Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 125
Westmoreland County Special Olympics celebrates 50 years at competitionVideo
Skyler Wood is an Olympian. Wood, 10, a fourth-grader at RK Mellon Elementary School in Bolivar, flashed a big smile as he was presented with a gold medal for winning his heat in the 50-meter dash Saturday morning at Westmoreland County’s Special Olympics track and field event. “I’m going to...
Westmoreland County prosecutors dispute defense claims in 30-year-old rape case
Westmoreland County prosecutors said defense arguments to dismiss a nearly 30-year-old rape case should be rejected because they are based on misrepresented facts. In court documents filed Wednesday, prosecutors said there is sufficient evidence to convict John Kunco, 53, of Harrison of the brutal rape of a woman in her...
Plea deal rejected in Walmart parking lot wreck that injured East Huntingdon store employee
A Mt. Pleasant woman charged in a with a injuring a woman stacking carts in a Walmart parking lot last year rejected plea bargain deal that would have required her to spend three days in jail. Ronalee Bailey, 40, through her defense attorney, told a Westmoreland County judge she would...
Sewickley Township man rejects plea deal for rape charges
A Sewickley Township man Tuesday rejected a plea bargain in which he would have received a 20-year prison sentence for the rape of a mentally disabled woman. Wayne Smith, 74, told Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani he would not plead guilty and asked that his case be...
Monessen man offered plea for role in July 2017 shooting in city street
A Monessen man could serve up to six years in prison if he accepts a plea deal for his role in a shootout in which police say he was wounded and more than 20 rounds were fired on a city street. Delaney Huggins, 31, was originally charged with attempted murder...
Trial date set for Jeannette woman accused in boyfriend’s 2016 death
Jury selection for the murder trial of a Jeannette woman accused in the bludgeoning death of her 19-year-old boyfriend will begin May 13. During a brief hearing Tuesday, Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani said Crystal Belle’s first-degree murder trial is expected to take about a week to...
Westmoreland jail guards and staff undergo autism trainingVideo
The ability to recognize symptoms of autism could help guards and staffers avoid potential physical confrontations with inmates who struggle from a disability rather than those who simply misbehave. That was the message relayed over the last two weeks to more than 200 guards and staffers at Westmoreland County Prison...
Former Unity Bible study teacher sentenced after failed attempt to meet boy for sex
A former Bible study teacher who had raised money for a planned church youth mission to Peru was sentenced Monday to two years in jail for a failed attempt to meet a teen boy for sex. Timothy Myers, 34, of Unity pleaded guilty in January to charges of attempted aggravated...
Grants to fund low-emissions police cars in Donora, Monessen
The Mon Valley communities of Monessen and Donora will receive grants to buy new low-emissions police vehicles. The vehicles will be paid for from a $300,000 Vehicle Emissions Reduction Fund administered by the Community Foundation of Westmoreland County. That money is part of a $1.8 million settlement between PennEnvironment, the...
Youngwood man charged with drug possession
A Youngwood man was charged Friday with drug possession and other offenses after he was arrested by Westmoreland County deputy sheriffs in the area to capture another wanted suspect. Darrell Scott Strong, 50, is charged with two counts of possession of controlled substances and one charge of drug paraphernalia possession....
Greensburg man gets jail for spitting at guards, assaulting Hempfield man
A Greensburg man will serve up to 23 months in jail for spitting at three corrections officers who guarded him while receiving medical treatment last year at Excela Westmoreland Hospital. Jamel C. Miles, 23, pleaded guilty Friday to multiple counts of aggravated assault by a prisoner in connection with the...
Latrobe man pleads guilty to simple assault
A Latrobe man pleaded guilty to assaulting his live-in girlfriend. Jeremiah Camorote, 42, was sentenced to serve one year on probation and ordered by Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger to complete an anger management course. Camorote pleaded guilty to simple assault. Prosecutors dismissed a more serious allegation of strangulation....
