Rally set Friday in Youngstown to protest man charged with animal cruelty

YOUNGSTOWN — Animal rights activists will have a rally outside city hall at 9:45 a.m. Friday before a pre-trial hearing for a 22-year-old Youngstown man accused of beating a puppy.

Jawan Johnson, 22, of East Princeton Ave., is charged with cruelty to companion animals, a first-degree misdemeanor, after a Mahoning County deputy dog warden said he found the 8-month-old Shepherd mix, named Snappy, bleeding from the mouth and covered in glass May 12.

The dog was hit with a brick, a bowl and a pot, according to a police report.

Johnson’s hearing in front of Judge Elizabeth A. Kobly of Youngstown Municipal Court is scheduled to start at 10:45 a.m. Friday.