WARREN — A Liberty trustee accused of assaulting a woman was indicted Thursday after the case had been continued several times during Trumbull County grand jury sessions.

In a special report, Devon Stanley, 53, of 1439 Timulu Drive, Girard, was indicted on a second-degree felonious assault charge. In addition to being a trustee, Stanley is a Girard Municipal Court prosecutor and the county’s deputy clerk of courts. He also has a private law practice.

The charge is in connection with an Oct. 23, 2025, incident. A Niles police captain was contacted by a Trumbull County Children’s Services Board representative, who was told that a referral was made to them about a woman who was involved in a domestic violence altercation that afternoon.

Officers working security detail arrested Stanley at an Oct. 24 Niles High School football game against Girard at Bo Rein Stadium.

The Supreme Court of Ohio assigned Thomas Teodosio, a retired 9th District Court of Appeals judge, to hear the case after it was bound over to the grand jury Oct. 28. Elected judges in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court attested that none of them were eligible to hear the case, based on conflicts of interest.

Stanley, contacted late Thursday afternoon, maintained his innocence.

“As an innocent person, my faith remains firmly rooted in the word of God,” Stanley said.

When Randy Law was elected Trumbull County Clerk of Courts in the general election in November 2024, he hired Stanley to serve as the chief deputy clerk of courts.

Law, who was in Columbus for a conference on Thursday, said he spoke with Stanley and received a text when the indictment was announced.

“I was surprised. I didn’t think they were going through with anything,” Law said. “We’ll let the process play out — I haven’t seen it. … It happened out of the blue, just before the election.”

In a news release, Trumbull County Republican Chairwoman Julia Shutt formally requested that Stanley withdraw from the May 5 Republican primary for common pleas court judge, in which he is a candidate.

Shutt noted that it was in the “best interest of the Republican Party” to maintain the integrity of the primary process and uphold public trust.

“The Republican Party stands for accountability and the highest ethical standards,” Shutt wrote. “We ask Mr. Stanley to withdraw his candidacy for Common Pleas Judge to ensure that our party’s values are upheld. A Republican primary is no place to litigate one’s guilt or innocence.”