Youngstown man gets probation in drug case

YOUNGSTOWN — Anthony Williams stood before a judge today in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court for something he said he did not remember doing and he could not “push it through my brain.”

Facing a possible four-year prison sentence on charges he collided with a Boardman police cruiser and rammed a township Burger King in March while he was in the throes of a drug overdose, Williams told Judge Maureen Sweeney he has been on drugs since he was at least 12, never received any help for his drug problem and did not want to go to prison like his father – who was crying in the gallery – and most of his friends.

“I can’t believe I put myself in this situation. I still can’t remember what happened,” Williams said. “I can’t believe what’s happening. I can’t push it through my brain.”

Judge Sweeney sentenced Williams, 21, of Como Street in Struthers, to five years' probation, the most she can hand out, and ordered him to complete drug treatment and obtain a General Educational Development diploma. Williams has been in the county jail since his arrest in March and will remain in the jail until a spot in a drug-treatment program can be found for him.

For the complete story, read Thursday's Vindicator and Vindy.com