Gun found during drunken driving stop

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

State troopers found a loaded 9 mm handgun inside the pickup truck of a man they pulled over on suspicion of drunken driving early Thursday.

Samuel Pryle, 32, of Phillipsburg, Pa., was arraigned in municipal court Friday on the felony charge of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and a misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Bond was set at $7,500 by Judge Elizabeth Kobly.

Reports said a trooper was driving east on Mahoning Avenue behind a pickup truck driven by Pryle about 2:45 a.m. Thursday, and the truck was weaving out of its lane, reports said. The truck then got on Interstate 680 and reached speeds of 71 miles per hour in a 50-mile- per-hour zone before the trooper was able to pull it over near the South Avenue exit on Interstate 680 going south, reports said.

Reports said Pryle smelled of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes and told a trooper he had a few drinks, reports said.

He was arrested on an OVI charge, and the trooper found the gun, loaded with a 16-round clip, in the center console, reports said.

Pryle was held in Mahoning County jail pending his arraignment.