Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 114

A Latrobe man and his fiancee said a Fayette County resort wasn’t as advertised and are seeking the return of their deposit after canceling their wedding reception set for next month. In a three-count lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas, Greg Cammarata and Christina Varrasso say Nemacolin...

Westmoreland County is one of about 2,000 municipalities across the country with pending lawsuits against various drug manufacturers accused of promoting the opioid addiction epidemic that has devastated communities in recent years. This week’s court ruling in Oklahoma, in which the state was awarded a $572 million judgment from drugmaker...

Westmoreland County’s inaugural job fair was so successful officials said they may hold them more than once a year. “We will look to do it twice a year, if not quarterly,” said Amanda Bernard, the county’s human resources director. The county filled about 30 vacant positions through last week’s event...

A New Kensington man originally charged as the person who supplied drugs in two fatal overdoses two years ago on Monday pleaded guilty to lesser charges. Theodore Brown, 25, was facing two counts of drug delivery resulting in death in connection with the Nov. 5, 2017 overdoses of Malachai E....

Prosecutors from the state Attorney General’s office say that a Hempfield doctor should not be permitted to withdraw a no-contest plea entered earlier this year to a murder charge. Edgar Peske, 80, was charged two years ago with drug delivery resulting in death in connection with the 2015 overdose death...

A Plum man who worked with athletes at Kiski Area High School will serve two years on probation after pleading guilty Friday to misdemeanor charges of corruption of minors and harassment. Westmoreland County prosecutors agreed to dismiss one felony count that accused Ryan O’Toole of having sex with a student....

A Mt. Pleasant woman awaiting trial on human trafficking charges in connection with four massage parlors she owned wants a judge to return more than $700,000 and two vehicles seized from her in the investigation. In court documents filed last week, Hui Xu, 44, contends the items, including proceeds from...

A Mt. Pleasant woman awaiting trial on human trafficking charges in connection with four massage parlors she owned wants a judge to return more than $700,000 and two vehicles seized from her in the investigation. In court documents filed Thursday, Hui Xu, 44, contends the items, including proceeds from a...

A Westmoreland County judge on Thursday overturned the conviction of the sheriff department’s former chief deputy who was fired last year after being found guilty of harassment against a union official. Following the continuation of last month’s appeal hearing, Patricia Fritz was found not guilty of the summary offense. She...

A New Kensington man, paroled earlier this year after serving more than two decades in prison for murder, pleaded guilty Wednesday to drug charges that stemmed from his arrest in May. Charles Edward Jones, 40, pleaded guilty to one felony count of drug possession with an intent to deliver and...

An Allegheny County man serving up to 23 years in prison for his role in a drug distribution ring that operated in central Westmoreland County through 2012 contends he was a victim of a botched defense. The new lawyer for Dominick Haynes, 32, of McKeesport, during a hearing Wednesday, contended...

Westmoreland County elections officials said Monday they suspect voters who live near the border between Murrysville and Washington Township might be casting ballots in the wrong municipality. Elections Bureau Director Beth Lechman said the county believes for the last two decades it has used outdated maps to determine voting districts...

Seventeen search warrants detailing the investigation into last year’s disappearance of a Unity woman will remain under seal, at least for another month, a Westmoreland County judge ruled Monday. Following a closed-door hearing with two county prosecutors and a state police trooper, Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger ordered the...

Westmoreland County’s housing authority transferred ownership of nearly 10% of the agency’s public housing units as part of a reorganization officials said will enable it to increase money it receives for needed capital improvements. “This is a decision that makes all the sense in the world. We will get more...

A Jeannette man will serve nine months on house arrest for attempting to lure a child to a local hotel for sex. Brian Zupancic, 29, pleaded guilty in May to felony counts of unlawful contact with a minor and attempted statutory sexual assault for an incident in June 2017. Police...

The man police said was the ringleader of the group that allegedly conspired to rob and kill a Youngwood drug dealer two years ago wants a Westmoreland County judge to bar multiple confessions made in the weeks that followed the fatal stabbing. Christopher David, 41, of Youngwood, contends he was...

The father of the man accused of killing a New Kensington police officer is suing four Westmoreland County Prison officials, claiming they denied him needed medical care while he was incarcerated. Gregory Baucum Jr., in the lawsuit filed this week without the assistance of a lawyer, contends he was repeatedly...

An Indiana County man awaiting trial in Westmoreland County on charges that he possessed child pornography was released from jail Wednesday after unrelated charges that he killed a neighbor’s cat last month were dismissed. Raymond Younger, 39, formerly of Penn Township, was detained in July after he was charged with...

A Westmoreland County prosecutor says that too much time has passed to allow another delay of the vehicular homicide trial of a Virginia man charged with killing his friend four years ago in a Donegal crash. Assistant District Attorney Mike Pacek said the case against Erik C. Anderson should not...

Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County board members on Wednesday approved a multi-million dollar upgrade of the Jeannette sewer system that officials said will reduce backflows that have inundated local homes and businesses during times of heavy rain. The $11.3 million project will replace and line existing pipes throughout the city...

Defense attorneys for the man awaiting trial for the 2017 shooting death of New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw will have four weeks to disclose potential evidence that could be used to convince jurors to save his life, a judge said Tuesday. During a pretrial conference, lawyers for Rahmael Sal...

The attorney for a Vandergrift woman accused of killing her cousin said his client rejected a deal to plead guilty to a lesser charge. Defense attorney Pat Thomassey said Ashley Croft would rather go to trial than accept a deal to plead to third-degree murder and serve 30 to 60...

A Jeannette man charged with setting two fires, including one that killed an elderly woman, wants separate trials for the alleged arsons. Brian Rendon, 34, is scheduled for trial next month on two cases — one in which he is charged with setting fire to a couch in front of...

The lawyer for a Laurel Mountain man awaiting trial on charges of bludgeoning to death his live-in girlfriend in 2014 said Monday his client suffers from a mental condition preventing him from forming an intent to kill. Defense attorney Brian Aston said a brain injury sustained by Gregory R. Randall...