Officer pleads innocent to gun charges

Staff Report

NEWTON FALLS — A corrections officer at the Trumbull County Jail accused of improperly firing a gun outside of his Newton Falls home has pleaded innocent to the charge in Newton Falls Municipal Court.

Timothy Billock, 43, entered his plea Thursday and was released on a signature bond. He returns to court for a pretrial hearing at 9 a.m. Sept. 10.

Billock is charged with discharging a firearm in city limits, a fourth-degree misdemeanor, for confronting a motorist who speeded up his street with no headlights on July 15.

Newton Falls police said Billock was off duty, taking out the trash about 10:45 p.m. when he saw the driver, then showed the driver his badge, identified himself as a deputy sheriff and told the driver to turn on his headlights.

When the driver yelled obscenities at Billock, the deputy extended his badge again and again told the driver to turn on his lights, but the driver instead reached for Billock’s hand and started to drive away, dragging Billock, police said.

Billock said he fired his gun to get the driver to let go, but Newton Falls Police Chief John M. Kuivila said it was difficult to believe Billock’s description of events because Billock had no marks on his arm indicating that he had been dragged.