Local category, Page 2246
Gill Hall Volunteer Fire Co. in Jefferson Hills not being dispatched despite being reinstated
Gill Hall Volunteer Fire Company in Jefferson Hills has not been dispatched on calls for months despite being reinstated as a borough fire department. Fire company officials claim the problem is the borough has not formally notified Allegheny County dispatch to put the company back in its run cards, while...
Westmoreland GOP rally short on candidatesVideo
Tuesday’s Westmoreland County Republican Committee rally in Hempfield was short on candidates but strong on local party support. More than 50 GOP faithful attended the evening event, spilling from the main room of All Saints Brewing Co. onto the patio. Committee Chairman Bill Bretz, who expressed confidence in county support...
Suspect in custody in double shooting in Jeannette
A juvenile male suspect was in custody following a shooting Tuesday evening in Jeannette that sent two people to AHN Forbes Hospital, according to city police. A 19-year-old man was one of the two people wounded in the shooting outside a South Third Street home. His mother, who declined to...
Pittsburgh writers reflect on Tree of Life massacre in new book
In January 2019, members of New Light Congregation at the Tree of Life synagogue traveled to Charleston, S.C., to pray with members of Emanuel AME Church, where nine Black worshippers were shot to death by a young white supremacist in 2015. It was a less than three months after a...
Murrysville area happenings, Oct. 29-Nov. 4
Here’s a few upcoming events in the Star’s coverage area: Franklin Regional band will host fruit sale The Franklin Regional Senior High School band will host its annual fruit sale now through Oct. 30, with online orders continuing through Nov. 4. Place an order through any band or band-front member...
Former nursing home head pleads guilty to millions in bank fraud
An Ohio businessman pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Pittsburgh to writing checks for more than $118 million on accounts with insufficient funds over a three-day period in May. Harold Sosna, 67, who was previously the president of Premier Healthcare Management Company, will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge...
State could recommend closure of Westmoreland County schools over coronavirus surge
Pennsylvania Department of Education officials soon could begin urging Westmoreland County schools to close and move to fully remote learning if the present coronavirus surge continues. The county has the seventh-highest coronavirus incidence rate in the state, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. This week, it moved from “moderate”...
Kiski Area school board discusses covid transmission in county, preparations for more in-person learning
Kiski Area School District is still preparing to offer four days of in-person instruction, but the district is ready for a return to remote learning if needed, Superintendent Tim Scott said during a virtual school board meeting Monday. Westmoreland County on Monday moved to the highest level of community transmission...
Westmoreland sheriff wants deputies to patrol polling places on Election Day, in case needed
Westmoreland County Sheriff James Albert on Tuesday said he will assign deputies to patrol near the county’s 307 polling locations on Election Day. The first-term sheriff said he has received no specific information about threats but he wants deputies at the ready should disturbances or calls of voter intimidation arise...
Police: New Kensington man threatened woman with gun, ran from police
New Kensington police arrested a man after a Tuesday morning foot chase who allegedly threatened a woman with a gun. District Judge Frank Pallone Jr. ordered Malachi Supreme Hayes, 23, held without bail in the Westmoreland County Prison to ensure his appearance at a preliminary hearing and because he is...
Highland Tire to pay Highlands $19K to advertise at district sports facilities
Highland Tire will pay Highlands School District $19,000 to place advertising signs at district athletic facilities. The school board unanimously approved the five-year advertising agreement at its meeting Monday. Highland Tire is the first business to place advertising at the the district’s athletic facilities, business Manager Lori Byron said. The...
Future of Race for the Cure in question as Komen Foundation closes local chapters
The Susan G. Komen Foundation will close all of its local offices across the country by year’s end, leaving the future of Pittsburgh’s annual Race for the Cure up in the air, the nonprofit announced Tuesday. The foundation, which raises money for breast cancer research, screenings and treatment, plans to...
