TRUMBULL COUNTY McDonald man pleads guilty, gets probation in vehicular homicide

A Warren man has pleaded guilty to six drug charges and will be sentenced later.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A 49-year-old McDonald man who pleaded guilty to two charges in the hit-and-run death of a 66-year-old McDonald man has been sentenced to five years' probation, including six months of work release, in the custody of the Trumbull County Jail.
After completing his work release, Terry Thomas, of McDonald Avenue, will also serve 18 months in-house arrest at his expense, Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Ken Bailey said.
Judge Peter Kontos of Trumbull County Common Pleas court sentenced Thomas on Monday.
On Dec. 4, 2004, Thomas drove a 1999 white Jeep Cherokee that struck and killed James Felger of McDonald, Girard police said. Felger was found at the west end of the Girard-McDonald viaduct.
Thomas pleaded guilty in January to vehicular homicide, a misdemeanor, and hit-skip failure to stop after an accident, a felony.
Other parts of Thomas' sentence involved paying restitution to the victim's family, staying away from drugs and alcohol, submitting to random drug and alcohol testing, a one-year driver's license suspension and a $20-per-month supervision fee for the time of his probation.
Guilty plea in drug case
In another case, Manuel J. Killias, 32, of 361 Homewood Ave. S.E., pleaded guilty last week in Judge John Stuard's courtroom to six drug charges and will be sentenced after a presentence investigation.
The charges were two counts of trafficking in marijuana and two of possession of marijuana, one of trafficking in cocaine and one of aggravated possession of drugs, all felonies. He was indicted March 13, 2005.
Assistant Trumbull County Prosecutor Chuck Morrow said Killias and another man were arrested on state Route 5 near the Ohio Turnpike. The Ohio State Highway Patrol stopped Killias' vehicle, smelled marijuana and found cocaine and about 15 pounds of marijuana, Morrow said.
Morrow said he will recommend a sentence of two years in prison for Killias, but court records indicate the state will not oppose judicial release after one year in prison.