Western PA Local News category, Page 1567
Several couples get engaged at Steel City Con
Steel City Con at the Monroeville Convention Center is known for providing people an opportunity to meet celebrities, get autographs and find comic and pop culture memorabilia of all sorts. Within the past year, it has been a place for something else for at least three couples: romance. Shawn Savage,...
Year-’round dog park being proposed in Aspinwall
Aspinwall officials are pondering a permanent spot to put a dog park. The borough has such a space during the winter months at Ben Killian Field along Field Avenue. It’s open from Nov. 1 through March 31. Council members earlier this month talked about having a dog park in the...
Washington County contractor pleads guilty to bilking 16 victims, ordered to pay $400K
A Washington County man has pleaded guilty in Allegheny County Court to bilking 16 Pittsburgh area victims out of hundreds of thousands of dollars through uncompleted construction projects and payments owed to subcontractors and suppliers. Daniel Michael Bull, 39, of Washington pleaded guilty Tuesday to two counts of theft by...
Pa. Supreme Court to consider jurisdiction question in second-degree murder lawsuit
Attorneys representing people convicted of second-degree murder in Pennsylvania believe that the mandatory penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole is unconstitutional. But before the attorneys can begin arguing why they think that penalty is cruel and unusual punishment, given that their clients did not actually kill...
Teen shot in Stowe Township expected to survive
A 15-year-old boy is expected to survive after being shot Wednesday in Stowe Township. The Allegheny County Police Homicide Unit responded to reports of a shooting at 3:50 p.m. on Ninth Street and Bennwood Avenue, according to a press release. Police said first responders found the victim had been shot...
Westmoreland County hires back former Shuman Juvenile Detention Center director
Westmoreland commissioners rehired the man who ran the county’s juvenile detention center nearly a decade ago before he took the helm of the of the now-shuttered Shuman Juvenile Detention Center in Pittsburgh. His new salary will pay him 64% more than the woman he is replacing. Rich Gordon served as...
Kiski Township police identify and are looking for suspect who led them on a chase Friday
Kiski Township police identified a Leechburg man who they say led them on a car chase last Friday, April 8. Police say that Jeffrey Nedley, 39, has been identified as the man driving a white Mitsubishi Endeavor that nearly struck a marked police car along Garvers Ferry Road in Kiski...
New Kensington-Arnold teachers accept new contract
New Kensington-Arnold School District’s teachers ratified a new contract Wednesday, a representative of the Pennsylvania State Education Association said. The teachers union and the school district reached a tentative five-year agreement Friday night, averting a strike that the teachers had announced would begin Monday. According to a joint statement from...
Motion to censure Allegheny County Councilman withdrawn
A motion to censure an Allegheny County councilman for words he directed at another councilman following a meeting last month led to more fighting Tuesday as tempers flared among members before the censure motion was withdrawn. Councilman DeWitt Walton, angry over the motion made to censure Councilman Thomas Duerr, D-Bethel...
Memorial to man instrumental in developing Hempfield soccer moving to different park after township-county tiff
Larry Leggett’s name for years has marked a soccer field at Swede Hill Park in Hempfield, a nod to his instrumental role in developing the township’s soccer program. But this year, a memorial rock bearing Leggett’s name was removed from the park after the township chose not to move forward...
East Deer officially joins Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department
The East Deer Police have officially become part of the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department. East Deer is joining Springdale Township and Cheswick, which created the combined police department in July 2019. East Deer’s addition goes into effect Friday. East Deer Commissioners Chairman Tony Taliani and Commissioner Rick Stoneburner will...
Arnold Council approves plan for Freeport Road gas station, convenience store
Arnold Council has approved plans for a gas station and convenience store on Freeport Road. Following a public hearing Tuesday, council voted unanimously in favor of a conditional use that Mike Thakkar, owner of Yashvi Oil, needs to turn the former auto repair shop at 1610 Freeport Road into a...
Jeannette Manor residents demand county commissioners help correct bug, mold issues
More than a half-dozen Jeannette Manor residents appeared at the Westmoreland County commissioners’ public meeting Wednesday to ask for help with what they claim is an ongoing insect and mold infestation in their building. Residents claim they have yet to receive any acknowledgement from the Westmoreland County Housing Authority —...