State police looking for Acura that hit Youngwood pedestrian
State police in Greensburg are looking for the driver of a car that hit a pedestrian in Youngwood Monday. Police said a 33-year-old man was taken to Excela Health Westmoreland hospital in Greensburg by Mutual Aid Ambulance for treatment after the 12:34 p.m. incident. His identity was not released. Trooper...
Police looking for West Leechburg man accused of North Apollo assault
Kiski police are searching for a West Leechburg man they say assaulted a North Apollo resident and stole their vehicle early Tuesday morning. Investigators say Randy Dean McGuire, 30, and Lisa Marie Alsippi, 41, of Saltsburg, worked together to assault the victim and steal the vehicle. Both are charged with...
2nd medical marijuana dispensary opening in Monroeville
Pennsylvania’s latest medical marijuana dispensary will open Wednesday in Monroeville. The Rise Monroeville store will be the 98th dispensary in the state, the sixth in Allegheny County and the second in Monroeville. Tim Hawkins, Pennsylvania market president for Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries, which owns the Rise dispensaries, said demand for...
Police: Tarentum man strangled woman, set clothes on fire
A Tarentum man is accused of strangling a woman and setting a fire in their apartment late Monday. Borough police charged Othniel Lavelle Lineburg II, 34, with strangulation and causing or risking a catastrophe, both felony offenses, along with a misdemeanor count of simple assault and summary charges of harassment,...
Biden-Harris caravan, rally planned in Alle-Kiski Valley
A caravan and rally are being held in the Alle-Kiski Valley this weekend in an attempt to drive up support for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his running mate, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris. Harrison’s Rachel Miller created a Facebook group called “Local Biden-Harris Rally” to drum up support for...
Burglary, assault and drug charges among cases handled in South Park and Brentwood courts recently
District court judges South Park and Brentwood handled these criminal cases from Oct. 12-20. Defendants will have court dates set in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Judge Michael W. Thatcher, South Park • William Charles King, 33, of Pittsburgh on charges of driving without a license, driving while...
McCandless votes to end pursuit of term limits for council, other reforms
McCandless council has nixed a proposal to ask voters to decide whether term limits and other changes affecting council should be imposed. The decision not to move forward with the reforms was made following a lengthy discussion during the Oct. 12 council meeting because some members of council felt the...
Portion of Kittanning Street in Etna to close for a month
A stormwater project off Kittanning Street in Etna will close a portion of the road for about a month. Work is expected to begin Oct. 26 and will target the section between Sharps Hill Road and Route 8, where recent paving was diverting stormwater and causing the road to deteriorate....
Conservation district officials praise Murrysville’s environmental efforts
Westmoreland Conservation District officials had nothing but praise for Murrysville, the first collective entity — as opposed to an individual or group — to earn its annual Conservation Partnership Award. “Murrysville’s leadership and citizens are very progressive, and they’ve led the way with a lot of conservation ‘firsts’ — installing...
Pa. in peak season for number of ticks carrying Lyme disease
While most Lyme disease cases are confirmed in the summer, October and November are when the number of adult ticks carrying Lyme disease is highest and they are most active, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection. “The adult ticks are emerging now and they are here to do...
Film Pittsburgh Fall Festival goes online, as executive director nears 2 decades at helm
Kathryn Spitz Cohan began her tenure at what is now Film Pittsburgh just after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The executive director enters her 20th season amid another life-changing time – the covid-19 pandemic. Film Pittsburgh screens independent films from around the world, for themed festivals, and holds...
Plans move ahead for Blue Angels’ return to Westmoreland airshow in 2021
Beset by the covid-19 pandemic and construction at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport that has slashed commercial passenger traffic by 60%, the Westmoreland County Airport Authority is turning the page on 2020 and planning the return of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels next year. The flight demonstration squadron based in Pensacola,...
Drugs, assault, DUIs among charges filed in Carnegie, Scott courts
District court judges in Bridgeville, Scott and Carnegie handled these criminal cases from Oct. 12-19. Defendants will have court dates set in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Judge Jack R. Kobistek, Carnegie • Letoria Harrison, 26, of Greensburg on charges of burglary, criminal trespass, loitering and prowling at...
