Exit ramp to be closed

Exit ramp to be closed

YOUNGSTOWN — The Interstate 680 southbound exit ramp to Market Street northbound to downtown Youngstown will be closed starting 7 p.m. Friday.

The exit will be closed until 6 a.m. Monday to facilitate the painting of the Market Street bridge.

The bridge painting is part of a $2.4 million project to redeck and paint the Market Street bridge over I-680, according to The Ohio Department of Transportation.

The entire project should be completed by May 2009.

Cow causes traffic jam

HUBBARD — A cow in the middle of Interstate 80 eastbound between Hubbard and the Pennsylvania line backed up traffic for a time Tuesday morning until the cow could be directed by troopers to a rest area, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol Southington post.

The cow went into woods near the rest stop and the owner of a nearby farm was contacted to retrieve the animal, the patrol said.

The cow showed up on the road around 11:15 a.m., and it took about 15 minutes to direct it away from traffic, the patrol said.

Charged with assault

NEW SPRINGFIELD — A 47-year-old East South Range Road man is charged with felonious assault and aggravated menacing after police said he fired a gun at his girlfriend’s ex-husband Monday evening.

New Springfield police arrested Dale A. Patton at his home and confiscated a firearm found between a mattress and bed frame. Patton told police that he felt threatened by his girlfriend’s ex-husband and fired one shot into the ground to scare the man.

Patton was not taken to jail because he said he was having a heart attack. An ambulance took him to St. Elizabeth Health Center in Boardman, where he was admitted, reports show.

Patton was given a summons to appear in Struthers Municipal Court today.

VP debate party set

BOARDMAN — The public is invited when the Mahoning County Republicans have a vice presidential debate party starting at 8 p.m. Thursday at its headquarters, 621 Boardman-Canfield Road in Boardman.

Business break-ins

YOUNGSTOWN — Two Southern Boulevard businesses were broken into late Monday and early Tuesday, police said.

At the Grub Club, 3600 Southern, police who checked out the burglar alarm found the back door unlocked and assorted candy on the floor at 11 p.m. Monday. A representative of the business arrived and viewed the surveillance video. The suspect is a teenage boy. The report was turned over to the juvenile division.

At Ray & Joe’s Mower Service, 3812 Southern, the alarm went off at 2:49 a.m. Tuesday. Police found change and customer receipts scattered on the ground in front of the door.

The intruder entered after pushing a window air conditioner inside the building, police said. Cash from the desk drawer was taken.

Charged with burglary

YOUNGSTOWN — A 47-year-old Clearmont Avenue man on probation in an aggravated-robbery case was arrested Monday after being spotted inside a garage on Shawnee Trail with what police described as criminal tools.

William T. Jones dropped a box he was holding and tried to run from the West Side home when he saw an officer, reports show. During a struggle with the officer, Jones said, “I’m not going back to jail,” according to police.

The box contained wire cutters, screwdrivers, flashlight, gloves and a crack pipe, police said. He was charged with burglary, resisting arrest, obstructing official business, possession of criminal tools and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Jones was arraigned Tuesday in municipal court, and bond was set at $250,000.