Former Warren officer appears in court

Pleads not guilty to charges associated with incident in Niles

WARREN -- A former longtime Warren police officer accused of pointing a gun at police in Niles pleaded not guilty to charges Thursday.

Jeffrey Hoolihan, 61, was shot with a nonlethal bean bag gun to be subdued after the tense incident in Niles July 7.

Hoolihan faces two counts of improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle; two charges of obstructing official business, a fifth-degree felony; and OVI.

A caller reported July 7 that Hoolihan was "very intoxicated" and "causing a disturbance" at his home in the 1500 block of Stepney Street, Niles.

The police report states Hoolihan got into an argument with his girlfriend and another man.

The other man fought with Hoolihan for "20 to 30 minutes" trying to get him inside his home.

Eventually, they got him inside and let him sleep.

As police arrived, they began speaking with witnesses. Hoolihan then emerged and walked outside toward his pickup truck. Officers began approaching, believing he was attempting to leave in his vehicle.

Hoolihan's girlfriend tried to get the keys from him and told him to "put that away" in reference to a firearm that she told police he had with him inside the vehicle.

After finding Hoolihan was armed, police took cover and called for additional units.

The report states Hoolihan pulled the vehicle out of the driveway and slowly began driving south down South Rhodes Avenue, as additional police arrived at the home.

While Hoolihan was stopped at the intersection of South Rhodes and Phillips avenues, police used their public address system to command him to exit the vehicle with his hands up.

Initially, the report states, Hoolihan exited the vehicle and complied by placing his hands over his head as he walked toward officers.

But along the way, he began walking toward the back of the vehicle and ignoring police commands.

After 15 minutes of trying to reason with Hoolihan, he started driving his vehicle again at slow speeds down South Rhodes. Officers believed Hoolihan was attempting to drive back to his residence, according to the report.

They laid out spike strips along the intersection of Phillips and South Rhodes. Hoolihan drove over the spikes, puncturing all four tires.

Police took cover, with one pointing a bean bag shotgun at Hoolihan, as police again tried getting him to comply.

When Hoolihan finally stepped out of the vehicle, an officer could see the firearm in his right hand. Hoolihan refused to drop the gun when told to do so, the report states.

Two bean bag rounds were fired, striking Hoolihan in the lower back and causing him to fall to the ground. Police arrested him without further incident. A firearm loaded with five rounds was taken by police.