Derry Township woman convicted of hatchet attack on neighbor after clothesline dispute
A Derry Township woman was convicted Thursday for assaulting her next-door neighbor with a hatchet. Denise Nichols, 51, claimed she acted in self-defense after being tackled by her neighbor in the yard behind her home on Nov. 2, 2016. But police said Nichols was the instigator. She twice slashed her...
Yukon crash victim’s parents sue bars, driver for wrongful death
Parents of a Hempfield woman killed in a car crash in Yukon this year filed a wrongful death lawsuit against two local bars claiming they served too much alcohol to the male driver of the car. The lawsuit, filed this week, contends staff at Johnny’s Wife’s Place in Jeannette and...
Westmoreland labor council endorses Democrats seeking local political office
The Greater Westmoreland County Labor Council announced it has endorsed a slate of candidates seeking county office this year. The organization, which is affiliated with the AFL-CIO labor unions, announced it will support lawyers Mike Stewart and Jessica Rafferty in their bids to fill two vacancies on the Westmoreland County...
Convicted Greensburg sex offender fails to have designation lifted
The appeal of a convicted sex offender seeking to invalidate a ruling issued a decade ago that classified him as a sexually violent predator was dismissed. Bilaal Abdulbadi Hale, 43, of Greensburg, contended he should no longer carry the sex offender designation and its accompanying requirement that he register his...
Judge tosses drug charges against Latrobe man
A Westmoreland County judge ruled Wednesday there is not enough evidence to prosecute a Latrobe man jailed since last summer on drug possession charges. Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger said a drug-filled backpack found unattended on a Latrobe street could not be adequately linked to Christopher Twigger, who had...
Agents again raid Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office
Turmoil continues at the Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office as state police investigators on Wednesday served another search warrant and departed with boxes of potential evidence. Details remain secret, but Sheriff Jonathan Held made one thing clear: “It’s not about me, this time.” He delivered that message when he briefly emerged...
Upper Burrell awaits judge’s OK on redrawn voting districts
Westmoreland County elections officials Tuesday approved a redistricting plan for Upper Burrell that is expected to shorten lines at the polls. The proposal calls for moving the line that separates the town’s two voting precincts several blocks in the Seventh Street and Pleasant Valley Road areas, elections bureau director Beth...
Latrobe woman sentenced up to five years in prison on drug-related crimes
A Latrobe woman was sentenced Tuesday to serve up to five years in prison on two drug-related crimes. Fallon Handlin, 34, pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drugs last September in Latrobe. According to court records, Handlin was pulled over for a traffic stop when police suspected she...
Westmoreland approves multiple polling location changes for primary
Westmoreland County Elections Board members on Tuesday approved changes to some polling locations for the May 21 primary. Officials moved several polls back into the proper voting districts, allowed for expanded parking and handicapped accessibility and in some instances approved changes in response to requests from landlords who no longer...
Westmoreland County Transit Authority launches mobile ticketing ability
Westmoreland County Transit Authority bus riders can now pay fares via smart phones. Authority officials announced Tuesday a mobile ticketing app has been launched to expand the agency’s ability to accept cashless fares. The app, WestMore Tix, can be downloaded through Google Play or the Apple App Store. Passengers who...
Series of armed robberies lands Scottdale man in prison for up to a decade
A Scottdale man will serve up to 10 years in prison for the armed robberies of a gas station and two discount stores last year. Clyde Mensch, 42, pleaded guilty Monday to 15 separate counts, including three charges of armed robbery, in connection with the December heists in which he...
Westmoreland warden wants public apology from Commissioner Gina CerilliVideo
The warden of Westmoreland County Prison on Monday filed a written complaint against Commissioner Gina Cerilli and demanded an apology for comments she made last year in yet another attempt to have him fired, this time following a suspended guard’s suicide. John Walton accused Cerilli of misrepresenting facts associated with...
Westmoreland prison inmate population down
The inmate population at the Westmoreland County Prison on Monday was at its lowest level in more than a year. Warden John Walton told the prison board just 590 inmates were assigned to the jail, down from where it had been just a month ago. The jail averaged 623 inmates...
