Municipal

LISBON — In Columbiana County Municipal Court, a preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Nov. 3 for Ayden Elijah Keith Moore, 19, Franklin Street, Salem, charged with second-degree felony burglary and misdemeanors of telecommunications harassment and resisting arrest for allegedly entering a residence in Salem uninvited and slapping a woman multiple times across the face, wrapping his hands around her neck and shoving her to the ground on Oct. 25. On Oct. 26, he would not stop contacting the victim and kept texting her after she asked him to stop. When Salem Police officers attempted to take him into custody, he pulled away and continued to fight. He was fined $150 for driving while texting and expired tag.

A preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Nov. 20 for Matthew D. Porter, 36, Vesper, Wisc., charged with third-degree felony compelling prostitution, fifth-degree felony possession of criminal tools and misdemeanor engaging in prostitution for allegedly responding to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website depicting an adult mother trafficking her minor daughter and arranging to have sexual conduct with both mother and daughter in exchange for $220. The affidavit said he was given multiple chances to only see the adult and requested the mother keep the minor there for the sex acts, arriving in East Palestine on Oct. 25 for the meeting, with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

A preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Nov. 24 for Mberwa Murjani Mberwa, 22, Pittsburgh, Pa., charged with third-degree felony compelling prostitution, fifth-degree felony possessing criminal tools and misdemeanor engaging in prostitution for allegedly responding to a undercover ad on a known prostitution website of an adult mother trafficking her minor daughter and arranging to have sexual activity with both for $100, then traveling to East Palestine on Oct. 24 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

A preliminary/pretrial hearing was set Nov. 3 for Julius J. Vajda, 58, Canfield, charged with fourth-degree felony fleeing and eluding of a police officer and misdemeanors of operating a vehicle impaired first offense and OVI breath first offense for allegedly fleeing from Lisbon police officers attempting a traffic stop on Oct. 25.

A pretrial was set Nov. 3 for Edward A. Bolin, 45, Water Street, Salineville, charged with domestic violence for allegedly shoving a woman while arguing with her on Oct. 24 in Salineville. He was also fined $50 for permitted trash on premises for failing to cut grass by July 14, 2021 after being given a letter regarding tall grass in Salineville.

A pretrial was set Nov. 3 for Scott M. Groves, 44, state Route 45, Lisbon, charged with two counts of assault for allegedly assaulting a man and a woman on Oct. 24 in Madison Township. The male victim said he was struck in the ribs and advised when the defendant attacked the woman, he pulled him off of her and then the defendant continued to attack him. Deputies had been called to the property for a suicidal man with a knife.

Robert Allen Riggs, 55, East Ninth Street, East Liverpool, was fined $250 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 129 days suspended and credit for 31 days served served, leaving a balance of 20 days still to serve in jail for domestic violence. Riggs was accused of placing his hands over a woman’s neck and beginning to strangle her on Sept. 22 in East Liverpool, making it hard for her to breathe.

Garrett Matthew Cochran, 28, South Market Street, East Palestine, was fined $600 and given a suspended 30-day jail term for disorderly conduct amended from domestic violence and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. He was ordered to complete 20 hours community service. Cochran got into a physical altercation with a woman and fled the East Liverpool residence with her car keys on April 18. She told him not to take her vehicle, but he left in her vehicle and was stopped by East Liverpool police.

Jamesha Kyara Hofmann, 28, Erie, Pa., was fined $200 and sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 88 days suspended and credit for two days served, for soliciting. She was ordered to complete 20 hours community service and a prostitution education course. Hofmann placed an ad on a known prostitution website and arranged to meet an undercover agent for sexual activity in exchange for money, and additionally offering to provide another woman for sexual activity, arriving in East Palestine on Oct. 10 in a vehicle operated by the other woman.

Daniel Austin Killingsworth, 37, Charlotte, N.C., was fined $600 and sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 89 days suspended and credit for one day served, for engaging in prostitution and possessing criminal tools. He was ordered to complete 40 hours community service and a prostitution prevention course. Killingsworth responded to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website and arranged for sexual activity with a female in exchange for money paid via the Cash App, arriving in East Palestine on Oct. 24 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangements in his possession.

Tara Rayne Balestrino, 24, Youngstown, was fined $250 and given a suspended 60-day jail term for soliciting. She was ordered to complete 25 hours of community service. She was accused of posting an ad on a known website used for the solicitation of prostitution and solicited two acts of sexual conduct for $400 for an undercover agent posing as a purchaser of sex, then driving to Salem on June 11 for the meeting.

