Westmoreland category, Page 512
Sutersville woman accused of sexually assaulting teen
State police charged a Sutersville woman with sexually assaulting a teenage boy last year in Hempfield while he was finishing up the school year virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to court papers. An arrest warrant was issued Monday for Ashley Elizabeth Sherry, 21. State police said they were...
Irwin man gets 15 years for role as ringleader of gang’s drug operation
An Irwin man who led a large-scale drug trafficking organization in Western Pennsylvania will serve 15 years in prison. Christopher Highsmith, who was responsible for the distribution of 1,000 to 3,000 kilograms of heroin and fentanyl, pleaded guilty to a single count of drug conspiracy in September before U.S. District...
Irwin woman accused of falsifying police documents, claiming to be male officer in insurance claim investigation
An Irwin woman was arrested Wednesday after authorities said she claimed to be a male police officer to an insurance investigator and falsified several documents relating to a claim, according to court papers. Sharon K. Powell, 49, is charged with insurance fraud, attempted theft, criminal use of a communication facility,...
Ligonier Valley police seeking pickup truck involved in hit-and-run
The Ligonier Valley Police are seeking help in identifying who was driving a pickup truck that was involved in a hit-and-run crash into a building early Wednesday. Police reported the crash occurred about 12:20 a.m. at the corner of South Fairfield and Loyalhanna streets in the borough. A porch was...
Mt. Pleasant Area, Yough schools to host covid vaccine clinics following similar events in Greensburg, Hempfield
Hayden’s Pharmacy will conduct covid-19 vaccine clinics at additional Westmoreland County schools after administering doses of the Pfizer vaccine to several hundred recipients Tuesday at Greensburg Salem Senior High. A voluntary clinic on Thursday at Mt. Pleasant Area School District will be available only to students age 16 and older....
Allegheny County reports 2nd-lowest covid case total in past month
The Allegheny County Health Department on Wednesday reported its second-lowest covid-19 case total in the past month. The county added 158 new cases Wednesday. Only the 94 cases reported April 26 was lower. It’s also the second-lowest total dating back to March 15, when 124 were reported. The county’s coronavirus...
Export officials vote to keep $8 sewage surcharge in place
Two Export council members want the borough to keep its word and remove an $8 surcharge on sewage customers that was originally intended to expire after a year. But ongoing expenses related to its long-term flood control plan and its participation in a state environmental consent order kept that from...
Westmoreland news includes bus trip, UFO conference and chicken dinner
Arts • Diamond Theatre of Ligonier will conduct auditions for the play, “A Hiro’s Tale,” from 7 to 9 p.m. May 7 and 8 at the theater, 210 W. Main St. Performances will be July 23 to 25. Actors of all ages are needed, no experience necessary. Rehearsals will be...
Greensburg Salem presents ‘Charlie Brown’ as livestream musical
Beloved cartoon characters come to life for Greensburg Salem High School’s spring musical, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” The production, streaming Friday through Sunday, follows a day in the life of the neighborhood gang from Charles Schulz’s long-running “Peanuts” comic strip. “‘You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown’ is a...
Westmoreland Heritage Trail officials have money left over for another 750 feet in Export
Westmoreland Heritage Trail officials may not have determined precisely how they’re going to finish the section connecting Export and Delmont, but leftover funding from the trail’s fourth phase will extend it another 750 feet eastward. Construction of the trail’s fourth phase, connecting Murrysville and Export, wrapped up with some money...
Kecksburg UFO Festival remains grounded in 2021, despite plan to lift pandemic restrictions
The Kecksburg UFO Festival, usually held annually in July, has been canceled this year, even though most of Pennsylvania’s covid-19 mitigation restrictions will be lifted May 31. “We had to cancel. We needed more time to line up vendors. … There were just too many questions,” said Ron Struble, a...
Black state trooper alleges racism at Greensburg barracks in federal lawsuit
A Black Pennsylvania State Police trooper said in a federal lawsuit Monday that the department’s Greensburg barracks is rife with racism — toward its employees and the public it serves — and that its leaders have done nothing to stop it. Among his experiences, Trooper Tavin Davis said a garden...
