Police and Fire

An Ellwood resident was accused of three separate incidences of theft within a month period. In criminal complaints filed on July 27 and 28, Bronson Michael Lane, 27, was charged with two instances of stealing car parts from his brother and one incident of using a stolen credit card. On May 30 and June 1, Lane stole a car battery and other parts from his brother and sold returned them to Autozone for $263.59. On June 10, he stole a credit card from a Beaver Falls man and used it to make the following purchases between June 10 and 13:…

Adam Pounds Threatens Family Members According to the criminal complaint, on July 20 at approximately 5 p.m., police were dispatched to West Lawrence Ave. for a disturbance involving Adam Matthew Pounds, 25, of Ellwood City. The victims reported Pounds was upset that he had been kicked out of his grandfather’s house and responded by threatening three family members with a knife. Pounds swung the knife in the general direction of the victims, although not close enough to hit them. He also threatened to burn the house down and kill the victims if they called the police. When one of the…

Four Arrested for Marijuana Possession According to the criminal complaints, on July 9 at approximately 2:50 a.m. an officer conducted a traffic stop on Lawrence Avenue after seeing a vehicle with a flat tire. The driver was identified as Damien Rushauwn Confer, 24, of New Castle. The officer observed a glass jar containing a green leafy substance. Confer, along with the three passengers, denied owning the marijuana. On July 12, all four were charged with one count of possession of a controlled substance. The three passengers wee Joshua Joseph Vignovich, 24, of New Castle; Markece Lamar Miller, 26, of New…

Nurse Steals Medications for Personal Use A nurse at the Ellwood City Hospital was accused of stealing narcotic medications. According to the criminal complaint, an internal investigation by the hospital staff indicated someone was tampering with morphine, meperidine and hydrocodone medications. Hospital officials conducted state investigators with evidence indicating Tenelle O Goss, 40, of Ellwood City, was the most likely suspect. When interviewed by state investigators in February, Goss admitted to an addiction problem and that she had been signing out medication under patients’ names for her own use. Goss subsequently replaced the medication with saline solution. She was charged…

Cruelty to Animals A Wayne Township woman was charged with cruelty to animals following a search of her residence on West Lawrence Avenue. Throughout May, the Wayne Township Animal Control Officer investigated Delores Esther Conley’s residence and viewed several cats that were visibly sick and needed treated or euthanized. After the defendant took no action, Lawrence County officers executed a search warrant and removed 42 live cats and three deceased cats. Conley admitted that the cats had not been to a veterinarian since 2006, and she was unable to provide care for them. She was also unaware how many cats…

An Ellport man was charged with reckless endangerment for discharging a firearm in the direction of a residence. After roughly a month of investigation, Ellwood City police charged Edward Charles Wymer, 52, with one count of Recklessly Endangering Another Person, a misdemeanor of the second degree. He was arraigned before Magistrate Jerry Cartwright on June 22. Yet, part of the case remains a mystery. On Saturday, May 25, a bullet struck Amy Prine’s residence on Gartley Avenue in Ellport, shattering a front window. On June 4, Cortni Prine, Amy’s 18-year old daughter, was outside when she heard a bullet whizz…

DUI Motor Vehicle Assault A Beaver Falls man driving a motorcycle was seriously injured by a drunk driver in an incident on May 28. The victim, Michael D. Stevenson, was thrown 25 feet from his vehicle and transported to the Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh for treatment. He has since been released. According to criminal complaint filed on June 16, on May 28 at approximately 9:50 a.m., officers were dispatched to the intersection of Line Avenue and Mt. Vernon Drive for a motor vehicle accident with injuries. The defendant, Michael Louis Rozzi, 47 of Ellwood City, was driving a Ford…

DUI According to the criminal complaint, on June 4, an officer was dispatched to the Shelby Bar on 26 Fountain Ave. in response to a report of a driver passed out at the wheel. The officer arrived on the scene and made contact with the defendant, Douglas Holt Conner, 53, of Ellwood City. Connor was visibly intoxicated and after failing field sobriety tests, was taken to the Ellwood City Hospital. He was charged with two count of DUI. DUI According to the criminal complaint filed on June 7, on May 27, an officer responded to a report of a car…

A Wampum resident assaulted a Perry Township man by running him over with a truck, resulting in the victim’s hospitalization under critical care. According to the criminal complaint,Travis Edward Olinger, 28, is charged with aggravated assault against the victim, Ronald H. Miller. On June 5 at approximately 4:30, officers were dispatched to the Ellwood City Hospital for an assault call. Officers spoke with a witness, the Miller’s nephew. The nephew said that he and his uncle were traveling east on Portersville Road from Ellwood to Ellport when a blue Chevy truck followed them, flashing its high beams. Miller pulled over…