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Report: Patrolman at fault in accident
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
An accident report released Tuesday by the Trumbull County Sheriff’s office says the city patrolman injured in a collision Sunday afternoon as part of a chase was at fault.
The report says Warren Patrolman Patrick Hoolihan was entering the intersection at Paige Avenue and Atlantic Street Northeast near Harding High School with lights and siren activated and slowed as he attempted to pass through the intersection but did not see a second vehicle.
Hoolihan had the red light; the other car had the green.
The two vehicles collided in the intersection, causing Hoolihan’s injuries, which required treatment at Trumbull Memorial Hospital.
The driver of the other car, James L. Boyd, 60, of Park Heights Avenue, Youngstown, was not injured.
Boyd was driving a car belonging to Sibley-Murray Funeral Service, Park Avenue.
Deputy Sheriff Milt Kellerman of the sheriff’s office, who investigated the crash, said he determined that the accident was Hoolihan’s fault, but he did not cite anyone.
“Any time they [officers] enter an intersection, they have to make sure there is no oncoming traffic,” Kellerman said.
Kellerman said Hoolihan was attempting to catch up to a pursuit at the time of the collision, which occurred at 12:57 p.m.
Hoolihan said Tuesday he is bruised but has no serious injuries or broken bones and doesn’t know how long he’ll be off work.
A separate police report filed by Deputy Mike Davis of the sheriff’s office says Aswad Fleming, 22, of West Avenue Northwest, the man being pursued in the chase, caused a collision with a police cruiser being driven by Warren Police Sgt. Manny Nites, also about 12:57 p.m., at 975 Glenwood St., Northeast.
The two crashes occurred about a half-mile from each other.
Fleming tried to swerve left around a parked vehicle on Glenwood and doing so caused his vehicle to strike the right front fender and headlight of Nites’ cruiser, causing damage to both vehicles.
No one was injured in that collision.
Sgt. Jeff Cole, spokesman for the Warren Police Department said Tuesday that Nites and Patrolman John Greaver made the arrest on Fleming at 1:13 p.m. at 975 Glenwood.
Meanwhile, Fleming was arraigned Tuesday morning in Warren Municipal Court on four counts of felonious assault, four counts of failure to stop after an accident involving injury and one count of failure to comply with the orders of a police officer. Those charges carry a maximum penalty of 45 years in prison. Judge Terry Ivanchak entered innocent pleas on those charges, and Fleming pleaded innocent to misdemeanor counts of driving under suspension and playing loud music.
Because of Fleming’s record, including failure to appear for court, Judge Ivanchak ordered that Fleming be held in the Trumbull County Jail without eligibility to make bond until his next hearing at 2 p.m. Monday.
Among Fleming’s charges were ones related to collision with a cruiser driven by a trooper with the Hiram post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Lt. Joe Mannion, commander of the Hiram post, said one of his troopers was in Warren on an unrelated matter when he learned of the pursuit and joined in. Fleming rammed the trooper’s vehicle at some point, causing damage to the right side of the cruiser but not injuring the trooper, Mannion said. He didn’t know where the collision occurred.