YOUNGSTOWN Warrants issued for trial witnesses

Once they are found, the witnesses will be held in the county jail.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A judge has issued warrants for two people to be picked up and held by authorities so they can testify at an upcoming murder trial.
Authorities will be looking for 32-year-old Michelle Cannell and 26-year-old Brad Dunbar. If they are found, they will be kept in the county jail pending their court appearances.
Judge James C. Evans of common pleas court issued the warrants Tuesday.
Cannell and Dunbar are among the prosecution's key witnesses in the case against Arthur Barron, 30, who is scheduled for trial April 5 on a charge of murder.
Authorities say Barron shot Michelle Cannell's husband, John Cannell Jr., in the chest Nov. 25, 2002, outside a house on Woodland Avenue. They said Michelle had traded her wedding ring for crack cocaine the night before, and John was trying to get it back.
What happened
Both Michelle Cannell and Dunbar were at the scene and testified when Barron was tried in February 2003. But jurors in that trial were unable to reach a unanimous verdict, so he is being tried a second time.
Assistant Prosecutor Jay Macejko said he had been unable to locate Michelle Cannell, whose last known address was in Columbus, or Dunbar, whose last known address was in Georgia.
According to court documents, Dunbar was recently found in the Augusta-Richland County Jail in Georgia, where he is being held for "various offenses."
Macejko said Judge Evans' warrant will allow local authorities to bring Dunbar back to the county and hold him here until the trial.
Judge Evans had to issue a material-witness warrant for Michelle Cannell in the first trial as well. She was held in the jail for nearly 40 days to ensure her appearance at trial.
bjackson@vindy.com