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Prosecutors: YPD chief’s son will get 5 years on firearms charges
YOUNGSTOWN
A Mahoning County prosecutor said an arrangement to allow the son of the former city police chief to receive a five-year sentence for firearms charges was in place before he was indicted.
Jared Hughes, 30, of Buell Avenue, Campbell, the son of retired Youngstown police Chief Jimmy Hughes, was indicted Thursday on felony counts of discharging a firearm in a prohibited area and improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle.
He’s accused of shooting an 18-year-old woman in the leg during an apparent road-rage incident on the Interstate 680 North ramp to I-80 West in Austintown on March 29, 2018. The car also was carrying a juvenile passenger who was not harmed.
An Ohio State Highway Patrol initial incident report includes a count of felonious assault. But Hughes’ indictment, handed up nearly a year-and-a-half later, does not.
Assistant county Prosecutor Mike Yacovone said the indictment was the result of “lengthy plea negotiations” with Hughes’ attorney and the family of the victim, who consented to the charges.
“Very rarely do I let a victim essentially ‘drive’ the case, and in this particular instance – because of the age of these girls [now 19 and 18], because of what they went through – I felt it was appropriate for them to make the ultimate decision on what to do with it,” Yacovone said.
“I don’t want it to look like I undercharged it because of who [Hughes] is. The charges are the result of a lengthy investigation,” he added.
County Prosecutor Paul Gains told The Vindicator on Thursday that state patrol investigators collected and analyzed a large amount of surveillance footage that reportedly put Hughes at the scene of the shooting.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol’s full report on the incident was unavailable, as Hughes’ court case remains open.
Yacovone said prosecutors arrange pleas and charges before presenting them to a grand jury “more often than people would think,” but victims acquiescing to stipulated sentence arrangements is more rare.
“It’s a way to put this behind them more quickly,” he said. “We talked about it at great length and they were OK with it. I won’t say they’re happy with it, but ...
“Let’s keep in mind that 95 to 99 percent of cases end up with a plea deal, whether it’s before indictment or after indictment. ... If we tried every case, the system would screech to a halt.”