Trending
Grand Jury
LISBON -- Sarah C. Mullins, 32, Carbon Hill Road, East Palestine, was served Thursday with a secret indictment issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury for multiple drug counts, including third-degree felony possession of a fentanyl-related compound, fourth-degree felonies of possession of heroin and possession of cocaine, fifth-degree felonies of two counts aggravated possession of drugs and misdemeanor possession of drugs for allegedly possessing 5 to 10 grams of fentanyl and cocaine, 1 to 5 grams of heroin, methamphetamine and MDMA.
Court News
LISBON -- A former Leetonia man committed to a mental health facility for the October 2024 attack against a Leetonia police officer and April 2024 attack against a deputy sheriff was recently granted supervised movement off of the facility grounds.
Randy A. May, 48, formerly of Mill Street, remains under continued commitment at Heartland Behavioral Healthcare, but can now leave the facility while under supervision. The entry said Leetonia Police will be notified if he's going to be in Leetonia.
A review of his commitment is set for June 4, 2027 in Common Pleas Court.
May was found not guilty by reason of insanity for two counts of felonious assault and one count of aggravated robbery, all first-degree felonies, for the attack that left Leetonia Patrolman John Hancock injured, using a solid steel rod to beat him and grabbing for his service weapon during the attack.
May was also found not guilty by reason of insanity of fourth-degree felony assault for striking a deputy in his side and then striking him again during an incident in Leetonia when deputies responded for a person having a mental health crisis on April 11, 2024.
Also in Common Pleas Court:
-- Brandon E. Hacker, 33, Maple Street, Lisbon, was sentenced to prison for 18 months after violating the terms of his probation for third-degree felony having weapons under disability and misdemeanors of aggravated menacing and menacing by stalking. His probation was dishonorably terminated. He was accused of going to a woman's apartment in Perry Township and threatening her, saying he had a gun and was going to kill her, threatening to shoot her in the head on June 18, 2025 and making repeated threats from June 12 to June 18, 2025.
-- David Alan Michael Talbott, 35, St. Clair Avenue, East Liverpool, was ordered evaluated for competency and sanity by the Forensic Psychiatric Center of Northeast Ohio. He's charged with fourth-degree felony receiving stolen property and misdemeanors of theft and possession of drug abuse instrument for allegedly having a woman's stolen vehicle, which was found in the Calcutta Walmart parking lot, and being caught coming out of the store on March 4 with a box of security cameras concealed in his pants valued at $99 that he allegedly stole from the store, having a hypodermic needle in his pocket.
-- Tiffiany L. Franklin, 35, Avondale Street, East Liverpool, was sentenced to six months in prison for fourth-degree felony trespassing and misdemeanor criminal damaging, with credit for two days served. She was accused of trespassing in a residence on Dec. 16, 2025.
-- Jason N. Barnes, 38, Steubenville, was ordered to serve 12 months in prison for violating the terms of his probation for aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on March 20, 2025. The sentence is to be served consecutively to the sentence for another drug case for possessing heroin and fentanyl on Jan. 26, 2024.
-- James J. Lippiatt, 37, Washington Street, Salem, was sentenced to 24 months in prison after pleading guilty to fifth-degree felonies of aggravated possession of drugs, possession of a fentanyl-related compound, possession of cocaine and possession of drugs and a third-degree felony of illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto the grounds of a specified governmental facility, with credit for 98 days served. On Dec. 3, 2024 he possessed methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine and xylazine and tried to take drugs into a detention facility. The sentence was ordered served at the same time as his sentences for two other drug cases.
-- Michael L. Marsh, 46, Dover, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, given a mandatory $5,000 fine and credit for 13 days servers for aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on May 8, 2025.
-- Daniel Lee Matz, 47, Carole Circle, Salem, was placed under community control for 24 months after pleading guilty to aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for possessing methamphetamine on Nov. 15, 2025.
-- Van Evans, 20, East Cleveland, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for violating the terms of his probation for tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, with credit for 65 days served in jail. The tampering occurred on June 10, 2025.
