MVSD security funds

MVSD security funds
NILES -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded a $115,000 grant to the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District to improve security planning.
According to the EPA, the grants' purpose is to make sure Ohio's drinking water is safe from terrorist attack. In response to last year's terrorist attacks, the EPA received a supplemental appropriation from Congress to improve the safety and security of the nation's water supply.
Development of a vulnerability assessment is the highest priority activity under the grant, because it's the first step in understanding where a utility can be damaged by terrorist attack.
Funds can also be used to develop an emergency operations plan and to design security enhancements.
In Ohio, 10 grants totaling $1.15 million were awarded.
Woman hurt in robbery
LIBERTY -- A 56-year-old woman was treated at Northside Medical Center after a man took her purse and threw her to the ground.
The Cincinnati woman told township police that she arrived at 9:45 p.m. Wednesday at the Comfort Inn on Belmont Avenue. After checking in, she drove to the rear of building and parked. Two men she noticed in another vehicle nearby then left their car. One of them, dressed in a white shirt, grabbed her arm, covered her mouth and took her purse, according to the police report. She said she hit her head when she was thrown to the ground.
Police unsuccessfully searched the area.
Spirit Nite in Liberty
LIBERTY -- Liberty Township Community Spirit Nite will begin at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at the high school football field.
There will be food and games, and high school players, coaches, cheerleaders and the marching band will boost the spirit at 7 p.m. A fireworks display by Zambelli Inc. will begin at dark.
The night is sponsored by the Liberty Park Improvement Committee, township trustees and Liberty school board.
Scrap tire collection
HOWLAND -- Township residents may drop off scrap tires from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 7 to 11 at the public works department, 3600 North River Road.
A maximum of eight passenger tires, off the rim, will be accepted from each person.
Library pencil program
KINSMAN -- Children 5 to 15 can create a personalized pencil box Saturday at the public library here.
The program begins at 2 p.m. Registration is required. Call the library at (330) 876-2461.
Charged in death
LISBON -- A Lisbon woman is charged with aggravated vehicular homicide in the death of a 12-year-old boy in a June 30 traffic accident.
Amanda Monigold, 18, of 13155 Cusick Road, was arraigned Wednesday in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court.
She pleaded innocent to the third-degree felony and is free on $10,000 bond.
Authorities say that as a result of her reckless driving, her Chevrolet Blazer went off McCormick Road in Madison Township.
Her passenger, Trevor Smith, also of 13155 Cusick Road, was killed in the crash.
Federal drug charge
CLEVELAND -- A Youngstown man is facing a federal narcotics charge. Sammy Anderson, 29, of Fernwood Avenue, is charged with attempted possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
If convicted, he will serve a mandatory minimum of five years in prison, says the U.S. attorney's office in Cleveland.
Firearms indictment
CLEVELAND -- James Albert Williams Jr., 39, of East Lucius Street, Youngstown, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on a charge of violating federal firearms laws, said Emily M. Sweeney, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment alleges that Williams possessed a firearm while having a previous felony conviction. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The matter is being investigated as part of the "Project Safe Neighborhoods" crime control program administered by Sweeney's office, the city of Youngstown, the Youngstown Police Department, the Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office, the U.S. Department of Justice and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.