Common Pleas

New Cases

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. Donald Pullie, Commerce Street, Wellsville, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Commerce Street, Wellsville property.

County Treasurer, Lisbon, vs. James Moraski, Metz Road, Columbiana, et al.; delinquent property tax foreclosure sought for Front Street, Rogers, Front Street, Negley property.

Onemain Financial Group, LLC vs. Richard Sloan, state Route 45, Wellsville; collection sought of alleged $18,639 debt.

American Express National Bank, Independence vs. William Watson, Parkview Drive, Wellsville; collection sought of alleged $4,745 debt.

Lakeview Loan Servicing, LLC, Virginia Beach, Va., vs. Jason Howe-George, Walnut Ridge Road, Salineville, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought for Walnut Ridge Road, Salineville property.

Docket Entries

Seven Seventeen Credit Union, Inc. vs. Daniel Crow Sr. and Misty Speece; $21,738 judgment granted to plaintiff, plus $335 interest.

Spring Oaks Capital SPV, LLC vs. Dennis Stock; $22,268 judgment granted to plaintiff.

County Treasurer vs. Lisa Duncan, now known as McCourt, et al.; stay lifted, case reinstated to active docket.

County Treasurer vs Michael McCullough, et al.; delinquent property taxes paid, case dismissed.

County Treasurer vs. Mark Steeb, et al.; payment plan entered, case stayed, taxes for one parcel paid, with that parcel dismissed from case.

County Treasurer vs. Joann Hively Zeigler, et al.; delinquent property taxes paid, case dismissed.

Citizens Bank, N.A., etc. vs. Scott Henthorne, et al.; case reinstated to active docket.

Grand Jury

LISBON — Two drug defendants were served Wednesday with secret indictments issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury.

Melissa Barnhart, 46, West Fifth Street, Wellsville, was charged with fifth-degree felony possession of cocaine for allegedly possessing cocaine on Nov. 26, 2024.

Robert Greene, 52, Youngstown, was charged with fifth-degree felony possession of cocaine for allegedly possessing cocaine on Aug. 2, 2024.

Municipal

LISBON — In Columbiana County Municipal Court, a case against Nicholas Todd Evans, 26, Niles, was bound over to the county grand jury for 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, 2024 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

A preliminary hearing was set April 24 for Marcus Ford, 31, Canton, charged with harassment by inmate, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly spraying a corrections officer with urine at the Columbiana County jail on April 10. Ford was an inmate at the jail at the time.

A preliminary hearing was set April 24 for Tyler Anthony, 24, Vine Street, Salem, charged with fourth-degree felony domestic violence for allegedly pushing a woman down on the bed attempting to take a cell phone from her after an argument turned physical on April 15 in Salem. Due to the victim being pregnant, Anthony was charged with a felony.

A preliminary hearing was set April 24 for Antonio Mitchell, 28, Youngstown, charged with promote prostitution-transport across state lines for sex for hire, a fourth-degree felony, for allegedly driving a woman to Salem on April 15, knowing that she was going to engage in a sex for hire arrangement during an undercover texting conversation.

A pretrial was set April 24 for Judson Edling, 38, last known address West Pershing Street, Salem, charged with domestic violence, endangering children and criminal damaging for allegedly holding a woman to the ground while striking her in a parking lot on West State Street, Perry Township, and threatening to kill her if law enforcement became involved. He also allegedly kicked her vehicle causing damage. The incident allegedly occurred in the presence of a child on April 12.

A pretrial was set April 24 for David Stewart, 39, Union Ridge Road, Negley, charged with domestic violence for allegedly making a threat to a woman which involved scissors on April 15 in Salem while they were arguing.

A sentencing hearing was set April 28 for Akayla Poteet, 20, Vine Street, Salem, who pleaded no contest and was found guilty of domestic violence for assaulting a man in Salem on April 15 after an argument turned physical.

Harjot Singh, 31, Kent, was fined $350 and given a suspended 180-day jail term for engaging in prostitution and possessing criminal tools. He was ordered to complete 50 hours community service and an online 12-hour prostitution prevention course, with $100 ordered forfeited to the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force. Singh was accused of requesting sexual conduct for an agreed upon price of $100 from an undercover agent, then driving to Salem for the meeting on Feb. 18 with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

A pretrial was set June 26 for Brooke Potts, 23, East Lincoln Way, Lisbon, charged with endangering children after a young child was found walking in the road on Scotts Mill Road wearing only a dirty diaper and a long sleeve T-shirt when it was 38 degrees outside on April 11. The deputies searched the area for half an hour in an attempt to locate an adult looking for the child but didn’t fine anyone. The child was nonverbal, 3 to 4 years old. An hour passed before Potts called about a missing child. Children Services had responded.

A pretrial was set June 24 for Jerry Lee Ward, 49, Chester, W.Va., charged with theft for allegedly failing to pay for 10 items totaling $60 at the Calcutta Walmart on April 10.

A sentencing hearing was set May 27 for Braedyn Miller, 19, Glenda Way, East Liverpool, who pleaded guilty to theft for failing to pay for two items valued at $59 at the Calcutta Walmart on April 11.

Amanda Curran, 40, New Gallilee, Pa., was fined $250 and sentenced to180 days in the county jail, with 34 days suspended and credit for 146 days served, for aggravated trespass, a misdemeanor that had been amended from fourth-degree felony burglary. She was ordered to complete 40 hours community service. She was accused of trespassing in a woman’s home on Aug. 5, 2024, wearing her clothes and opening her mail.

A pretrial was set July 1 for Frederick Kirby, 49, 13th Street, Wellsville, charged with drug paraphernalia, expired license and a window tint violation for possessing a metal burnt crack pipe during a traffic stop on April 10 in East Liverpool.

