Lorain man who did federal, state prison time facing felony charges in Elyria standoff

An armed Lorain man on federal parole who allegedly held several people hostage during an incident at an apartment complex in Elyria last month is facing four felony charges. Timothy Beard, 38, of West 18th Street, was indicted Friday by a Lorain County grand jury on one count each of having weapons under disability, tampering with evidence, receiving stolen property and obstructing official business. Firearms specifications to three of the charges could add additional, mandatory prison time if Beard is convicted. His arraignment is scheduled Thursday in Judge Giovanna Bremke's court. Elyria police said no one was injured after Beard, who allegedly had a gun, allegedly held a woman and three children against their will in an apartment on Park Meadow Lane in the Copper Ridge complex off South Abbe Road on the city's east side on June 18. Beard, who was on federal parole, was wanted by Lorain police for allegedly stealing a gun. He also is not allowed to have a gun due to multiple prior felony convictions in state and federal courts. Elyria Police Chief James Welsh previously said that Beard wasn't allowing a woman to leave the apartment, but that she and the children got out safely after about an hour. It wasn't clear if Beard and the alleged hostages knew each other. Police entered the apartment, arrested Beard and took him to the Lorain County Jail. In a March 2009 case, Beard threatened his ex-girlfriend and forced her to go on a drive with him at knifepoint. The woman, who returned home unharmed three hours later, told Lorain police Beard threatened to kill her and her mother, forced her to take out $200 at a cash advance business on Cooper Foster Park Road so he could buy clothes, then went shopping at an Elyria grocery store according to Chronicle-Telegram archives. Beard pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery, kidnapping, escape, tampering with evidence, carrying concealed weapons and three counts of robbery, all felonies, in that case and another, plus misdemeanor domestic violence and resisting arrest. He got eight years in prison. With credit for time served, Beard was released in December 2016. In April 2022, he pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cleveland to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and was sentenced to three years and 10 months in federal prison, plus three years supervised release. A supervised release violation got Beard an additional one year and one day back in federal prison in January 2025, plus another nearly two years supervised release after that according to federal court records. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com