WEB TOP 10: Crime, police news remain most popular stories on Chronicle website

The most popular story on the Chronicle-Telegram website in 2023 — by a large margin — didn't occur in Lorain County. On April 27, an Illinois woman was sentenced to 14 years in prison for a DUI crash that killed two Lorain County residents. Stephanie Melgoza, 24, weeks away from graduating from Bradley University in 2022, struck and killed Andrea Rosewicz, 43, of Avon, and Paul Prowant, 55, of Avon Lake, as they crossed a street in East Peoria. Prowant was an ironworker working on a local bridge in Peoria. Melgoza pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI and aggravated reckless driving two months earlier. The remainder of the top 10 stories on the website, as measured by page views: 2. Lorain police release body camera footage of officer shooting family's dog, July 5. On July 2, Officer Elliott Palmer was on patrol for Lorain police, when he stopped near the corner of West Eighth Street and Oberlin Avenue for dogs running through multiple yards. While responding, Palmer said a dog charged him. He fired, fatally wounding the dog. An internal investigation, concluded two months later, exonerated Palmer of any wrongdoing in the shooting. 3. 'We've never seen anything like this': Lorain County Fair washed out for the day, Aug. 24. The night of Aug. 23, a storm front blew through northern Ohio, dumping more than 6 inches of rain on Lorain County overnight. The National Weather Service described it as a 500-year flood, and the rainfall was so bad it forced the cancellation of Wednesday night activities — and then the Lorain County Fair was closed for the whole next day, unprecedented in recent memory. Tents were blown down, and vehicles were submerged not just in the fairgrounds parking lot, but throughout Wellington, to the point where first responders had to do a water rescue of someone trapped in floodwaters. 4. Couple file complaint against Lorain Police Patrol Impact Team, Feb. 25. Police came to the West 27th Street home of Mary and Joseph Hildreth on Feb. 15. They were looking for their son, Jordan Barnette, his cousin and a friend, all of whom were in the home. Police said they had jaywalked crossing the street. Mary Hildreth declined to send the boys out of the house and was charged with obstruction. The Hildreths alleged they were racially profiled, among other complaints. 5. GoFundMe campaign started for grieving North Ridgeville family, Oct. 1. On Sept. 16, Stephanie Roig of North Ridgeville gave birth to her second son, Declan. She died six days later from a post-delivery infection, leaving behind two sons and her husband, Spenser. The campaign exceeded its initial goal of $20,000, and as of Dec. 19 had raised $24,735 of a new $30,000 goal. The campaign can be found here: https://gofund.me/5253a277 6. Lorain police release information following citizens complaint against Patrol Impact Team, Feb. 28. Following the Hildreths' complaint, Lorain police released a presentation and videos from the incident on West 27th Street on Feb. 15, noting that the neighborhood was the site of a lot of shots fired calls to police. The presentation said that police had a reasonable suspicion that the boys crossing the street might be armed. Ultimately, an internal investigation cleared the officers of any wrongdoing, but said Officer Brandon Sayers was "discourteous" in his handling of the situation. 7. Lorain: Fatal motorcycle crash under investigation, July 25. Xavier "Screech" Figueroa was riding his Suzuki SX7 north on Grove Avenue on the afternoon of July 25, near East 25th Street, when a 2013 Chevrolet Equinox driven by Felisitas Mendiola, 79, failed to yield, striking the bike. Figueroa, a father of three, was pronounced dead at the scene. 8. Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley's former executive assistant charged with two felonies, Oct. 21. In July, Tina Pauley was fired as an executive assistant for Mayor Jack Bradley, while under investigation by the police. She'd previously worked for him when he was in private practice. Three months later, a secret grand jury indictment charged her with grand theft and election falsification. Now known as Tina Smith, her maiden name, following a divorce, she's out on bond and has requested entry into a diversion program. A trial is tentatively scheduled for March, according to court records. 9. Avon man accused of assaulting Def Leppard drummer at Florida hotel, March 17. Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen was having a cigarette outside a Fort Lauderdale hotel when he was 'blindsided' by a man who ran at him, knocking him over. The man was identified as Max Hartley, 19, of Avon Lake, a St. Ignatius graduate who was in Florida on spring break. Allen shared his story in May on Good Morning America. Hartley was arrested and charged with criminal mischief, battery and abuse of the elderly or disabled (Allen lost an arm in a 1984 car crash). Hartley is free on bond, and a hearing is scheduled in January in Broward County. 10. Former Elyria Catholic football QB Brady Cook charged with rape, Nov. 3. Brady Cook, a May graduate of Elyria Catholic, was indicted by a grand jury in October on two counts of rape and one count of tampering with evidence. Details on the allegations are scarce. Cook is free on bond, and a pretrial hearing is scheduled in January. Contact Vince Guerrieri at vguerrieri@chroniclet.com or 440-329-7124. Follow him on X @vinceguerrieri.