Valley News Dispatch category, Page 717
Leechburg man convicted on more than 50 counts of child porn
A Leechburg man was convicted Wednesday of 52 counts related to child pornography, Armstrong County District Attorney Katie Charlton said. Timothy Norris, 40, formerly of Third Street, was accused of having at least 50 images of children engaged in sex acts and then distributing those images on the Internet. He...
Allegheny Valley Hospital plans week-long celebration of 110th anniversary
Allegheny Valley Hospital has a week of events planned to celebrate its 110th anniversary. The events will be held the week of May 6 at the hospital in Harrison. Festivities will include a community night with kids’ activities and a big-band concert, a Stork Club recognition for people who were...
Springdale Township approval finalizes police merger with Cheswick
Springdale Township commissioners have approved merging the township’s police department with Cheswick’s, effectively ensuring the creation of the new Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department. Cheswick Council gave its OK to the proposed merger earlier this month. Township commissioners voted 4-0, with one abstention, to create the new, merged department with...
Summit firefighters reschedule boot drive that funds Tarentum fireworks
Summit Hose has rescheduled Saturday’s “boot drive” fundraiser that helps pay for Tarentum’s Fourth of July fireworks display. The boot drive now will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 4 at the Tarentum end of the Tarentum Bridge. Chief Joshua Fox said the drive was rescheduled because...
2 dogs, 3 cats killed in West Deer house fire
Two people escaped a house fire early Friday along West Deer’s Quigley Road, but five pets died inside, officials said. Homeowner Justin Johoda, 33, was awakened and alerted of the fire shortly after 5 a.m. by a friend who had been sleeping on a couch, according to West Deer police...
Highlands seeking bids for Tarentum clock tower restoration
Highlands School District is seeking bids for the restoration of the clock tower on its elementary school in Tarentum. The district decided to repair the clock tower at Highlands Elementary after learning that removing it would cost more than fixing it, according to district officials. The prospect of removing the...
Leechburg cross walk attracts worshipers, turns heads
About 25 Leechburg-area Christians ignored nonstop rain to observe Good Friday in preparation for Easter Sunday. The umbrella-toting group, led by pastors, hammered 3-foot-tall replica crosses at Veterans Park and key intersections in the borough. The group turned heads everywhere it went. At each stop, Bible readings recalled the fulfillment...
Dumpster Day in Washington Township is almost here
Washington Township will hold its spring cleanup Dumpster Day on May 4 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the township’s maintenance garage, 3788 Route 66. Large household items will be accepted. However, some junk will not be accepted, including liquids, paints, chemicals, hazardous materials, any electronics (including televisions), appliances...
Highlands School District’s closed meetings ignore state transparency laws, expert says
The Highlands School Board is skirting Pennsylvania’s transparency laws and violating the district’s own policies by holding private committee meetings where important matters are discussed behind closed doors, according to a legal expert and a review of district policies and practices. At a public meeting Monday, board member Judy Wisner,...
Hearing postponed for Pittsburgh man accused of Arnold murder
A preliminary hearing for a Pittsburgh man accused in an April 5 murder in Arnold has been delayed until next month. Shawden L. Ross, 33, of North Braddock Avenue is accused of fatally shooting Lamont Simmons, 27. Ross’ hearing was moved to May 6 because a witness wasn’t available to...
Police: Ohio women shoplifted clothes at Pittsburgh Mills, sold them on Facebook
Two Akron, Ohio women are accused of driving to the Pittsburgh Mills and other Pennsylvania malls almost daily to shoplift clothing later sold on Facebook, Frazer police Chief Terry Kuhns said. Ocean Rain McDay, 22, and Stasha Lashell Heller, 23, are accused of stealing clothing from Victoria’s Secret and JCPenney...
Kiski Area School District inks new 5-year deal with secretaries
Kiski Area School District and its secretaries have a new, 5-year contract calling for average 2.35 percent raises over the life of the contract, according to Peggy Gillespie, the district’s assistant to the superintendent for finance and operations. The new contract takes effect July 1 and covers 19 secretaries represented...
