Competency question delays hearing

The inmate lost visitors and desserts for one week.

By PATRICIA MEADE

VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER

YOUNGSTOWN — The man accused of shooting an Austintown police officer told jail guards he broke a sprinkler head in his cell because he’s “crazy.”

Carlton W. Sims, 22, of Glenbrook Road, Boardman, has been in the Mahoning County jail since May 8, unable to post $1 million bond.

Sims was indicted last week by a Mahoning County grand jury on charges of attempted aggravated murder and felonious assault with firearm specifications. His Boardman attorney, Thomas E. Zena, has requested a competency test in the Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.

Sims, now charged with felony vandalism, was scheduled for a preliminary hearing in municipal court Tuesday. The hearing was reset to July 23, based on the pending competency test.

Last Wednesday evening, Sims used his jail-issued shoes to break the sprinkler head in his cell, reports show. A deputy shut off the water to the sprinkler, and inmate workers used a wet vacuum to clean up the water that had flowed into the cell.

Sims was then handcuffed and removed from his cell, while a maintenance worker replaced the sprinkler head. The inmate told a deputy he broke the sprinkler head because he’s crazy and unhappy about being locked up.

Sims was written up for interfering with security, tampering with a safety device and damage to county owned property. A hearing officer found him guilty. His punishment was one week without visitors and desserts.

What he’s accused of

The Austintown patrolman, Joe Wojciak, 53, was shot in the collarbone around 7 a.m. May 8, as he sat doing paperwork in his cruiser in the Kmart parking lot on Mahoning Avenue. He was saved from serious injury by his bulletproof vest and returned to work a week ago.

Police said Sims first approached Wojciak, asked for directions and then told the officer to get out of his cruiser. The officer was shot as he put the car in drive and began to pull away.

Wojciak pursued Sims, striking him with the cruiser, and fired two shots. Sims was not struck by the bullets. Sims surrendered when backup officers arrived.

meade@vindy.com