Local category, Page 2877
Pittsburgh attorney confirmed as federal judge
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed a K&L Gates attorney from Pittsburgh as a U.S. District Court judge in Pennsylvania’s Western District. J. Nicholas Ranjan, a managing partner with the firm, was nominated by President Trump in July 2018, according to a release from the firm. His term will begin...
Pittsburgh International ranks 7th on Travel & Leisure list of best U.S. airports
Readers of Travel & Leisure magazine rated Pittsburgh International Airport as the nation’s seventh-best airport, according to a survey published Wednesday. The Findlay Township airport dropped two spots from 2018, when it ranked fifth in the annual rankings, according to the magazine. Airports were rated in terms of access, check-in/security,...
Former Hempfield veterinarian seeking ARD in records copying case
A Penn Township woman charged with stealing records from a Hempfield veterinarian clinic will ask to be enrolled in a prison diversion program next month. In court documents filed Wednesday, the lawyer for Katherine Marraccini, 26, said she will seek admission to the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for first-time, nonviolent...
Youngwood mom blames daughter in assault of grandma during Steelers game
A Youngwood mother seeking to have her criminal charges dismissed has blamed her teenage daughter for the brutal attack of her grandmother as they watched a Pittsburgh Steelers preseason game on TV two years ago. In court documents filed this week, the lawyer for Delores Amorino, 42, said his client’s...
Walnut Street in Springdale reopens
Walnut Street in Springdale reopened Wednesday afternoon after being closed since Sunday. A portion of Walnut Street at the intersection with Porter Street was damaged after heavy rains Saturday caused water to get into a seam and lift and crack some of the asphalt. Borough crews had to dig up...
Hoboken church in Blawnox marks 140 years with ‘big party’
When Hoboken Presbyterian Church first opened its doors in 1879 — 140 years ago — parishioners turned out to worship in a small school building near the Allegheny County Work House. The congregation grew and moved to the cavernous red brick building on the corner of North Avenue, just off...
Sewickley Township officials condemn home due to ‘terrible living conditions’
Sewickley Township officials say a home on Fifth Street has been condemned due to “terrible living conditions,” said supervisor Brian Merdian. “We’ve been getting numerous complaints about the condition of the entire property particularly about garbage and trash mounting, odor, and animals roaming there for a few years,” Merdian said....
Kiski Township couple invites everyone to share fruits of their labor
The biggest, juiciest red raspberry of the season can barely contain itself, ripened to perfection but still hanging on the cane at a small farm along Kiski Township’s Old State Road. The perfection is by design as Martin Krezolek, 42, researched and planted what he believes are the best kinds...
Squirrel Hill chess grandmaster stays sharp before U.S. Senior Championship
Alex Shabalov prepares his mind and body for chess matches the way some elite athletes train for competition. Once a week for the past few weeks, the 51-year-old chess grandmaster has spent 90 minutes in the morning immersed in the salty, body-temperature water of a sensory deprivation tank. He takes...
Murrysville space enthusiast talks moon landing at Monroeville library
A self-described space enthusiast from Murrysville will commemorate the 50 years since a man landed on the moon by talking about his lunar-inspired art and sharing his experience seeing it live on television in 1969. The Monroeville Public Library is displaying Bob Bickers’ artwork through July. He will give a...
Graduates of former Bellevue High School hosting alumni picnic in North Park
Graduates of the former Bellevue High School are holding their 10th annual alumni reunion picnic Aug. 3 at the Rose Barn pavilion in North Park. Admission is free, but donations are being accepted to help support the event, which runs from 1 to 10 p.m. The picnic is open to...
Calumet VFD cancels drag queen bingo after low ticket sales, warnings from churches
A popular fundraiser at the Calumet Volunteer Fire Department that could have raised almost $8,000 has been canceled, leaving officials scrambling to find funds needed to repair and replace trucks and provide training to firefighters, said department secretary Robin Obarto. The Sparkling Queens of Drag, a group that performs drag...
