Driver, 14, arrested

Driver, 14, arrested
YOUNGSTOWN -- Police arrested a 14-year-old Pointview Avenue boy who ignored the officers' lights and siren Tuesday as he drove north on Shady Run Road without headlights. The boy increased his speed to elude police, then stopped the car at Shady Run and Boston Avenue and ran through rear yards and woods. After a foot chase, officers caught the eighth-grader at Hillman Elementary and took him to the juvenile justice center after notifying his guardian. He faces charges of driving without a license and fleeing and eluding.
Sexual battery charge
YOUNGSTOWN -- Sherry M. Johnson, 30, of East Lucius Avenue has been indicted on a charge of sexual battery. She is accused of having sex with a 14-year-old boy. The boy, when interviewed by the Mahoning County Sheriff's Department, acknowledged that he had sex with Johnson in September and that he felt he had been forced. Johnson, too, admitted having sex with the boy, according to reports. Johnson was taken to the county jail after her arrest Monday.
YMCA health fair
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown YMCA will observe the National YMCA's 150th anniversary with a health fair and celebration Thursday at the Youngstown YMCA, 17 N. Champion St. The health fair, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., will feature cholesterol, blood sugar and bone density screenings. The celebration begins at 5 p.m. with performances by Maureen Collins of Easy Street Productions and the Youngstown Area Irish Stepdancers.
Playground on hold
YOUNGSTOWN -- It is unclear whether the Ipe's Kids World community playground project will be able to continue, the project chairman said. The planned spring construction of the playground is "highly doubtful," said Marty Novotny, project chairman and also secretary of the 7th Ward Citizens' Coalition. Nonetheless, he hopes the project can be saved. Authorities are investigating how about $10,000 was appropriated for the roughly $80,000 project.
The investigation should be done in about a week and focuses on those within the coalition who had access to the money. Novotny said he doesn't have access to coalition funds. Once the investigation is done, the coalition will see where its money and the project stand, he said. Playground equipment is ordered but apparently hasn't been paid for, he said.
Goldberg: Drop charges
YOUNGSTOWN -- Imprisoned lawyer Richard Goldberg is asking that a judge dismiss charges filed against him earlier this year. Goldberg, 56, of Liberty Township, is serving a federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to bilking clients out of millions of dollars due them from civil lawsuits.
A Mahoning County grand jury issued a 31-count indictment against him on state charges of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, forgery, theft and taking the identity of another. Goldberg's Columbus lawyers filed a motion Tuesday in common pleas court asking visiting Judge Stephen Yarbrough to dismiss the indictment. They said the local authorities do not have jurisdiction to bring the charges, and that the statute of limitations had expired on some of the alleged crimes.
MRDD meeting
AUSTINTOWN -- Mahoning County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities will have a meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Leonard Kirtz School, 4801 Woodridge Drive.
Counterfeit $20 bills
AUSTINTOWN -- Six counterfeit $20 bills have been used at the Babylon nightclub, Javit Court, since Friday. The club manager told police that he found the first bill Tuesday afternoon. The bill was darker and had a texture different from a real $20 bill, the manager said. The manager found the other five bills early today.