Grand jury gets case

Grand jury gets case
WARREN -- A Trumbull County grand jury will soon decide if a 24-year-old Hazelwood Avenue S.E. man should be indicted on an aggravated robbery charge. Ashley Kirk waived his right to a preliminary hearing Monday in municipal court. Judge Thomas Gysegem said the case will now be sent to the grand jury. It is not known when the grand jury will hear the case, court officials said. Police said Kirk is accused of robbing Bank One, 1160 W. Market St., May 24. He is being held in the county jail in lieu of a $500,000 bond.
Senior pictures
NILES -- Eastwood Mall will have a Senior Picture Show on Friday and Saturday in the center court. Several portrait studios from Trumbull and Mahoning counties will be displaying information about buying portraits and answer questions for next fall's high school or college seniors, as well as other special events. For vendor information, call (330) 652-6980.
Workers plead guilty
WARREN -- Several employees of TJ Market, 481 Braceville-Robinson Road, Braceville, pleaded innocent to charges of trafficking in/or illegal use of food stamps.
Phyllis Putnam, 63, of state Route 45, Braceville; and Rhonda Johnson, 30, Helen Johnson, 48, and Thomas Johnson, 50, all of Braceville-Robinson Road, Braceville; entered the pleas Monday before Judge Peter Kontos of Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.
All were released after they each posted $5,000 bond. The four were secretly indicted by a Trumbull County grand jury last week.
Paving contract
CHAMPION -- Champion Township trustees awarded a contract for the 2002 resurfacing project to Diorio Paving Inc. of Hubbard for $60,679. Diorio will pave 39 township roads, including sections of Bond, Marshall, Towson, Old Colony, Meadowview and all of High Street in Champion, plus 21 other state and county roads. Work is expected to start about June 30 and finish about July 30. Trustees are still undecided about township mosquito spraying. Trustees questioned whether it was cost effective. Trustee Nancy Shafer noted that in the past, a lot of residents opposed having their yards sprayed because of concern about small children and pets.
Teacher retires
McDONALD--The board of education accepted the retirement resignation Monday of high school social studies teacher Vincent Pelligrini, effective July 1.
The board met in executive session for a work session to discuss negotiations with the district's 52 teachers in the McDonald Education Association, whose three-year contract expires Aug. 31.
Drug charges
HOWLAND -- Township police have arrested four adults and one juvenile on charges of possessing marijuana. Police Chief Steve Lamantia said the five were arrested around 5 p.m. Monday after police found them in a shelter house at the township park with 31 grams of suspected marijuana and more than $900 in cash. Lamantia said police are expected to file charges against the adults later today in Warren Municipal Court. Charges are also expected to be filed today against the juvenile in juvenile court. Three of the adults were from Howland, and one is from Warren. The juvenile, a 17-year-old male, is from Farmdale, Lamantia said.
Indictment handed up
CLEVELAND -- A federal grand jury has handed up an indictment in U.S. District Court here charging Earl Sidney May III, 45 of Lisbon Street, Canfield, with failure to pay past due child support.
The indictment says May failed to pay child support for his children who live in Columbiana County during three periods from August 1998 to June 2000. Emily M. Sweeney, United States attorney, said May is ordered to pay $884.95 monthly and is more than $10,000 in arrears.