Common Pleas

New Cases

Joseph Chuck, Manor Drive, Columbiana, vs. Sarah Chuck, state Route 164, Lisbon; divorce sought.

Samantha Jo Williams, Furnace Road, Lisbon, vs. Donald Williams, Alliance; divorce sought.

Credit Acceptance Corporation, Southfield, Mich. vs. Kaylyn Phillips, Greentree Place, Lisbon; collection sought of alleged $16,107 debt.

Velocity Investments, LLC, Wall, N.J., vs. Terrence Smith, Y & O Road, Wellsville; collection sought of alleged $22,316 debt.

Onemain Financial Group, LLC, Columbus, vs. Kapeli Tofilau Jr., Longs Crossing Road, Leetonia; collection sought of alleged $20,591 debt.

CrossCountry Mortgage, LLC, Coppell, Texas, vs. Joshua Hott, Bye Road, East Palestine, et al.; mortgage foreclosure sought

Onemain Financial Group, LLC, Columbus, vs. Richard Sloan, state Route 45, Wellsville; collection sought of alleged $18,964 debt.

Docket Entries

County Treasurer vs. Alice Ross; payment plan entered, case stayed.

Seven Seventeen Credit Union, Inc. vs. Bryan Powell, et al.; $21,243 judgment granted to plaintiff, plus $475 interest.

Prestige Financial Services Inc. vs. Chad Hanlon; $17,138 judgment granted to plaintiff.

U.S. Bank National Association vs. Glenn Dixon, et al.; mortgage foreclosure ordered for East Palestine property.

Lakeview Loan Servicing LLC vs. Melissa Baker, et al.; case stayed, pending mediation.

Hastings Mutual Insurance Company vs. Rebecca Flores; $41,520 judgment granted to plaintiff.

Peter Johnson Jr. vs. Encino Energy, LLC, et al.; case stayed, pending arbitration.

County Treasurer vs. Lynetta Herold, et al.; Anshutz Exploration dismissed from case as defendant.

Grand Jury

LISBON — Drug defendants served recently with secret indictments issued by the Columbiana County Grand Jury included:

— April Bandamo, 23, Anderson Boulevard, East Liverpool, aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine on Dec. 9, 2023.

— Crystal Hoskinson, 33, South Lincoln Avenue, Salem, possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing clonazepam on May 21, 2023.

— Nathan Holcomb, 22, Calcutta Smith Ferry Road, East Liverpool, possession of cocaine and aggravated possession of drugs, both fifth-degree felonies, for allegedly possessing cocaine and amphetamine on May 10 this year.

— Brian Baughman, 50, Brightview Drive, East Liverpool, aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, for allegedly possessing methamphetamine on April 17 this year.

Court News

LISBON — A motion to suppress evidence in a child pornography case against a New Waterford man has been denied.

Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge Megan Bickerton issued the ruling Tuesday, finding probable cause existed for the issuing of a search warrant for cell phones of Corey Andrew Cantwell, 25, Creek Road, who’s facing 25 counts of fourth-degree felony pandering obscenity involving a minor or impaired person.

The indictment alleged that Cantwell possessed numerous images of child sexual assault material on a cell phone on March 18, according to an affidavit filed in county Municipal Court. He was in possession of the phone March 10 during an incident in East Palestine. Police executed a search warrant to search the phone later and found the images.

Cantwell’s defense attorney, Joe King, filed the motion to suppress evidence, alleging improper issuance of a search warrant.

Bickerton noted that the duty of a judge or magistrate issuing a warrant is to make a common-sense decision whether given all the circumstances in the affidavit, there is “a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place.”

In this case, the affidavit by East Palestine police said an officer was informed that the defendant had images of child sexual assault material on his mobile devices and that he “activity communicated with minors and was exchanging or requesting pornographic images.”

A check of the law enforcement data base also showed there were reports regarding the defendant and allegations of sexual conduct with minors from July 2021 through August 2023, the judgment entry said, referring to what police were able to confirm.

A final status hearing in the case against Cantwell has been set for 9 a.m. Jan. 17, with a jury trial scheduled for 9 a.m. Jan. 29.

Also in Common Pleas Court:

— Tyler Woolmaker, 20, Idaho Avenue, East Liverpool, was ordered evaluated for competency to stand trial by the Forensic Psychiatric Center of Northeast Ohio for felonious assault, a second-degree felony, and misdemeanor assault for allegedly showing up at a Halloween party on Oct. 28, 2023 in East Liverpool and striking a woman in the head with a whiskey bottle.

— Christopher Byers Jr., 30, West Wilson Street, Salem, pleaded guilty to attempted strangulation, a fifth-degree felony lesser offense, and misdemeanor domestic violence. A charge of endangering children will be dismissed. Byers was originally charged with fourth-degree felony strangulation. Sentencing was set for Dec. 16. Byers was accused of putting his hands around a woman’s throat and choking her and covering her mouth and nose to prevent her from calling for help on Nov. 18 in Salem.