Common Pleas

New Cases

Alissa Boyd, Spruce Court, East Liverpool, vs. Ethan Boyd, Cream Ridge Road, Lisbon; divorce sought.

Gerald Hopple Jr., U.S. Route 30, Minerva, and Kami Hopple, U.S. Route 30, East Rochester; dissolution sought.

Sue O’Hanlon, state Route 14, New Waterford, vs. Rajwinder Kaur, North Vine Street, Columbiana, et al.; damages sought for personal injury claim from 2023 traffic crash.

Bank of New York Mellon, Anaheim, Calif., vs. David R. Baker Sr., Woodland Avenue, Salem, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought for Woodland Avenue, Salem property.

Grange Indemnity Insurance Company, Columbus, vs. Michael Helbig, New Springfield; collection sought of $24,949 for property damages from 2023 traffic crash.

Docket Entries

U.S. Bank National Association vs. Robert White Jr., et al.; judgment of foreclosure vacated, case dismissed.

Nationstar Mortgage LLC vs. Edwin Chase Jr., et al.; mortgage foreclosure ordered for East Main Street, Salineville property.

Discover Bank vs. Curt McAfee; case dismissed.

Court News

LISBON — A Youngstown man accused of multiple charges, including biting a police officer on the finger, was ordered evaluated by the Forensic Psychiatric Center of Northeast Ohio for competency to stand trial

Zachary A. Hutchison, 40, Youngstown, appeared recently for a status hearing in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court before Judge Megan Bickerton, who cancelled a jury trial that had been set for Tuesday and granted the defense motion for an evaluation.

Hutchison was indicted for third-degree felony harassment with a bodily substance, fourth-degree felony assault, fifth-degree felony obstructing official business and misdemeanors of resisting arrest and expose others to contagion for allegedly refusing to comply with Salem police officers initiating a traffic stop on his vehicle on Nov. 29, 2024, fighting with officers after being physically removed from the vehicle, kicking at officers and biting an officer on the finger causing injuries. He allegedly told officers and medical staff that he had Hepatitis C while being treated at the Salem Regional Medical Center emergency room, with the contagion charge related to that.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Ryan Pritt, 43, Lisbon Street, East Liverpool, had his sentencing rescheduled for April 4, which is when the court will also consider his motion to withdraw plea and defense attorney James Wise’s motion to withdraw as counsel. In the motion to withdraw plea, Pritt allegedly claimed he felt intimidated at the time of the plea and had a defense for the charges. He previous pleaded guilty to charges in three separate cases. In the most recent case, Pritt pleaded guilty to prosecutor’s information for fifth-degree felony vandalism for removing the fuses from a truck on Oct. 9, 2024, forcing the owners to purchase new fuses to get the vehicle running again. He also pleaded guilty to fourth-degree felony aggravated assault, amended from third-degree felony strangulation, for assaulting and strangling a juvenile victim, who had scratches on both sides of his neck and blood coming from a wound on his leg on April 19, 2024 in East Liverpool. A third-degree felony domestic violence charge will be dismissed. He pleaded guilty to fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs for possessing methamphetamine on Sept. 25, 2022.

— Christopher Brink, 44, Franklin Avenue, Salem, pleaded guilty to charges from two separate indictments, including having weapons while under disability, a third-degree felony, fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs with a specification for forfeiture of money from a drug case, and tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony. Sentencing was set for April 28. Charges of aggravated possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia will be dismissed. Brink was accused of having a firearm on Dec. 6, 2023 while under indictment for a felony offense of aggravated trafficking in drugs and also possessing methamphetamine and $85 cash. On April 6, 2023, he was accused of possessing a plastic bag used for the storage of dangerous drugs during a traffic stop in Salem and allegedly crumpling and throwing a piece of evidence behind him while exiting the vehicle. He was also indicted for possessing methamphetamine and $264.

— Taylor Thrasher, 26, Main Street, Wellsville, pleaded guilty to complicity in the commission of an offense, a third-degree felony, with sentencing set for May 8. The indictment said Thrasher conspired with a man to obtain items from Walmart, place controlled substances inside them and provide them to another person for delivery into the county jail.

— Wesley Clark, 35, South Lincoln Avenue, Salem, was placed into the drug court program, with completion not to exceed five years, after pleading guilty to two counts aggravated possession of drugs and two counts possession of drugs, all fifth-degree felonies, and illegal conveyance of a drug of abuse onto the grounds of a detention facility, a third-degree felony. He received credit for 141 days served in jail. Clark possessed methamphetamine on Sept. 1, 2023, buprenorphine and psilocyn on Sept. 26, 2023 and possessed buprenorphine and attempted to bring drugs into a detention facility on Aug. 21, 2024.

— Daniel Canterbury, 35, East Third Street, Salem, was ordered to serve 230 days at the county jail, with credit for 180 days served, leaving a balance of 50 days still to serve in jail for violating his probation for aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor. His probation was dishonorably terminated. Canterbury possessed methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia on May 3, 2021.

— Lucas Keck, 29, Continental Drive, Salem, was sanctioned to serve time at the Eastern Ohio Correction Center after failing to appear for drug court on Feb. 13 and allegedly being dishonest with the supervising officer. His case involved a fourth-degree felony trespass in a habitation when a person is present or likely to be present charge for allegedly entering homes outside Salem on March 14, 2023.