Renatta Signorini stories, Page 3
Greensburg watch party cheers on Olympian Jasmine Jones as she sets track bobsled recordVideo
When Jasmine Jones’ face and name appeared on the big screen Friday afternoon, her supporters went wild. Their cheers continued, growing louder and louder, as the Westmoreland County native raced down the bobsled track in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, at the Winter Olympics “Go Jasmine, run your race,” someone yelled, waving...
North Huntingdon man charged with DUI in UTV crash that seriously injured passenger
A man was arraigned this week in connection with a UTV crash in North Huntingdon that left a passenger seriously injured, according to township police. Benjamin Howard Kessler, 22, of South Versailles, Allegheny County, is accused by police of being intoxicated while behind the wheel of the UTV on Jan....
Fire equipment, road salt top list of purchases planned with $1M Hempfield surplus
A $1.1 million surplus from 2025 could help Hempfield get ready for winters to come. Public works director Austin Erhard is hoping to order a half a million dollars worth of road salt with part of the leftover money. That 6,000 tons would fully stock Hempfield’s salt storage facilities, he...
Former Greensburg officer convicted of drug dealing must repay pension benefits
Greensburg’s police pension commission on Tuesday approved a decision that seeks the repayment of $75,400 by a retired officer who was sentenced to probation on federal drug crimes. The commission OK’d the findings of fact, conclusions of law and decision regarding the forfeiture of pension benefits paid to Regina McAtee....
Former Torrance State Hospital nurse charged with sexual assault of patient
A former nurse at Torrance State Hospital is accused by state police of having regular sexual encounters with a patient over seven months last year, according to court papers. The encounters between Dana R. Coxon, 40, and the patient, in his mid-20s, were video recorded and photographed on a cellphone...
Loyalhanna woman accused of shooting man
A Loyalhanna woman is behind bars after state police said she shot her former boyfriend, according to court papers. Nina L. Lipford, 51, was arraigned Saturday on an attempted homicide charge. The wounded man, 50, told troopers he was at Lipford’s home on Substation Road early last week when they...
Charges against Hempfield man accused of assaulting pregnant woman dismissed
Editor`s note:Charges against Richard Haubrich were dismissed March 3 during a preliminary hearing. A Hempfield man is accused of assaulting a pregnant woman and her unborn child during an incident at his apartment over the weekend. State police arrested Richard A. Haubrich Jr., 33, on Sunday on charges of aggravated...
3 arrested in retail theft scheme from Lowe’s, including Hempfield, Monroeville and Frazer stores
Three people are accused in an organized retail theft scheme at local Lowe’s stores that ultimately led to them sending money to the Dominican Republic, according to police. The trio used credit cards belonging to other people to make purchases in five counties and then pick up the ill-gotten goods...
Jury verdict: 2 guilty of first-degree murder in St. Clair woman’s shooting death
A Westmoreland County jury convicted Melissa Fox-Beacom and Matthew Bates of first-degree murder Friday in the 2023 shooting death of her mother. Jurors decided that even though Fox-Beacom and Bates didn’t fire the shots that killed Alice Robson on Dec. 11, 2023, their actions leading up to the shooting made...
Gunman in St. Clair woman’s slaying testifies ‘a light switch flipped inside me’, saying others convinced him to kill
Robert Jack was standing in the driveway of a St. Clair home when he was asked to kill the woman who lived inside. The request from friend Matthew Bates caught Jack, 20, by surprise, he testified Thursday. Jack thought he was at the Furnace Lane home to hang out with...
Eminent domain may be next for flood control project in Greensburg’s Northmont neighborhood
Greensburg may use eminent domain to acquire the remaining easements needed to complete a flood control project in the Northmont neighborhood. City council Monday introduced a bill that, if approved, would give Solicitor Zachary Kansler the authorization to file a declaration of taking at the Westmoreland County Courthouse. But Kansler...
Overlay districts could expand possible uses of former fire stations in Hempfield
Minor renovations at a building in Hempfield that once housed fire trucks have allowed Mutual Aid EMS to turn it into a new ambulance base. Ambulances have been responding since November from the former High Park fire station on Baughman Avenue, close to Route 30 in the western part of...
