Local category, Page 3047
Verona officer commended for saving missing woman unknowingly in medical danger
A Verona police officer is being hailed a hero for finding a missing borough woman who unknowingly needed serious medical attention. Resident Joann Semencar was reported missing Feb. 26 around 11:20 p.m. Police Chief Ron McLemore said she had reportedly left her home on the cold, windy evening in search...
Harmar board rules Feeding the Flock is not a church, leaders to decide next step
Harmar’s zoning hearing board decided Thursday to deny Feeding the Flock’s request to move into a former church and run a house of worship and food pantry. The nonprofit organization had hoped to move into the former Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses building at 490 Nixon Road. The zoning officer...
Arnold expects to start demolition process on 10 abandoned houses soon
The planned project to demolish 10 abandoned houses in Arnold could begin by the end of the month. Community Development Director Rick Rayburg hopes to take the first step, advertising for contract bids, to take place by the end of April or beginning of May. Rayburg has started the city’s...
Coraopolis man gets 2 years in prison, must pay $2.3M for evading payroll taxes
A Coraopolis man who tried to skirt four years of payroll taxes he owed to the IRS will spend two years behind bars, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Amarender Tiparthy, 50, owner of a software and IT consulting firm, also must pay restitution in the amount of $2.28 million — the...
3 adults, 3 kids injured when SUV crashes into bus near Andy Warhol Museum
Six people, including three children, were injured Thursday afternoon when a car collided with a Port Authority bus near the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh’s North Side. Five passengers on the bus were injured as well as the driver of the car, according to Port Authority of Allegheny County spokesman...
Shooter in Latrobe robbery-turned-murder gets life in prisonVideo
More than three years after their son and brother was gunned down trying to break up a robbery in Latrobe, the McNerny family told a Westmoreland County judge they still struggle with grief and anger toward the men involved in the robbery plot that led to the murder. One of...
Rap legend Chuck D, Trayvon Martin’s mom to speak at Cal U
Chuck D, the legendary founder of rap group Public Enemy, and Sybrina Fulton, mother of the late Trayvon Martin, will speak together this month at California University of Pennsylvania. The two will be part of an April 25 panel discussion on “Social Justice, Mental Health and the Hip-hop Generation,” with...
Derry Twp. man wants out of jail to await trial for drug delivery resulting in death
The lawyer for a Derry Township man charged with selling the drugs used in the fatal overdose of a Greensburg man last year said he should released from jail as he awaits trial. Defense attorney Patricia Elliott-Rentler in court documents filed Thursday said it has taken too long to bring...
Pittsburgh URA approves contracts to prepare new Downtown office space
The Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority on Thursday unanimously approved contracts totaling up to $3.2 million for construction, partitioning and furnishing new offices at a building the city bought last year along the Boulevard of the Allies. The URA, Pittsburgh Housing Authority and city government will share the costs of repaying...
Greensburg’s SummerSounds raising money to book Russian Chicago cover band
A Chicago cover band could come from Moscow to Greensburg this summer — if a GoFundMe campaign set up by SummerSounds organizers can raise enough money to make it happen. Concert series chairman Gene James said he’s been a fan of the Russian band Leonid and Friends for years, but...
Doctor to Pittsburgh’s homeless to keynote Point Park commencement
A Pittsburgh physician who launched Operation Safety Net, a nationally known street medicine program that serves the homeless, will be Point Park University’s featured commencement speaker on April 27 at PPG Paints Arena. Dr. Jim Withers, a physician with the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System and an assistant clinical professor of...
Pittsburgh URA board approves loan program for small businesses
Elaine Price said she never would have expanded her Hazelwood landscaping business — Floriated Interpretation — without a $19,000 loan provided by the Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority. Ryan Crisman said the URA’s small-business loan program helped him open a specialty men’s clothing shop in Lawrenceville six months ago. “I’m definitely...
3rd recycling event set for Lower Burrell
Lower Burrell Recycling Day — only for typical household items — is set for April 27. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. behind city hall at 2800 Bethel St. Residents can drop off a number of recyclable items including: Motor oil, automatic transmission fluid, kerosene,...
