Western PA Local News category, Page 3233
Penn Hills School District officials request investigation into grand jury report
Penn Hills School District officials want state Attorney General Josh Shapiro to investigate after an Allegheny County grand jury report netted no indictments. “We are not accepting them,” board President Erin Vecchio said of the grand jury report’s results. “People should have been indicted. All it was was a smear...
UPMC says it’s eclipsed Highmark in Medicare Advantage insurance market, Aetna gains
UPMC boasted this week that the health system’s insurance arm has eclipsed Pittsburgh-based rival Highmark in attracting Medicare Advantage insurance members and now dominates that market in Western Pennsylvania. “We’ve grown dramatically,” said Diane Holder, president of UPMC’s Insurance Services Division. “We are now the largest provider of Medicare Advantage...
Kiski Township’s Staff Sgt. Booker to receive second-highest military honor for 2003 battle
Sixteen years to the day after he died defending fellow soldiers in Iraq, Army Staff Sgt. Stevon Booker will posthumously be presented the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second highest military award for bravery. A special Army ceremony will be held starting at 10 a.m. April 5 in Soldiers &...
Kidney Gift of Life Gala supports National Kidney Foundation
More than 500 guests are expected the annual Kidney Gift of Life Gala at Heinz Field on March 9. The event raises money for the National Kidney Foundation and promotes awareness about the prevention and treatment of kidney disease. Joy Starzl, wife of Dr. Thomas E. Starzl, will receive the...
Penn Township crash results in multiple injuries
Emergency crews were dispatched to assist multiple patients in a two-vehicle crash Wednesday evening in Penn Township. The crash occurred shortly before 7 p.m. on Route 130 near Pine Hollow Road, in the Level Green area. A van and a sport utility vehicle were involved in the wreck, which was...
August Wilson Cultural Center searching for artists’ input for upcoming exhibition
The art exhibition “Race and Revolution: Still Separate — Still Unequal” will be on display at the August Wilson Cultural Center in Downtown Pittsburgh from April 27 to July 21. The exhibit examines racial and economic disparities in the U.S. public school system. Curated by Katie Fuller and Larry Ossei-Mensah,...
South Park man accused of possessing and distributing child pornography
A South Park man was indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. Federal authorities said the two-count indictment was against 60-year-old Michael Moran. According to indictment, Moran distributed visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct from Aug. 15...
Trial for Rahmael Holt, charged with killing Officer Brian Shaw, postponed until August
The capital murder trial of a Harrison man charged with the November 2017 shooting death of a New Kensington police officer has been postponed until August. The attorney for Rahmael Sal Holt, 30, said in court Wednesday that he needed more time to prepare for trial, which had been scheduled...
Tree of Life appoints interim leader
Four months to the day since a gunman attacked and killed 11 of its congregants, the Tree of Life synagogue has announced the hiring of a new leader. Local business executive William J. O’Rourke has been named the congregation’s interim executive director. Prior to the Oct. 27 massacre, Tree of...
Egg watch is on for the Harmar bald eagles
Egg-ticipation is in full swing at the Harmar bald eagle nest, although there is no webcam to confirm the details. The Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania is expected to confirm any day that the eagles have at least one egg based upon their behavior at the nest. This is the...
Prosecutors want John Kunco’s attorneys to turn over evidence in rape retrial
Westmoreland County prosecutors want defense lawyers for a former Harrison man accused of a brutal rape in New Kensington nearly three decades ago to turn over evidence that could be used during a retrial. Assistant District Attorneys Barbara Jollie and James Hopson filed court documents Wednesday seeking reports and mental...
Former cop facing drug charges in connection to death of teen girl
A former narcotics detective has been arrested for allegedly bringing drugs into a Beechview home where a 15-year-old died of an overdose. Stamp bags from the bedroom of the 15-year-old allegedly matched stamp bags found in the room of Daniel Bondi, Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Wednesday. The girl died...
