Top ten of 2008
GM, Dann woes lead listBy JOE GORMAN Tribune Chronicle
Article Photos
WARREN - Economic woes at General Motors edged out the fall of Liberty resident Marc Dann from the office of Ohio Attorney General as the top news story of the year, as selected by Tribune Chronicle staff.
Lurching to the end of 2008 almost on financial fumes, General Motors' problems tumbled to the Lordstown plant, where a third shift that was added in the middle of the year to deal with an increased demand for the Chevy Cobalts they produce was eliminated.
Dann, a resident of Liberty who rose seemingly from nowhere as a state senator to become attorney general and defeat the heavily favored Betty Montgomery in 2007, fell from power largely because of a sexual harassment scandal in the office and revelations that he had an affair with a staffer.
The local visits for the presidential election and the murder of an elderly man and the wounding of his son at a Warren restaurant in the summer tied for third, and the arson deaths of six people on the East Side of Youngstown in January was fifth.
Warren's budget crunch came in at sixth, followed by the explosion of a home in Girard at seventh. Eighth was the death of an elderly Liberty woman who locked herself out of her home, followed by the unveiling of the new Trumbull County Veterans Memorial, and by the demolition of Warren G. Harding High School.
1. GM woes
In August, it seemed like the sky was the limit for the General Motors Corp. Lordstown Complex as a third shift was added to speed up production of the Cobalt, a car good on gasoline mileage, to take advantage of buyers who wanted something to offset high fuel prices.
By December, the company was hanging on for dear life in the face of bankruptcy, clinging to the hope of government aid as the third shift that was added with such optimism in the summer was eliminated in the late fall.
Some workers on that third shift pulled up stakes from other communities across the region, where they had lost their job and moved here, only to lose their job again.
Workers, residents and officials alike fretted about the state of the domestic auto industry as it fell prey to one of the worst economic downturns, some experts have said, since the Great Depression. All eyes have been on Washington to see if the White House will aid GM after Republicans in the U.S. Senate scuttled a potential deal. President Bush authorized a loan package just before Christmas.
2. Dann's
downfall
The area had high hopes when Dann became the first resident of the Mahoning Valley since the Civil War to win a state office after his upset victory of incumbent attorney general Betty Montgomery.
Then the miscues began to add up. There were allegations that one of his law enforcement employees was working two jobs at the same time and there were questions about state cars and security systems.
Then came reports that one of his aides, Anthony Gutierrez, had sexually harassed two women in the office. And that some of the harassment took place in a Columbus condo owned by Dann and that Dann had invited the women there.
Dann ignored calls to resign as Republicans pounced on the man who led the drumbeat against former Gov. Bob Taft and the ''culture of corruption,'' as he called it, in Columbus.
But things got worse.
An internal investigation handled by two Dann aides uncovered evidence of cronyism as well as painting a picture of frat boys out of control without the supervision of their parents in the office. E-mails that were released hinted at a more than professional relationship between him and his scheduler, and he later admitted to an affair.
Calls for Dann to resign increased, and he refused. But when talk of impeachment grew into action, he finally stepped down.
The scandal also took his chief of staff and several of his top aides from office as well, including Leo Jennings, who ran his election campaign.
Dann returned to the Valley and settled down quietly, a far cry from the man who railed in every open microphone during his time as a state legislator who said he wanted to try and clean up state government.
A report that came out near the end of the year accused Dann of misspending money from his campaign's transitional fund and detailed what it called lewd behavior in his office. Dann accused the authors of the report of bias, but the report was being forwarded to other agencies for other investigations.
3. Hail to the chief
It is not hard to tell in the Mahoning Valley when there is a presidential election. Stick around long enough, and one of the candidates or their friends may come to your front door.
During the Democratic primary, a cast of all-stars came to campaign for themselves and their friends; Caroline Kennedy came for Barack Obama, as did her uncle, U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy.
Former U.S. Rep. Richard Gephardt visited to drum up support for Obama's chief rival, former first lady and current U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton. Clinton visited three times in the primary. Obama only visited once and lined up a key local endorsement from Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams.
Republican candidate Sen. John McCain did not ignore the Valley either, stopping at YSU in the spring and holding a rally at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in the fall. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Guliani stumped for McCain, and Obama's running mate, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, stopped in Warren.
The area went overwhelmingly for Obama in the general election. Although there were reports of long lines at polling places on Election Day, there were no major glitches reported.
4. robbery gone bad
Aug. 12 seemed to be like any other day for Fred DeVengencie, 91, and his 71-year-old son, Anthony, as they were getting set to open Freddie's Diner on North Park Avenue.
That was before a man came who police said was trying to rob the restaurant. In a struggle, the elder DeVengencie was killed while his son was severely wounded after being shot in the mouth. He spent several months in the hospital recovering.
The crime, which took place in broad daylight, stunned some citizens who lamented what they called a lack of safety in the neighborhood, while others remembered both DeVengencies as good businessmen and great people who were always willing to help out.
The diner also did not survive the shooting, as it closed shortly after.
Police hunted for a suspect. Detectives waited for DNA tests to come back from blood samples they collected at the crime scene from what they say were injuries a robber sustained during the attack.
An indictment was filed Sept. 12 against Ardeed Mitchell, 28, of Youngstown on Sept. 12. He was arrested Sept. 6. A tentative trial date is set for March 3.
5. Six dead for a cell phone
They say Michael Davis never grasped the horror of what he did. But anyone who shivered on that cold January day in front of the burned-out home of Carol Crawford will never be able to grasp it either.
