Falls Woman Pleads Guilty to Violent Kent Assault; Gets Three Years in Prison

After pleading guilty in April to felonious assault charges, have been sentenced to prison.

Jones, who was sentenced June 8 by Portage County Common Pleas Judge Laurie Pittman, received three years in prison, reports the Falls News Press. Tavernaris, sentenced June 4, got four years. Each was fined $350.

The women, who were accompanied by Alfonso Chionchio, 24, of Kent, were arrested after attacking three women in the 500 block of Franklin Avenue. Two were hospitalized following the violent assault and one escaped with only minor injuries.

Chionchio also pled guilty to felonious assault and Pittman sentenced him to five years in prison.

Kent Police Lt. Paul Canfield said the incident began around 2 a.m. Jan. 8 when three women were walking home from the downtown bars and encountered the three suspects.

“They passed by that group of suspects, and the suspects started to taunt the victims. The victims tried to let the suspects go on their way and didn’t engage them. But, eventually, the victims were attacked a couple hundred feet down the road, near (the intersection of) Franklin and West Williams,” Canfield said.

The two groups separated for short period of time, “but then the suspects came back and attacked again. From what I can tell, the attack consisted of some punches and kicks, including a number of strikes to the victims’ faces,” Canfield explained.

One of the victims called 911 at 2:39 a.m. Canfield said the women were able to tell police where the suspects had gone after the attack and provided police with positive identifications after the suspects were arrested at 3:10 a.m. at 551 Franklin Ave.

After being arrested, Chionchio, Jones and Tavernaris were booked at the Kent Police Department, then taken to the Portage County jail.

Chionchio has a lengthy online court file, including an October 2007 charge of possessing a weapon under disability, a third-degree felony, that netted him a four-year prison sentence.