December 28

2000: The 11th District Court of Appeals overturns the conspiracy conviction of the owner of an Akron vending machine company who provided two video poker machines to the Elks Lodge 295 in Warren. 

Mario Lemieux, who retired three years earlier from the Pittsburgh Penguins, makes a celebrated return to the ice, scoring a goal and two assists in a 5-0 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. continues to make headlines while filling in for radio talk show host Dan Ryan, accusing FBI agents in the Mahoning Valley of corruption, saying the FBI wants to kill him, and accusing President Bill Clinton of giving China trade concessions in exchange for campaign donations. 

 

1985: Despite cold temperatures and icy roads, 50 people turn out at New Bethel Baptist Church in Youngstown to mark the beginning of Kwanzaa. 

Bomb experts deactivate a briefcase containing enough dynamite to level several buildings that was left at the Society National Bank branch near Canton after an armed robber escaped with an undisclosed amount of money. 

The Rev. Kenneth France-Kelley, a Dominican priest and associate pastor of St. Dominic Church for four years, has accepted an 

assignment as a missionary in Kenya.

 

1975: A 30 percent reduction in natural gas and an order against connections for new houses in the Youngstown district are having economic repercussions. More severe weather could result in a 50 percent to 65 percent reduction in natural gas for industry. 

Boy Scout Troop 78, sponsored by St. Joseph Church in Newton Falls, marks its 25th anniversary with a Scout Mass, followed by a banquet. 

U.S. District Judge John J. Sirica enjoins the postal service from increasing the cost of a stamp from 10 cents to 13 cents, saying the post office bypassed submitting a request to the Postal Rate Commission. 

 

1950: Youngstown Mayor Charles P. Henderson vetoed the 1 percent income tax on corporate income, just 12 hours before the tax, which was approved by City Council 10 days earlier, was to go into effect. 

A building permit is issued by City Hall for a new eight-room school to be built by St. Columba Parish, directly behind the cathedral, at a cost of $130,000.

For the second day in a row, Youngstown temperatures drop below zero, necessitating that the East Ohio Gas Co. continue its 50 percent reduction in gas to industries.