Spraying to control black flies to begin along Pennsylvania waterways
State officials are hoping the buzz of helicopters will prevent the buzz of black flies around area waterways. Within the week, the state Department of Environmental Protection will start aerial and backpack spraying to control black flies on about 1,700 miles of waterways in 35 counties, including Armstrong and Westmoreland....
Alcohol played a role in fatal Apollo crash in February, coroner says
Alcohol played a role in the Feb. 27 death of a North Apollo woman whose car crashed into a utility pole in Apollo and flipped over several times, according to the Armstrong County Coroner. Jacqueline C. Hellein, 64, was alone in the car and died at the scene. She was...
Springdale mulls battery back-ups for new traffic signals
Springdale officials want to make sure their soon-to-be-installed traffic signals continue operating during a power outage. The borough received grants through PennDOT’s Green Light Go Program for traffic signals to be installed on Pittsburgh Street, at the intersections with Butler Street and Colfax Street. Gordon Taylor, the borough engineer, was...
Clean up, beautification days coming to Vandergrift
Plans are underway to paint the pavilion in Vandergrift’s Franklin Park as part of a beautification day May 19, according to the nonprofit Vandergrift Parent Project. The group said it is looking for volunteers and donations of money and supplies for the beautification day, which also will include installing a...
Harrison residents learn about rain garden projects, tree benefitsVideo
There is a plan to speed up construction of two rain gardens in Harrison that are designed to help control stormwater runoff. They were unveiled Wednesday at a meeting at the municipal building. The first and smaller of the two will be built this year on the grounds of Highlands...
Free paper shredding event scheduled in Plum
State Sen. Jim Brewster is hosting a free shredding event in Plum. It will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 27, at the Plum Community Center, 499 Center-New Texas Road. The event, held in partnership with the Plum Library and the Plum Community Center, is...
Outstanding Young Citizens honored at Trib Total Media banquetVideo
Valley High School senior Joseph Guzzo and Highlands High School senior Marissa Callender were awarded $5,000 scholarships Wednesday during Trib Total Media’s Outstanding Young Citizen Awards banquet at the Quality Inn in New Kensington. The awards are presented by Trib Total Media with support from Seton Hill University and Penn...
Charges reduced in knife, gun confrontation outside Praha Hotel
A Tarentum man involved in a disturbance at the Praha Hotel earlier this month pleaded guilty to lesser charges Wednesday. Misdemeanor charges of simple assault and recklessly endangering another person were withdrawn against Felix Brun Sondova Blancarte, 34. He pleaded guilty to summary offenses of disorderly conduct and public drunkenness....
School board sacks request for new Springdale football uniforms
Allegheny Valley School Board rejected a request from Springdale High School’s head football coach to buy new uniforms the coach said are needed because there’s a shortage of ones that fit. “I only have about 15 to 20 uniforms that fit properly,” head coach Seth Napierkowski wrote in a letter...
Forum set for Harrison, Highlands primary candidates
The Harrison Township Democratic Committee is hosting a non-partisan public forum for township commissioner and Highlands School Board candidates. The forum will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Monday at the Natrona Heights Veterans of Foreign Wars, 894 Veterans Drive. It’s off of Freeport Road near Harrison Hills Park....
Scholarship fund honoring Lower Burrell Officer Kotecki continues to grow
The Officer Derek Kotecki Scholarship Fund will have distributed $42,500 to area students when awards are presented this spring at graduation time. Kotecki, a Lower Burrell native, a husband and father of two, served his hometown as a police officer for 18 years, including many as its police dog officer....
Kittanning trooper honored for drugged, drunken-driving arrests
The Kittanning state police station’s Trooper of the Year has prevented numerous tragedies on the roads in his part of the Alle-Kiski Valley, his supervisors said. Trooper Nick Elliott, of Butler, helped arrest about 100 people for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol last year. “That’s 100 potential...
New Highlands superintendent resigns previous post as assistant
Highlands School District’s new superintendent formally resigned from her previous post with the district. Monique Mawhinney started as the district’s assistant superintendent in April 2018. She became substitute superintendent in place of former Superintendent Michael Bjalobok, who went on medical leave July 2 last year and retired on April 1....