Kameron Edward Owens, 21, Ohio Avenue, East Liverpool, was fined $450 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 162 days suspended and credit for three days served, leaving a balance of 15 days to serve in electronically monitored house arrest for assault and disorderly conduct amended from domestic violence. He was ordered to complete 25 hours community service. He was accused of pushing a juvenile girl on the ground during an argument and also made threats to a woman on May 25 in East Liverpool.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Jared Charles McCauley, 29, McDonald, charged with possessing criminal tools and engaging in prostitution for allegedly responding to an undercover ad on a known prostitution website and arranging for sexual activity with a woman in exchange for $80, traveling to East Palestine on Oct. 24 for the meeting with the phone used to make the arrangement in his possession.

A pretrial was set Nov. 24 for Michelle L. Kerr, 43, Leavittsburg, charged with misuse of 911 system for allegedly calling 911 for non-emergency reasons at least four times on Oct. 27 at a homeless shelter in Salem Township. She had originally called to say another woman left in a vehicle and did not have a driver’s license, with dispatch given contact information for the Ohio State Highway Patrol. She was also notified by a sheriff’s deputy that her complaint was not an emergency and she was warned not to call 911 for non-emergencies. Dispatch then reported she had called 911 for a fourth time.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Joseph L. Moore, 54, Speidel Road, East Rochester, charged with violating a protection order for allegedly approaching a woman and speaking to her on Aug. 10 at the Salem Walmart in violation of a protection order against him.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Ryan William Bevington, 48, Somer Street, Leetonia, charged with possessing drug abuse instrument for allegedly possessing a syringe when police were called to an East Liverpool gas station for a man hunched over behind the wheel of a car on Aug. 31. He was identified as the man and the syringe was in plain view.

A pretrial was set Jan. 27 for Kaylee E. Harper, 21, East Third Street, Salem, charged with obstruction of official business for allegedly interfering with an investigation in Salem by screaming and getting into the police officer’s face on Oct. 25 in Salem, continuing to scream at officers and refusing to move out of the way when officers told her to stop her actions.

A pretrial was set Nov. 6 for Cody Allen Graham, 25, New Cumberland, W.Va., charged with illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia and theft for allegedly possessing a glass tube and two plastic tubes used to ingest narcotics when police took him into custody Oct. 26 in East Liverpool for an active warrant for theft. The theft charge stemmed from Graham allegedly using a woman’s debit card at an ATM for $64 on Sept. 12 in East Liverpool.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Michael A. Anderson, 30, Boardman, charged with possession of drug paraphernalia for allegedly possessing a clear pipe with burnt residue during a traffic stop on Oct. 25 in Salem.

Amber J. Whippo, 40, Neeld Road, East Palestine, was fined $150 and given a suspended 30-day jail term for drug paraphernalia. She was ordered to complete 20 hours community service. Whippo possessed a burnt light green bubble pipe with a while crystallized substance inside it.

Gary Lee Keister Jr., 61, Rochester Road, East Rochester, was fined $2,525 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 160 days suspended, with credit for three days served in a driver intervention program, leaving a balance of 17 days to serve in jail for two counts of operating a vehicle impaired and one count each of driving under suspension, no seat belt and marked lanes. Another charge of OVI was dismissed. The judge dismissed $500 of the fines and ordered him to complete 60 hours community service. His driver’s license was suspended for two years.

Andrew A. Midcap, 47, Canton, was fined $580 and given a suspended 180-day jail term for physical control amended from OVI, speeding and no seat belt.

Nika-lya Lewis, 23, Green Valley Drive, Salem, was fined $1,150 and sentenced to 180 days in jail, with 177 days suspended and credit for three days served in a driver intervention program, for OVI and marked lanes, with 500 of the fine suspended. She was ordered to complete 60 hours community service. Another OVI charge was dismissed and her driver’s license was suspended for one year.

A pretrial was set Jan. 20 for Paula D. Parks, 42, Y & O Road, East Liverpool, charged with three counts of driving under suspension.

A pretrial was set Jan. 20 for Cory Lane Wallace, 31, South Lincoln Avenue, Salem, charged with driving under suspension and speeding.

A pretrial was set Jan. 20 for Dorothy Thorn, 60, Chester, W.Va., charged with OVI first offense and OVI breath first offense.

A pretrial was set Jan. 26 for Sadie R. Noling, 33, West Middletown Road, Salem, charged with OVI first offense and a turn signal violation.

A pretrial was set Dec. 15 for Kawaljit Singh Goraya, 48, Baden, Pa., charged with speeding.

A pretrial was set Dec. 4 for Brandon Scott McCaskell, 35, East Duquesne Street, Columbiana, charged with failure to yield to stop sign.

