judge Scott Washam for the community control violation and resentencing in his criminal case.

“While in the courtroom, the defendant made an unmistakable and clearly audible derogatory comment directed at the Assistant Prosecuting Attorney. The comment was made in the presence of the undersigned, who remained on the bench, as well as those other persons present in the courtroom,” the judgment entry signed by Washam said.

Washam found Sisco in direct contempt and issued the 30-day jail term. He won’t be taken to prison until those 30 days are up. Assistant Prosecutor Alec Beech handled the case.

The charges against Sisco included third-degree felony illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto the grounds of a specified governmental facility, fifth-degree felony possession of fentanyl-related compound and misdemeanors of possession of drugs and endangering children. Sisco brought drugs onto the grounds of a detention facility, possessed fentanyl and tramadol and put a child at risk, all on Oct. 14, 2021.

His community control was dishonorably terminated due to the violations of the terms.

On April 11, he was placed under community control or probation and ordered to serve up to six months at the community-based Eastern Ohio Correction Center in Wintersville based on his statement that he needed treatment for his drug addiction issues.

Shortly after his arrival at the EOCC, though, he climbed a fence and escaped, remaining at large for a number of months until he was finally apprehended on an arrest warrant issued by the court on April 25, the judgment entry said.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Joey-Lynn Corfee, 35, Rose Drive, Lisbon, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for third-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs (originally a second-degree felony), third-degree felony possession of fentanyl-related compound, and fifth degree felonies of theft, possession of cocaine and aggravated possession of drugs. A misdemeanor possession of drugs charge was dismissed. She also received two mandatory $5,000 fines for two of the drug charges for a total of $10,000. She was ordered to make restitution of $7,090. According to an affidavit filed in county Municipal Court, Corfee was accused of stealing $7,090 from Norfolk Southern from March 10 through March 13, 2023 when she told officials at the Norfolk Southern assistance center that she lived on Leake Street in East Palestine. The affidavit alleged that she provided a fake rental agreement with a fictitious landlord for the property and an altered Ohio Edison electric bill as proof of residency.

For the drug charges, Corfee possessed methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk during a traffic stop in Columbiana on May 18, 2023. She also possessed fentanyl in an amount equal or greater than 5 grams but less than 10 grams, cocaine and tramadol. She possessed methamphetamine on May 4.

— Katherine Harpold, 21, Claiborne Street, East Liverpool, will face a status hearing on Sept. 23 after being found competent to stand trial based on a sanity evaluation by the Forensic Psychiatric Center of Northeast Ohio. She’s charged with two counts of endangering children, a third-degree felony, for allegedly creating a risk of harm to a 2-month-old child on Sept. 29, 2022.