Former boyfriend pleads guilty to assault of Derry Township child
A Greene County man who police say beat and gave a date-rape drug to a toddler pleaded guilty Tuesday to assault and child endangerment charges. Cory Andrew Kuntz, 27, of Waynesburg was charged in 2016 after the mother of a Derry Township child reported her 2-year-old son was injured while...
Trial for Youngwood stabbing suspect set for September
After years of delays, the trial of a Youngwood man charged with criminal homicide and robbery of a drug dealer will start in September. Michael Covington Jr., 24, has been in jail without bond since his arrest in 2017 following the stabbing death of 50-year-old Matthew Genard in his Youngwood...
West Newton police, county detectives probe shooting
An area man was seriously injured when he was shot in the face during a confrontation early Tuesday at a home in West Newton, according to borough police and Westmoreland County detectives. The shooting occurred at a residence off of North 2nd Street just after midnight, according to police Chief...
Report of ‘suspicious’ person outside Hempfield casino leads to stolen car, firearm charges, troopers say
A report of a suspicious person sitting in a vehicle just outside of Live! Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield early Tuesday resulted in the arrest of a Jeannette man for illegal possession of a loaded firearm and the recovery of a stolen vehicle, state police said. Jamar Abdu McIntosh, 43, was...
Former Jeannette superintendent ordered to pay district $1K reimbursement in ethics report
Jeannette City School District’s former superintendent was ordered by the State Ethics Commission to pay $1,000 to the district in reimbursement for the personal use of public funds. Matthew Hutcheson used a district procurement card to charge his wife’s registration fee to a technology in education conference in Colorado and...
Declining covid hospitalization streak ends in Pa., Allegheny County
Recent covid hospitalization numbers have been declining for several straight days in the state and Allegheny County. But those streaks ended Tuesday, when both saw increases to its current covid hospitalization total. The state saw its first increase to its current covid hospitalization total after having 12 consecutive days of...
Hempfield man accused of driving drunk in crash that hurt another motorist
A Hempfield man is accused by state police of driving drunk during a March crash that left another motorist with an ankle injury requiring three surgeries, according to court papers. Nicholas John Decaro, 26, was arrested Monday. He is free on $20,000 unsecured bond. Troopers responded to Edna Road in...
Cash 5 ticket worth $200K sold at Hempfield store
A jackpot-winning Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 ticket was sold Monday at Rick’s Tobacco Outlet along Route 30 in Hempfield, state lottery officials said. The winning ticket, sold along with a Quick Cash ticket, was for Monday’s drawing and matched all five balls drawn, 3-7-22-29-36. The winner won $200,000 less withholding,...
Franklin Regional proposed budget would raise taxes to state-imposed limit for 4th year
Franklin Regional School District officials next month will consider a 2021-22 budget that raises property taxes to the state-designated limit for the fourth year in a row. The school board unanimously approved a proposed $63.9 million budget with a projected $437,000 deficit. The budget would raise local property taxes to...
Penn-Trafford proposes 2-mill tax hike for next year
Property owners in the Penn-Trafford School District would face a 2-mill tax hike under a tentative $60.9 million budget for the 2021-2022 school year adopted Monday. The 2-mill increase would boost taxes to 89.25 mills in the Westmoreland County municipalities of Penn Township, Manor and Trafford that the district serves....
Hempfield to apply for federal grant that could benefit township fire department
Hempfield leaders are looking for federal dollars that would benefit the township fire department. Supervisors have authorized the township manager to advertise for a grant writer and manager, one of the first steps as they prepare to submit an application in July for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency...
Brother of North Huntingdon overdose victim charged in her death
The brother of a overdose victim in North Huntingdon was one of two men arrested Monday on charges of helping his sister buy a dose of heroin-fentanyl that killed her Jan. 12, according to court documents. Forrest G. Piper Jr., 49, of West Newton, the brother of Iona J. Runkle,...
Penn Township man to serve up to 40 years in prison for firing rifle at police
A Westmoreland County judge on Monday said he had no choice but to sentence a Penn Township man to serve up to 40 years in prison for shooting at police during a 2016 standoff. But, even without a state legislative mandatory minimum sentencing requirement in place, Judge Scott Mears said...