Angela Kay McCarthy, 46, Homestead Drive, Columbiana, was fined $150 for speeding.

George C. Wuest, 55, Poland, was fined $30 for speeding.

Michael David Bruce, 29, South Broadway Avenue, Salem, was fined $100 for driving under suspension and a turn signal violation.

Luke Andrew Morrison, 26, Cora Street, East Liverpool, was fined $50 for expired tag.

David Gasior, 52, East Fifth Street, East Liverpool, was fined $50 for intoxication.

Common Pleas

New Cases

Michael Padilla, Cary, N.C., vs. Rhonda Padilla, state Route 7, New Waterford; divorce sought.

Docket Entries

Lakeview Loan Servicing LLC vs. Donald J. Shorb Jr., et al.; case dismissed.

Rosalynda M. Dina vs. Joseph Dina; divorce granted.

Christopher M. Mezerker vs. Kuhnle Brothers, Inc., et al.; Mezerker entitled to participation in Ohio Workers’ Compensation Fund for additional condition.

Tax Ease OH V, LLC vs. Chris Dietz, et al.; case dismissed.

Marriage Licenses

James D. Hall II, 40, New Brighton, Pa., door dash, and Elena Bailey Ford, 33, New Brighton, Pa., disabled.

Alex M. Finch, 29, East Palestine, contractor, and Katelyn P. Davis, 30, East Palestine, registered nurse.

Anthony J. DeSarro, 28, New Waterford, business owner, and Bethany A. Crouch, 26, Columbiana, business owner.

Jerimiah B. Jackson, 35, Salineville, mechanic/welder, and Tara Jo Dowling, 30, Salineville, unemployed.

Phillip M. Whittenberger, 34, Leetonia, diesel technician, and Susan A. Bish, 34, Columbiana, lawncare secretary.

Anthony Martin, 27, Hanoverton, HVAC technician, and Kayleena L. Smith, 28, Hanoverton, unemployed.

Michael A. Denny Sr., 42, Alliance, foundry, and Keelie L. Wright, 27, Salem, bartender.

James M. Pinkerton, 54, Lisbon, laborer, and Jessica D. Graffius, 46, Lisbon, disabled.

Adam J. Himes, 43, Columbiana, HVAC tech, and Stacy Lynn Teets, 38, Columbiana, office assistant.

Shane L. Toot, 30, Columbiana, warehouse associate, and Elizabeth M. Clagett, 22, Columbiana, cashier.

Court News

LISBON –A Wellsville man accused of participating in a scheme to get narcotics into the Columbiana County jail was sentenced to 15 months in prison for two counts of complicity in the commission of an offense.

David Sisco, 35, Sixth Street, appeared for sentencing recently in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court for the two charges, getting nine months for the third-degree felony and six months for the fifth-degree felony, to be served consecutively for a total of 15 months.

The indictment alleged that Sisco was part of a scheme to bring drugs into the county jail from Sept. 12, 2024 to Sept. 13, 2024 and solicited two women to obtain illegal drugs as part of the scheme to get the drugs into the jail.

The prison term was ordered served consecutively to a term he was already serving for violating his probation on drug charges. In September 2024, he was sentenced to 30 months in prison for violating the terms of his probation for 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.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Ashley Bable, 39, last known address Lisbon, was sentenced to nine months in prison after pleading guilty to complicity in the commission of an offense, a third-degree felony, and misdemeanor possession of drugs. Bable was observed on surveillance camera by county sheriff’s deputies taping a small package to the back of the handrail in the elevator to Common Pleas Court. Deputies retrieved the package, which contained suboxone and cigarettes. Then deputies replaced the package with a dummy package, which was later retrieved by a county jail inmate who was there for a court appearance on Oct. 30, 2023. Bable also possessed buprenorphine. The nine-month prison term was ordered to be served consecutively to the 26-month prison term she received in July for two counts of complicity in the commission of an offense, a third-degree felony, fifth-degree felonies of aggravated possession of drugs, possession of a fentanyl-related compound, possession of heroin and two counts possession of drugs and fourth-degree felony trespass in a habitation. The trespass charge was originally a second-degree felony charge of burglary for entering a property with the intent to commit theft on April 6, 2023. Two counts of fifth-degree felony complicity in the commission of an offense were dismissed. Bable and two others conspired and participated in a scheme to get narcotics into the county jail and also conspired to obtain illegal narcotics to sneak into the jail on Sept. 12, 2024 and Sept. 13, 2024. On Sept. 13, 2024, Bable possessed methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroin, buprenorphine and xylazine.