Ex-teacher guilty in chalk-throwing

Ex-teacher guiltyin chalk-throwing
EAST PALESTINE -- A former Salem schoolteacher was found guilty of disorderly conduct and fined $100. John McKee, 49, of Salem, entered a no-contest plea Tuesday in Columbiana County Municipal Court.
He originally was charged with assault in the throwing of chalk at a ninth-grader on Nov. 2. The chalk struck the boy in the head.
The reduced charge of disorderly conduct, a minor misdemeanor, was allowed by the court providing that McKee met certain conditions, including serving 15 hours of community service and undergoing counseling. Judge Mark Frost heard the case.
McKee lost his job with Salem schools after he was charged with the assault.
Driver killed on 422
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- A man trying to turn off U.S. Route 422 was killed in a head-on car crash, said Pennsylvania State Police. Sterling Wolford, 34, of RD 6, New Castle, died at St. Francis Hospital here after the crash at 6:50 p.m. Tuesday.
State police said Gina Kerr, 44, of Portersville, was traveling east on Route 422 and apparently using the turning lane to pass other cars when the crash occurred. She was in critical condition at St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown, this morning.
Police said the Slippery Rock Volunteer Fire Department used special equipment to remove Wolford and Kerr from their vehicles.
Spraying for black flies
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- The first black-fly treatments of the season in northwestern Pennsylvania will begin this week, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Officials said spraying will start in Warren County today and reach streams in Forest, Venango, Beaver and Lawrence on Thursday. Lawrence County creeks sprayed will be Slippery Rock, Neshannock and Connoquenessing.
A low-flying helicopter will spray a naturally occurring bacteria that kills black fly larvae. DEP officials said the spray should not harm other living organisms.
Construction noise
SALEM -- Salem police and Dan Valentine, a Salem Township constable, received complaints regarding excessive noise at the Wal-Mart construction site on state Route 14.
Seven residents of Butcher Road, Orchard Court and Apple Ridge called Salem police Tuesday between 8 and 9:30 p.m. Valentine called around 8 p.m. to say he had received several calls from township residents.
Police told construction supervisors that city ordinance prohibits unreasonable noise between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., and gave them a copy of the ordinance. Police said supervisors complied and construction work ceased within the legal time.
Guilty of tax violation
CLEVELAND -- Robert Coakley of Warren has agreed to plead guilty to a one-count information that charges him with filing a false tax return for 1996, according to Robert E. Bulford, an assistant U.S. attorney.
Coakley, 38, of Pierce Road, faces up to three years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
The charge is linked to a long-term investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Trumbull County Drug Task Force. That investigation led to an indictment in June 2001 that charged Coakley and others with conspiring to distribute marijuana. Coakley has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing in the drug case.
Nurses banquet speaker
YOUNGSTOWN -- Diana J. Mason, registered nurse, Ph.D. and editor in chief of the American Journal of Nursing, is the main speaker for the annual Nurses Make A Difference banquet of District Three, Ohio Nurses Association on Friday at the DeBartolo Stadium Club at Youngstown State University.
Registration for the meeting will begin at 6 p.m., dinner will be at 6:30 and the speaker will follow at 7:45. Call (330) 799-4199 for more information, including costs.
Home burglarized
YOUNGSTOWN -- A burglar who entered a home in the 2100 block of Kirk Road sometime between 6 and 9 p.m. Tuesday stole $300 to $400 in change from a cookie jar, the homeowner told police.
The thief damaged a garage door to get in, reports show.