Local category, Page 2996
Mt. Pleasant tabs veteran officer George Grippo as new police chief
Mt. Pleasant leaders didn’t look far for a new police chief. Borough council members this week appointed interim Chief George Grippo to permanently head the force of nine officers. “I’m really excited about the challenge ahead,” Grippo said. Mayor Jerry Lucia said council was swayed by Grippo’s work ethic and...
Jeannette school director accused of stealing band group money free on bond
A Jeannette City school director accused of taking thousands from the district’s band parents association is free on $5,000 unsecured bond. Karen Ann Welshons, 56, was arraigned Tuesday morning on two theft counts filed Monday by Westmoreland County detectives. She was ordered to have no contact with any members of...
Quaker Valley, South Park boys tennis teams to meet in WPIAL Class AA semifinals
The Quaker Valley boys tennis team will face South Park on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. at Mt. Lebanon in the semifinals of the WPIAL Class AA tournament. The Quakers, the Section 2-AA champions, defeated Knoch 5-0 in the first round and Mt. Pleasant 5-0 in the quarterfinals. The other semifinal...
Multi-vehicle crash reported on I-79 south
A multi-vehicle crash on I-79 south Tuesday morning caused traffic delays on the Neville Island Bridge. The crash occurred just north of Exit 65, according to 511pa.com. The Neville Island Bridge was down to a single lane but has since reopened, PennDOT spokeswoman Yasmeen Manyisha said. Motorists were advised to...
Sheetz launches its own craft beer brewed with coffee beansVideo
Sheetz has almost everything, so it was only a matter of time until it rolled out its own craft beer. Altoona-based Sheetz is collaborating with Rusty Rail Brewing Company of Mifflinburg to unveil the convenience store’s first ever craft beer, Project Coffee Hopz, a limited edition coffee bean IPA. The...
Man shot in leg in Pittsburgh’s East Hills neighborhood
A man was shot in the leg in Pittsburgh’s East Hills neighborhood early Tuesday, according to police. The shooting was reported just before 3:30 a.m. in the 8600 block of Bricelyn Street. Pittsburgh police officers were called to the scene for reports of a shooting. When they arrived, they found...
Occupants safe after Beaver County house catches fire
A Beaver County couple managed to make it safely out of their home after it caught on fire Tuesday morning. The fire was reported about 4:30 a.m. on Thompson Hill Road in Independence Township, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. Officials told WPXI the blaze appeared to have started in...
Missing Whitehall woman presumed dead, McKeesport handyman a suspect
A missing Whitehall woman is presumed dead and her handyman is the main suspect in the case, according to court documents related to the case. Elizabeth Wiesenfeld, 67, last spoke to her family the evening of April 29, according to Allegheny County police. Her daughter reported her missing the next...
Hampton library proves to be busy spot
With more than 117,000 items checked out in 2018, it shows there is real interest and appreciation for Hampton’s Community Library, said director Suzanna Krispli, who provided her annual overview of the library’s activities to the Hampton Township Council at their April 24 meeting. Furthermore, the eLibrary had 32,405 items...
Road maintenance on track for Hampton
An award of contracts totaling $1,001,792 was approved for the 2019 Road Resurfacing Program at the April 24 Hampton Township Council meeting. These roads are part of the new 10-year pavement maintenance plan implemented for Hampton Township’s 2019 budget that was approved last December. There were four contracts with three...
Brackenridge police ‘desperate for applicants,’ councilman says
Back in September, Brackenridge officials issued a desperate call for part-time police applicants. Eight months later, that situation hasn’t changed. The borough continues to find itself as part of an alarming trend plaguing small municipalities throughout the Alle-Kiski Valley. “We’re desperate for applicants,” Councilman John Stanzione said Thursday. “We will...
Franklin Regional budget proposal would hike taxes by 2.2 mills
Franklin Regional school board will take the first step next week toward adopting a 2019-20 budget that includes a 2.2-mill tax hike. The board’s May 13 meeting will include a vote to adopt a proposed final budget of $59.7 million. That is about $1.45 million more than this year’s budget....