--Ronald E. Harper, 38, Park Avenue, East Palestine, was placed under community control for three years, received credit for 33 days already served in jail and was fined $565 after pleading guilty to fourth-degree felony grand theft of a motor vehicle and misdemeanors of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse or a combination of them, and three counts of OVI of a listed controlled substance or a listed metabolite of a controlled substance. Harper stole a 2014 Ford Focus in East Palestine Circle K on Nov. 7, 2024 while impaired, with the indictment listing methamphetamine, amphetamine and marijuana all in his system at the time. He was ordered to pay restitution of $3,750 and his license was suspended for two years.
-- Jessica J. Morris, 48, Anderson Avenue, Wellsville pleaded guilty to fourth-degree felony theft from a person in a protected class and fifth-degree felony receiving stolen property, with sentencing set for Oct. 1. There's also a probation violation hearing in a 2024 case against Morris. The theft and receiving stolen property stems from her use of a debit card from Oct. 11, 2025 to Oct. 14, 2025.
-- Lucas M. Andric, 44, Wooster Street, East Liverpool, was placed under community control for three years after pleading guilty to two counts of nonsupport of dependents, a fifth-degree felony, for failing to pay support for two children from Jan. 7, 2024 to Jan. 4, 2026.
Common Pleas
NEW CASES
Arin Noel Altomare, Parkview Drive, Columbiana, and Teresa Lynn Newsome Altomare, Columbus; dissolution sought.
Pamela Hough, Salem Alliance Road, Salem, vs. Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation, Columbus, and West Branch Nursing Home LTD, doing business as Pleasant View North Retirement Center, Warren; one case for appeal of claim denial and one case for a refile of 2025 case.
Wilmington Savings Fund Society, Orange, Calif. vs. Cynthia R. Smith, also known as Cynthia R. Temple,, North Market Street, Lisbon, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought for North Market Street, Lisbon property.
DOCKET ENTRIES
Lyden Oil Company vs. Nulfco, Inc.; $18,931 default judgment granted to plaintiff, plus $1,476 attorney fees and costs.
Municipal
LISBON -- An East Liverpool man is facing potential felony charges in for allegedly threatening to kill another man.
A preliminary hearing and pretrial were set Sept. 8 for Thomas Powel, 30, Dewey Avenue, East Liverpool, charged with second-degree felony burglary and misdemeanor charges of aggravated menacing and criminal damaging for allegedly entering a St. Clair Avenue residence without permission, knocking down window blinds, and threatening to kill a man in East Liverpool on Wednesday.
Brandon Miller, 35, Bell Road, Lisbon, was sentenced to 48 days in jail with credit for three days served and fined $500 for two counts of assault, both of which were amended from domestic violence. One count stems from an incident when Miller grabbed a woman by the neck and punched her in the face inside of a vehicle in the middle of the roadway in Elkrun Township causing a knot on her forehead, a swollen upper lip, red marks and welting on both side of her neck, a cut on her right arm, and a scratch on her left breast on July 3. The second count stems from an incident when he dragged a woman around an Elkrun Township residence on July 28.
A pretrial was set Sept. 9 for David Barckhoff, 44, Springboro, Pennsylvania, charged with domestic violence for allegedly grabbing a woman by the wrists during an argument causing deep bruises to both arms at a medical facility in St. Clair Township on Thursday.
A pretrial was set Sept. 2 for James Shaffer, 68, South State Street, New Waterford, charged with menacing for allegedly following two juveniles from the park to a business and threatening to strike them in New Waterford on Wednesday.
A pretrial was set Oct. 28 for Isaac Hickman, 21, Southeast Boulevard, Salem, charged with obstructing official business and public indecency for allegedly hiding from officers in a garage and urinating on the back patio of a Cedar Ridge Drive residence in Salem on Friday.
A pretrial was set Sept. 16 for Justin Buckel, 34, Dakota Street, East Liverpool, charged with obstructing official business, aggravated menacing and theft. The charge of menacing stems from an incident on Aug. 9 when Buckel allegedly threatened to kill a woman in Wellsville. The theft charge stems from an incident on Aug. 18 when he allegedly took an item valued at $20.37 from an East Liverpool business without paying. The charge of obstruction stems from an incident on Wednesday when he allegedly fled from officers into a building and hid under a pile of tires when they attempted to execute a warrant for his arrest in East Liverpool.