North Hills playing host to spring Community Pep Rally on March 11
The North Hills School District is holding a spring Community Pep Rally at 7 p.m. on March 11 in the annex gym at the middle school. Members of the spring varsity track, lacrosse, softball, baseball, boys’ tennis and boys’ volleyball teams will be introduced. Everybody who attends the free event...
Hempfield officials find $125,000 union settlement agreement not done in public eye
A $125,000 settlement agreement made between Hempfield officials and a union in 2017 was not done in the public eye, a township review found. The agreement was put under review in January when Supervisor Rob Ritson called for a state audit. The deal was executed without a corresponding vote or...
Underground Railroad topic of next Ross Historical Society program
The Ross Historical Society will feature a program about the Underground Railroad at its next meeting at 6:30 p.m. on March 15. The program about the mid-19th century network of secret routes and safe houses in the United States used by slaves escaping to free states will be lead by...
Auditor General: Wilkinsburg schools have hope ‘for first time in generation’
The Wilkinsburg School District is finally heading in the right direction, state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale announced Wednesday. “We now have some hope in the Wilkinsburg School District, I think for the first time in probably a generation,” DePasquale said, unveiling the results of a recent audit, which covers July...
Walmart to allow more time for greeters with disabilities to adjust to new demands
Walmart’s decision to change the job requirements for its greeters has caused a national controversy as some believe it targets people with disabilities. But some disabled worker advocates say they haven’t seen any issues locally yet. Lisa Razza, spokeswoman with ACHIEVA, which works with people with disabilities in Allegheny and...
Generators protect Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County from disruptions during power outages
Water continued to flow to the more than 120,000 Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County customers, even as thousands of residents continued to deal with power outages caused by recent wind storms. Authority officials said Wednesday the water system is relying on generators at nine pump stations where power has been...
Pittsburgh poised to spend nearly $1M on water safety training, new rescue boat
Pittsburgh is poised to spend nearly $1 million on a new River Rescue boat and water safety training for firefighters, paramedics and police officers who staff River Rescue crafts and the city fire boat. City Council on Wednesday gave preliminary approval for a three-year, $360,000 contract with Lexington, Ky.-based National...
U.S. Attorney will not charge Pittsburgh police officers in Kopy’s brawl
The U.S. Attorney’s Office on Wednesday announced it will not file charges against the undercover Pittsburgh police officers involved in a brawl with members of the Pagans motorcycle club at a South Side bar last year. The FBI was investigating whether there were any civil rights violations by the officers....
Larry Richert to host KDKA history program at McCandless museum
The McCandless/Northern Allegheny Heritage Center will play host to a program featuring TV personality Larry Richert at 6 p.m. on March 13. Richert’s program will focus on the history of KDKA-TV, which is one of the nation’s pioneering commercial television stations. Richert is a native of the North Hills and...
Penn Hills residents warned to avoid contaminating recyclables
Penn Hills’ contracted waste service company is cracking down on contaminated recyclables. Republic Services sent a letter to the municipality saying it will be paying close attention to what residents are putting in their bins. “Residents may have service delayed or not occur if unacceptable levels of contamination are inside...
Loyalhanna Watershed Association farm preserved by state agriculture board
Bluebirds and foxes can call a Ligonier Township farm home for good now that the 120-acre tract has been preserved by the state. “It’s a huge thing for us and for, I think, our neighbors to know that” the farm was safeguarded, said Susan Huba, director of the Loyalhanna Watershed...
Shiras Street in Pittsburgh’s Beechview neighborhood to close for 5 days
Pittsburgh will close Shiras Avenue in Beechview for about five days starting Monday during a repair project, the Mayor’s Office announced Wednesday. The street running from Candace Street to Palm Beach Avenue will be closed while a Department of Public Works crew builds a retaining wall along the street. The...
Bridgeville driver license center temporarily closed
The driver license and photo center in Bridgeville is temporarily closed while state transportation officials relocate the office for a Friday opening. The PennDOT announced the closure Wednesday. The Department of Motor Vehicle site at the Chartiers Valley Shopping Center at 1025 Washington Pike, Route 50, in Bridgeville closed Tuesday...
