Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 128
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...
Judge: No basis to dismiss charges against Sheriff Jonathan Held
The presiding judge in the criminal case against Westmoreland County Sheriff Jonathan Held in court documents filed Monday said he found no basis to dismiss public corruption charges in the aftermath of a December mistrial. Senior Common Pleas Judge Timothy Creany in an 11-page opinion said prosecutors presented enough evidence...
Avonmore the only Alle-Kiski town to apply for Westmoreland County blight grants
The first structures to be torn down in Westmoreland County using money from a newly created demolition fund will include a building in Avonmore. “This is needed to remove blight and create economic impact,” Jason Rigone, director of Westmoreland County’s planning department, said of the new fund. In addition to...
Public hearing scheduled to discuss flood plan for Westmoreland County
A detailed blueprint to reduce flooding throughout Westmoreland County is expected to be approved next month by county commissioners. A public hearing will be held at 10:30 a.m. May 3 at the courthouse to discuss the Integrated Water Resources Plan, a document that outlines a growing concern about flooding related...
By-the-numbers look at Westmoreland County courts in 2018
Criminal and civil cases filed and closed in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court decreased last year. Officials have published the annual comprehensive report detailing court activity in 2018. Numbers reveal that while the court remains busy, there was a drop off. In criminal court, the number of new cases dropped...
Babysitter involved in 2016 shooting death of Mt. Pleasant teen gets paroled
Mark Gustafson didn’t want to hear that the woman who gave a teen access to the gun used to kill his 13-year-old son was ready to go home after spending just more than 10 months behind bars. “The family feels that 9-1/2 to 11-1/2 months is not enough time. She...
Conviction of Unity man found guilty of raping teen overturned
The conviction of a Unity man who is serving up to eight years in prison for the rape of a teenage girl has been overturned. A Westmoreland County jury in August found Bruce Palmer, 34, guilty of rape, statutory sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and 10 other related counts in...
Westmoreland County prepares to launch new veterans court program
Westmoreland County court officials will soon reactivate a special court to assist veterans charged with crimes. After years of hiatus, a reinvigorated and enhanced veterans court — expected to begin operations by early May — will enable former members of the military convicted of crimes to earn reduced sentences. “I...
Shooter in Latrobe robbery-turned-murder gets life in prisonVideo
More than three years after their son and brother was gunned down trying to break up a robbery in Latrobe, the McNerny family told a Westmoreland County judge they still struggle with grief and anger toward the men involved in the robbery plot that led to the murder. One of...
Derry Twp. man wants out of jail to await trial for drug delivery resulting in death
The lawyer for a Derry Township man charged with selling the drugs used in the fatal overdose of a Greensburg man last year said he should released from jail as he awaits trial. Defense attorney Patricia Elliott-Rentler in court documents filed Thursday said it has taken too long to bring...
Texas man sentenced to time served in North Belle Vernon crash
A Texas truck driver was paroled Wednesday after he was sentenced to serve up to 23 months in jail related to a crash and house fire that damaged a North Belle Vernon home last year. Nathaniel Smyth, 27, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment and causing property damage...
Jeannette woman facing murder trial pleads guilty to theft from Westmoreland Co. Housing Authority
A Jeannette woman awaiting trial in a murder case pleaded guilty Wednesday to unrelated theft charges. Crystal Belle, 39, was charged nearly four years ago with financial crimes related to checks police said she forged to steal money from the Westmoreland County Housing Authority. It was while she was free...
Plea deal rejected for Arnold woman accused of assaulting autistic son
A Westmoreland County judge rejected a proposed plea bargain for an Arnold woman accused of strangling her 6-year-old autistic son. Police charged Elena Lovorn, 28, with strangulation, child endangerment, reckless endangerment and simple assault in connection with an incident in early January. Authorities said Lovorn took her son into a...
Judge denies plea bargain for Fawn man accused of trying to kidnap New Kensington woman
A Fawn man will go to trial on attempted kidnapping and assault charges in connection with allegations that he brutally attacked his former girlfriend in New Kensington last summer. Westmoreland County Judge Rita Hathaway denied defense motions that sought to dismiss the two most serious charges filed against Jeremy Chambers...
Prosecutors want Hempfield woman’s bail revoked in drug delivery resulting in death case
Westmoreland County prosecutors want a Hempfield woman accused of arranging a drug deal that led to a fatal overdose to remain in jail until her trial. Hollie A. Schreiber, 39, was charged in January, along with two men, with drug delivery resulting in death counts in connection with the Jan....
Pa. lawmakers try to stop plan to switch paratransit funding from counties to private brokers
State lawmakers Tuesday moved to delay — and eventually kill, they hope — a planned funding change that could severely reduce subsidized rides to doctors offices and other medical appointments for the poor and elderly in Pennsylvania. Two pending bills, one each in the Senate and House, would postpone a...
Delaware County man submits guilty plea for assault of 2 Westmoreland prison guards
A Delaware County man serving a life prison sentence since 1989 pleaded guilty Monday to assaulting two guards last year at Westmoreland County Prison. Prosecutors said Thomas Vile, 65, threw cups of urine and feces at guards last June as they attempted to extricate him from a cell. Vile was...
Dress for success: Westmoreland County sets business casual rule for workwear
Denim is out for Westmoreland County work attire. A new dress code approved by county commissioners, which takes effect April 15, sets business casual as the rule for attire for most of the nearly 1,800 workers at the courthouse and other government buildings. “We only have one opportunity to make...
Greensburg Beverage sues Pittsburgh competitor
Owners of a Greensburg beverage company are suing a Pittsburgh competitor, claiming it attempted to sabotage the business through the use of confidential information received as part of a potential purchase of the firm. Greensburg Beverage Inc., in an eight-count lawsuit filed last week in Westmoreland County, said it sustained...
Supreme Court mulls rule change over malpractice suits, Pa. counties where filed
More than 100 malpractice lawsuits were filed in Westmoreland County courts since 2011 that claimed improper cardiac procedures were performed at Excela Health facilities a decade ago. Many of those cases might have been filed in other counties had a proposed change to court rules being weighed by the state...
