Victims identified in double fatal Mt. Pleasant Township motorcycle crash
Two residents of Greensburg were killed in a motorcycle crash Tuesday night on Route 819, according to information released by the Westmoreland County coroner. Timothy P. Kuhns, 50, was driving a Harley-Davidson motorcycle north on Route 819 in Mt. Pleasant Township just before 8 p.m. when he lost control around...
Fire damages attic, basement of former South Huntingdon coffee shop
Fire damaged a former coffee shop in South Huntingdon Township on Tuesday evening. According to a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher, fires were found in the basement and the attic of the former Breaktime Coffee Services building, located at 2246 First St. in Wyano. No one was found in the building...
Blaze on Brunot reignites interest in historic Pittsburgh island
It’s certainly no Herr’s, much less a Neville. But Brunot Island — small, scrappy and often overlooked locally compared to its better-known cousins — is no slouch when it comes to its place in Pittsburgh history. Nestled snugly in the Ohio River just a few miles from The Point and...
Embattled Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer could go to sheriff’s sale
The Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer could go to sheriff’s sale this fall. According to court filings, a notice of sheriff’s sale for real estate that includes the mall property will be held at 9 a.m. Oct. 2 in the Allegheny County Courthouse. Filings indicate Pitt Galleria Reality LLC, Pitt...
Judge sets bond for Chicago man charged in Westmoreland catalytic converter thefts
A Chicago man awaiting trial on charges that he was part of a multicounty catalytic converter theft ring can be released from jail if he posts $750,000 bail, a Westmoreland County judge ruled Tuesday. Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio ordered Christian Buie, 32, to post three, $250,000 straight cash bonds if he...
Upper Lawrenceville development would renovate old fire house, bring mixed-rate housing and retail
A proposed development in Pittsburgh’s Upper Lawrenceville would revitalize an old fire house and include mixed-income housing and a dog park. Illinois-based Albion Residential is looking to develop a Butler Street property by bringing the former fire house into reuse and constructing a new 354,000-square-foot apartment complex at a site...
Allegheny County Jail inmate who died over the weekend identified
A man who died in Allegheny County Jail over the weekend was identified Tuesday as Douglas Bonomo, 59, of McKeesport. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet provided a cause or manner of death. Bonomo, an inmate at the jail, was pronounced dead by paramedics around 7:20 a.m....
Westmoreland County nears goal of 250 monarch butterfly way stations
Westmoreland County is more than halfway through its goal of establishing 250 way stations for monarch butterflies this year. The goal was set in conjunction with the county’s 250th anniversary. To date, 165 monarch way stations have been established. FirstEnergy and the Westmoreland Pollinators Partners consortium are assisting in the...
Freeport chalk festival to challenge artists, promote the borough
Freeport has a storied past, a rejuvenated present and an up-and-coming future. Local business owners are encouraging artists to depict that on borough sidewalks during a chalk festival this weekend. The second annual Freeport Chalk Art Celebration will take place Friday, July 28 and Saturday, July 29 along Fifth Street....
Witness testifies that Pittsburgh synagogue shooter saved his life as a teen
When Pittsburgh synagogue shooter Robert Bowers was a teenager, he saved a friend who was struggling to stay afloat in the Monongahela River. Frank Ray testified Tuesday in federal court that he and other boys went to find a rope swing hanging underneath the Glenwood Bridge and go swimming in...
Lower Burrell woman accused of stalking neighbor on same day she was ordered to trial on stalking charge
Lower Burrell police charged a woman with a felony count of stalking on the day a judge ordered her to stand trial for the same charge filed against her late last year, according to authorities. Shannon Lee Marie Dotto, 44, of the 7200 block of Guyer Road in Lower Burrell...
Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh workers seek to unionize
About 100 workers at the Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh are seeking to unionize with the United Steelworkers union. It’s the latest in a series of efforts to organize workplaces in the region and nationally at a time when more workers are going on strike — or have been on...
Police stop driver at gunpoint after hit-and-run in New Kensington
An Arnold man was arrested at gunpoint Sunday after police said he hit a parked vehicle and led them on a brief pursuit while driving a pickup with one tire completely blown off. New Kensington police charged Raymond G. Slater, 25, of the 1600 block of Woodmont Street with fleeing...
