Local category, Page 2205
Supreme Court upholds death penalty in Greensburg Six torture-murder appeal
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court this week upheld the death sentence imposed against the man convicted in the 2010 torture slaying of a mentally disabled woman in Greensburg. Justices unanimously rejected the appeal from Melvin Knight of Swissvale, who claimed a Westmoreland County jury improperly sentenced him to death by lethal injection...
Workshops will help women interested in serving on Pittsburgh’s civic boards
More than 60% of the people who serve on civic boards and commissions in Pittsburgh are female. “That is exceptional. We absolutely commend Mayor (Bill) Peduto for that progress,” United Women’s Empowerment President and CEO Wendy Doyle said. But it isn’t good enough, Peduto said. The mayor’s office announced Tuesday...
Multi-vehicle wreck shuts down part of southbound Route 66 in Washington Township
All lanes along a section of southbound Route 66 in Westmoreland County were closed Thursday morning because of a crash involving multiple vehicles, according to PennDOT. The accident was reported shortly before 7 a.m. in Washington Township. A 1-mile section of the road between Kiski Park Drive and the Route...
Streets closed in Oakland to repair water main break
Several streets in the Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood are shut down this morning because of a water main break. The break was reported about 4 a.m. along South Bouquet Street, according to the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority. The road is shut down between Sennott and Joncaire streets so crews can...
County covid surge prompts Shaler to switch to remote learning for 3 weeks
The Shaler Area School District is switching to all-virtual instruction for three weeks because of the increase in the community transmission rate of covid-19. The change takes effect on Nov. 23. Students are scheduled to return to a blend of online and in-person instruction on Dec. 14. Schools are closed...
The Stroller, Nov. 19, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your church or organization going to host a community holiday event? Send information to The Stroller as soon as possible to vndnews@tribweb.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Volunteers needed to prepare income tax returns Allegheny Valley Association of Churches and United Way of Southwest Pennsylvania are looking for...
Covid forces Punxsutawney Phil to go virtual; no crowds on Gobbler’s Knob in February
Say it ain’t so, but the covid-19 pandemic will keep thousands of people from witnessing whether Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow atop the famed Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney on Feb. 2 and forecasts six more weeks of winter. Even though people want to see Phil’s prognostication in person for the...
North Hills German teacher being honored by national organization
When it comes to helping kids understand the German language and culture, North Hills High School teacher Joe Deible can now consider himself eine der besten — or one of the best. Deible is one of 18 people and two German programs in the United States being recognized by the...
Jefferson Hills Council votes to decertify Gill Hall VFC again
Gill Hall Volunteer Fire Co. hopes to be dispatched to calls again starting Nov. 20 were dashed two days prior by a Jefferson Hills Council vote to decertify the company. Council voted 5-2 Nov. 18 to no longer recognize the 72-year-old, 20-member department as a borough fire company after a...
Westmoreland, Allegheny tech schools get grants for new equipment
Two Westmoreland County career and technology centers and another in Allegheny County will update their educational equipment with the help of state grants. The Department of Education this week awarded nearly $1.2 million in competitive matching grants to 32 such centers across the state, and to two school districts, for...
Serra Catholic moves to remote learning
Serra Catholic High School in McKeesport will move to remote learning because of an increase in covid-19 cases, the third case in the past three days, Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese said Wednesday night. The diocese said it is following guidance from the Allegheny County Health Department in making the decision to...
Plum High School closed until Dec. 1 as 3 more students test positive for covid-19
Plum High School will be closed and students will learn online until the start of December after three more students tested positive for covid-19. All sports and activities at the school are also canceled through Tuesday, Dec. 1, according to a letter to district families Wednesday. The district spoke with...
Covid spike prompts Carnegie Library system to halt in-person visits
The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh is closing all branches to visitors in response to Allegheny County’s newly imposed stay-at-home advisory to thwart the spread of the coronavirus. In a statement Wednesday night, Carnegie Library officials described the decision, effective immediately, as a “preventive measure” while covid-19 cases continue to climb...
