Newton Falls set to end contract with Trumbull Co. Sheriff's Office, rebuild police department

Newton Falls is set to terminate its agreement with the Trumbull County Sheriff's Office for police protection.

This ongoing agreement has been in place since December 2022 after the city council entered into it to provide police coverage to the area.

The need for the agreement, according to then Mayor Ken Kline, was a levy failing in November of 2022 which put the city in a pinch.

The failure of the levy forced department cuts that brought the force down to just a few officers working.

Now, a motion to end the agreement has been made. The Interim City Manager must notify the Trumbull County Sheriff's Office that in 60 days, the agreement will not be renewed.

According to Newton Falls Ward 2 Councilman Brian Axiotis, the time for renewing the agreement between Newton Falls and the Trumbull County Sheriff's Office was approaching.

According to Axiotis, the renewal numbers came back and were much higher than the prior year.

This led to the consideration of either renewing the agreement or aiming to rebuild the Newton Falls Police Department.

Axiotis told 21 News that plans have been discussed between the Newton Falls Police Chief John Barco and the council for how to rebuild the police department.

Police Chief Barco was named Newton Fall's new police chief during a Wednesday council meeting in March 2025.

At this time, it is unknown what kinds of plans are in place to rebuild the Newton Falls Police Department, but the hope, Axiotis says, is to get it back to where it was.

Newton Falls Councilwoman At Large Julie Stimpert reached out to 21 News, including a statement of appreciation to the Trumbull County Sheriff's Department.

"[The Trumbull County Sheriff's Department]'s partnership and dedicated service have been instrumental in maintaining the safety and well-being of our community."

Stimpert said that the hiring of Chief Barco represented a significant step in the direction of re-establishing a "fully functioning Newton Falls Police Department."

Is it unclear where funding will come from.

21 News has reached out to both Police Chief Barco and Newton Falls City Manager Mike Novotny for plans to rebuild the department or funding sources, but have received no answer at this time.

Possible solutions had been discussed in 2024 for a part-time, bare-boned department that would have a starting cost of about $400,000 if employee benefits were not paid.

According to budget reports, Newton Falls spent $842,667.83 on its police department in 2022. 2023 budget reports indicate that $719,852.88 were spent on the police department with a majority of it going to the sheriff's department.

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