Death penalty on the table for Fayette women accused of killing 9-year-old
Fayette County prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against two women accused in the death of 9-year-old Renesmay Eutsey. District Attorney Mike Aubele said notices of aggravating circumstances were filed Friday against both suspects — Sarah Shipley, 35, and Kourtney Eutsey, 31, both of Dunbar Borough. The aggravating circumstances prosecutors...
Road work to alter traffic on Coxcomb Hill Road for weeks
Drainage improvement work that will shift traffic on Coxcomb Hill Road in Plum is set to begin Monday, Nov. 24. The work will last until mid-December, according to a release from PennDOT. The shift will take place between Hulton and Logans Ferry roads weekdays between from 8 a.m. and 4...
3 men charged in White Oak fatal shooting of motorcyclist
Three men are facing charges in connection with the fatal shooting of a motorcyclist in White Oak. On Friday, Victor Cruz, 27, Albert Renchko, 36, and Jacob Baker, 33, were charged in the Oct. 12 shooting death of 33-year-old Kenneth Hayman. Allegheny County dispatchers were notified that day of a...
How Westmoreland County uses blue ‘pills’ to break more than 200 election ties
Brian Carnahan didn’t even know he’d be a candidate for public office until he cast a write-in vote for himself on Election Day. That single vote was enough to put him into a five-way tie for the position of inspector of elections at his Jeannette 5th Ward precinct for the...
East Deer joins Lower Valley Ambulance Service
The future of emergency medical service in East Deer is no longer up in the air after the township commissioners agreed to use Lower Valley Ambulance Service. According to Commissioner’s Chairman Tony Taliani, East Deer was considering two options for EMS services. The other was the proposed paid EMS authority...
PennDOT preps for opening all lanes of I-70 ‘diverging diamond’ interchange in Rostraver
PennDOT plans on Tuesday to open the new Diverging Diamond interchange along Interstate 70 in Rostraver to two lanes of traffic in each direction on Route 51. The interchange was partially opened in July, with a single lane of Route 51 traffic crossing above the interstate in each direction. On...
Patron’s shuttered East Liberty liquor license transferred to Hard Rock Cafe International
Patron Mexican Grill on Highland Avenue in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood has permanently closed. The restaurant at 135 S. Highland Ave. is boarded up with tan paper covering the windows. However, according to TribLive observations Wednesday, some of the light fixtures were turned on inside the establishment. There is a...
Tull Family Foundation awards over $2M to boost high school athletics
Augustine Hanover spent last season with the Obama Academy boys soccer team practicing on a beat-up baseball field pocked with holes. “We have 10-year-old jerseys and not enough soccer balls,” said Hanover, a Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy student. On Friday, the 16-year-old joined dozens of student-athletes in the school’s...
Hempfield business owner gives back with 50 turkey donations this Thanksgiving
When Hempfield business owner Kris Wilkins was a child, holidays were a financially stressful time of year for his family. That’s why Wilkins, owner of Beautiful Kitchens along North Greengate Road, is donating 50 turkeys to local families in need — no questions asked. “I didn’t have much money growing...
Faces of the Valley: Giuseppe Lopreiato of Brackenridge credits old-school work ethic — and wine — for success
Giuseppe Lopreiato immigrated from Italy in 1960 with nothing but a strong work ethic and a knack for making wine. His wife, Maria, came first, settling with family in Brackenridge. Lopreiato stayed behind in his native Sant’Onofrio, working as a farmer and saving money to eventually follow. “It’s good here,”...
Judge blasts ‘off the wall’ statement by wife stabber before sending him to prison
A former actor and movie producer from South Fayette was ordered this week to serve 7½ to 15 years in state prison for attempting to kill his wife as she slept. John Mowod, 61, pleaded guilty in August to attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and stalking stemming from the...
Fayette commissioners create education authority in response to Penn State campus closure
The Fayette County commissioners have created an educational authority, a proactive measure they said could help address the future of the Penn State Fayette campus property. The university plans to close the 100-acre North Union campus in 2027. The three commissioners unanimously established the Fayette County Educational Authority, which will...
