Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 12
Westmoreland finalizes plans for May primary, mail-in ballots will begin next week
Westmoreland County voters could see primary ballots arrive in their mailboxes as early as next week, officials said on Tuesday. Election Bureau director Scott Ross said the county to date has processed more than 21,000 mail-in ballot applications leading up to the May 20 Democratic and Republican primaries, where voters...
Westmoreland DA declines appeal, sets stage for retrial in 1993 fatal Jeannette fire
Westmoreland County prosecutors will not appeal a judge’s ruling that overturned the decades-old murder and arson convictions of a former Jeannette man. During a pretrial conference Monday, Assistant District Attorney Leo Ciaramitaro said the case against James Young will proceed. The new trial will happen 30 years after Young was...
Investigators identify person of interest in death of Rostraver womanVideo
Investigators said Monday they have identified a person of interest in the slaying of a woman last week in her Rostraver home. Police said the body of Jennah M. Seibert, 24, was found Friday afternoon, the victim of a shooting. On Monday, the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office said investigators...
Oakmont-based Chelsea Building Products breaks ground on new plant in Sewickley Township
Construction is underway for a new manufacturing facility that officials said could bring as many as 150 new jobs to Westmoreland County. Officials this week held a groundbreaking for a 228,000 square-foot building at Commerce Crossing, the county’s newest industrial park, in Sewickley Township. Chelsea Building Products paid $1.8 million...
132-year-old Charleroi glass plant ends production, set to close
Elaine Smith had to hear the Corning whistle one last time. Smith, 70, of Monessen retired in 2020 after a 45-year career at the Pyrex glass plant, which has been a staple in Charleroi for more than a century. She said she was ready for tears to flow Friday for...
Jury deadlocks in trial of Greensburg man charged with nephew’s fatal overdose
A mistrial was declared Thursday in the case of a Greensburg man charged with providing his nephew with a fatal dose of fentanyl-laced heroin. After more than seven hours of deliberations, a Westmoreland County jury deadlocked on the most serious of the six charges against Michael Rebosky, 59. Prosecutors said...
Driver run over by own garbage truck sues Penn Township, property owner for negligence
A garbage truck driver has filed a lawsuit against Penn Township and a resident, claiming he was run over by his own truck after it struck a leaning and overhanging tree. Tyler Spade of Uniontown, a driver for Republic Services, which provides garbage removal services in Penn Township, claims he...
Monessen club sued over March shooting
A private club in Monessen is being sued over claims that failed security led to a member’s injuries last month. Amir Reid, address unknown, contends the Monessen Elks Oaky Lodge No. 697 knowingly served an intoxicated guest and failed to act when he brandished a firearm during a fight outside...
Trial begins for Greensburg man accused in nephew’s overdose death
Daniel Rebosky insisted to a Westmoreland County jury on Tuesday that his son, Christopher, was not a drug addict. “He had a routine. He’d get up, go to church. He was a true believer and was someone who never missed a family event. He hosted dinners at this home and...
Conservator appointed to dissolve Latrobe attorney’s practice as criminal case continues
A Westmoreland County judge has appointed an overseer to close the practice of a Latrobe lawyer accused of bilking a client. Common Pleas President Judge Christopher Feliciani assigned North Huntingdon attorney John Eric Bumbaugh to review case files and communicate with current and former clients of John Allen Roth, who...
Voting machine testing gets underway in Westmoreland
Westmoreland election officials want assurances that each vote cast during the Republican and Democratic primaries next month are accurately recorded. To that end, Election Bureau staff on Monday started what is expected to be a weeklong process to test each of the county’s 900 touch screen voting machines and 350...
Greengate Mall remembered as community gathering spot
Chad Altman couldn’t help himself. One day in 2003, he saw a chance to preserve a piece of his youth — and went for it. With a flashlight attached to his forehead, he walked through the tunnel entrance of the empty Greengate Mall. And he started collecting. “I grabbed things...
1 man injured in Wilkinsburg shooting
Allegheny County police are investigating a shooting early Sunday morning in Wilkinsburg that left one man hospitalized. Authorities said the unidentified man was found inside a residence on the 500 block of North Avenue at 2:40 a.m. with gunshot wounds. He was listed in critical but stable condition, according to...
