SHENANGO VALLEY — Blood doesn’t respect city lines.
People from Sharon, Farrell, West Middlesex, Sharpsville and Warren, Ohio, are suspected in the Nov. 6 drug-related shootout on Wallis Avenue that left 18-year-old Sharon resident John B. Hosey III dead, Sharon Police Chief Michael Menster said.
“It’s not just a problem with Sharon or the City of Farrell, it’s a valley-wide problem,” Menster said.
It’s getting a Shenango Valley-wide response from law enforcement and community organizers. Concerned Hermitage parent Jennifer Bailey is working with community organizer Marcia Brown to put together an anti-violence march to be held Dec. 6.
“We’re not saying this is a Sharon thing or a Farrell thing, parents from all over are going to be involved in this,” Ms. Brown said.
Hosey’s death was the first homicide in Mercer County this year, District Attorney Robert G. Kochems said. It’s the second tied to a drug-related robbery since 2008, when on Dec. 21 Detroit native Troy Lamont Coleman was killed in Farrell.
They are the only deaths tied to robberies in recent memory, Kochems said.
It took almost a year for people to be charged in the Coleman case and police are still sorting out who did what that led to Hosey’s shooting. Seven men have been charged in the case so far.
“In this case we did have a good degree of cooperation when canvassing the neighborhood,” Menster said.
But investigating many crimes is tough because people don’t cooperate.
“Whether it’s a homicide or a robbery, a lot of times we don’t get a lot of cooperation; people don’t want to get involved,” Menster said.
“People have to take responsibility for their own neighborhoods. When they see illegal activity they need to tell us about it. That’s how crimes are solved.”
The people who keep quiet are often the victims of crime, making stopping the problem tough, Kochems said.
“That doesn’t give us a chance,” he said. “The community has to get involved now.
“We are not getting the attention or the respect of the criminal element and that is not acceptable,” Kochems said.
For things to improve, folks need to let it be known that crimes won’t be tolerated in their neighborhoods, he said.
The same people keep being arrested for similar crimes and the tolerance of some members of the community with regard to these criminals keeps the cycle going.
“They’re (the criminal’s) being told it’s OK to be like this,” Kochems said.
“If the public will say ‘No’ to these people,” crime would drop, he said.
Southwest Mercer County Regional Police Det. Chris Hosa said activities like the planned anti-violence march is a step in the right direction.
“That is a great idea for the community to get involved; we can’t do it without them,” Hosa said. “We need them and they need us and we can only do it together.”
Local News
UPDATE: Crime knows no bounds
Anti-violence march planned
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Shenango Twp. man was hurt in Sunday crash
The driver of the car involved in a crash Sunday evening on Lamor Road at Mount Washington Cemetery in Jefferson Township, is in the intensive care unit of St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown, with serious injuries, Jefferson Township police Chief Jeff Lockard said.
Thomas Zajac III, 23, Mitchell Road, Shenango Township, was westbound on Lamor Road when he lost control of the sports car he was driving and it hit a tree in the cemetery.
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Chase suspect returned to city to face charges
An Ohio man that Hermitage police allege led several departments on a July 22 chase throughout the Shenango Valley has been returned to Pennsylvania.
John W. Bishop, 48, of Struthers, was taken to Mercer County Jail and will face a preliminary hearing at 2:45 p.m. Tuesday before District Judge Ronald E. Antos, Farrell.
Bishop was charged with 21 counts including reckless endangerment, retail theft and a host of traffic violations.
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Police: Shooter jailed
An argument escalated to a shooting Tuesday morning in Sandy Creek Township, leaving a Sandy Lake area man with life-threatening injuries.
Cody Brandon Noel, 24, was flown to a UPMC hospital in Pittsburgh, state police said. It was unclear Tuesday night which hospital or his condition, but police called his injuries “life-threatening.”
Police said Noel was shot by a neighbor, Michael Allen Kellner, 48, at about 9:30 a.m. near Hastee’s, a gas station and convenience store along U.S. Route 19. Kellner was in Mercer County Jail Tuesday night after failing to post $100,000 bond on an aggravated assault charge, police said.
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Woman dies of injuries in last week’s crash
A Greenville woman hurt in Thursday’s two-vehicle crash in Pymatuning Township has died from her injuries.
Lois E. Orr, 93, of 117 East Ave., died at 6:26 p.m. Saturday in St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown, according to incomplete obituary information. -
Faith doused fire; forge is new creation
Firefighters were battling one of the biggest blazes ever in Grove City when Will Knecht arrived in time to see his family owned, 87-year-old business crumbling and tumbling to the ground.
Knecht, the company’s president, formed a circle with his teary-eyed employees at Wendell August Forge and prayed as plumes of smoke visible for miles drew hundreds of onlookers.
“It was like it was a spectator sport almost, but with people in tears, people moved by it,” Knecht said. “We had employees saying, ‘Will, what are we gonna do, what are we gonna do?’ I prayed from the bottom of my heart, ‘Lord, you know what’s going on, we don’t; we trust you, you take it from here.’ ”
Six months after the March 6 fire, Knecht said those prayers have been answered as his community, employees and customers — including the Pittsburgh Penguins pro hockey team — rallied to re-energize the business.
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Farewell to summer party
Buhl Day may have changed over the years, from the type of food served to the entertainment featured, but its true intent remains intact, planning committee members said at Monday’s opening ceremonies.
The 31st annual event at Buhl Farm park, Hermitage, serves as the Shenango Valley’s “last hurrah” of the summer to pay tribute to philanthropist Frank H. Buhl and his wife Julia Forker Buhl, said Sue McLaughlin, one of five committee co-chairs.
Buhl Farm trustee Phil Marrie invited park-goers to check out Buhl Farm’s biggest upgrades completed this year.
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Man wanted for alleged actions against girl
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Bradley James Cleveland, 306 1/2 Liberty St., may have fled the area, police said.
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Borough manager exhibits optimism
After nearly five months on the job as Greenville’s borough manager, Scott Andrejchak already feels settled in.
“I like Greenville a lot. It’s a great place,” he said Friday afternoon in his office at the borough building, taking a break from working on the 2011 budget.
Council members hired Andrejchak to replace Ryan Eggleston, who resigned in November to work as city manager of Oil City.
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Day dedicated to workers
Here’s to the workingman.
They’re the ones who once put Mercer County on the map as one of the places where steel, pipe and tube, ladders, railcars and a variety of other products were made by proud men and women who put in an honest day’s work.
Today isn’t supposed to be a holiday of picnics and end-of-summer celebrations. -
League sets debate date; Dahlkemper ad questioned
Local political junkies, mark your calendars.
Third District Congressional rivals Kathy Dahlkemper and Mike Kelly will face off at a League of Woman Voters of Mercer County forum from 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 26 at the Sharon City Building.
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Shenango Twp. man was hurt in Sunday crash
