Regional category, Page 351
Pennsylvania lawmaker Brian Ellis facing sex assault claim quits House
HARRISBURG — A Western Pennsylvania state lawmaker resigned Monday, two months after being stripped of a chairmanship over allegations he had sex with a woman against her will while she was blacked out. Republican state Rep. Brian Ellis, who has not been charged with any crime, wrote in a letter...
Gas prices continue climb as refinery issues raise concerns
Gasoline prices have been on the rise for five straight weeks with no signs of slowing down, a petroleum analyst said Monday. “Several perhaps major refinery issues flared up over the weekend, including fires at two facilities that could push wholesale gasoline prices up notably, mainly in the Pacific Northwest...
Police: Missing Blairsville woman found safe
A Blairsville woman who had been reported missing since early March has been located and is safe, state police in Indiana County said Tuesday. Jodi K. Leary, 44, a Blairsville native, was reported missing by her family Friday. Police said she’d last been seen by a family friend March 3...
Johnstown pediatrician gets at least 79 years for assaulting patients
EBENSBURG — A former Pennsylvania pediatrician was sentenced Monday to at least 79 years in prison for sexually assaulting 31 children, most of them patients, as his now-adult victims blasted not only their abuser but the system that let him get away with it for so long. Dr. Johnnie Barto...
Female Scouts BSA troop in Westmoreland takes inaugural camping trip
Friday night was far from the first time a group of Scouts braved the cold for a winter camping trip in the woods. It was, however, the first camping trip for a female Scouts BSA troop in Westmoreland County. “I’m actually, finally, part of a group,” said Greta Nicodemus, 11,...
2 killed, 4 injured in wrong-way crash on turnpike in Beaver CountyVideo
Two people were killed and four were injured in a head-on crash in Beaver County on Saturday because of a motorist was driving the wrong way on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, according to state police. Police identified those killed as William Paxton, 76, of Pittsburgh and Andrew Sworan, 36, of Cleveland....
Tragic deaths of Jonny Gammage and Antwon Rose twice put Pittsburgh in the spotlight
Western Pennsylvania over the span of nearly a quarter century has twice found itself at center stage of national outrage involving the deaths of black men at the hands of white police officers. The 1995 death of Jonny Gammage in the era of Rodney King and the L.A. riots focused...
Woman killed in hit-and-run crash in Fayette County
A pedestrian was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Dunbar Township, Fayette County on Friday evening, according to state police. The driver who struck the woman fled the scene and is at large. Police do not know what kind of vehicle he or she was driving. The crash happened on...
Washington DA appeals Supreme Court decision vacating homicide verdict in McClelland case
The Washington County District Attorney wants the state Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling that overturned a Mon Valley woman’s conviction of conspiracy to commit homicide in the 2011 death of her 92-year-old neighbor. The neighbor was murdered after being repeatedly burglarized by the inmate’s family. In his...
Don’t call it a comeback: Despite record busts, officials say cocaine never went away
Recent large seizures of cocaine locally and nationally make it seem as though the drug is making a comeback. It’s not. “It never really went away. There’s just, unfortunately, an abundant supply of it,” said Patrick Trainor, special agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. As Pennsylvania officials report an...
Party leaders convene to select nominees for 41st Senate district vacancy
Democratic and Republican committee members from a four-county area will meet this weekend to select candidates to run in a special election to fill the remaining term of former state Sen. Don White. White, R-Indiana, resigned from the seat he has held since 2001 at the end of February, leaving...
Police: Drunken Pa. man rides school bus to get closer to home
AMBLER, Pa. — Police say a 20-year-old intoxicated man got on a school bus hoping to be dropped off closer to his home but instead rode to a suburban Philadelphia high school and went inside. Lower Gwynedd Police say a student reported an unknown man at 7:25 a.m. Friday. The...
