Convictions, sentences upheld by 11th District Court in two Trumbull County jury trials

Two men convicted and sentenced for Trumbull County felonies had their appeals denied in decisions announced Monday by the 11th District Court of Appeals.

Shane Newton

In a decision penned by 11th District Judge Matt Lynch, the conviction of Shane Newton for two counts of gross sexual imposition and one count of rape was affirmed. The decision was supported by Lynch’s colleagues, Judges Mary Jane Traapp and Robert Patton.

Newton was convicted by a Trumbull County jury after a trial on June 12-14, 2023. The jury also acquitted the defendant of one count of rape. On July 11, Newton was sentenced to a minimum term of 25 years and a maximum life term in prison.

On appeal, Newton raised two assignments of error: that the trial court deprived Newton of the right to a fair trial when Judge Andrew D. Logan denied a request for a transcript of the victim’s grand jury testimony and that Newton’s right to effective assistance of counsel was violated when his lawyer failed to renew the request for the grand jury transcript.

The appellate judges stated that these assignments of error were without merit.

Newton will continue to serve his sentence in Belmont Correctional Institution, which his first parole eligibility in 2047.

Omar S. Williams

In a second decision, Judge Lynch wrote that Omar S. Williams’ appeal of his conviction for aggravated robbery in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court was denied. Lynch was joined in this decision by Judges Patton and Eugene A. Lucci.

The appellate judges ruled that Williams’ sole assignment of error was without merit. The defendant, at left, claims his conviction for aggravated robbery was not supported by sufficient evidence since the injuries inflicted on a Walmart employee did not occur when Williams was committing a theft offense.

But the three-judge panel disagreed. In a trial held Feb. 21-23 before Judge Cynthia Rice, a Trumbull County jury found Williams guilty of aggravated robbery, felonious assault, abduction and disrupting public service. He was sentenced to a prison sentence of 33 to 38 ½ years.

He currently is incarcerated at Mansfield Correctional Institution, and Williams will be eligible for parole in 2055.

Assistant Prosecutor Ryan Sanders represented the state in both appeals, while Newton was represented by attorney Gregory Stralka of Cleveland, and Williams was represented by attorney Robert T. McDowall Jr. of Youngstown.