John Powell Jr., 34, Morton Street, East Liverpool, was sentenced to 90 days in the county jail for violating his probation for two 2021 cases for endangering children, operating a vehicle impaired, failure to control and no license related to a traffic crash on Aug. 14, 2021 when he drove impaired with children in the vehicle.

A pretrial was set June 26 for Tanya Powell, 36, Minerva Street, East Liverpool, charged with operating a vehicle impaired first offense, driving under suspension and traffic control devices.

A pretrial was set June 24 for Frank Myers, 19, Beaver Falls, Pa., charged with speeding.

Devin Earich, 30, West Third Street, Salem, was fined $50 for a stop sign violation, with a driving under suspension charge dismissed. He was credited for five community service hours valued at $50 towards the fine.

Shaine Hostetter, 43, Sherman Street, Lisbon, was fined $50 for expired plate.

James Oiler, 22, First Street, Wellsville, was fined $65 for speeding and no seat belt.

Rebecca Burcaw, 53, North Benton, was fined $35 for speeding.

Court News

LISBON — A man accused of soliciting someone to bring drugs to the Columbiana County jail in 2021 entered guilty pleas recently in county Common Pleas Court.

Christopher Price, 42, Mogadore, pleaded guilty to complicity in the commission of an offense, a third-degree felony, in an indictment from 2023 and nonsupport of dependents, a fifth-degree felony, in an indictment from 2022.

Sentencing was set for July 7.

Price solicited another person to commit illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto the grounds of a detention facility, allegedly making calls from the county jail on Nov. 21, 2021 to solicit someone to bring drugs to the lockup.

He also failed to pay child support from May 3, 2020 to May 1, 2022.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Sarah Graham, 22, East Main Street, East Palestine, was sentenced to eight months in prison for four counts of aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, from two separate cases for possessing methamphetamine on Oct. 7, 2022, June 7, 2023, and June 8, 2023 and possessing hydrocodone on Aug. 23, 2023. She was also ordered to forfeit $64. The eight months was ordered served consecutive to the 12 months in prison she received for aggravated possession of drugs, a third-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk. That brings the total amount of prison time to 20 months.

— Arthur Gingher, 54, Hofmeister Road, Petersburg, was sentenced to nine months in prison after pleading guilty to fifth-degree felonies of vandalism and three counts tampering with coin machines. Charges of possessing criminal tools and criminal damaging were dismissed. He received credit for 10 days already served. He was accused of breaking into gaming machines at a laundromat in East Palestine on Aug. 10, 2024 and using some sort of pry bar to break the locks on three separate coin-activated gaming machines.

— Meghan McElroy, 31, Maple Hill Road, Salineville, was placed under community control for three years and ordered to serve up to six months at the Eastern Ohio Correction Center in Lisbon for fifth-degree felonies of aggravated possession of drugs and two counts possession of drugs and misdemeanor possessing drug abuse instruments. McElroy possessed methamphetamine on Feb. 6, 2023, xylazine and benzodiazepine on May 10, 2023, and drug abuse instruments such as syringes on Jan. 27, 2024.

— Treyven Johnson, 24, Bradshaw Avenue, East Liverpool, was placed under community control for four years and ordered to serve a term at the Eastern Ohio Correction Center in Wintersville until the program is successfully completed for multiple drugs counts from three separate cases. He was sentenced for charges which included third-degree felonies of trafficking in fentanyl-related compound and possession of a fentanyl-related compound, and fifth-degree felonies of two counts trafficking in cocaine and three counts possession of cocaine, along with a specification for forfeiture of money from a drug case. Dismissed were two counts possession of drugs, two counts possession of cocaine and a single count of aggravated possession of drugs. He received credit for two days served. He also received mandatory fines totaling $10,000 and was ordered to forfeit $1,484. Johnson offered to sell less than 5 grams of cocaine on Nov. 3, 2022 and Nov. 30, 2022, offered to sell and possessed fentanyl in an amount equal or greater than 5 grams but less than 10 grams and possessed $1,484 on Dec. 1, 2022. He also possessed cocaine on Sept. 25, 2023, Nov. 9, 2023 and Feb. 10, 2024.

— Nick Rhodes, 51, Youngstown, pleaded guilty to misdemeanors of aggravated menacing, obstructing official business and resisting arrest, with charges of tampering with evidence and domestic violence dismissed. He was sentenced to 72 days in the county jail and received credit for 72 days already served, leaving zero days to serve. He was accused of threatening a woman with a knife during a domestic incident on July 21 in Leetonia where he broke the shifter of her vehicle, threatened to break the window when she locked him out of the vehicle and threw the knife at the rear driver’s side tire, causing the tire to deflate. He also allegedly tampered with the knife after the incident, ran and refused commands to place his hands behind his back and was tased, again running and then fighting with deputies handcuffing him.

— Nathan Holcomb, 23, Calcutta Smith Ferry Road, East Liverpool, was placed on an intervention plan for 24 months after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine and aggravated possession of drugs, both fifth-degree felonies, for possessing cocaine and amphetamine on May 10, 2024.

— Joshua McQuerry, 38, Struthers, was placed under community control for two years after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing cocaine on May 27, 2022.

— Scott Dean, 41, Benton Road, Salem, was placed under community control for three years after pleading guilty to four counts of aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, and a specification for forfeiture of money from a drug case. He received credit for three days served and was ordered to forfeit $268. He was accused of possessing $229, methamphetamine and THC on July 10, 2023, possessing psilocyn on Sept. 28, 2023 and possessing $39 and methamphetamine on Oct. 2, 2023.