Municipal

LISBON — In Columbiana County Municipal Court, a preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Nov. 3 for Mark N. Hayes, 59, Phoenix, Ariz., charged with fourth-degree felony assault on a peace officer and misdemeanors of obstructing official business and disorderly conduct.

Hayes was accused of allegedly pushing Leetonia Police Chief Allen Haueter off his truck cab and onto the street, causing him to fall on his back during an incident on Industry Road, Leetonia on Oct. 23. Hayes had been told to move his semi truck, which was deemed a road hazard, and he became belligerent and was refusing to leave the truck, ignoring several warnings to desist his actions. He complied after another officer told him he would be tased.

Dominic D. Crooms, 26, West Main Street, Salineville, was fined $350 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 165 days suspended, leaving 15 days to serve for aggravated menacing, disorderly conduct and menacing, but the jail term was ordered served at the same time as 18 days he must serve for a probation violation for a 2024 case of menacing. Crooms was accused of threatening to stab another man during a disturbance on Oct. 13 in Salineville. Police could hear screaming and loud banging noises and learned Crooms had been told to leave and became hostile and aggressive. When officers made contact with him, he possessed a large fixed blade knife.

Charges of violation of a protection order and domestic violence against Sondra J. Vallera, 72, Anderson Avenue, Wellsville, were dismissed, with costs taxed to the state. Vallera had been accused of being at a residence in Wellsville on April 17 in violation of a protection order and on April 15 attacking another woman at the residence.

A pretrial was set Nov. 6 for Robert A. Mountz II, 42, state Route 164, Lisbon, charged with assault for allegedly shoving a woman down on a bed and pinning her head and body with such pressure and to the point it caused injury to her ribs on Oct. 19 in Center Township.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Jalyn Mae Gates, 29, Erie, Pa., charged with complicity to aid/abet another, drug paraphernalia and carrying a concealed weapon, which was amended from a felony improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle. Gates allegedly drove another woman to a sex-for-hire meeting in East Palestine on Oct. 10 and possessed suspected cocaine and rolled up currency used to snort the cocaine. She also allegedly possessed a loaded .380-caliber handgun in her purse, along with alleged crack cocaine.

A pretrial was set Jan. 27 for Jennifer Lynn Rawson, 38, Wilbert Avenue, East Liverpool, charged with two counts of endangering children for allegedly causing a substantial risk to the health and safety of two children by not properly securing the residence and allowing them to leave the apartment without clothes on Aug. 23 in East Liverpool. Police learned that she woke up to find the girls missing and after contacting officers, the officers found the two children naked near a wooded area 300 yards from the apartment.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Kenneth E. Dickson, 41, West Main Street, Salineville, charged with two counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly fighting with another man on the front lawn of a Church Street property in Salineville on Oct. 10, admitting he put the other man in a headlock and wrestled with him for a short time.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Damecka R. Wilkins, 30, Girard, charged with operating a vehicle impaired first offense and speeding.

A pretrial was set Jan. 20 for Domingo Rodriguez Alicea, 47, Warren, charged with OVI first offense, OVI breath first offense, driving under suspension and marked lanes.

A pretrial was set Jan. 20 for Lilliana Colon, 21, state Route 45, Lisbon, charged with OVI first offense, OVI breath first offense and reasonable control.

A pretrial was set Jan. 21 for Logan Jones, 35, Oak Street, Lisbon, charged with OVI first offense and reasonable control.

Common Pleas

New Cases

Michael Zema, Sixth Street, East Liverpool, vs. Marla Zema, Youngstown; divorce sought.

Abby L. Gustafson, New England Square, New Waterford, vs. Eric M. Gustafson, Old state Route 558, Leetonia; divorce sought.

Westlake Services LLC, doing business as Westlake Financial Services, Los Angeles, Calif. vs. Nikki Jezek, Brown Street, Lisbon; collection sought of alleged $13,571 debt.

Freedom Mortgage Corporation, Boca Raton, Fla., vs. Craig S. Larson, Virginia Avenue, Minerva, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought for Columbiana County property.

Docket Entries

M & T Bank vs. Ethan Dilworth, et al.; case stayed due to bankruptcy filing.

Michaela M. London vs. Christian J. London; divorce granted.

Court News

LISBON — A domestic violence charge against a Wellsville man was dismissed recently at the request of the state.

Tyrone M. Davis, also known as Reese Davis, 52, Eighth Street, Wellsville, had been recently indicted for third-degree felony domestic violence for allegedly slapping a woman across the face on Aug. 12 in Wellsville, with at least two or more past convictions for domestic violence on his record.

The case was dismissed without prejudice in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court, with the state indicating that it no longer wants to pursue the charges.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Robert D. Buzzard, 52 , Ohio Avenue, East Liverpool, was sentenced to 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto the grounds of a specified governmental facility, a third-degree felony, and aggravated possession of drugs, a third-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine in an amount equal or greater than bulk but less than five times bulk and taking drugs onto the grounds of a detention facility on May 6, 2023. He also received a mandatory fine of $5,000.

— Audrea J. Farnsworth, 49, West Seventh Street, East Liverpool, was placed under community control for 12 months after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine, a fifth-degree felony, and misdemeanor drug paraphernalia for possessing cocaine and paraphernalia on April 30, 2024.

Court News

LISBON — A Bloomingdale man accused of stealing thousands of dollars from people over a more than one-year period was served Thursday with secret indictments issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury for three separate cases.

Richard H. Carter, 54, was charged with three counts of grand theft, all fourth-degree felonies. The indictments allege that he deprived a woman of $13,345 from May 20, 2022 through July 17, 2023, deprived a man and woman of $18,774 from June 20, 2022 through June 23, 2023 and deprived a man and Bible Baptist Church of $20,365 from Oct. 28, 2022 through July 20, 2023.

Also served with secret indictments were:

— Benjamin Krueger, 40, New Castle, Pa., possession of cocaine, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing cocaine on March 30, 2025.

— Robert R. Smith, 49, Hammond School Road, Wellsville, fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs and misdemeanor possessing drug abuse instrument for allegedly possessing methamphetamine and drug abuse instruments on July 15, 2024.