Warren man sentenced to prison for OVI; reports say it was his fourth conviction

A Warren man pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree OVI felony and a fifth-degree possession of cocaine felony.

Ryan S. Morris, 40, Federal Street NW, Warren, was given an eight-month prison sentenced, fined $1,350, and given a three-year driver’s license suspension as part of his sentence.

Prosecutors said this is the defendant’s fourth OVI conviction, thus sparking the felony sanction. The defendant also agreed to pay $1,000 in lieu of forfeiting the vehicle a Cadillac that was involved in the OVI.

The case stemmed from a Dec. 19, 2023, incident at the Get Go gas station on Youngstown Warren Road in Niles where the Cadillac had a flat tire and the driver, identified as Morris, seemed intoxicated with a slurred speech and odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the passenger compartment.

As the driver attempted to get out of the car, an officer noticed a plastic bag with a white substance in the driver’s right hand. The substance later tested positive for cocaine and the driver later refused a blood-alcohol test, police reports stated.

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