Man found critically injured in Downtown Pittsburgh hotel
A 41-year-old man was found unresponsive and bleeding from his head Monday night in the lobby of the Even Hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh, city police said. The man was taken to the hospital in critical condition after he was found around 7 p.m. Police said a suspect, Heiko-Lamar Calhoun, 26,...
Follow the yellow brick road … to Artfest in Vandergrift
Karen Shoop of Springdale has fond childhood memories of visiting Vandergrift with her grandfather. “We went there all the time to visit my aunt and uncle,” said Shoop, a Realtor and amateur painter. Shoop is prepping to follow the yellow brick road back to Vandergrift to attend the upcoming “Wizard...
Fitzgerald, Catena spar over vetoed Allegheny County property assessment bill
Two of Allegheny County’s top elected officials are trading barbs over a bill that sought to address the county’s property tax assessment role. Allegheny County Council passed a bill by a 9-6 vote early this month to establish a new chief assessment officer appointed by council that would render calculations...
Railroad maintenance to trigger detour for motorists in Sewickley Township
A section of Lowber Road in Sewickley Township will be closed beginning Monday as crews from CSX Transportation perform maintenance on a railroad crossing. Depending on weather conditions, the road is set to close at 7 a.m., between Sutersville and Cool Springs roads. The closure is expected to continue through...
City’s office cleaners march in Pittsburgh ahead of contract negotiations
Dozens of unionized office cleaners marched to Pittsburgh’s City-County Building on Tuesday to call for better wages and support. Their current four-year labor agreement — which covers more than 1,200 office cleaners in Pittsburgh — expires at the end of October. The workers are represented by the 32BJ SEIU union....
Police say speeding vehicle led to Route 22 crash in Salem
An Ohio man was speeding westbound on Route 22 in Salem Tuesday morning just before a crash that snarled traffic on the highway for hours, according to state police. Ricardo P. Hardy, 22, was driving a Volkswagen SUV in the center of Route 22 and slammed into the back of...
State police crack down on unsafe driving in work zones through Orange Squeeze initiative
State troopers plan to crack down on unsafe behaviors in work zones on the Turnpike through their “Operation Orange Squeeze” program this summer. The program, which began nearly a decade ago in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, sees troopers from Troop T monitoring work zones using construction vehicles in...
Bean Bootmobile makes Plum appearance
You’ve heard of the Batmobile. Now picture a 13-foot-high, 20-foot-long, road-ready replica of a famous brand of footwear. That’s the Bootmobile, created for the venerable outdoor-oriented company L.L.Bean, and the shoe-shaped vehicle made a recent stop at the Sampson Family YMCA in Plum. “We are out on the road to...
Pittsburgh man jailed after New Kensington police say he attacked woman in vehicle
A man from Pittsburgh’s Lincoln-Lemington neighborhood was sent to the Westmoreland County jail on Monday after he was arraigned on charges stemming from an alleged assault of a New Kensington woman at her home and in her vehicle. New Kensington police on Sunday charged Joshua Adam Shaw, 32, with simple...
DA Zappala’s son charged with assault in connection with alleged domestic dispute
The son of Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. has been arrested in connection with a domestic incident, police said. Stephen John Zappala, 31, of Ben Avon Heights, was charged by Ohio Township police Sunday with simple assault and harassment, court records show. He was arraigned early Monday...
Jeannette man faces arson charges in February fire at abandoned home
A Jeannette man is accused of going into an abandoned house in February twice in about seven minutes before it went up in flames, according to court papers. Jeannette police said they used surveillance video to track Jason Anthony John’s movements on Feb. 15, tying him to an arson at...
3-vehicle crash leads to chemical spill on I-79
A pickup involved in a three-vehicle crash Tuesday morning spilled pest-control chemicals along Interstate 79 in North Strabane. Washington County 911 dispatchers said two people were injured in the wreck and taken to a local hospital. The highway was shut down until responders cleared the scene around 7 a.m. Dispatchers...
