Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 20
Veterans court offers redemption chance for former service members
John Novotnak knew he needed help. The U.S. Army serviceman whose eight-year career included a tour of duty in Iraq, struggled after he was discharged from the military in 2008. Novotnak, 43, of North Huntingdon was charged in 2022 for the second time with drunken driving when he finally concluded...
Judge rejects prosecutor’s request for lengthy sentence for Delmont man
A Westmoreland County prosecutor said rehabilitation was not a viable option for a Delmont man convicted this year of the attempted sexual assault of a woman. Assistant District Attorney Mike Pacek, during a sentencing hearing Tuesday for Brandon J. Pyle, 28, argued that his lengthy history of inappropriate and criminal...
Seward man pleads guilty to attempted child rape
A Seward man pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges relating to attempted sex with an underage girl. Anthony Ronald Laughard, 43, was charged last year following an undercover sting operation conducted by the state police. According to court records, Laughard made contact with a person through online communication he believed to...
Bolivar man ordered to serve 10- to 20-year prison sentence for sexual assaults of child
A Bolivar man was sentenced Tuesday to serve 10 to 20 years in prison for the repeated sexual assaults of a young girl. Jerry Boring, 60, was convicted by a Westmoreland County jury in April of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault and indecent assault in connection with accusations...
Immigration, border security among top issues that will decide presidential race
It can be tough to determine exactly where the presidential candidates stand on the issues after being barraged by headlines, rallies, campaign events and political ads. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are making personal appeals, having visited the Pittsburgh region more than any place in the...
Plan to track Westmoreland County-owned vehicles with GPS on hold because of sheriff’s lawsuit
Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office vehicles won’t be tracked by GPS until a lawsuit challenging a policy requiring the devises on county vehicles is resolved, a judge ruled. The policy, enacted this summer by the commissioners but not yet put into practice, requires around-the-clock tracking of all county owned and leased...
Charges withdrawn against 3 of 4 Blackburn Center staffers
Criminal charges were withdrawn Thursday afternoon against three of the four Blackburn Center staffers that police had said obstructed efforts by the state police to enforce an emergency custody order issued this month by a county judge. According to a statement issued by Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli, the...
Westmoreland election bureau office extends hours; voters expected to get mail ballots this weekend
Westmoreland County voters will begin seeing mail-in ballots arrive at their homes as early as Saturday, election officials said. More than 42,000 mail-in ballots have been sent to voters this week. Those who have yet to apply can do so at the courthouse, which, since Monday, has started same-day voting....
North Huntingdon man to serve jail time for possessing child porn
A North Huntingdon man was ordered to serve at least nine months in jail after he was sentenced Tuesday for possession of child pornography. James Frederick Molzer, 32, pleaded guilty in July to 11 felony counts in which investigators said he possessed multiple images of children performing sex acts. According...
Judge says New Kensington murder case likely to move forward
A Westmoreland County judge said Tuesday a New Kensington man charged last summer with the murder of his former roommate has been found to be mentally competent. Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Mears said a psychological evaluation appears to have cleared the path for the prosecution of Nico Lee Harris,...
Attempted murder charge dropped as part of Penn Hills woman’s plea in East Huntingdon fight
A Penn Hills woman was ordered Monday to serve up to seven years in prison for her role in an 2022 incident at an East Huntingdon home that left one man injured. Kristen Marie Kruel, 28, pleaded guilty to lesser charges of theft, receiving stolen property and tampering with evidence...
Ligonier supervisor’s lawsuit claims he was targeted over calls for police department reform
A Ligonier Township supervisor contends he was targeted for retribution by local police over his efforts to reform the department. Supervisor Erik Ross, in a lawsuit filed this month against the Ligonier Valley Police Department and three officers, claimed they misused the criminal justice system in an effort to discredit...
Westmoreland County agrees to pay $60K to 68-year-old who didn’t get job in DA’s office
Westmoreland County commissioners this week agreed to pay a $60,000 settlement to a prospective assistant district attorney who was told she was passed over because of her age. Commissioner Ted Kopas on Friday confirmed the case involved an employment decision made this year by District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli. “I can...
