Not guilty plea entered by former YPD officer charged with death of sister
A former Youngstown Police Officer has pleaded not guilty to a charge filed in connection with the death of her sister.
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - A former Youngstown Police Officer has pleaded not guilty to a charge filed in connection with the death of her sister.
Barbara Copeland is charged with failure to provide for a functionally impaired person for the death Mary Fields.
The 67-year-old sister of Copeland was found dead in October of 2015 in the Youngstown home they shared.
At the time Copeland was a Youngstown Police Officer.
The coroner ruled that Fields died of a stroke, however prosecutors say factors that contributed to her death included malnutrition and dehydration.
The indictment says Copeland was "reckless" in her care of her sister. Allegedly failing even to provide running water.
Copeland. who was a police officer for about 14-and-a-half years, resigned on disability in December of 2015, about two months after her sister's death.
A trial date of December 12 has been set for the case.
