Laying of the Roses

Laying of the Roses

YOUNGSTOWN

The 21st Annual Laying of the Roses, sponsored by Vietnam Veterans of America, will be 1 p.m. Sunday at the Vietnam War Memorial on Central Square. The public, and especially those who lost loved ones or friends in the war, are encouraged to attend. After a ceremony that will include an invocation and playing of taps, a rose will be presented and placed at the foot of the memorial by family members or friends of each of the Mahoning County residents killed or missing in action while serving in the Vietnam War.

All veterans units are urged to participate in the event, which is co-sponsored by American Legion Post 472, International Association of Workforce Professionals (IAWP) Youngstown Sub-Chapter, and AMVETS POST 44. For information, call Stanley Clingerman at 330-549-2509.

Niles kidnapping case

NILES

The felony kidnapping and theft cases against a man accused of driving off with a 3-year-old boy in the back of a stolen car have been bound over to a Trumbull County grand jury.

Ross Francis, 42, of Belmont Street, Warren and Robbins Avenue, Niles, remains in the county jail in lieu of $150,000 bond after a hearing Friday in Niles Municipal Court.

Police say Francis drove away in a car left running on John Street in Niles late Oct. 11 with a sleeping boy, 3, inside.

An off-duty Warren police officer located the stolen car, Francis and the abducted boy early Oct. 12 on Tod Avenue Southwest in Warren. Police took Francis into custody and returned the boy to his family.

Child-assault plea

WARREN

Jenalynn Davidson, 27, of Millicent Avenue, Liberty, pleaded guilty in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court to felonious assault and child endangering against a 5-year-old boy last fall. The boy was a family or household member, prosecutors said.

She entered an Alford plea Thursday, meaning she maintained her innocence but pleaded guilty because there was sufficient evidence she would be found guilty if the case went to trial.

According to her indictment, Davidson caused serious physical harm to the boy and tortured or cruelly abused him between Sept. 1 and Oct. 18, 2011. She will be sentenced in about six weeks, after the county’s Adult Probation Department conducts a pre-sentence investigation. She could get up to 11 years in prison.

Car hits 3-year-old

WARREN

A 3-year-old Warren boy was in good condition Friday night in Akron Children’s Hospital in Akron, being treated for injuries from being hit by a car on Commerce Avenue Northwest at 7:20 p.m. Thursday.

Children at 1001 Commerce Ave. and the boy’s parents told police that Marcus A. Chaney Jr. had been playing with other children and then crossed the street toward his own home with a toy sword in his hand when a sport-utility vehicle struck him.

The child suffered a head injury, and police found a small puddle of blood in the roadway. No citations were issued.

Canfield BOE change

Canfield

The date of the Canfield Board of Education’s November meeting has been changed.

The meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 19 in the board meeting room, 100 Wadsworth St.