Westmoreland category, Page 561
Blue lights mark human trafficking awareness campaign
The Westmoreland County Courthouse dome will be bathed in blue light every night Jan. 9-15 to drive home the reality that human trafficking cuts across all geographic and social lines. Renee Reitz, a spokeswoman for the Westmoreland Human Trafficking Task Force, said it’s important that people realize these crimes may...
Westmoreland County reports 273 new covid-19 cases, 4 deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday reported 273 new cases of the coronavirus in Westmoreland County. The county’s total cases are at 21,622, which is an increase of more than 1,800-cases from last week’s 19,806. The week before had a change of about 1,700 cases. On Friday, a weekly...
Unity native, Broadway vet Jerad Bortz stays thankful after life-changing accidentVideo
Going into 2018, Unity native Jerad Bortz had a lot to be thankful for, not the least of which was a successful career on Broadway, including 12 years with the hit musical “Wicked.” That could have changed forever in early February of that year, when a car accident left him...
Greensburg Salem foundation targets hybrid learning needs
Members of the Greensburg Salem Education Foundation were already hard at work raising money for classroom grants before the covid-19 crisis began. That made it easy to pivot a bit and focus their efforts this year on supplying educators with the tools they’d need to teach in a new hybrid...
Route 30 lane restrictions slated in North Huntingdon
Lane restrictions will be in place on a section of Route 30 in North Huntingdon beginning Monday. According to PennDOT, the restrictions will occur weekdays, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., between Michigan Lane and Woodside Road. That will allow crews to perform geotechnical boring in the area. The restrictions...
Jeannette Driver License Center opens Tuesday, as services shift from Greensburg
PennDOT is moving its Greensburg Driver License Center to a new location in Jeannette, beginning Tuesday. The updated center is in a converted building at 1100 Lowry Ave. The site previously was occupied by a discount retail store. It will offer free Wi-Fi service for customers and will feature enhanced...
Seton Hill severs ties with adjunct professor over Facebook posts, which he denies
Seton Hill University has parted ways with an adjunct professor after posts were made on his Facebook page referencing violence in relation to the Wednesday siege by supporters of President Trump at the U.S. Capitol. Gary Hypes claimed he did not write the posts, suggesting someone else might have used...
Westmoreland elections bureau to hire deputy director
Westmoreland County is seeking candidates to fill a deputy director’s position for the elections bureau ahead of the 2021 campaign season to help ease the burden on an office that was understaffed and pushed to its limits last fall. Applications will be accepted through Jan. 20. “We need to be...
Delmont man sentenced for possession of child pornography
A Delmont man was sentenced Friday to serve nearly two years in jail for possession of child pornography. Michael Goodis, 53, was convicted by a Westmoreland County jury in October of 32 felony counts in connection with at least 30 different pornographic images found stored on his computer equipment depicting...
Hempfield neighborhood raises more than $2,000 for food bank
The residents of the South Meadow at Lindwood development in Hempfield have long been a tight-knit bunch, according to Joseph Lanza, president of the condominium association. In a normal year, many of the neighborhood’s roughly 120 residents gather for monthly social events. When one of them gets sick, their neighbors...
Hempfield District Judge Anthony Bompiani retires with year left in term
Saying he wanted to “start a new chapter” in his life, Hempfield District Judge Anthony Bompiani has hung up his robe. Bompiani, 41, of Hempfield served as district judge for five years. He retired, effective Dec. 31, according to county special courts administrator Christopher A. Haidze. “I’ve been thinking about...
Latrobe man accused of indecently assaulting Adelphoi runaway
Police filed indecent assault charges against a Latrobe man accused of helping a 17-year-old run away from an Adelphoi Village group home. Eric L. Mallin, 50, and his wife, Michele L. Mallin, 48, were charged with corruption of minors after police say they helped the girl when she left the...
Proposed contract would turn South Huntingdon coal refuse into potential industrial site
A coal refuse pile in South Huntingdon that has been a source of pollution in adjacent Sewickley Creek for decades could soon be transformed into a site for potential industrial development. Latrobe-based Robindale Energy Services plans to remove about 85% of the coal refuse, known as the Soberdash Pile, and...