Parking deal clears path for 99 new apartments in Greensburg
Greensburg has cleared the path for 99 new apartments to be built downtown by agreeing to a deal that would allow residents to park in one of the city’s lots — but only at night. The decision waives Greensburg’s usual parking requirements. Instead, developer Urban Communities will lease the Buncher...
Police: Beltzhoover man sprays police dog with stain remover before South Side arrest
A Beltzhoover man ran from the site of a shooting on Pittsburgh’s South Side, forced his way into a family’s basement and sprayed a police dog with fabric stain remover before he was arrested Tuesday night, officials said. Deonte Donald Kidd, 26 was charged with criminal trespass, resisting arrest and...
Sunnyside public school closes after 2nd staffer tests positive for covid
Pittsburgh Public School’s Sunnyside campus in the city’s Stanton Heights neighborhood will close for the next two weeks after a second staffer tested positive for covid-19, officials said Wednesday. The employee at the Stanton Avenue school — which enrolls pre-schoolers through eighth-graders — was last at the Sunnyside building on...
New covid-19 cases reported at Hempfield Area High School
New covid-19 cases were reported at Hempfield Area High School Wednesday afternoon. The additional cases brings the school’s total to eight among students for the period between Nov. 4 and Wednesday, according to a covid-19 tracker posted on the district’s website. That’s an increase from five students at the high...
Guided by faith, Lower Burrell couple opens home to 4th adopted child
Lacie and Eric Hooks became emotional when their foster son’s first-grade teacher at Bon Air Elementary mentioned something peculiar about Jayden. “His teacher told us he wouldn’t write his last name,” Eric Hooks said. “He was writing our last name.” The shy little boy with the contagious smile can now...
Leechburg Area goes to all remote learning for next two weeks in response to covid-19 surge
Leechburg Area School District will reinstate fully remote learning over the next two weeks in response to rising covid-19 cases, Superintendent Tiffany Nix said Wednesday in an email to district parents. Students have been attending school in person every day except Wednesdays, when they attend virtually. Leechburg Area students live...
Convicted felon obsessed with Nazis sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison
A convicted felon who authorities say has an obsession with Nazis and mass shootings was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in federal prison for having guns when he wasn’t allowed to, federal officials said. Dennis Alan Riggs, 51, of Pittsburgh’s Troy Hill neighborhood, previously pleaded guilty to one count of...
Norwin schools see 6 more coronavirus cases
The coronavirus cases in Norwin School District continue to mount, with the school reporting Wednesday it had learned that three staff members and three students have tested positive for the virus. One staff member each at the high school, middle school and Hillcrest Intermediate School informed the district they tested...
Allegheny County judge’s resignation sends message against systemic racism, experts say
The resignation of an Allegheny County judge on the eve of his misconduct trial for making racist comments should signal to other jurists and the community that the system is changing, experts say. “This will send a message to other judges that the system as a whole will get to...
Westmoreland County Community College and IUP ink dual admissions deal
Students at Westmoreland County Community College who plan to complete a four-year degree after finishing work on an associate degree can tap a new dual admissions program with Indiana University of Pennsylvania. An agreement the two institutions inked Wednesday outlines terms of the new program, designed to streamline the transfer...
Provisional board member axed after call to poll watcher
Westmoreland County commissioners unanimously fired a Republican volunteer from his role as a member of the county’s provisional board for partisan activity during ballot reviews. Commissioners said Thomas Altman, 70, of Ligonier, improperly coordinated efforts with a Republican campaign poll watcher to challenge contested provisional ballots earlier this week. Altman...
Report outlines struggles of Pittsburgh Public Schools’ tech distribution during pandemic
A report shared Wednesday by City Controller Michael Lamb lends more detail into how devices and internet are being provided in Pittsburgh Public Schools amid online learning. The controller’s audit report reflects the results of an investigation requested by the school board following an August meeting. According to the report,...