Annual mother-son dance to benefit Norwin Relay for Life
Know what your favorite sport is? You’ll need it for the All-Star Mother-Son Dance next month. Started last year by Relay for Life of Norwin youth ambassadors Tyler Funk and Andrew Sullivan, all proceeds go toward the June 1 event benefiting the American Cancer Society. “I’ve been involved (with Relay...
Investigators search 2 Westmoreland spots, 1 apparently for missing woman Cassandra Gross
Investigators convened at two places Thursday in Westmoreland County to search for missing women, including one who has not been seen in more than a year. Neither search turned up a body. Kathe and Harry Gross, the parents of missing Unity woman Cassandra Gross, waited along Beatty Flats Road while...
New charges filed against former Pittsburgh man in alleged robbery spree
A former Pittsburgh man accused of committing several armed robberies in late 2014 now faces additional charges in the case against him, according to U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady. George Wilson III, 37, has been in federal custody since being named in an 11-count indictment in June 2015. The new,...
Vietnam War exhibit opens at Heinz History CenterVideo
Anyone wondering about the lengths that the Sen. John Heinz History Center will go to create an authentic atmosphere for its new Vietnam War exhibit will find their answer about halfway through the collection. Sitting in the middle of an expansive gallery is the exhibit’s largest and most iconic artifact,...
Beef jerky store opening at Grove City Outlets
Looking to get beefed up? The new Beef Jerky Outlet at Grove City Outlets can help you do just that. Selling over 100 types of beef jerky, meat straws, sauces, rubs and more, the store, part of a national franchise, will open its doors April 17 at noon. The Grove...
Ranier Pharmacy in Jeannette moving forward after prolonged battle with FDA
Fran Ranier wants customers to know the Jeannette pharmacy he started 26 years ago is still open for business, despite recent inquiries to the contrary. “ ‘Oh, everybody thinks you’re closed,’ ” he said a recent caller told him. In February, Ranier shut down two parts of his operation that...
2 Southwestern Pennsylvania active-shooter incidents make FBI’s 2018 listVideo
Southwestern Pennsylvania made a list that no place wants to be on — the FBI’s active shooter incidents from 2018. The region appears twice, first with a shooting at the Masontown municipal building on Sept. 19 and then again Oct. 27 when 11 people were killed at Tree of Life...
More videos sought as hunt for Hopewell burglar continues
Authorities in Beaver County are seeking surveillance camera footage from April 6 to help them identify a hammer-wielding burglar who smashed a glass door to enter a house and steal a jewelry box on Grand Avenue in Hopewell. Hopewell police are seeking footage from between 3 and 4 a.m. from...
Trafford woman jailed after alleged attempt to fake drug test
A 25-year-old Trafford woman’s alleged plan to tamper with her court-ordered drug test was scuttled this week at the Westmoreland County Courthouse when a probation officer noticed her hide a pill bottle inside a garbage can. County park police charged Alyssa M. Ofchinick with providing an altered urine sample following...
Father of accused New Ken cop killer headed to court on intimidation charges
The father of a Harrison man accused of killing a New Kensington police officer in 2017 admitted he sent messages to a witness in his son’s case, a Westmoreland County detective testified Thursday. Gregory P. Baucum Jr., 48, of Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood is charged with felony witness intimidation and retaliation...
Annual craft show to benefit Hempfield parks
Hempfield Township is planning its second-annual craft and vendor show for May 4. Several crafters and vendors will gather from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Hempfield Township Athletic Complex, 220 Forbes Trail Road, where concessions, a 50/50 raffle and a basket raffle will be available. Benefiting the Hempfield...
McCandless apartment fire not deemed suspicious; donations sought
It will take several days to determine the cause of a fire that destroyed the 30-unit Durham Court Apartment building in McCandless on Wednesday, but an initial investigation found it likely ignited accidentally, according to fire officials. “The fire started on the deck of a third-floor apartment in the center...