Oakmont taps Penn Township public works director as new borough manager
Oakmont officials hired former Penn Township Public Works Director Scot Fodi as their new borough manager. Council made it official via unanimous vote at a special meeting Monday night. “I love municipal work,” Fodi said after the meeting. “I look for any opportunity to get back into a manager’s position....
Things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week
Looking for something to do in Plum and Oakmont this week? Here are some suggestions:Oakmont Carnegie Library hosts Gentle Yoga with instructor Cora Fetchko 10:30-11:30 a.m. Tuesday at 700 Allegheny River Blvd. The program is suitable for all levels and no registration is necessary.Meditation with a Monk is set for...
Beaver County man pleads guilty to producing, sharing child porn
A Beaver County man admitted to producing child pornography in 2014 and sharing it online in 2015, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said Monday. Randolph Guy Gum, 25, a former resident of Rochester, Pa., pleaded guilty to three counts related to the sexual exploitation of a minor stemming from videos...
Friends of Murrysville Parks will host bird walk
The Friends of Murrysville Parks group will host a May 12 bird walk to identify the various species of birds in Duff Park. The walk will be at 7:30 a.m. Walkers will meet at the Pasture Rose trail head and park along the road opposite the trail, 4203 Round Top...
Get back to nature on the Butler-Freeport Community Trail
At times, the Butler- Freeport Community Trail seems to be a mere ribbon of pathway cutting through a landscape so large. Steep, rocky hillsides loom within a matter of miles of calmer and drier terrain of rolling farm fields, accounting for the trail’s variety and charm. Then there’s the lack...
Possible measles exposure at 3 more Pa. locations, including National Aviary, Squirrel Hill
Visitors and workers at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh’s North Side, a Squirrel Hill restaurant and an Avalon thrift shop may have been exposed to measles last month, health officials said Monday. The Allegheny County Health Department confirmed last week four new cases of measles, all from members of the...
An Arnold tax preparer pleads guilty to filing false federal income tax returns
A tax preparer for Cititax Refund Co. in Pittsburgh pleaded guilty in federal court to aiding or assisting in the preparation or filing of false federal income tax returns. Authorities said Daniel K. Hamilton of Arnold prepared federal income tax returns for other persons that included false Schedule C information,...
Meetings set for economic study of Laurel Highlands water improvements
Efforts to improve water quality in local streams create an estimated annual economic benefit of $278 million in the Loyalhanna Creek watershed. That’s according to the preliminary draft of a regional study, “Valuing Clean Water,” that looks to calculate such a figure for 21 sub-watersheds within the Loyalhanna-Conemaugh and Youghiogheny...
Assault, drug cases among those recently handled in Judge DeLuca’s Penn Hills court – May 6, 2019
Penn Hills District Judge Anthony L. DeLuca handled the following cases recently. Defendants will have court dates set in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. Charges were filed by Penn Hills police unless otherwise noted. Held for courtDinisha Smith, 38, of Pittsburgh on charges of retail theft, tampering with physical evidence...
Castle Shannon police, FBI searching for suspected bank robber
Federal and local authorities on Monday asked for help in identifying a man suspected of robbing a Castle Shannon bank last week. The robbery happened at about 1:30 p.m. April 29 at the Dollar Bank on Castle Shannon Boulevard, according to Castle Shannon police Chief Kenneth Truver. Investigators said the...
Deadline approaching to sign up for Ross Twp. youth summer rec program
Slots are still open for kids interested in attending Ross Township’s youth summer recreation program. May 15 is the deadline to register for weeks two through eight of the program, which will run from June 17 to July 18. Morning sessions, which will be held from 8 a.m. to noon...
New Kensington man gets up to 20 years in prison for raping child
A New Kensington man will serve up to 20 years in prison for raping a child. Edward McNeal, 63, pleaded guilty Monday to charges that he had sex with a 9-year-old girl and continued the sexual assaults for another seven years. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Rita Hathaway ordered McNeal...
Westmoreland Bar Association survey ranks Michael Stewart II top judicial candidate
A Westmoreland County Bar Association survey of lawyers ranked Greensburg attorney Michael Stewart II at the top of the group of six candidates seeking two judicial openings on the Common Pleas Court. Stewart was “highly recommended” by 50% of the 180 county lawyers who participated in the survey circulated over...
