Official: Book disposal OK

Official: Book disposal OK
WARREN -- Books found in a trash bin outside of a city school were outdated and therefore permitted to be discarded, a city schools official said.
School board President Linda Metzendorf said at a school board meeting Tuesday that she learned of a parent's complaint of books and school supplies being found in a trash bin behind McKinley Elementary.
James Russo, executive director of business operations, said the books referred to were copyrighted 1989. According to district policy, books no longer being used that have a copyright at least 10 years old, have concepts or content that don't support district curriculum or are worn beyond salvage may be disposed of.
The school principal gave first option for taking the books to pupils. Those not taken home by pupils were disposed of because they were no longer useful to the school district, Russo said.
Metzendorf said even if the books were old, they could be useful to someone. But by law, public officeholders can't just give things away, Russo said.
Authorities close store
HARTFORD -- A convenience store at 1837 Brookfield Road was shut down by the Trumbull County Health Department for selling food without a license. The establishment had last been licensed as Ferrara's Market and Pizza, but health department officials said they think it is under new ownership. The owner's name was not immediately available. Inspectors visiting the store Tuesday discovered sandwiches, milk, fountain soda and other groceries for sale. State regulations require retail food establishments to undergo inspection and obtain a license.
Drive-by shooting probed
WARREN -- Police are investigating a drive-by shooting. According to reports, a man driving down Nevada Street N.W. around 3 p.m. Tuesday opened fire at a 19-year-old Vermont N.W. man, who was visiting his sister. No one was injured and no arrests have been made.
Cigarettes stolen
WARREN -- About 57 cartons of cigarettes were stolen from an Albert Guarnieri & amp; Co. truck, police reports state. An employee of the company said that while the truck was parked in the rear of Giant Eagle, 2061 Elm Road N.E. Tuesday morning, someone cut off the lock and removed the cigarettes.
Robbery, assault reported
WARREN -- A 73-year-old woman told police a robber stole money from her and bit her right thumb. The Leavittsburg woman said she was walking to Dairy Mart, 1361 N. Leavitt Road N.W., around 5 a.m. today when a man accosted her, forcibly took money from her and bit her, causing her thumb to bleed. Police are searching for the suspect.
Attempted ATM theft
WARREN -- Police are searching for a man who attempted to break into an automated teller machine at the Bank One on Youngstown Road. According to reports, police responded to an alarm at the bank and found a man standing next to the ATM holding a sledgehammer. When the man saw police he fled. The ATM was destroyed but no cash was taken, reports state.
Charged after chase
YOUNGSTOWN -- Police arrested Ronald O. Clark Jr., 38, of South Edgehill Avenue, Austintown, at 2 a.m. today on the South Side on charges of aggravated trafficking in crack cocaine and failure to comply with a police order.
Police said they attempted to pull over Clark's car on East Dewey Avenue for failure to have a license plate light, but Clark sped off, ignoring all stop signs. Police pursued the car, which nearly crashed near Williamson Avenue. Clark lost control as he turned onto Pasadena Avenue, drove over the curb, took out the stop sign at Gibson Street and Pasadena then skidded through a front yard in the 600 block of Pasadena. Clark was caught after he jumped out and ran, police said. Inside the car, police found and seized three bags of suspected crack cocaine and $875.
Shots fired at house
YOUNGSTOWN -- Six or seven shots were fired at a house in the 100 block of East Avondale Avenue around 4 p.m. Tuesday. The resident told police that the shots came from a beige Mercury Cougar as it drove by. Police found numerous bullet holes in the front of the house and six casings. The resident, when asked if anyone at the house was having a fight with anyone, told the officer, "Just write the report."