Natasha Lindstrom stories, Page 29
WW II veteran, 101, throws Memorial Day party in Lower Burrell
Bill Tingle’s ears perked as his daughter called out, “Dad, look, there’s a kid waving to you.” “Thanks for your service!” shouted a young boy with a toothy grin from the backseat of a car driving by along Leechburg Road, minutes after the city’s annual Memorial Day parade came to...
UPMC workers looking to unionize plan to confront hospital board members
The Carnegie Mellon University graduate hasn’t been working at UPMC all that long, but Anna Nelson is among the most vocal critics ready to confront a group of UPMC hospital board members this week with a spate of reasons why the nonprofit behemoth needs to take better care of its...
Allegheny County GOP chief D. Raja steps down
The Allegheny County GOP’s chief is stepping down months after losing a bid for the state Senate. D. Raja, chairman of the Allegheny County Republican Committee, on Friday submitted his resignation, effective June 29 or sooner. Committee leaders credited Raja with providing “critical ground support for the election of President...
Gateway Health Plan to lay off 100 workers in Western Pa., West Virginia
Gateway Health Plan is laying off 100 people in Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia in July because one of its clients opted not to renew state-managed Medicaid contracts, officials said Friday. The Downtown Pittsburgh-headquartered insurance company filed a WARN notice with the state Department of Labor and Industry alerting officials...
Penn Hills man found guilty in drug bust could face 15 years to life in prison
A Penn Hills man caught by police three years ago with nearly 20 pounds of marijuana, 150 grams of powdered cocaine and 340 grams of crack cocaine has been convicted on drugs and firearms charges, federal prosecutors said Thursday. After deliberating for about two hours, a federal jury of nine...
Tornado warning lifed for Westmoreland, Indiana counties
A tornado warning has been lifted in Westmoreland and Indiana counties, with no reports of a twister. At 8:45 p.m., a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado hovered over Blairsville, about seven miles southwest of Homer City making its way toward Black Lick, with winds moving southeast at 45...
Couple accused of embezzling $1.3M from Butler hospital faces 5 new tax charges
A Butler couple accused of bilking Butler Memorial Hospital out of $1.3 million they spent on lavish family vacations, concerts, furniture, credit card debt and help funding their motocross business faces five new charges of tax fraud and evasion, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Stephanie J. Roskovski, 49, a former top...
Rescue teams respond to ‘boat in distress’ along Allegheny River near Sharpsburg; no injuries
Water rescue teams and other emergency personnel responded Thursday to a report of a “boat in distress” along the Allegheny River in Sharpsburg. No one was injured, officials said. Dispatchers received the call about the boat in need and possibly filling up with water near a marina near Main and...
Controller Chelsa Wagner’s husband seeks Detroit jury trial on disorderly conduct charge
Allegheny County Controller Chelsa Wagner’s husband is set to stand trial next month in a misdemeanor case stemming from an altercation between the couple and police officers at a Detroit hotel. Khari Mosley, 42, who pleaded not guilty to charges of disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace, requested through his...
Andrejcik tops Callender for Democratic Lower Burrell mayor nomination; Yakopec gets shot at council
First-time political candidate John Andrejcik clinched a victory over incumbent Lower Burrell Mayor Richard Callender in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, preliminary vote tallies show. Andrejcik, 60, a Navy veteran and retired Allegheny County Common Pleas court reporter, secured 55% of the vote to Callender’s 45%, with all nine precincts reporting, according...
Democrat Joe Bia ousts embattled Arnold Mayor Karen Peconi
The challenger who defeated incumbent Arnold Mayor Karen Peconi in Tuesday’s primary called her actions last summer “an embarrassment” to the city, and it appears many Democratic voters agreed based on Joe Bia II’s victory by a three-to-one margin. Bia, an Arnold councilman with two years left in his first...
Roads remain closed in Pittsburgh’s Strip District while crews repair water main break
A portion of Smallman Street in Pittsburgh’s Strip District remained closed Wednesday morning after a water main burst Tuesday night and flooded a large stretch of the busy corridor. Crews continue to repair the break which has left Smallman Street closed to traffic between 15th and 17th streets. Motorists are...
Beaver County man faces homicide charge for falling asleep, suffocating 2-year-old boy
A Freedom Borough man who took an unprescribed painkiller, fell asleep on a 2-year-old boy and unwittingly suffocated the child has been charged with homicide, police said. Ty Michael Lucente, 37, was arraigned Sunday and booked into the Beaver County Prison. He was denied bail. Shortly after 4:30 p.m. Saturday,...