No property tax increase expected for East Deer
East Deer residents are not expected to see a township tax increase in 2026. According to Commissioner’s Chairman Tony Taliani, revenue is projected to be just under $1.7 million and expenditures are expected to fall just over $1.5 million. “We’re very proud there was no tax increase,” Taliani said. “(The...
Delmont police will host collection drive to benefit Westmoreland Food Bank
The Westmoreland Food Bank was still feeling pressure from food insecurity during the covid pandemic when the federal government shutdown this fall created additional strain. “We didn’t feel like we were fully dug out yet from the pandemic, let alone ready to start handling another crisis,” said food bank Executive...
Springdale releases survey for future of Veterans Memorial Field
Springdale residents can now offer up ideas for the future of Veterans Memorial Field in a brief survey released by the borough. The survey is part of an effort by a committee formed by the borough to determine what’s next for the now-vacant property. While the questionnaire — which asks...
No property tax increase included in Oakmont’s proposed 2026 budget
Oakmont Council has approved a preliminary budget for next year that calls for no increase in property tax. Councilman John Arnold was the lone vote against the budget, which passed 6-1 on Tuesday, Nov. 18. Total revenue is projected to be just over $6 million. The borough is expecting just...
Station Square bought by Massachusetts-based real estate firm
The core of Station Square — the struggling restaurant, entertainment and office complex on Pittsburgh’s South Shore — is under new ownership. Massachusetts-based WS Development announced Friday it purchased a huge chunk of the center along the Monongahela River from New York-based Brookfield Properties. “Station Square is an iconic place...
Pittsburgh police sergeant charged with 2nd DUI offense
A Pittsburgh police sergeant has been charged with DUI for the second time in less than five years. Both incidents occurred in Plum, the hometown of Sgt. Tariq Jamal-Francis, 44. The latest incident happened Nov. 10, just before midnight, when Plum police said they found Jamal-Francis asleep at the wheel...
Morning Roundup: Peoples Gas Holiday Market set to open in new location
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Firday, Nov. 21: Peoples Gas Holiday Market set to open in new location Pittsburgh’s annual Peoples Gas Holiday Market opens Friday in a new location, in the city’s Cultural District. Visitors will be able to browse offerings of local...
The Carnegie Carnegie welcomes social work intern McKay Brooks
As we move into the colder months, many of our friends and neighbors are facing challenging times. The long shutdown of the federal government led to a great deal of confusion and uncertainty, especially for public employees and people who rely on the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)....
Education leaders applaud state budget that adds $900M in new funding for school districts
Education is the centerpiece of Pennsylvania’s 2025-26 budget. At least that’s what Laura Boyce took away from the funding plan for the state’s 500 K-12 public schools, approved last week after a 4½-month impasse. “There were a lot of hard decisions that had to be made as the governor’s original...
2025 Christmas events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
F Leechburg Lower Burrell • The Christmas parade will begin at 7 p.m. Dec. 20 at the former Stewart School on Leechburg Road. Lineup will be at 6 p.m. The event was postponed due to the weather. To register, contact Rich Lange at RichLang54@yahoo.com. New Kensington Tarentum ith Santa and...
The Stroller, Nov. 21, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Festival of Trees raffle...
Norwin students: giving so others can share a similar holiday experience
A group of Norwin High School students gave of money that students raised and gave of their time Thursday to shop for and shelve groceries at an Irwin food pantry to help less fortunate families. “The food bank is really important,” said Lizzy Martina, a junior who is her class’...
Inadequate payment for services nudges small health systems like Independence toward merger, officials say
The merger of smaller regional hospital systems such as Independence Health with a larger health system — this one from West Virginia — is likely being driven, in part, by hospitals hurting from insufficient reimbursement for the cost of treating patients, a Pittsburgh-based health care consultant said. West Virginia University...