TSA extends mask requirement through May 3
The Transportation Security Administration will extend its requirement that passengers wear masks on all airplane flights as well as public transportation, including buses, trains and transit hubs, through May 3. The order was set to expire on April 18. The TSA’s decision was a foregone conclusion after the Centers for...
Cranberry nonprofit Variety helps Westmoreland youth with adaptive stroller donation
Jenna Bushnell beamed at her 5-year-old daughter, Kelsey, as she was being secured into her new adaptive stroller Wednesday at the Clairview School in Hempfield. “This is so much more usable for us. She has a wheelchair that is very big. We live on a farm, and it will be...
No timetable for Sullivan’s Steakhouse to reopen after fire
Owners are unsure how long Sullivan’s Steakhouse in Downtown Pittsburgh will be closed after a fire this week. Pittsburgh firefighters responded to the fire Tuesday evening in the restaurant located on the first floor of the U.S. Steel Tower. They contained it to the kitchen. “We are sincerely grateful to...
2 Duquesne Light employees shocked during pole replacement in McCandless
Two Duquesne Light employees were shocked by a power line Wednesday during work in McCandless, officials said. The employees were working on a utility pole along Brandywine Drive at the time, said Duquesne Light spokeswoman Ashley Macik. Both were taken to the hospital, she said. Macik said around 30 customers...
Pittsburgh City Council condemns proposed Save Women’s Sports Act
Pittsburgh City Council voted Tuesday to condemn efforts in the state legislature to ban transgender girls from competing in female youth sports. The council measure, known as a will of council, comes in response to the proposed Save Women’s Sports Act, which would bar transgender athletes in youth sports from...
Former Ligonier Township manager joins Latrobe in zoning post
Ligonier Township’s former manager is now on board as the new zoning and code enforcement officer for Latrobe. City council this week unanimously voted to hire Terry Carcella for the open position. “He’s highly qualified,” Mayor Eric Bartels said. “We recognize that he has significant experience.” Three people applied for...
Pa. Supreme Court hears argument in 2016 slaying of Jefferson Hills Motel owner
The defense attorney for a man found guilty of killing the Jefferson Hills Motel owner in 2016 believes his client was denied a fair trial because jurors watched a 17-minute, videotaped police interview of the man wearing a jail uniform. Derrick Gallaway, 65, was found guilty of first-degree murder in...
Norwin considers anti-bullying policy with prevention, intervention
Norwin school officials want to implement a new comprehensive initiative in the next year to tackle the issue of bullying — both in-person and online — in an effort to prevent it and to intervene when it happens. The district administration wants to develop a Norwin-focused policy that will have...
Still-closed playgrounds at Vandergrift parks vex kids and grownups alike
With the playgrounds in Vandergrift’s two parks yet to open this year, some residents are petitioning borough officials to take off the padlocks and let people in. Vandergrift resident and business owner Chloe Kruse created an online petition on Change.org about a month ago, asking borough officials to open the...
Hempfield man charged with assault after he’s accused of pointing BB gun at couple
A Hempfield man accused of threatening an area couple with a gun after they arrived at his home to pick up a relative’s belongings was arrested by state troopers this week on multiple assault charges. Although the weapon turned out to be a BB gun, Tommy Lee Horner, 32, who...
Flag in Monroeville raised in honor of National Donate Life Month
Forbes Hospital in Monroeville has followed annual tradition by raising a flag in honor of National Donate Life Month. More than 110,000 people are awaiting organ transplants in the United States, including more than 2,500 people in western Pennsylvania. National Donate Life Month, celebrated every April, encourages more Americans to...
Aquinas Academy speech and debate students compete at states
The speech and debate program at Aquinas Academy in Hampton is making strides. More than 20 students have participated in speaking competitions throughout the current school year, concluding with the National qualifier, the National Catholic qualifier and Pennsylvania High School Speech League state qualifier. At the PHSSL State Championships, held...
