Police arrest man in Mabel Street shooting
Jun. 21—New Castle police have made an arrest in the June 13 shooting and injuring of a man on Mabel Street.
Stephen Marquise Brown, 25, of the 600 block of Taylor Street, is charged with criminal attempt at homicide, aggravated assault, prohibited possession of a firearm, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.
He is in the Lawrence County jail on $500,000 bond, accused of shooting a man in the groin in an apartment in the 700 block of Mabel Street. The shooting occurred around 2:30 a.m. in the living room of the apartment, according to a criminal complaint. The injured man was flown to St. Elizabeth's Youngstown Hospital, where, according to the report, he was admitted and was intubated for three days.
The police in questioning the victim later learned he was "hanging out" with Brown and the man who rents the apartment. Brown, during an argument, said he was going to "leave him in there." He told police he took that to mean Brown was threatening to kill him and leave his body there.
The victim told police he went outside briefly, then went back inside and pulled Brown off the couch and pinned him to the floor. He said he knew Brown had a gun and wanted to control him so he couldn't get to it. Brown was able to break free, and ran into the dining room, the report said.
The victim said he tried to flee but the front door was locked, and Brown fired one shot, hitting him in his hip/pelvic area, he told police. Brown then ran out of the apartment.
Police reported the victim did not know Brown's last name and picked him out of a photo array. During the investigation, officers found a spent .38-caliber shell near where the shooting occurred.
They noted Brown has a prior felony conviction and is not allowed to possess a gun.
Brown wasn't the only person arrested as a result of the June 13 shooting.
Police took 41-year-old Michael Roberts of the 100 block of West Leasure Avenue into custody after police reportedly caught him with a stolen gun and suspected narcotics in a car outside of the house where the shooting occurred. Roberts' arrest was not directly related to the shooting.
A criminal complaint filed against Roberts said when police arrived at the shooting scene, no one else was in the apartment except the shooting victim, whom they found lying on the living room floor.
New Castle police Chief Bobby Salem said the shooting investigation led police to the car in which Roberts was a passenger where they found him to have a gun and drugs.
They established a perimeter around the house after finding drug paraphernalia inside, the report said.
During that time, a white car pulled in front of the house, and Roberts was the front seat passenger. Officers found him with a plastic bag containing numerous other smaller bags with a powdery substance. They also found him with two suboxone strips and a loaded 9-millimeter handgun that had been reported stolen from someone in Austintown, Ohio, the report said.
The bags reportedly confiscated from Roberts included 3.8 grams of suspected heroin, 9.3 grams of suspected fentanyl, and two grams of suspected Xanax pills, the report said.
Roberts is facing gun and drug-related charges and remains in the jail on a $50,000 bond.
Brown was arrested Monday morning and arraigned on the shooting-related charges by District Judge Rick Russo.
Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty or adjudicated in a court of law.
