Friday, September 22, 2017
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
Joseph Moore may have gotten probation Thursday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court for stealing televisions from Walmart, but the next time he appears before a judge, it may be worse, said Judge Anthony D’Apolito.
The judge added, however, there may not be a next time for the 33-year-old Moore, a father of three who has been arrested more than a dozen times since 2015.
The reason there may not be a next time, Judge D’Apolito said, is because instead of appearing before a judge, Moore might be in a funeral home. He said if Moore’s lifestyle doesn’t end soon, he will be in prison or dead.
“This is the last stop,” Judge D’Apolito said.
Moore was sentenced after pleading guilty to a charge of theft for stealing two televisions valued at more than $1,200 from the Austintown Walmart on Mahoning Avenue. Prosecutors and a pre-sentence investigation recommended probation.
Moore said he has three convictions for operating a vehicle impaired on his record and more than a dozen citations for driving without a license.
When the judge asked him why he keeps driving, he said he has no one he can ask for a ride so if he has to go somewhere he drives himself.
Judge D’Apolito said Moore has been lucky he has not committed a more serious crime that could land him in prison, but the judge said he was concerned Moore was heading that way. He said Moore was “teetering” with prison, or worse, if his criminal conduct continued.
Moore called being arrested the best thing that ever happened to him. He said he has been off drugs for more than 147 days. He said he started using heroin after he became addicted to painkillers he was given to help him recover from injuries he sustained in an accident.
He said before he was arrested he was doing whatever he could to survive, including sleeping in abandoned houses.
“I am just hoping this is the last time I go to jail,” Moore said. “I don’t ever want to get in trouble again.”
As part of his probation, Moore must complete the NorthEast Ohio Community Alternative Program in Trumbull County, where he is on probation as well.
Judge D’Apolito said Moore still has a chance to make something of his life.
“You are about to make the obstacle so big it is insurmountable,” Judge D’Apolito said.