Swearing-in, promotion

Swearing-in, promotion

YOUNGSTOWN

Mayor Jamael Tito Brown on Tuesday swore in a new officer, and police Chief Robin Lees announced the promotion of another.

Amir Khan, 22, was sworn in as the new officer. He previously worked part time for the Goshen, Mill Creek MetroParks and Mercy Health police departments.

Bill Ward was promoted to lieutenant from detective sergeant and also was sworn in by Brown. Ward has been an officer since 2000 and a sergeant since 2013.

Officer sworn in

STRUTHERS

Mayor Terry Stocker on Tuesday afternoon swore in Sean Ryan as the city’s newest police officer.

Ryan is a 2012 graduate of Poland Seminary High School and a 2016 graduate of Kent State University.

He previously worked at the Mahoning County Dog Warden’s office and attended Youngstown State University’s police academy in August 2018.

Stabbing case

NILES

Bond of $100,000 was set in Niles Municipal Court on Tuesday for Brittany R. Russo, 22, on two counts of felonious assault, accused of stabbing twin brothers early Tuesday.

Niles police say she stabbed the men, both 23, at their Scott Avenue home after she and one of the brothers argued about the breakup of their relationship, according to 21 WFMJ-TV, The Vindicator’s broadcast partner.

First she stabbed her ex-boyfriend, then stabbed the brother when he ran outside when he heard his brother yell, reports say. Russo drove away after the assaults.

Police said one brother was stabbed in the finger and shoulder. The other was stabbed in the chest and back. Both were taken to Trumbull Regional Medical Center. Russo was booked into the Trumbull County jail at 10:44 a.m. Tuesday.

Seeking new sentence

YOUNGSTOWN

One of the reported leaders of the city’s former LSP street gang wants a new sentence.

DaQuann Hackett was just 22 in 2012, when a federal judge sentenced him to 37 years in prison on conspiracy to commit racketeering.

He filed a motion to vacate his sentence April 30, court records show.

The motion cites a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would make his racketeering conviction unconstitutional due to the ineffectiveness of his defense counsel. The motions also claims the trial court improperly enhanced his charges by considering he was in a “leadership role” within the gang.

Four of the LSP gang members, including Hackett, were sentenced to a total 119 years in federal prison. Prosecutors said the gang committed violence to control territory and push drugs.

The gang’s name stands for LaClede, Sherwood, Parkview and Princeton avenues on the city’s South Side in the Idora Neighborhood.

Ryan co-sponsors bill

WASHINGTON

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th, is co-sponsoring the Clean Up Our Neighborhoods Act of 2019 that would authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make grants to states to eliminate residential and commercial blight and assist in neighborhood revitalization.

Eligible activities would include boarding vacant properties, demolishing or renovating blighted structures, clearing and maintaining vacant land and stabilizing activities that provide open green space for public access and redevelopment. States would have to match 15 percent of the grant amount.

Awards event at YSU

YOUNGSTOWN

Medical Mutual will host an Outstanding Senior Volunteer Awards event from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday at Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration conference center atrium, 221 N. Hazel St.

The finalists are Diane Knepper, nominated by Maplewood Elementary School; Renee Maiorca, nominated by Melanie Cann; Linda Romisher, nominated by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mahoning Valley Inc.; and John Paul Tolson, nominated by Rhonda Rea. For information, call Traci Haynes at 216-556-3056.

Southside events

YOUNGSTOWN

The 2019 Southside Summer Experience will kick off from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday at Conroy’s Party Shop, 3518 South Ave., with free refreshments, music, a bounce house, a library van and a video-game truck.

Great Strides walk

BOARDMAN

The Northern Ohio Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will host the 20th annual Mahoning/Trumbull Great Strides walk Sunday at Boardman Park-Masters Pavilion, 375 Boardman Poland Road, as part of the largest national event to raise funds and awareness for cystic fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis is a rare genetic disease that progressively limits the ability to breathe and ultimately causes premature death. In 2018, the foundation spent an estimated $188 million to uncover new treatments for CF and to support the delivery of high-quality, specialized care for people with the disease, according to a foundation news release.

This year, the foundation hopes to raise $37 million through Great Strides to help advance its mission to find a cure.

Registration begins at 1 p.m., and the walk begins at 2. Walkers will enjoy food, entertainment and a post-walk victory party with an ice cream sundae bar provided by Handel’s Ice Cream. Call 216-901-2873 or visit fightcf.cff.org to register.