AKRON
Suspect arrested
AKRON: An Akron man has been charged in the shooting of a pedestrian last month on North Hill.
David Yaness Johnson, 20, of Garfield Avenue, has been charged with felonious assault.
Police said Johnson was identified by the victim in the Jan. 10 shooting.
The man told police he was walking in the 100 block of West Mildred Avenue when a gunman approached him about 11:15 a.m. and shot him.
The gunman got inside a gold van and drove off.
Driver in trouble
AKRON: An Akron man faces multiple charges stemming from an incident Monday after police say he drove his car across neighbors’ lawns.
Wilfred Saikaly, 43, of Ina Avenue, has been charged with driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, criminal damage and menacing.
Police said Saikaly drove across several yards and almost hit an AT&T worker who was on a ladder working on wires.
Saikaly has three previous convictions for driving under the influence, records show.
Gun charge filed
AKRON: An Akron man is accused of helping to hide the gun used in a November homicide.
Christopher D. Byrd, 23, of Druid Walk, has been charged with tampering with evidence and obstructing official business.
Police said Byrd is a friend of Phillip Pope, who is awaiting trial in the killing of Will A. Lamon, 21, of Akron, on Nov. 25. They allege that Byrd helped to hide and dispose of the gun used in the incident.
Police said the shooting stemmed from a domestic dispute.
Lamon was inside a car parked at Buckingham Street and Fairbanks Place when Pope shot him in the torso, authorities allege.
Pope has been charged with aggravated murder.
Victim identified
AKRON: Authorities have identified the man shot to death Tuesday inside a home on Madison Avenue in Akron.
Jarrell Cunningham, 27, was killed in the 12:20 p.m. shooting in the 600 block of Madison Avenue, according to the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Cunningham’s brother, 21, was wounded by a gunshot to the face. He was transported to Akron General Medical Center for treatment.
No suspect has been identified.
Anyone with information is asked to call police detectives at 330-375-2490.
Man pleads guilty
AKRON: A Cleveland man opted to plead guilty Tuesday in the middle of his drug trial.
Lejon Fair, 31, of Derbyshire Road, was charged with trafficking in cocaine, tampering with evidence and failure to comply.
The case stems from a September 2011 incident when Akron police, working a tip from an informant, interrupted a cocaine deal in the parking lot of On Tap in Bath Township.
Fair drove off on Interstate 77 north and lost control of his car at the Wheatley Road exit. The car ended up in a residential backyard.
Officers found Fair hiding under a small foot bridge holding a red bag filled with $47,720 in cash. Bones were protruding from his foot.
As part of the guilty plea, Fair had to surrender his cash to authorities.
Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Lynne Callahan will sentence Fair on Feb. 13.
GREEN
Fire chief retiring
GREEN: Fire Chief Robert Calderone announced his retirement — tentatively scheduled for March 31.
Calderone took over the department in 1995, six months after his father, Mickele Calderone, retired as Green’s first fire chief.
He was hired as a full-time firefighter for Green in 1981 and had been assistant chief for 10 years before his father’s retirement.
His brother, David Calderone, currently serving his first term as a Coventry Township trustee, retired as that township’s fire chief in 2011 after 23 years of service.
HARTVILLE
Councilman chosen
HARTVILLE: The Village Council selected Jon Caiazza of Cornerstone Street as a councilman to replace Edsel Tucker, who resigned.
Caiazza, 33, was appointed Tuesday.
He is employed as an account executive with NAI Spring in Canton.
JACKSON TOWNSHIP
Arrest over threats
JACKSON TWP.: Authorities arrested a 31-year-old township man who they say threatened an elected official.
Jeffrey B. Hatfield Jr., was arrested at his Jackson Township residence by Summit County sheriff’s deputies and Jackson Township police Tuesday.
The sheriff’s office said an investigation revealed Hatfield made several threats against Summit County Clerk of Courts Daniel Horrigan.
Hatfield resisted when authorities apprehended him and attempted to get a firearm during the arrest, the sheriff’s office said Wednesday.
Officers said Hatfield stated to them his intention to carry out the threat of assault against Horrigan.
Hatfield was charged with felony intimidation, assaulting a police officer and obstructing official business when booked into the Stark County Jail.
MARLBORO TOWNSHIP
Eagles at reservoir
MARLBORO TWP.: Two nesting bald eagles have returned to Walborn Reservoir in northern Stark County, reports the Stark County Park District.
This means eagles have nested at Walborn for eight straight years.
The Walborn nest has produced 13 eaglets in the last seven years.
The park district operates a small viewing platform at 13600 Marlboro Ave. NE. Bring binoculars and spotting scopes. Programs will be staged at the site later in the year.
Visitors are reminded that laws protecting nesting eagles mean you cannot go beyond the viewing deck.
MARSHALLVILLE
Lunch meat recalled
MARSHALLVILLE: Marshallville Packing Co. is recalling several luncheon meat products because they contain wheat, but don’t have it listed on their labels. Wheat poses a health risk for people who are allergic to it.
The company’s German brand beef bologna, garlic beef bologna, beef bologna, trail style bologna, Dutch brand loaf, pepper loaf and Braunschweiger all have cereal listed among their ingredients, but their labels don’t indicate that the cereal contains wheat.