Long waits continue for murder defendants seeking Westmoreland County trials
There are 17 defendants facing homicide charges in a dozen pending cases in Westmoreland County. None of them will go to trial when the next criminal term begins Monday. According to the county’s court administration office, five homicide trials have been pending for at least three years. One, a death...
Rain doesn’t dampen opening day of trout season
The first day of trout season has always been a big deal for the Gombosh family. It became more so after 15-year-old Joey Gombosh fell ill and died in 1995 after he returned from a fishing outing at Northmoreland Park. “This keeps his memory alive,” said Bob Gombosh, who along...
Protesters rally at Westmoreland County Courthouse to oppose Trump agenda
Andrew Wilson said he never attends political protests. On Saturday, he and about 600 others gathered in front of the Westmoreland County Courthouse for one of the hundreds of rallies conducted across the country, including a similar event in downtown Pittsburgh, to protest President Donald Trump and his administration’s actions...
Judge to hear arguments in sheriff’s challenge of Westmoreland vehicle policy
A judge will hear arguments next month in a lawsuit that seeks to invalidate a policy requiring GPS tracking of all Westmoreland County government vehicles. Sheriff James Albert challenged the policy, claiming it violates his right as an independent elected official to manage his office and contends the tracking could...
East Huntingdon solar farm ordinance faces court challenge from Erie-based company
An Erie-based energy company is suing East Huntingdon, claiming a new ordinance effectively bans solar farms in the township. GreenKey Development Inc. says in its lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County court that East Huntingdon supervisors hastily and improperly adopted an ordinance in February to set specific and strict requirements for...
Mt. Pleasant drunk driver sentenced to jail term for 2020 crash that injured 2 pedestrians
Vincent Polito’s life was changed forever when he was struck by a drunk driver along the side of a Mt. Pleasant road nearly five years ago. Polito, 23, now requires around-the-clock care as a result physical and cognitive injuries sustained when a vehicle driven by 35-year-old Elizabeth Sirianni hit him...
Westmoreland commissioners quickly fill vacant HR director’s post
Westmoreland County commissioners on Monday named Amanda Bernard as the county’s new director of human resources, starting April 28. It’s a return engagement for Bernard. She served in the position for about two years before she left for another job in 2020 and was replaced by Alexis Bevan, who formally...
Greensburg’s Main Street reimagined with mix of housing, retail, restaurants
An ambitious attempt to revitalize some century-old buildings on Greensburg’s Main Street will likely involve some future scholars to reach its maximum potential. The Westmoreland County Housing Authority intends to convert the century-old First Commonwealth Building and adjoining PNC Bank buildings into housing, retail, office and meeting spaces in what...
Republicans axed from Norwin school board race
Three Norwin School Board candidates were removed Wednesday from the May primary ballots. A Westmoreland County judge ruled technical errors rendered nomination petitions submitted by incumbent Alex Detschelt, along with Republican hopefuls Tammy Moreno and Randall Pedder, as invalid. Detschelt, a controversial first-term member of the board who has twice...
Lawsuit claims Ligonier Valley police failures led to man’s death after 2020 crash
Surviving family members of a Latrobe-area man paralyzed in 2020 car crash in Ligonier Township claim failures of local police led to his eventual death, according to allegations raised in a lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County. The family claims that Ligonier Valley police detained Donald R. Hall, 49, outside a...
Westmoreland eyes surcharge to tax sale, sheriff’s sale buyers
Properties sold at tax auctions and sheriff sales will be assessed an additional $250 surcharge under a plan likely to be approved this week by Westmoreland County commissioners. The proposed ordinance is expected to generate about $75,000 to bolster funds available for demolition and rehabilitation of abandoned property. The surcharge...
Latrobe woman charged in knife attack pleads guilty to lesser charge
A Latrobe man told a Westmoreland County judge Tuesday he no longer wanted to see his former girlfriend prosecuted for stabbing him in the chest last year. “We had a long relationship and I did a lot of things that wasn’t reported. My last case was dismissed, so this should...