Local magisterial courts to hear complaints filed by Pittsburgh’s DOMI
All civil complaints filed by Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure will be heard by district judges with jurisdiction over the neighborhood where an alleged violation occurred, according to a recent Allegheny County court order. DOMI sought a change because it found that judges familiar with a neighborhood had a...
Highlands hires new assistant superintendent from Wilkinsburg
Highlands School District has a new assistant superintendent. The school board hired Cathleen Cubelic, who has been an assistant superintendent in the Wilkinsburg School District since May 2017. She was hired with a starting salary of $126,000 under a three-year agreement. When she will start at Highlands is not yet...
Police: Penn Township woman failed to report suspected child sexual abuse
A Penn Township woman is accused of failing to report suspected child abuse involving a family member in May while she was considered a mandated reporter, according to court papers. Barbara Lynn Desmond, 55, was charged Tuesday by Greensburg police with failure to report. Police said Desmond was notified of...
Driver rescued after truck goes down Squirrel Hill hillside
Authorities say a driver was rescued after a tri-axle dump truck rolled over and went down a hillside in Pittsburgh. Officials in Allegheny County said the truck was carrying a load of asphalt at the time of the accident shortly before 11 a.m. Wednesday in the city’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood....
Bolivar man wanted for Indiana hotel shooting in custody; mom also arrested
While a Bolivar man was surrendering Wednesday in Indiana County in connection with a July 1 shooting at a hotel, state troopers 22 miles away in his hometown were arresting his mother for allegedly assisting in his purported drug-selling operation. State police in Indiana announced David Lee McGinnis, 26, of...
Pa. principal who wore blackface to take sabbatical, be teacher
GLEN ROCK — A Pennsylvania school principal who wore blackface to a staff meeting last year is taking a one-year sabbatical and will return as a teacher. The York Dispatch reports that minutes from a June 20 school board meeting indicate that Friendship Elementary School principal Lisa Boyer’s yearlong leave...
2 fined, face license revocations for illegal fishing in Armstrong County
Two men accused of keeping illegal fish from the Allegheny River in Armstrong County could lose their fishing licenses for two years and be forced to pay thousands of dollars in fines. A state Fish & Boat Commission officer said another fisherman called the commission May 7 to report that...
$10.6M settlement awarded to truck driver who lost legs in accident at Duquesne pipe yard
A Mercer man who had portions of both legs amputated six years ago after they were crushed in a Christmas Eve accident at a Duquesne pipe yard will receive a nearly $10.6 million settlement, attorneys announced Wednesday. Robert R. Ryder, 59, was a truck driver dropping off a load of...
Penn Hills launches aggressive anti-dumping campaign
Penn Hills is going to have the most aggressive anti-dumping campaign in Allegheny County, the municipality’s manager said during a news conference Wednesday. Penn Hills Manager Scott Andrejchak was joined by Councilman John Petrucci, Chief of Police Howard Burton and other staff to outline a new plan aimed at stopping...
3 North Allegheny seniors receive scholarships from McCandless Democratic Committee
The McCandless Democratic Committee has awarded a pair of $1,000 college scholarships to North Allegheny seniors — Nina Ruffolo and Roshie Xing. A third senior, Kacey Yip, received a $500 honorarium recognizing her high school achievements. The annual scholarship program is open to North Allegheny high school seniors who are...
Woman dies of injuries after being struck by train in Sutersville
A 28-year-old woman who was struck by a CSX train in Westmoreland County Tuesday has died of her injuries, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office. Crystal Dahlstrom of Aliquippa died Tuesday of her injuries at Jefferson Hospital in Jefferson Hills after being hit by a train in Sutersville,...
Presidential hopeful Kirsten Gillibrand to campaign in Pittsburgh
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand will bring her presidential campaign to Pittsburgh on Thursday. Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2009, is scheduled to meet with health care workers to discuss the rising cost of prescription drugs, according to a statement from the...
Chase Bank to fill long-vacant O’Hara property
Construction along Fox Chapel Road in O’Hara this fall will put an end to musings about potential projects for a former Sunoco gas station property. Council on July 9 approved a minor land development proposal by Chase Bank to build at 50 Fox Chapel Road, the previous longtime site of...
