Man who made threats on Web site gets probation

The judge imposed a fine, probation and anger management counseling.

staff report

YOUNGSTOWN — The West Side man who posted threatening comments on Vindy.com last December against a local TV anchor has pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of menacing.

David Parent, of North Hartford Avenue, entered his plea Thursday in municipal court and was found guilty by Judge Robert A. Douglas Jr.

The judge said Parent’s actions caused the victim, Vince Bevacqua, to believe that physical harm would come to him. The judge sentenced Parent to six months’ probation, imposed a $150 fine and ordered anger management counseling.

Parent’s lawyer, Holly Ferraro, told the judge that her client, when employed at WYTV Channel 33, had personality conflicts with others that got heated and out of hand. She said Parent is sorry for the comments he made on Vindy.com.

Detective Sgt. Jason Simon, who investigated the case, said the charges could have been telecommunications harassment and aggravated menacing. He told the judge that Parent had no prior record.

The investigation began Dec. 6, 2007 when Bevacqua, then a news anchor at WYTV Channel 33, filed a police report that referred to menacing remarks posted on the newspaper’s Web site. At the time, WYTV had announced which employees would lose their jobs as a result of the station’s agreeing to have its newscasts produced by WKBN Channel 27. Bevacqua was among those let go.

In late January, Simon used a search warrant to enter Parent’s home and seize his computer.

At the time, Parent told The Vindicator that he was on the Vindy.com Web site on Dec. 6 but did not post menacing messages directed at Bevacqua. He said he was unemployed and his r sum , along with other important documents, were on the computer.

Parent had no comment after court on Thursday. Bevacqua could not be reached.

Commenting on the case in late January, Jason Holmes, New Media and IT director at The Vindicator, said: “As stated in the terms of service and privacy policy, users of Vindy.com are solely responsible for their comments. Though the discussion groups may appear to be entirely anonymous, your actions can be traced, and information identifiable to you will be revealed to law enforcement when a subpoena or court order is issued, as it was in this instance.”