Ex-boyfriend testifies New Florence woman ‘despised’ her mother, discussed wanting to kill her
Melissa Fox-Beacom regularly brought up her hatred for her mother in conversations with her daughter’s ex-boyfriend, he testified Wednesday. She never referred to Alice Robson as mom. “ ‘My mother’ — she’d say it with an attitude,” Ace Vavrek remembered. “ ‘My mother.’ It’s like she despised her.” Even so,...
Greensburg proposing fines up to $600 for throwing snow onto streets
The Jan. 25 storm that dumped about 10 inches of snow on Greensburg helped officials learn they were missing something: an ordinance that addresses snow being thrown onto plowed streets. Streets superintendent Tom Bell said he reported a couple of situations to police where residents had thrown snow into clear...
South Greensburg fire chief accused of $170K theft; in custody in South Carolina
The South Greensburg fire chief is accused of taking $170,000 from the department, according to Pennsylvania State Police. A felony theft charge was filed this week against Matthew Thomas White, 49, of Hempfield. He is in custody in South Carolina, according to Trooper Steve Limani. Police were notified a few...
‘Alice never disappeared’: Home health nurses recount discovery of St. Clair woman’s death
It was unusual that Alice Robson wasn’t there when two home health nurses arrived at the St. Clair Township woman’s home to take care of her disabled grandson. It was even more unusual that J.D. Beacom was left alone, but that’s what Jennifer Fox said she encountered when arriving at...
Homicide trial opens for 2 charged in St. Clair woman’s murderVideo
Alice Robson had been missing for more than two days in December 2023 when a dog from the Greensburg Bloodhound Team found her body stuffed in a crawl space underneath a porch at her St. Clair home. It took Lucy, the dog, 6 minutes to locate the 71-year-old woman’s body,...
State board suspends license of Torrance hospital nurse
The State Board of Nursing has temporarily suspended a Westmoreland County nurse’s license in connection with allegations that she had sexual relations with a patient at Torrance State Hospital, according to documents filed with the Department of State. Dana R. Coxon, 40, of Penn Township was licensed as a registered...
TV sales up during Super Bowl week as customers chase bargains
Super Bowl-related television sales typically bring a bit of a boost at a time of year when there can be a lull in sales, said Craig Kantoris, co-owner and project manager at ConnectedLife Designs By The StereoShop in Greensburg. A handful of recent customers looked to upgrade their screens in...
State police find 2 pounds of cocaine after traffic stop of Penn Hills man on turnpike
A Penn Hills man was arrested Tuesday after state police said they found 2 pounds of cocaine in the vehicle he was driving on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County, according to court papers. Troopers initiated a traffic stop at 1:30 p.m. near the border of Donegal and Cook townships...
‘You’re killing me’: Victim testifies in preliminary hearing for Crossroads Plaza shooting suspect
Joshua Logan had just finished a workout at Planet Fitness in East Huntingdon and was getting into his pickup truck to leave when the estranged husband of his girlfriend pulled up. Within seconds, Logan testified Wednesday, Steven Heald was shooting at him. A bullet hit him in the shoulder, spinning...
Speers man accused of ethnic intimidation in connection with racist video made at Rostraver Walmart
Ethnic intimidation charges were filed Wednesday against a man accused of recording a video that includes racist language at the Rostraver Walmart store, according to state police. They say the video was recorded by Michael Todora, 36, of Speers, Washington County. Troopers have been investigating the video, which was posted...
Naked, knife-wielding man charged with assault at optician’s office in North Belle Vernon
A North Belle Vernon man is behind bars after, police say, he took two knives into an optician’s office Monday, knocked over several display cases and stabbed a couch and the walls, according to court papers. Borough police said Darnell Wesley Howell Sr., 54, was not wearing any clothes at...
Greensburg considering $1M fire truck purchase
Greensburg Fire Department is looking to turn two fire trucks into one while city council mulls a possible $1 million price tag. Councilman Randy Finfrock proposed buying a new rescue pumper for Hose Company No. 1 from Pierce Manufacturing at the fire department’s request. The price, around $1 million, is...
Years after Cassandra Gross disappeared, her mother says the unanswered questions never go awayVideo
Tucked away at Kathe Gross’ house is a turquoise plastic tote filled with the memories of heartbreak. There are note cards and scraps of paper bearing names and phone numbers, handwritten notes Gross compiled on anything she could find as phone calls and information poured in after the 2018 disappearance...
