Woman accused of assaulting officer

AUSTINTOWN -- A Kirk Road woman is accused of kicking a township police officer in the chest during an attempt by police to arrest her son.
The officer was at a Kirk Road house Friday to arrest a 17-year-old boy on a warrant for an arson charge. The police report said the officer didn't find the boy at home, but during an encounter with the boy's mother, he was kicked.
Michele Petrello, 54, of 6879 Kirk Road was arrested after the scuffle and taken to the Mahoning County jail, according to the report. She was eventually released to family members.
She appeared in Mahoning County Court here Monday on a charge of assaulting an officer, and a pre-trial hearing was set for Sept. 26.
The report says the officer found Petrello in the garage, and asked her where her son was. She tried to close the garage door on his head when he told her he was there to arrest the boy, the report says.
The report says the officer tried to prevent Petrello from going into the house, and when he wouldn't let her open the screen door, she kicked him in the chest.
The report says the officer then handcuffed her and took her to the Austintown police station.