Former juvenile-jail worker pleads innocent

YOUNGSTOWN -- Davanzo Tate, the former youth services director at Youngstown Youth Academy, pleaded innocent to assault charges in Youngstown Municipal Court.
Tate, 45, of Austintown, is charged with punching a Franklin County Juvenile Detention Center worker on March 4. Tate was released on his own recognizance Thursday after entering his plea at an arraignment before Anthony Sertick Jr., a municipal court magistrate.
Assault is a first-degree misdemeanor, which carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
A pretrial hearing is set for May 15.
Background: The charge stems from a matter that occurred when two Franklin County juvenile detention center workers arrived at the YYA to pick up a 16-year-old boy. The YYA has facilities on Commonwealth Avenue and West Indianola Avenue.
When the boy realized he was going to be picked up by detention officers and not his mother, he became upset and began crying and swearing. Reports say that Tate told the boy to "stop crying like a baby." He also is accused of swearing at the boy and calling him names.
The boy then threatened Tate and reportedly made a sound like he was going to spit. The juvenile detention worker said that Tate drew back a closed fist and swung at the boy, missed, and hit her instead.
Tate, a former Mahoning County deputy sheriff, no longer works at the YYA.