Jury finds Greensburg man guilty of strangulation
A Westmoreland County jury this week convicted a Greensburg man on charges in connection with an attack last year against a woman in her home. Brian A. Curry, 36, was found guilty of felony charges of strangulation, burglary, trespassing, victim intimidation and one misdemeanor count of simple assault in connection...
Seton Hill gallery showcases artist collaboration
Pittsburgh artist Centa Schumacher knew she hit upon something good in the early days of her collaboration with a friend whom she met at a Vermont art studio in 2018. Schumacher and artist Nicole Czapinski reunited in Pittsburgh in 2021. They formed a partnership where they exchanged and combined solo...
New Kensington man convicted of kidnapping, robbery
A Westmoreland County jury on Wednesday convicted of a New Kensington man of holding an Ohio woman captive at his home following their third in-person date nearly three years ago. Following about two hours of deliberations, the jury found Steven Daniel Best Jr., 41, guilty of felony counts of kidnapping...
‘I felt so stupid:’ Ohio woman testifies during New Kensington man’s kidnapping trial
Angela Gregory told a Westmoreland County jury on Tuesday she wasn’t sure she would ever return to her Ohio home to be with her three children while being held captive in the basement of a New Kensington home in late 2022 by a man she met online only months earlier....
Trial begins for suspected drug dealer in Latrobe man’s fatal 2021 overdose
The lawyer for a Latrobe man charged with selling the drugs used in a fatal overdose told a Westmoreland County jury that an incomplete police investigation left more questions than answers. Defense attorney Ken Noga said Tuesday an autopsy report suggested 39-year-old Robert J. Verscharen had seven different drugs in...
‘Difficult August’ leaves Westmoreland juvenile detention center looking to fill job vacancies
A series of clashes among residents at Westmoreland County’s juvenile detention center in August resulted in injuries to one staff member and multiple job vacancies, director Rich Gordon said. The detention center, one of two residential programs for juveniles at the Regional Youth Services Center in Hempfield, continues to operate,...
Chicago men sentenced for Western Pa. catalytic converter theft ring
Three Chicago men were ordered Friday to serve up to 15 years in prison for operating what authorities said was one of the largest organized theft rings in Western Pennsylvania as they stole catalytic converters from parked vehicles in Westmoreland, Allegheny and Fayette counties. “These three individuals terrorized the Western...
Judge rules young boy’s statements admissible in grandfather’s assault trial
Statements made by a 3-year-old boy who claimed he was assaulted by his grandfather two years ago in Vandergrift can be used in the court case against the grandfather, a judge ruled Thursday. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio rejected a defense bid to end the case against Timothy...
Westmoreland commissioners say no ballot curing allowed for November election
Westmoreland commissioners Wednesday said county voters will not be offered an opportunity to correct flaws that might cause their mail-in ballot to be disqualified. Ballot curing — or the process that allows elections officials to contact voters to correct ballot errors such as missing dates and signatures — will not...
Westmoreland County makes changes to some polling locations; addresses accessibility
Westmoreland County officials announced in September all 306 voting precincts for the Nov. 5 presidential election will be accessible to disabled voters. The county’s election board approved location changes for 10 precincts, including eight that were not in compliance with with Americans with Disabilities Act requirements. “We are 100% ADA-compliant,”...
Probation ordered for suspects in Hempfield casino scam
Two out-of-town gamblers charged last month with cheating at Live Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield were sentenced Wednesday to serve two years on probation. Police said Bahri Sahpolat, 47, of California, and Serdar Ozmen, 44, of Maryland, marked playing cards at a Mississippi stud poker table as part of a scheme...
Former high school teacher pleads guilty to possession of child porn
A former Indiana County high school teacher pleaded guilty Tuesday to possession of child pornography. Charles Kirkland, 33, of Derry Township, was arrested in late 2022 after a state police investigation revealed he downloaded as many as nine pornographic images of children on his home computer. Kirkland pleaded guilty to...
