Niles man pleads innocent to impersonating officer

Staff report

WARREN

A 32-year-old Niles man has pleaded innocent to misdemeanor charges of impersonating a police officer and carrying a concealed weapon.

James J. Howell of Hartzell Avenue is accused of pretending to be a sheriff’s deputy while working at the Elm Road Drive-In.

He entered the pleas Tuesday in Warren Municipal Court after being charged Friday night.

Maj. Thomas Stewart of the Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office conducted an investigation by purchasing a ticket to the drive-in and observing Howell while he worked.

At 7:45 p.m., Howell was wearing a black T-shirt under a drive-in work shirt, but by 10:30 p.m., Howell had taken off the drive-in shirt, revealing the words “Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office” and an emblem of a sheriff’s badge on the front of the black shirt.

The words “Deputy Sheriff” were on the back in large letters, Stewart wrote in a report. Howell was wearing a holster containing a loaded handgun.

When asked if he was a deputy, Howell said he was a reserve deputy.

“Once I convinced him that he wasn’t a deputy and I let him know what information I had on him, he was taken out to his vehicle,” Stewart wrote in his report.

Stewart took possession of the firearm and the T-shirt and issued him a summons to appear in court on Monday.

If convicted on the charges, Howell could get up to a year in jail.

He was released after posting a $2,500 personal recognizance bond, meaning he didn’t have to pay anything.