The products are labeled with the Ohio Department of Agriculture inspection legend, which includes the establishment number “1054.” All of the products would have been purchased at Marshallville Packing before Feb. 1.
The label discrepancy was discovered after a routine inspection by the state. So far, no allergic reactions or illnesses have been reported.
Customers can bring the packages to the company at 50 E. Market St., Marshallville, for a full refund.
Anyone with questions can call 330-855-2871.
STARK COUNTY
New official named
CANTON: The Stark County commissioners’ next administrator will be a former county auditor and Alliance councilman.
The board hired Brant Luther on Wednesday to replace Michael Hanke, who is leaving the job after five years.
Luther, 38, of Alliance, will be paid a salary of $82,500 when he starts work Feb. 25 and $85,000 after completing a 90-day probationary period.
He directs the guardian ad litem program for Stark County Family Court and maintains a private law practice.
Luther said he will reduce the amount of work he performs as an attorney when he begins working for the commissioners.
Park chief rehired
CANTON: Stark County Park Director Robert Fonte has been reappointed for five years, beginning March 1, a day after he retires from the same position.
The district’s five-member commission voted 3 to 1 Wednesday to keep Fonte, 64, who has been in charge of Stark’s park program since 1995.
State law makes it legal for a public employee to “double dip” by receiving both his State Public Employees Retirement benefits and new earnings when he returns to his position a day later.
A public employee for 30 years, Fonte will be paid $103,343.97 in salary annually, the same rate he currently receives.
The commission met for just over a half hour before taking a voice vote on retaining Fonte. Chairman H. Steven Poulos announced the results without identifying the dissenter.
Before the closed executive session, only one audience member voiced opposition to the hiring.
Kenneth J. Smith of Canton lauded Fonte for his achievements as director, but added that when one chooses to retire, he should retire and leave the position for someone else.
“When you are going to retire, you should retire and not go back into the job that you retired from, especially when you are going to come back in and earn the same salary or pretty much close to what you are earning now,” Smith said. “It’s time that somebody else stepped in and was given the chance to run the show now.”
STATE NEWS
Election studied
Ohio fell squarely in the middle of a new Pew study this week that rated states on how well they performed in the 2008 and 2010 elections.
It wasn’t the best — or the worst.
The study, which looked at such factors as wait times, registration problems and use of online tools, identified the best states as Colorado, Delaware, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Washington and Wisconsin.
The worst performers were Alabama, California, Mississippi, New York, Oklahoma, South Carolina and West Virginia.
Pew noted that Ohio had high rates of provisional ballots cast and absentee ballots rejected in 2010 and that the state added a post-audit requirement.
The study will be updated with 2012 data as soon as it is available this year, according to Pew.
Apology for slaying
CHILLICOTHE: A former Akron man convicted of aggravated murder and other charges in the slaying of his daughter-in-law, who was strangled and dumped in a septic tank, has apologized to her family for their loss. Media outlets report 48-year-old William Inman apologized Wednesday in his trial’s sentencing phase.
A jury in Chillicothe is considering whether to recommend the death penalty. Jurors began deliberations in the sentencing phase Wednesday afternoon.
Inman was found guilty Monday in 25-year-old Summer Inman’s slaying in March 2011. William Inman denied killing his daughter-in-law.
The family rented a home in Akron shortly after the slaying.
— Associated Press
SUMMIT COUNTY
Leader wins award
AKRON: Paula Davis, president and chief executive officer of Keep Akron Beautiful, has received the Sue Smith Professional Leadership Award from Keep America Beautiful.
The award was presented last week in Washington, D.C. It is named for a former Keep America Beautiful staff member.
The honor recognizes executive directors of Keep America Beautiful affiliates who have built and sustained programs with exceptional success.
Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic lauded Davis for initiating programs including Clean Up Akron Week, graffiti eradication, recycling in schools, a recognition program for owners of well-maintained properties and a series of gardens maintained by volunteers.
Davis also leads Green Print for Akron, an effort to help the city and community reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
She has led Keep Akron Beautiful since October 1989.
Cat spay special
AKRON: One of A Kind Pet Spay and Neuter Clinic, 1700 W. Exchange St., is collaborating with PetSmart Charities to offer discounted alterations for female felines through the month of February.
The clinic is offering spay surgery at $20 while appointments are still available through the end of the month.
The event is being held to promote spaying cats before kitten season in the spring in an attempt to prevent unwanted litters. Call 330-865-6890 for details and to schedule an appointment.
CUYAHOGA FALLS
Dam removal talk
CUYAHOGA FALLS: A meeting to discuss the upcoming removal of two Cuyahoga River dams has been scheduled.
The city-sponsored meeting will be 7 p.m. Feb. 27 at Cuyahoga Falls Lions Park Lodge, 641 Silver Lake Ave.
This is the second meeting, scheduled after great interest was generated by a Jan. 16 meeting that attracted more than 100 people.
The city expects to remove the two downtown dams this summer, improving the habitat for plants and wildlife and include new recreational opportunities, including Class 4 and 5 rapids for kayakers and better water quality for fishing and swimming.