Feds: Penn State should not be permitted to trademark ‘Happy Valley’
Penn State officials are decidedly unhappy after the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office declined a request to trademark the “Happy Valley” nickname for university merchandise. “Happy Valley” is a longtime nickname for the State College area. However, it was that precise geographical association that factored into the office’s decision to...
Pa. Turnpike traffic restricted after tractor-trailer fire
One lane of the Pennsylvania Turnpike remains closed after an early-morning tractor-trailer fire. Traffic restrictions are in place along the westbound lanes, between the Cranberry and Beaver Valley exits. The truck driver’s condition was not clear. The truck was hauling tobacco products. The fire happened in North Sewickley Township, around...
Beaver Falls woman accused of misusing $13,000 in federal housing money
A Beaver Falls woman is accused of misusing about $13,500 of federal housing assistance payments. Janile Fielding, 56, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on Wednesday. According to the indictment, from about June 2013 until about May 2017, Fielding used housing assistance payments for her other expenses....
Second $10,000 state Leopold award offered to farmers, foresters
The state Farm Bureau is encouraging area farmers and foresters to apply for the Pennsylvania Leopold Conservation Award. The award honors people whose care and management of natural resources goes beyond what others do. The Sand County Foundation will present the Leopold Conservation Award to private landowners in 13 states...
CSA collaboration could lead to more produce choices
Two Western Pennsylvania farming cooperatives are joining forces to create the area’s biggest community-supported agriculture program. The two cooperatives — Clarion River Organics in Sligo and Penn’s Corner Farm Alliance in Pittsburgh — have both run large CSA programs for years. They are now working together to increase efficiency and...
‘Battling Opioids’ documentary returns to public broadcasting in April
The second installment of an award-winning television documentary series about opioids will be shown on Pennsylvania’s seven public broadcasting stations next month. “Battling Opioids” will address the effects of the opioid epidemic on children and families in part two of the series. The show will air locally at 8 p.m....
Pitt study finds it’s better to wait longer before getting flu vaccine
Don’t let the calendar or warmer temperature fool you: influenza season is far from over. According to a study by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, flu season, which can last until May, peaks after mid-winter. So far this flu season, over 62,500 flu cases have been reported across...
State police in Indiana nab 2 of 5 from ‘Most Wanted’ list
In just over two weeks, state police out of Troop A in Indiana have located and arrested two of the suspects on their “Five Most Wanted” list. On March 9, troopers took Lamar V. Clemons, 33, of Indiana into custody at a White Township residence. While serving an arrest warrant,...
Pennsylvania collects thousands of ticks for study to combat Lyme
State officials are working to better understand the risk of tick-borne illnesses with a new multi-year study. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is conducting a five-year study that started in July 2018. It’s part of the Pennsylvania Lyme Disease Task Force recommendations for combating the growing cases of Lyme...
Police officer suffers minor injuries in Aliquippa crash
An Aliquippa police officer suffered minor injuries when his vehicle was struck early Thursday morning during an attempted traffic stop. Sgt. Steven Roberts said the officer was treated and released after another car crashed into the police cruiser. The incident happened at about 5 a.m. at the intersection of Grand...
Finleyville Food Pantry eyeing KeyBank branch as possible new home
The Finleyville Food Pantry is asking for help in its search for a new home. The food pantry in the tiny Washington County borough has its eyes on the Finleyville KeyBank branch, which is scheduled to close May 3 as part of a consolidation plan. “We’re trying to get a...
Woman, 19, killed in Armstrong County crash on icy road
A Butler County woman was killed early Tuesday in an Armstrong County vehicle crash. Billie Paige Edwards, 19, of Boyers died after losing control of her Honda Accord on an icy road in Hovey Township at 7 a.m., according to state police. Edwards’ car crossed over the center line of...
Man flown to hospital after dog bite at Beaver County Humane Society
A man was transported by medical helicopter to a Pittsburgh hospital after being bitten by a dog Tuesday at the Beaver County Humane Society. His name and condition were not released. The group issued a statement on its Facebook page, explaining the incident and sending prayers to the victim. The...
