MAHONING COUNTY Judge OKs request for early release

By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Frank Howley Jr. said spending a month in prison was the wake-up call he needed in his life, and promised to change his ways if he didn't have to go back.
Judge James C. Evans of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court approved Howley's request for early release, but warned that he'd better walk the straight and narrow for the next five years.
"If you step out of line, you're going right back where you just came from," the judge said.
The judge placed Howley on probation for five years, during which he will be subject to random drug and alcohol testing.
About man's case
Howley, 22, of Donald Avenue, was sentenced in July to 18 months in prison for obstructing justice, to which he had pleaded guilty in June. He filed a request earlier this month for judicial release, formerly known as shock probation.
During a hearing Thursday, assistant prosecutor Jay Macejko said he would not oppose the request as long as Howley agrees to testify against Martin L. Koliser Jr. when Koliser goes to trial. Howley said he will do that if needed.
Koliser, 30, of Boardman, is charged with killing Youngstown policeman Michael T. Hartzell in April as Hartzell sat in his cruiser on West Federal Street. Police also say Koliser shot Donell T. Rowe in the chest outside a Mahoning Avenue bar the same night.
Howley told police that he and Koliser were talking at the Casaloma Gardens bar on Mahoning when Rowe joined the conversation. An argument broke out, and Koliser pulled a gun and shot Rowe, who survived, authorities say.
Complied with demand
Koliser demanded that Howley hand over to the keys to his car, and Howley complied. Koliser was still driving Howley's Lincoln Town Car when Hartzell pulled him over on West Federal two hours later.
Howley's car was later found abandoned, and Koliser's Chevrolet Corsica was found in Howley's garage. Howley was charged because he did not tell police about the car switch until hours after the shootings.
Howley told Judge Evans that he wants to get a job and lead a normal life. That includes breaking the daily drug habit he's had since he was 18.
"This was the wake-up call I needed," he said.
bjackson@vindy.com