Covid cases reported in Hempfield Area schools during 1st week after holiday break
Days after students in the Hempfield Area School District returned to school buildings following the holiday break, new covid-19 cases were reported. According to a tracker posted on the district’s website, there are five active cases among students and staffers, which are identified as individuals who were in school buildings...
Westmoreland County hits record hospitalizations for covid-19
Westmoreland County on Friday reported 184 residents hospitalized for covid-19, the most since the pandemic began. Of those, 19 are in intensive care units and 13 are on ventilators. Officials with the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported the county added 346 new cases of coronavirus, with 146 of those confirmed...
Residents, officials air mud, odor, health concerns about Rostraver landfill
Residents, environmental activists and local officials say they’re fed up with mud and odors emanating from the Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill in Rostraver. They’re also concerned about radioactive materials they say are present in leachate resulting from waste material the landfill accepts from fracking sites. Rostraver Commissioner John Lorenzo, speaking Thursday...
Virus cases continue to spread at Westmoreland prison
As the coronavirus continues to spread among inmates at the Westmoreland County Prison, officials said Thursday there are signs that infections have started to slow at the Hempfield facility. Interim Warden George Lowther said there are 77 inmates infected, with new cases almost daily. But the overall number of new...
Salem man jailed in connection with $16K trailer theft
A Salem man on the lam from state police since New Year’s Eve was apprehended Wednesday and arraigned on theft and receiving stolen property charges. William Elvin Cochran, 33, of Hawk Drive, is in the county jail on $250,000 bond after state police charged him with receiving stolen property and...
Rick Saccone resigns from Saint Vincent faculty in wake of Capitol tripVideo
Former state Rep. Rick Saccone has resigned from his teaching position at Saint Vincent College. Saccone, 62, of Elizabeth said he tendered his resignation as an adjunct instructor Thursday because of flak triggered by his social media posts a day earlier about participating in the pro-Trump demonstration in Washington, D.C.,...
Greensburg man charged with domestic assault, fighting city police
A Greensburg man is accused of fighting with city police, spitting on three officers and making threats as he was taken into custody early Thursday after he was accused of assaulting his girlfriend. Malik M. Crosby, 22, was arraigned on four counts each of harassment and simple assault by a...
Westmoreland first responders flocking to Latrobe pharmacy for coronavirus vaccine
First responders around Westmoreland County have started getting inoculated against the coronavirus with help from The Medicine Shoppe Pharmacy in Latrobe. Owner and pharmacist Sue Schropp said the response in the last couple weeks has been overwhelming, but she’s happy to contribute to the health of the community’s front lines....
Excela Health prepares to administer 2nd dose of vaccine to its workers, Mutual Aid medics and EMTs
Excela Health employees who have gotten the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine will get a second and final shot starting Friday, according to chief medical officer Carol Fox. More inoculations for employees who have yet to get the first dose and independent providers will get underway in the coming...
Jim Brewster waits, works as 45th Senate race remains unresolved
Jim Brewster, the McKeesport Democrat who was a Pennsylvania senator until Tuesday, was working as usual for people who live in the 45th Senate District. “My staff is functioning with constituent issues,” Brewster said Thursday. But, he said, “I can’t do anything official.” On Tuesday, Republican leadership took control of...
Westmoreland County reports similar number of covid deaths in 1st weeks of January, December
Westmoreland County on Thursday reported 279 additional covid-19 cases, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. There were six coronavirus-related deaths reported as well. The number of total cases in the county is now at 21,003 and total deaths at 465. Westmoreland County coronavirus by dayInfogram Through the first seven...
Hempfield man accused of shooting woman in left ring finger
A Hempfield man is accused by police of shooting a woman in her left ring finger Wednesday then dropping her off at a hospital, according to court papers. Timothy John Luchon, who turned 39 Wednesday, is charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, simple assault, child endangerment and tampering with evidence....