Davis, 18, was convicted but spared the death penalty for setting fire to the home early Jan. 23, a fire that killed Crawford, her 23-year-old daughter Jennifer, and four of Jennifer's children. He was arrested the same day.
The reason: Davis was upset over a cell phone that was stolen by a friend of Crawford's son and was angry because he believed the son knew about it but did not do anything.
The tragedy drew the community out in large numbers to mourn and lend support to the survivors. Their funeral service at New Bethel Baptist Church on the South Side of Youngstown drew a standing room-only audience.
Davis' mother maintained her son's innocence in the days after the fire. During the trial, defense attorneys offered token resistance and said someone else started the fire. But a jury found him guilty.
He was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison but chose not to address the court during the sentencing. So he did not say why he set the fire or how he feels about it.
6. Same old song and dance
Warren residents had to be wondering at the end of the year when the administration announced layoffs of police and fire and other workers: Haven't we been down this road before?
A similar situation occurred earlier this decade but was averted when residents passed a 0.5 percent income tax increase that was to go the safety forces.
Despite the tax being made permanent, those workers still bore the brunt of layoffs as Mayor Michael O'Brien had to deal with massive amounts of lost revenue due to closings, buyouts and layoffs at other area industries.
The city is proposing to lay off 40 employees across the general fund departments and to transfer 14 more outside of the general fund in an attempt to shrink the general fund from $31.4 million in 2008 to $28.2 million in 2009. Police stand to lose about 20 officers.
The situation is leading to the resurrection of ideas to bring back traffic cameras to raise revenue, which was nixed by council earlier this year after a loud round of opposition.
As the city prepared for the new year, it also faced the news of 600 layoffs at Severstal Steel and has to consider how that will affect the budget for 2009.
7. Girard home explosion
Residents in the Washington Avenue area of Girard were enjoying a quiet early evening Sept. 18 when they were disturbed by a loud noise as a house exploded.
"I thought someone had driven a truck into my porch," Washington Avenue resident Ray Lee said. "I jumped out the door, ready to scrap with the drunk idiot that crashed into my house. But there was no one there, and all the neighbors started coming out."
Several homes in the neighborhood were wrecked by the explosion at 824 Washington Ave., and a natural gas leak was considered the culprit. The explosion was caused by gas in part, but only because police say a man cut the gas lines as he was stealing copper pipes from the home.
Donald F. Shelley, 426 North Ave., is facing two charges of aggravated arson and vandalism for the explosion.
The house he is accused of breaking into was leveled, another home burned down and several homes were damaged. The neighborhood still is trying to rebuild.
8. Mary Rush death
The death of an elderly Mansell Drive resident in Liberty ultimately led to the downfall of police Chief Anthony Slifka.
Mary Rush, 87, was found on April 28 outside her home in her nightgown, bleeding from wounds and suffering from hypothermia. She is believed to have locked herself outside of the small, single-family home sometime between 3 and 7 a.m. She died later that day at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown.
The public immediately began questioning circumstances of her death because of reports that police were called to the neighborhood at least twice that morning when neighbors described hearing noises that sounded like a woman screaming outside of their windows.
The callers, however, said they could not identify where the noises were originating, and officers did not get out of their cruisers to check.
An outside agency was hired to look into the incident, and the resulting report criticized Slifka's management style. He agreed to retire. Interim Chief Richard Tisone took over for Slifka and remains on the job at the end of the year.
9. Vets Memorial unveiled
Downtown Warren was filled with veterans, many in uniform, on Veterans Day as the Trumbull County Veterans Memorial was unveiled.
The memorial was a yearlong project launched by the Tribune Chronicle, Trumbull 100 and the Western Reserve Veterans Memorial Association and backed by volunteer work by several local labor unions that pitched in to do extensive work in the last few weeks.
The guest speaker, Warren native Roger Ailes, president of Fox News Channel and chairman of the Fox Television Stations Group of Fox News Channel, included in his speech memories of a Warren G. Harding High classmate and friend who had been killed on an aircraft carrier during a wartime exercise.
Vets who attended the festivities gave the memorial rave reviews.
''I'm glad I'm here,'' said 92-year-old Tom Vouvounas of Warren, who served in World War II in the U.S. Army's 83 Infantry Division. ''It's one of the best things they've ever done. It's an honor. I am glad I am here.''
Following ceremonies and the Veterans Day parade, many of the veterans, their families and visitors browsed around the memorial's Wall of Honor, examining bricks bearing the names of those who served in all branches of the military.
10. Goodbye to Warren G. Harding
There was a lot of sentiment - and some anger - as Warren G. Harding High School on Elm Road and Atlantic Street in Warren met the wrecking ball to make way for a new high school.
Some residents and alumni were upset that the old school was being torn down, saying that besides its aesthetic value, it should stay in place because it is a historic landmark.
A committee was formed to try to save the old building, but they could not come to an agreement. All that is left now is the facade.
The new high school was part of a districtwide project to replace old buildings. Voters in the district approved a bond measure to pay for their share of the project through the Ohio School Facilities Commission.
But while some fought over whether the old school should stay or go, most people wanted to come back to say goodbye and to get a glimpse of the new building.
''I wanted to say goodbye. I wanted to recoup my memories,'' said Rozelynn Chapman of Youngstown, a 1973 graduate, who came back to visit the school on one of the final walkthroughs.
|
warrenguy
|
|
|---|---|
|
12-29-08 6:57 AM
|
puleez,enough of marc dann. What must we do to put this man in prison?he must go away for a long time
|
