WARREN — The Trumbull County Courthouse could remain trial-free at least through August during the COVID-19 pandemic as the state dismissed fifth-degree and misdemeanor theft charges against a Niles man who would not agree to plea bargains.

Trumbull County court officials also avoided an Aug. 24 trial when another defendant took a plea bargain offer Thursday.

Defendant Jody Elliott, 42, of 39 Victor Ave., Niles, was ready to go to trial Monday in the large courtroom of Common Pleas Judge Andrew D. Logan. Assistant Prosecutor Charles Morrow said Friday morning, however, the case — which involved a criminal simulation involving Elliott during the fall of 2018 — was dismissed.

Morrow said the state is pursuing two other robbery charges against Elliott.

A jury trial for Elliott is scheduled for Oct. 13 before Judge Peter Kontos on charges of robbery, possession of cocaine, possession of heroin and possession of a fentanyl-related compound, according to court records. That case was investigated in November 2019 by Warren police, involving a man who claimed his wallet was stolen after an altercation near a city park.

Elliott’s attorney David Rouzzo said the judge had ruled some of the statements Elliott made to police will not be allowed to be used at trial.

A second robbery charge against Elliott also will be tried before Kontos on Oct. 19. That case was investigated by Niles police and involved a 2019 incident at Macy’s in Eastwood Mall where a man attempted to steal several items of clothing. There was a fight with store security with several racks of clothing and other merchandise being knocked over, according to the police report. Elliott was treated at St. Joseph Warren Hospital for a cut on the left side of his head, the report states.

Logan’s bailiff, Jodi Snodgrass-Camuso, said the large courtroom on the courthouse’s third floor — among the biggest in Ohio — would be the only one that could accommodate jury selection in this time of social distancing.

Usually, in Trumbull County, trial judges work with a pool of about 40 to seat 12 jurors plus two or three alternates. Then there are the court reporter, the judge, and the attorneys on both sides, not to mention the defendant and a witness.

“We can’t have two trials going on at the same time,” Snodgrass-Camuso said about the three other smaller common pleas courtrooms not being big enough.

The bailiff also noted that clear, plastic barriers are on order to be placed in between courtroom seating. Mahoning County courtrooms had them installed earlier in the summer in preparation for jury trials.

“The jurors can’t be sitting together any more,” Snodgrass-Camuso said.

Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge Ronald Rice had said he will accommodate the wishes of his defendants if they want to go to trial.

“I told them if you want a trial, we will have it,” Rice said.

On Thursday, one such defendant charged with four felonies took most of the day thinking about whether to take the state’s offer to plead guilty and have the court determine his sentence, or go to trial — which was set for Aug. 24 — and put his fate in the hands of a jury. If found guilty, the defendant could have faced as much as nine years in prison.

Eventually, defendant Patrick Poe, 33, of Brooklyn N.Y. opted to take the plea deal and pleaded guilty to charges of carrying a concealed weapon and having a weapon as a felon. Court records show Poe will be sentenced Sept. 17 by Rice.

Both Poe and Elliott remain free on bond, pending their next court dates, records show.