APPEAL Ruling favors Niles police and court

The car passed a truck in the left turn lane, and the driver was cited.
WARREN -- Niles police and Niles Municipal Court have prevailed in a $20 traffic ticket case that went to the 11th District Court of Appeals.
The appeals court affirmed a municipal court decision against Lee W. Yeager of Youngstown, who had appealed a Dec. 5, 2003, judgment of the Niles court. He was found guilty then of driving in a marked turn lane, and ordered to pay a $20 fine plus costs.
Yeager had been cited on Nov. 13, 2003, for violating a city statute. He pleaded innocent and represented himself at trial a year ago.
What happened
Niles police officer John Marhulik had testified he was on school patrol that day when he noticed a car with a loud muffler pass a tractor-trailer in the left turn lane, and continue straight through the intersection of South Main and Third streets.
The light had just turned green and the tractor-trailer was moving slowly through the intersection, he said.
Yeager had testified that a four-wheel-drive vehicle was behind the truck and had its white reverse lights on, waiting to back up; the truck had rear flashers on. The driver of the four-wheeler seemed to indicate to Yeager to come around and pass the truck, which he did.
He claimed the trial court erred in finding him guilty and sentencing him because the city didn't specify the section of city code under which he was charged.
The appeals court found that because this issue wasn't raised in the trial court, this constitutes a waiver of the claimed error.
The traffic ticket issued by Marhulik cited the appropriate statute, so Yeager had sufficient notice of the charge against him, the court said.
The court also found without merit claims of errors in Yeager's arraignment process.