METRO DIGEST || Campbell students getting canine companion

Man says caretaker assaulted him

WARREN

A Hoyt Street Southwest man, 85, reported that a woman who has been his caretaker and lived in his house since 2005 held a knife to his throat and pushed him to the floor Feb. 19 and assaulted him again Thursday.

The man said he’s had to go to the Veteran’s Affairs clinic a couple of times related to injuries the woman inflicted on him. Police contacted an investigator with Adult Protective Services.

Canine for students

CAMPBELL

Campbell City Schools have joined forces with Canine Companions for Independence to place a service dog in the K-7 building, 2002 Community Circle.

The dog will work primarily with students with mental or physical disabilities.

Robert Fick, intervention specialist at Campbell Elementary & Middle School, underwent five days of training in Columbus before being paired with the dog, according to a district news release.

Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit, aims to improve the lives of people with disabilities by using dogs to promote companionship and independence. The organization provides all dogs and services free of charge.

New members sought

WARREN

A membership drive for Solace of the Valley will be at 5 p.m. Sunday at the Sahara Club, 2345 Youngstown Road SE.

Solace of the Valley is a nonprofit organization formed to bring awareness and education to the community that addiction is a disease, not a disgrace, said Linda Spies, the organization’s founder. For information, contact Spies at lindyspies@gmail.com.

Husband assault

WARREN

Monica Massey, 46, of Williamsburg Street Northwest is in the Trumbull County Jail without eligibility to make bond after police said she struck her husband, 41, with a metal broom stick and bit him early Friday.

A not-guilty plea was entered for her to felonious assault. Her husband suffered cuts to his head and hand and a bite mark on his arm during an argument at their home at 12:22 a.m.

Larosa to appeal

WARREN

Attorneys for a Niles teenager say they’ll go to the Ohio Supreme Court to challenge a decision to try the boy as an adult in the slaying of an elderly neighbor, according to 21 WFMJ-TV, The Vindicator’s broadcast partner.

In a decision issued earlier this week, the 11th District Court of Appeals ruled that Jacob Larosa’s attorneys could not appeal the ruling of a juvenile court judge to put the teen on trial as an adult.

The 16-year-old is charged with killing his 94-year-old neighbor Marie Belcastro, whose body was discovered by a relative at her Cherry Street home on March 31, 2015.

Larosa’s trial is scheduled for Sept.19.