YOUNGSTOWN The trial for four men accused of assaulting a man at a local bar began Monday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, but the proceedings started immediately as a trial decided by a judge instead of a jury.

Kyle Patterson, 26, Tyler Dogoda, 31, Luke Collins, 22, and Caleb Gearhart, 26, all waived their right to a jury trial on Monday, electing to have Judge R. Scott Krichbaum decide the case. All four men face charges of felonious assault stemming from a January incident in Boardman.

The men's decision to proceed with a bench trial comes shortly after all four declined an offer from prosecutors to plead guilty to lesser charges, according to court records filed last week.

The charges against the men follow an alleged incident at Double Bogey’s at the Southern Park Mall on J

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