The misdemeanor zoning charge against Atty. Tom Letson, a state representative from Warren, is hung up on a procedural matter

Staff report

WARREN

The misdemeanor zoning charge against Atty. Tom Letson, a state representative from Warren, is hung up on a procedural matter and has not yet been transferred to Newton Falls Municipal Court.

After a hearing in Warren Municipal Court last week in which Letson, D-64th, entered a written innocent plea, officials said the case had been transferred to Newton Falls Municipal Court to avoid a potential conflict of interest with the Warren judges.

Though Judge Philip Vigorito of Newton Falls Municipal Court agreed to handle the case, the Newton Falls court sent the case back to Warren Municipal Court on Wedneday by mail to await an assignment by the Ohio Supreme Court, said Terry Wentworth, bailiff in Newton Falls.

Before a case can be transferred from one court to another, the Ohio Supreme Court must approve such a transfer and issue a claim number, also known as a ticket number, Wentworth said.

Until that happens, the case will remain with Warren Municipal Court, Wentworth said.

Letson has handled scores of cases in Warren Municipal Court over the past decade, according to court records.

Although Letson served as special prosecutor years ago in Newton Falls, he has not served in that way since before Judge Vigorito took the bench there, Wentworth said.

Letson is charged with violating the single-family residential zoning on Foster Street Northeast for a house he owns there that has been used in recent months as a “sober house” for recovering alcoholics.