Man, 32, arrested in attempted break-in

Man, 32, arrested in attempted break-in

YOUNGSTOWN

A 32-year-old city man is in the Mahoning County jail facing multiple charges after police say he tried to break into a South Side woman’s home early Sunday.

Kenneth Sharpe, 32, of Fairgreen Avenue, has been charged with possession of drugs, aggravated burglary and drug paraphernalia.

Police say a Cambridge Avenue woman called because she believed someone was trying to break into her home. Officers arrived and were checking the property when they discovered Sharpe hiding in the front seat of a car on the woman’s property.

Reports say officers found drugs, money and drug paraphernalia on Sharpe before his arrest.

Large tree falls on couple’s Howland home

HOWLAND

A Howland couple escaped without serious injury after a large tree fell on their Raccoon Drive home early Sunday morning.

According to fire department personnel the man and woman were home when the tree hit the home at about 4 a.m. but neither suffered serious injury. There was $20,000 in damage to the structure of the house and $5,000 in damage to contents of the house.

A tarp was placed over the home to protect it from further damages from the elements. A crane was used to remove the fallen tree.

Shooting in New Castle leaves 1 man injured

NEW CASTLE

New Castle police are investigating a Sunday afternoon shooting that sent one man to the hospital.

According to Lawrence County Emergency Operations, a man was shot in the leg at 2:14 p.m. Sunday in the Crestview Gardens area. He was taken to an area hospital, but there was no word on his condition Sunday night and his name had not been released.

Ohio prison chief seeks total overhaul of system

COLUMBUS,

Ohio’s prison chief wants to pursue a plan to transform the state’s system.

Prisons director Gary Mohr tells The Columbus Dispatch (http://bit.ly/oOdHY6 ) that the sale last week of one of Ohio’s correctional facilities to a private buyer doesn’t change his plans to reorganize the system to make it easier for inmates to re-enter society.

Mohr’s plan would create a three-tier system of prisons where low-risk inmates serving shorter sentences would work in jobs such as truck driving or light manufacturing.

The plan is also to introduce legislation to make it easier for inmates to transition back into life outside of prison, such as reducing punishments that make it harder for ex-offenders to re-enter society like driver’s license revocation.

Staff and wire reports

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Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com