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First parole hearing for child rapist is this month

WARREN — A woman serving a 15-years-to-life prison sentence for the rape of an 8-month-old girl that was captured on her own cellphone is eligible for parole for the first time this month and Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins penned an 11-page letter earlier this week asking the parole board to deny it. The letter was cowritten by Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Gabriel Wildman, who focuses on the prosecution of child sex and child pornography crimes as part of the Child Assault Division of the prosecutor’s office. Felicia Banks Beemer, now 36, was sentenced Nov. ...

Defense attorney wants Warren judge disqualified in case

WARREN — An attorney with the Ohio Public Defender’s Office has asked the Ohio Supreme Court to disqualify Warren Municipal Court Judge Natasha Natale from presiding over the case of a man charged with two misdemeanor charges in a 2025 assault at Warren G. Harding High School. The affidavit seeks disqualification of Natale from the case “because her words and conduct in the … case demonstrate a fixed, anticipatory judgment concerning (the defendant’s) conduct and guilt and, independently, create an objectively reasonable appearance that she cannot remain a neutral arbiter in ...

YSU trustees OK contracts with 2 unions

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State University’s board of trustees has approved a pair of new three-year contracts for two of the university’s unions. During a special meeting Friday morning in Tod Hall, the board unanimously approved the contracts for YSU’s Ohio Education Association and its Association of Classified Employees unions. The OEA represents the university’s faculty members; the ACE union represents various administrative, maintenance and support staff. The OEA ratified their contract July 17 and ACE just ratified their contract Thursday. The OEA agreement ...

Stuck in Ohio heads back to ‘The YO’ for 20th anniversary

VIENNA — Danny Mizicko said when a skateboarder, BMX rider or anyone in action sports nails a difficult trick, they often shout something like, “Yo, that’s it.” That exclamation takes on an added meaning in the videos Mizicko creates with his brother, Ken, for Stuck in Ohio. ...

Vienna’s zoning inspector to review fiber rules

VIENNA — Communities across Trumbull County have encountered problems with fiber optics companies installing lines beneath their streets, and trustees are hoping to put in safeguards to reduce the chance of experiencing the same thing. Trustees approved requesting that Zoning Inspector Mark Posey prepare the verbiage and rules for fiber optic permits in the township’s right-of-ways. The verbiage will entail the permit’s cost, the company’s bonding and permit timing, as well as proof of insurance. Trustee Phil Pegg, who noted Howland Township charges $50 per permit and a ...

Chalker, Norton, Viets families reunite for 147th family gathering

LEAVITTSBURG — Deborah Vickers Wallace, who is a registered nurse in Kansas City, said she did not mind taking the 14-hour drive from that state to spend this week with family who gathered in Leavittsburg for the 147th annual Chalker, Norton, Viets family reunion. Wallace said it was her ...