Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 95

After more than a week of public shame and praise, Westmoreland County Controller Jeffrey Balzer masked up — and all it took was a text from his daughter. Balzer, the three-term Republican, was both criticized and supported after he was confronted by a citizen just before a public meeting this...

Westmoreland County Prison officials said Monday they are preparing for the worst as the lockup’s inmate population continues to rise and, with it, the risk for additional coronavirus cases at the jail. Warden John Walton said nearly 160 new inmates have been booked into the county jail during the past...

The Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office this week filed a lawsuit against nearly two dozen opioid distributors and manufacturers as part of a legal action that seeks financial restitution for addiction and overdoses attributed to the drugs. The lawsuit mirrors litigation filed in 2017 by county commissioners and is now...

A Westmoreland County judge refused to remove himself from the pending retrial of a Unity couple convicted two years ago in the rape of a teen girl. Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger said prosecutors failed “to assert any rational, objective basis” for his recusal in the cases of Bruce...

An Arnold man originally accused of raping a woman in 2017 pleaded guilty Thursday to a lesser, misdemeanor offense. Westmoreland County prosecutors dismissed felony charges of rape, sexual assault and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse as well as misdemeanor counts of indecent assault Anthony Chico, 34, in connection with an alleged...

A New Kensington man who police said drove the vehicle from which convicted cop killer Rahmael Holt ran before fatally shooting a city officer wants police to return $2,500 they seized from him. A Westmoreland County judge on Thursday said he will conduct a hearing to reconsider the request from...

John Panucci was in the home stretch of his path through Westmoreland County’s Drug Court when the coronavirus erupted in March. Drug court — a two-year program that mixes court supervision, counseling and treatment in exchange for reduced or alternative jail sentences — was not exempt from the pandemic, which...

Rodney Yemc is at his wits’ end. His 25-year-old Hempfield business, Rodney’s Restaurant, has been closed for a week as he awaits coronavirus test results from as many as 25 employees who erroneously believed they were exposed to covid-19 by another worker. “This really puts you in a situation,” Yemc...

The lawyer for an Arnold man accused of killing a 16-year-old girl in the city in 2016 said she needs more time to prepare for a hearing to argue for the pretrial release of her client who claims he has been in jail too long. Cashaan Williams, 21, appeared Wednesday...

A proposal to close district justice offices in Penn Township and Mt. Pleasant remains unchanged as part of a revamped consolidation plan expected to be released in the coming weeks, officials said. Westmoreland County Court Administrator Amy DeMatt said officials reviewed about two dozen comments filed in the last month,...

Westmoreland Manor will again offer bonuses to attract new nurses to the county-owned nursing home. Officials said there are 23 nursing vacancies at the home — and with hospitals, independent care facilities and other health care institutions looking to hire — officials said the additional cash is needed to attract...

A second inmate at Westmoreland County Prison has tested positive for coronavirus. Warden John Walton said Tuesday that routine testing of newly booked quarantined inmates confirmed the positive result on July 17, a week after that person entered the Hempfield facility. “This person was asymptomatic,” Walton said. Prison officials confirmed...

An Allegheny County man serving a life prison term for first-degree murder claims the jury got it wrong when they didn’t believe that his dead identical twin brother was the killer. In an appeal filed in Westmoreland County, Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee, 31, of Penn Hills, contends his conviction should be overturned...

A Washington Township man pleaded guilty Friday to the assault of an elderly woman and against police during a rampage two years ago. David A. Gibson, 46, could face up to more than 20 years in prison by virtue of his pleas to four counts of aggravated assault, unlawful restraint,...

Westmoreland officials confirmed Friday that an inmate who was placed in custody last week at the county prison tested positive for coronavirus. This is the first confirmed case involving inmates or staff at the lockup. Warden John Walton said the inmate was arrested July 11 by New Kensington police and...

Raises were handed out this week to middle managers in several Westmoreland row offices and officers at the jail as part of a comprehensive effort to standardize county salaries. Members of the county’s salary board, which includes the three county commissioners and Controller Jeffrey Balzer, approved those raises but deadlocked...

A Hempfield man who originally told police his live-in girlfriend killed herself will serve up to 30 years in prison for her murder. Allen Eugene Trent, 56, on Thursday pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of third-degree murder for the Feb. 12, 2017, shooting death of Frances Smith, 61, in...

Westmoreland County commissioners said the initial round of covid-relief grants for small business and nonprofit agencies will be capped at $25,000. County officials on Thursday unveiled criteria for the first portion of a program to dole out up to $31.5 million in federal funds to repay local entities for expenses...

Westmoreland County Controller Jeffrey Balzer said Thursday he won’t comply with the governor’s edict or the county’s mandate that face coverings are a must at the courthouse. Balzer refused to wear a mask during a county commissioners meeting and briefly engaged in a heated discussion with a Hempfield resident who...

A Greensburg man pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges that he endangered three children when he left them alone for a week in a bug-infested home with little to eat and no heat. Ryan Mason, 40, was charged in three separate cases including two in which he was accused of leaving...

Brian Lawrence won’t move his belongings far when he assumes his new role as executive director of Westmoreland County’s redevelopment authority and land bank. The 37-year-old Greensburg resident, a 10-year veteran of the county’s planning department, will run the agencies that oversee community revitalization, programs to remove blight and improve...

A Westmoreland County judge on Wednesday ordered Excela Health and two of its former cardiac doctors to engage in settlement talks and mediation to resolve 35 outstanding lawsuits filed by patients who contended they received unnecessary stents. Common Pleas Judge Rita Hathaway during a conference with lawyers for patients, the...

An Arnold man who has been in jail for more than three years as he awaits his murder trial will appear before a Westmoreland County judge next week to ask for his freedom. Cashaan Williams, 21, has been behind bars since May 2017 after his two $50,000 bonds were revoked...

A Salem man who police said used bogus checks to purchase electronics, power tools and music equipment in three states and throughout southwestern Pennsylvania pleaded guilty Tuesday to dozens of theft and conspiracy charges. Paul E. Chonko. 42, was sentenced to serve five years on probation and ordered to repay...

Westmoreland County will soon start the process to award $31.5 million in federal funds earmarked for grants to small businesses and nonprofit agencies impacted by the coronavirus. Commissioners said an initial round of funding will allocate $5 million each to small businesses and nonprofits that have yet to see any...