Pittsburgh attorney who concealed friend’s overdose death gets house arrest, probation
A Pittsburgh defense attorney who tried to conceal the death of a friend by failing to notify police, then abandoning the body in a Squirrel Hill alley, will spend two years on house arrest followed by three more years on probation, a judge ruled Monday. Kevin Abramovitz, 38, completed in...
Allegheny County leads Western Pa. in hepatitis A cases amid statewide outbreak
Allegheny County is confronting among the biggest outbreaks of hepatitis A in Pennsylvania, and illegal opioid use could be part of the reason why the vaccine-preventable liver infection continues to spread statewide, state Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said Monday. Since January 2018, the state confirmed at least 171 hepatitis...
Garth Brooks lights it up in record-breaking Pittsburgh show
A Pirates jersey-clad Garth Brooks performed for a record-breaking audience Saturday night at Heinz Field on Pittsburgh’s North Shore. The concert was delayed slightly because of weather concerns, but the crowd — expected to top 75,000 for a Heinz Field record — was allowed to resume entering the stadium shortly...
UPMC CEO Jeffrey Romoff made $8.54M in 2018, a 40% jump
UPMC President and CEO Jeffrey Romoff took home $8.54 million in compensation during the health giant’s fiscal year that ended last June, records made available Friday show. Romoff’s pay from July 1, 2017, through the end of June amounted to $2.42 million more than the previous year — for a...
UPMC, Attorney General’s legal teams face off before state Supreme CourtVideo
HARRISBURG — UPMC’s looming prepayment rule for out-of-network patients demonstrates the health giant’s efforts to serve the public have “deteriorated” in the past five years, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office argued Thursday before the state Supreme Court. Bart DeLone, chief attorney general, told justices that the controversial prepay rule —...
Patients, activists urge Pa. lawmakers to halt UPMC-Highmark divorce
HARRISBURG — East Deer resident Brittany Eckert plans to reluctantly say goodbye to the oncology team she credits with saving her life when she sees them Wednesday morning, her final appointment at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital. Soon, her insurance card will not be accepted there unless courts intervene. “It’s a really...
UPMC-Highmark split to take center stage in state Supreme Court showdown
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro balked at claims that his legal fight against UPMC is a ploy for political clout under the guise of acting in the public interest. “This has nothing to do with my career, and everything to do with the good people of Western Pennsylvania who deserve...
Man caught on bus with stolen, GPS-tracked cash admits to robbing Pittsburgh bank
A Pittsburgh man caught by police on a public bus with GPS-tracked, stolen cash sticking out of his pants pocket admitted to robbing a bank at random in an attempt to fuel his drug addiction, federal prosecutors said Friday. Jonathan Owens-El, 56, pleaded guilty to one count of federal bank...
Crash prompts traffic backup near Highland Park Bridge, Freeport Road in Aspinwall
A crash involving a Port Authority of Allegheny County bus and a pickup truck snarled traffic Friday afternoon near the Highland Park Bridge in Aspinwall, initial reports indicate. Dispatchers received a report of a two-vehicle accident between the bridge’s exit toward Freeport Road about 5:50 p.m., an Allegheny County 911...
Pittsburgh grand jury indicts 2 Israelis in alleged Darknet conspiracy
Two Israeli citizens are accused of facilitating online sales of illicit drugs and guns in exchange for nearly $15.5 million worth of Bitcoin kickbacks. U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady described the case Wednesday as “the single most significant law enforcement disruption of the Darknet to date.” “This case represents the...
Police shoot man in Kennedy shopping plaza during drug sting
Police shot a 27-year-old man twice in the arm Tuesday afternoon while trying to arrest him at a Kennedy Township shopping center as part of a multi-department drug sting, officials said. The shooting happened at 2:17 p.m. in the parking lot of the Kenmawr Plaza near a Beer 4 Less...
Pa. Senate unanimously confirms Elliot Howsie as Common Pleas judge
Allegheny County Chief Public Defender Elliot Howsie has been named a Common Pleas judge. On a 47-0 vote, the state Senate on Tuesday confirmed Howsie to fill the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas seat left vacant by Judge Donna Jo McDaniel. McDaniel resigned in January following Superior Court rulings...
