Holiday crackdown

Holiday crackdown
GIRARD -- The police department began adding extra patrols today for the holiday season with funds from the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. Officers will focus on driving under the influence, speed and seat-belt violations through Jan. 5.
Meeting change
HUBBARD -- The board of education has changed its December meeting to 7 p.m. Monday at the board room, 150 Hall Ave. Caucus will be at 5:45 p.m.
Fair exhibitors to meet
CANFIELD -- The annual Canfield Fair exhibitors meeting will be at 1 p.m. Jan. 4. The arts and crafts department will meet in the Administration Building; the sheep department in the Western Reserve Inn. All other departments will meet in the Colonial Inn.
Winning poster
CANFIELD -- Monique Hammond, an eighth-grader at Canfield Village Middle School, recently won the right to have her "No Smoking" poster placed on a billboard in the school's No Smoking Ad Campaign poster contest. The billboard, which reads, "Smoking, it's not for everyone. It's not for anyone," is on U.S. Route 224 west near the Ohio Turnpike bridge.
Agency takes action
YOUNGSTOWN -- The executive committee of downtown's redevelopment agency, the Youngstown Central Area Community Improvement Corp., approved two items Thursday:
UA $,3,958 contract to John Sprague Cleaning of Cortland to clean rugs in the CIC-operated George V. Voinovich Government Center.
UA motion authorizing staff and council to assign a city grant from Ohio Edison to the CIC. The grant is part of the CIC's proposal to Mahoning County to renovate the city hall annex into space for the 7th District Court of Appeals.
Pets and Santa
BOARDMAN -- Animal Appeal will offer photos of pets with Santa Claus on Saturday and Sunday at the Petsmart store at 1101 Doral Drive, Boardman. Photos will be taken between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. both days at a cost of $9.95. No appointment is required. Some of the proceeds will go to Animal Appeal, which is a private organization that helps homeless animals.
Robber at Taco Bell
YOUNGSTOWN -- A robber got his hand smashed in the cash register at Taco Bell on Fifth Avenue on Thursday night but still managed to grab $28 and run out, reports show. Employees told police that the suspect lunged from behind a woman customer in line who was receiving change from the register just before 9 p.m. An employee of the restaurant slammed the drawer, momentarily catching the suspect's hand inside. The employees described the robber as a black man in his 30s, 6 foot tall and 180 pounds wearing a dark stocking cap, blue jeans and denim shirt. The suspect drove off in a blue minivan, possibly with a temporary tag, reports show.
Presents stolen
YOUNGSTOWN -- Christmas presents were stolen Thursday during two burglaries on the South Side. A door was kicked in and four wrapped gifts containing children's outfits were taken from a house in the 2900 block of Glenwood Avenue sometime in the afternoon, police said. On West Auburndale Avenue, the resident returned home about 9:30 p.m. and found that gifts were missing from under the Christmas tree. A coat, 14-inch TV, kids' outfits and sweat suits were taken, the woman told police. Entry had been made through a basement window.
Fire damages house
CANFIELD -- A two-story home at 8252 Akron-Canfield Road received heavy damage in a fire that forced the street to be closed to traffic for about two hours while firefighters battled the blaze. The fire was reported at 4:22 a.m. Thursday. The owner, whose name was not available, lives in Texas, and her granddaughter, whose name also was not available, was staying at the home when the fire started, said Canfield Deputy Fire Chief Don Hutchison. There were no injuries. The fire is not considered suspicious, but the cause is under investigation, Hutchison said.
Teacher attacked
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- A teacher at the Youth Development Center in Shenango Township suffered a broken nose after he was attacked by one of the residents. Pennsylvania State Police said Thursday that a 15-year-old from Pittsburgh hit a gym teacher in the face with a hockey stick around 1:50 p.m. Wednesday. The teacher had asked the boy to sit down during gym class because he was being a problem, police said. The teacher was treated at Jameson Memorial Hospital. The 15-year-old was charged with aggravated assault. This is the second assault this week at YDC.