Friday, March 15, 2002
Severely punishing burglars is a high priority, an assistant prosecutor said.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- A middle-aged woman residing in the Newport Glen section of the township wishes a neighbor had called police instead of just watching a burglary at the residence she shares with her 86-year-old mother and doing nothing.
The woman said a neighbor watched the burglar in action, but, the neighbor, who cited an aversion to racial profiling of minority suspects, declined to call police.
Her mother arrived home, blocking the burglar's vehicle in her driveway late last year, but then backed up, and the burglar drove off empty-handed, leaving family possessions he had planned to steal stacked up by the door.
The middle-aged woman, who was out-of-town when the burglary occurred and praised township police for their rapid response to her home, was one of about two dozen people who attended a police-sponsored crime prevention seminar Thursday evening at the township hall.
"Everybody needs to keep an eye out for one another, and don't be afraid to call the police when you see something that looks suspicious," said Patrolman Kim R. Kotheimer, a township Community Oriented Police Services officer.
In attendance: Besides police and township trustees, those attending included township residents and business people who had been victims of crime, and several apartment complex managers.
Township officials mailed invitations to the seminar to 240 victims of recent crimes. Attendees heard security tips from police and a private security consultant. The audience also heard from representatives of the Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office about criminal justice procedures and assistance programs for victims and witnesses. Victims also were given an opportunity to discuss confidentially with police the status of investigations of crimes against them.
Timothy Franken, chief of the criminal division of the Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office, said his office aggressively prosecutes burglary suspects and seeks severe penalties for those who are convicted to discourage them from repeating their crimes.
One case: For example, he said his office would seek the maximum penalty for James Goins and Chad Barnette, both 17, both of Youngstown, who were tried as adults and convicted Tuesday by a jury on charges they robbed a couple and brutally beat and robbed an 84-year-old man and locked him in a fruit cellar in January 2001 on Youngstown's South Side.
A sentencing hearing will be Wednesday for Goins and Barnette, who were convicted of aggravated robbery and burglary and attempted aggravated murder charges and face 261/2 to 851/2 years in prison.
Police Chief Jeffrey Patterson said his officers respond quickly when called, assign all cases to detectives and consult closely with neighboring police departments. To preserve scenes for photographs and collection of fingerprints and other evidence, he urged residents not to clean up until police finish their study of the crime scene.