Canfield man gets treatment, probation in thefts at Covelli

July 27, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

Mark P. Daigle

YOUNGSTOWN

A Canfield man convicted of stealing from the Covelli Centre will spend the next three years on probation and make restitution of the stolen funds.

Mark Daigle, 38, of Steeplechase Drive, Canfield, appeared for a pretrial hearing Tuesday before Judge Lou A. D’Apolito of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on a felony theft charge. Daigle, through his attorney Mark Carfolo, entered into a plea deal with prosecutors at that hearing.

Daigle had been charged with stealing between $5,000 and $100,000 from the Covelli Centre vendor, Centerplate Inc., between Dec. 7, 2007, and Jan. 26, 2010. He was facing 18 months in prison on the fifth-degree felony charge.

Daigle in January made a motion to the court for intervention in lieu of conviction. Treatment in lieu of conviction is available only to people charged with fourth- or fifth-degree felonies who have no prior felony convictions.

Carfolo, representing Daigle, asked for the intervention based on his client’s alcohol abuse.

“The defendant was alcohol-dependent at the time of committing the offense ... He is still alcohol-dependent, and, if he does not receive treatment, he is in jeopardy of committing other crimes,” Carfolo wrote in the motion.

Under the terms of the agreement Daigle will spend three years on probation and pay $800 a month restitution for the stolen money. He made a bulk payment of $5,000 Tuesday.

Daigle also must follow orders for treatment for alcohol abuse as prescribed by a Florida-based treatment facility. Failure to meet terms of his probation could mean time in prison.

Kathy Lewis, 40, of Karl Street, who was charged with Daigle in the same theft offense, entered into a plea agreement before Judge D’Apolito. Lewis also received treatment in lieu of conviction.

The court ordered Lewis to complete counseling, complete drug-and- alcohol treatment, and make restitution in the amount of $15,000.