Man faces charges in Ohio, Pa., after chase crosses state line

The man was stopped in Trumbull County.

STAFF REPORT

SHARON, Pa. — A man accused of shooting at a house in the city led police on a chase into Ohio, where he was captured, said Sharon Police Chief Michael Menster.

James Songer, 24, who lives on North Main Street in Austintown, will be charged in the shooting after his department’s investigation is complete, Menster said.

The motive for the shooting appears to be a dispute over a woman, he added.

Menster said police were called to the house, in the 300 block of Grant Street, at 5:06 a.m. Wednesday. Twelve shots had been fired into a bedroom at the residence. A woman was home at the time, but she wasn’t hurt, Menster said.

The chief said after police got there, Songer was identified as a suspect. Police put out a bulletin on his vehicle.

Two-and-a-half hours later, family members found Songer in St. Rose Cemetery in Hermitage and called Hermitage police, Menster said.

Songer took off in his car after a Hermitage officer arrived. Hermitage and then South Pymatuning Township police chased him into Ohio. He was stopped at the intersection of Thompson Sharpsville and Custer Orangeville roads in Hartford Township, Trumbull County.

Brookfield Township police and Trumbull County deputy sheriffs responded, and Songer was arrested. A .22-caliber semiautomatic rifle was found in his car, Menster said.

Songer was in Trumbull County Jail late Wednesday on charges there of carrying a concealed weapon and improper handling of a firearm, both fourth-degree felonies, the jail reported.

Menster said he will be brought back to Pennsylvania to face charges by his department.