By DORIS COOK
Staff Writer
dcook@starbeacon.com
JEFFERSON - - Trumbull Township trustees, through their lawyers, have requested a court appointed receiver to take possession and supervision of assets controlled by the defunct Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department Inc.
It's all part of a preliminary injunction lawsuit filed Aug. 23 on behalf of the township board by one of it's lawyers, assistant county prosecutor Catherine Colgan. Common Pleas Judge Gary Yost, assigned to the case, is expected to hold a hearing on the issues at 9 a.m. Monday.
The receivership request to Yost is the latest legal salvo fired off by the trustees in their legal battle with the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department. The injunction request seeks to take possession of equipment, fire station and properties on Route 534.
The defunct fire company and trustees have been locked in litigation for two years. A former trustee board refused to issue a contract with the defunct fire volunteer organization in 2004, then trustees formed a township controlled volunteer fire and rescue company.
A separate lawsuit is still pending since January 2005 in the 11th District Court of Appeals. The focus of that case has the same goals to recover all the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department assets and property.
Trustees contend that township tax dollars were expended for the equipment, operations and property upkeep.
The injunction lawsuit came out of an original eviction action filed in October 2005 by the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department against the trustees in Western County Court. The defunct fire company claimed the trustees failed to pay them rent for use of a garage housing road equipment with the civil case bound over to county court.
In the latest flurry of court motions in the injunction case, Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department lawyer Nicholas Satullo with Reminger & Reminger Co. of Cleveland on Oct. 2 filed a response to the trustees' preliminary injunction request. Satullo agreed on behalf of the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department to enter into a "consent injunction order" requesting Yost to cancel Monday's hearing.
Colgan, on Oct. 4, then responded by asking Yost to not cancel the Monday injunction hearing. She contended by canceling it would cause "undue prejudice" to the trustees. Colgan attached to the receiver request 11 pages of inspection documents.
The inspection reports revealed the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department officials "failed to adequately maintain real and personal property (fire equipment)" in their possession.
Trustee board chairman Ron Tamburrino, this week, said the board hired North Coast Inspection Services and Commercial Truck & Fleet Service Corp. on Sept. 29 to inspect the conditions of the fire equipment and fire station building premises.
He said the inspections showed major problems inside the building with no heat in the building because the Trumbull Township Volunteer Fire Department has failed to pay propane gas bills.
Star Beacon Print Edition: 10/15/2006
Click here to order our 10/15/2006 Archive edition.
