STEUBENVILLE — Fourteen people were indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury Wednesday, including an Adena man who allegedly had a shelter rescue euthanized in place of his own dog, a former fire chief facing rape charges and a third who was the subject of a manhunt a week ago.

Also indicted were two men who allegedly exchanged gunfire across a downtown street last month.

Grand jurors returned two indictments against Shawn Gregory Harris, 51, of 379 Hanna Ave., Adena, charging him with felonious assault and tampering with evidence in connection with an April incident, and with cruelty to a companion animal, tampering with evidence and obstructing official business in May.

Authorities allege Harris struck another man with a baseball bat on April 17, then told a family member to dispose of the bat. Investigators also claim Harris was told he would have to surrender his dog for retraining and rehoming or have it euthanized because of aggressive behavior. Instead, authorities allege, he arranged for a shelter dog to be euthanized while keeping his own dog alive. Investigators uncovered the alleged scheme when they found Harris’ dog alive during a subsequent visit to his home in connection with the assault case.

Ordered to stand trial on three counts of rape, all felonies, plus misdemeanor counts of domestic violence, intimidating a witness and violating a protection order was John David Wright, 55, of 205 Eleanor St., Mingo Junction.

Authorities allege Wright, who at one time served as Mingo Junction’s fire chief, raped a female and then threatened to kill himself unless she recanted her allegations. Officers who tracked him to a Steubenville location reported hearing a gunshot before discovering Wright suffering from a head wound.

Grand jurors also indicted Deonbre Kenneth Bailey-Anderson, 24, of 499 Woodland Ave., Steubenville, and Nathaniel Wise, 21, of 1410 Euclid Ave., Steubenville, on charges of felonious assault and having weapons under disability, both felonies.

City police said the May 12 incident stemmed from an altercation involving multiple individuals who knew one another. The two men allegedly were traveling in opposite directions in the 100 block of Hollywood Boulevard when gunfire erupted, wounding a third man who told police he did not see what happened.

Both men had prior convictions prohibiting them from possessing firearms. Bailey-Anderson was convicted of drug possession in Jefferson County in 2021, while Wise was adjudicated delinquent on a felonious assault charge in Jefferson County Juvenile Court in 2023.

Ordered to stand trial on felony charges of attempted strangulation, failure to update his sex offender registration after an address change and two counts of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer, as well as a misdemeanor charge of aggravated menacing, was Luther Mark Ford, 51, of Elkins, W.Va.

Authorities allege Ford was seen with his hands around a woman’s neck hours after a neighbor reported hearing the couple arguing. He allegedly fled from authorities on two occasions, triggering both ground and aerial searches. During the investigation, authorities discovered Ford had been convicted of second-degree sexual assault in Hancock County in 1995 and had failed to report his address change to authorities. He also was convicted of failing to register as a sex offender in Randolph County, W.Va., in 2021.

Also ordered to stand trial:

— Ronald Leroy Saxton, 60, of 6021 County Road 15, Rayland, charged with two counts of theft in office, theft and falsification involving a theft offense, all felonies, as well as a misdemeanor theft charge.

Saxton, a former Jefferson County Water Department employee, allegedly defrauded his employer of nearly $1,800 by submitting three invoices totaling nearly $600 each for items he claimed to have purchased for the office but allegedly never bought. Authorities allege Saxton had store clerks scan the items, then suspend the transactions and print receipts that he later submitted for reimbursement.

— Cody Steven Wilt, of 1004 Aten Ave. East, Wellsville, and Randy Allison Martin, 39, of Youngstown, indicted separately on felony charges of disrupting public services, theft, receiving stolen property and possessing criminal tools, along with a misdemeanor charge of criminal damaging or endangering. Martin also faces a misdemeanor falsification charge.

Authorities allege the pair were stealing copper wire from AT&T utility poles.

— Joseph W. Francis, 39, of 132 Garfield Ave., Mingo Junction, charged with possession of a fentanyl-related compound and possession of cocaine, both felonies.

Authorities said a Jefferson County Drug Task Force investigation uncovered 94 grams of methamphetamine and 2 grams of crack cocaine during a March search of Francis’ residence.

— Thomas Eugene Beaver Jr., 51, of 717 N. River St., Toronto, charged with two counts of aggravated possession of drugs involving methamphetamine and psilocybin mushrooms, and Dylan Robert Wagner, 30, of 620 N. 4th St., Toronto, charged with aggravated possession of drugs involving methamphetamine and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

The two were indicted separately following a Jefferson County Drug Task Force investigation and were taken into custody in May.

— Samuel Craig Murray Jr., 49, of 303 Orchard Place, Wintersville, charged with possession of cocaine and aggravated possession of drugs, both with firearm specifications, as well as trafficking in cocaine; and Michelle Jean Firm, 51, also of 303 Orchard Place, charged with having weapons under disability and possession of cocaine, both with firearm specifications, as well as two counts of trafficking in cocaine. All charges are felonies.

Authorities allege the pair were selling drugs from their home. Prosecutors contend the weapons charge against Firm stems from a 2025 Common Pleas Court drug-possession conviction.

— Rickey James Sheets, 31, of 166 W. McConnell Ave., Wintersville, charged with felony domestic violence.

Authorities allege Sheets assaulted a female household member on April 4. The indictment cites a prior domestic violence conviction involving a different household member in Toronto County Court in May 2023.