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YE L LOW SPR INGS NEWS 2 0 2 1 Y E A R I N R E V I E W DECEMBE R 30, 2021 PAGE 11 L E G A L S Y S T E M A N D L AW E N F O R C E M E N T Atha-Arnett sentenced In July, Yellow Springs native Zyrian Atha-Arnett, accused in the stabbing death of Leonid “Lonya” Clark, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter as part of a plea deal with the Greene County Prosecutor’s Office. Atha-Arnett also pleaded guilty to separate charges of abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence related to the Jan. 13, 2019, killing of his friend and former classmate. Atha-Arnett was sentenced to 11 years on the involuntary manslaughter charge, 36 months for abuse of a corpse and 12 months for tampering with evi- dence, to be served consecutively for a total of 15 years and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution. Atha-Arnett also pleaded guilty to 10 counts of child pornography charges. He was sentenced to 18 months on each count, to be served concurrently with the 15 years tied to Clark’s death. Carlson resigns, Burge acting chief In August, Chief Brian Carlson resigned from the Village police department, saying the resignation was a personal decision he made alongside his wife. Carlson had been with the department since 2010, serv- ing as chief for the last five years. He said that implementing a “social justice plan” for policing, adding a social worker to the department and starting more bike and foot patrols were among his biggest accom- plishments during his tenure as chief. Carlson’s last day as chief was Nov. 12; that day, Village Manager Josué Salm- erón appointed recently promoted Sgt. Paige Burge as acting chief until a new full-time chief is found. The appointment allowed more time for the police chief search committee to find a chief who is in line with the village’s values, accord- ing to Salmerón. Burge has been with YSPD since 2019, when she joined as a foot patrol of ficer. She was promoted to sergeant in August after the depar ture of Naomi Watson. Hailing from Fairborn, Burge will be YSPD’s first female and LGBTQ+ chief. Jail levy voted down again In November, Greene County voters rejected Issue 1, a proposal from the Greene County Board of Commissioners to increase the county sales tax by .25% to build a new jail, with 13,334 voting against the measure and 10,807 approving it. The result is in part a victory for members of the Greene County Coalition for Compas- sionate Justice, who campaigned against the proposal. A similar levy was also voted down in 2020. PHOTOS: MATT MINDE, TOP ; CAROL S IMMONS, BOTTOM TOP: Paige Burge was named acting police chief in November when Brian Carlson left the position. BOTTOM: Zyrian Atha-Arnett stood with his defense lawyer, Jon Paul Rion, during his sentencing in July for the 2019 stabbing death of Leonid “Lonya” Clark. Sheriff Gene Fischer dies Greene County Sheriff Gene Fischer died unexpectedly on Nov. 16. Fischer had been attending an Ohio sheriff’s convention in Sandusky where he suf fered a “medical emergency.” Fischer, 65, was first appointed sheriff in 2003 and returned to office by county voters in subsequent elections. Prior to his tenure as sheriff, Fischer served 20 years as a Xenia police officer. CRB talks continue In December, Council voted to approve the allocation of $15,000 for the establish- ment of a village citizen review board, or CRB, which would address police mis- conduct. The funds will cover the cost of establishing the CRB in 2022. Details such as the size, scope, policies and pro- ceedures of the proposed CRB are still being discussed. —Cheryl Durgans • After a number of years in which Trustee Chris Mucher served as presi- dent/chair of the three-person board, Trustee Don Hollister became chairperson during the group’s first meeting of the new year. • Miami Township Fire-Rescue Chief Colin Altman, who became eligible for retirement in summer 2020 but decided to serve another year, announced in January that he would wait until mid-July 2022 to take his leave. • Newly installed Greene County Pros - ecutor David Hayes attended the trustees’ Jan. 20 meeting and announced that former county Prosecutor Stephen Haller, who had retired from that position, would be return- ing to the prosecutor’s office as chief of the legal division effective Feb. 1. The new appointment made Haller the direct contact for all townships in the county regarding their legal matters. • After the announcement in December 2020 that the former firehouse on Corry Street would be sold to locally based come- dian Dave Chappelle’s holding company for a proposed comedy club and restaurant, the final closing took place in March. But an issue between the Township and the Yellow Springs Development Corporation, which facilitated the sale, arose over util- ity costs and other fees that accumulated in the three months between December and the final closing in March. After legal representatives of both groups met in the spring, Mucher reported at a June trustees meeting that the disagreement had been resolved. The Township would receive $380,000, and the YSDC would receive $33,593.50 from the sale’s net proceeds of $413,493.50. The reported sale price of the station was $424,000. • The trustees returned to in-person meetings in June, 15 months after the pandemic lockdown began. The meetings also represented their first in the new fire station at the corner of Xenia Avenue and Herman Street, where the township offices are now located. • On June 30, the Miami Township Board of Zoning Appeals, or BZA, met to consider requests from the Agraria Center for Regenerative Practice to rent out their historic barn, as well as their office meeting room, to community groups and individu- als for various activities. After a three-hour hearing, which included supportive testi- mony from neighbors, academics, commu- nity leaders and comedian Dave Chappelle, the BZA denied Agraria’s barn request, but allowed rental of the office meeting room for no more than 12 times a year. • The BZA met again in September to hear a conditional use request from Steve Wirrig to host four shows in October by Dave Chappelle at the Wirrig family pavil- ion off Meredith Road. The request was approved, but the shows didn’t occur. • Also in September, Trustee Don Hol - lister hosted a Saturday morning meeting to M I A M I T O W N S H I P gather public input about how best to spend about $130,000 in funds allocated through the federal American Recovery Plan, or ARP, related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The trustees had learned over the summer that the township would receive the money in two payments spread out over two years. Sug- gestions for its use included supporting the installation of broadband in the township, the purchase of COVID tests and the extension of water and sewer service, the last of which the Township has no means to do. In addi- tion, Home, Inc, has requested $30,000 to $50,000 as seed money for a proposed senior housing project; and the Community Foun- dation has asked for another $5,000 to go toward continuing rent relief. Trustee Chris Mucher has said that he also anticipates Miami Township Fire-Rescue could receive a substantial amount of the funds for personnel and operating costs related to the pandemic. The trustees continued to discuss the issue through the fall, and no decisions had been made by the end of the year. • With two seats up for election on the November ballot, incumbent Don Hol- lister announced his intention to run for re-election, and local residents Marilan Moir, Dino Pallotta and Denise Swinger also announced their candidacies. Zo Van Eaton Meister filed a petition to run, but pulled out of the race, citing a potential conflict with her police of ficer husband’s application to fill the Yellow Spring police chief vacancy. Longtime Trustee Mark Crockett opted not to seek another term. Voters chose Hollister and Moir. A biol- ogy teacher, Moir will be the first woman to hold the of fice within memory. • Crockett was honored at the Dec. 6 trustees meeting for his 20 years of ser- vice. His fellow trustees presented him with a plaque, a pen and a card, and shared cake and eggnog with everyone in atten- dance. —Carol Simmons PHOTO BY CAROL S IMMONS Retiring Township trustee Mark Crockett’s 20 years of service to the township was hon- ored at a small ceremony in December. With Crockett is Trustee Chair Don Hollister, who won his re-election bid in November. WINBURN’S JANITORIAL SERVICE Phone: 937-767-7639 HERSHELL WINBURN 246 N. 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