Westmoreland category, Page 592
Former Derry Twp. man sentenced up to 15 years in prison for child sex offenses
An Indiana County man was sentenced in Westmoreland County Court to 7½ to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting an underage girl over two years. Jason E. Matty, 48, of Blacklick and formerly of Derry Township was sentenced Thursday by Judge Christopher Feliciani after pleading guilty to involuntary deviate...
Westmoreland officials: Lax health precautions likely contributor to coronavirus surge
Westmoreland County officials cannot attribute an ongoing surge in coronavirus cases to any specific activity, but some suggest a major factor could be people being lax in following recommended health guidelines to mitigate the pandemic. On Friday, the county recorded 64 new cases of the disease — after adding 133...
Rematch pits Davanzo against Prah in race for state House 58th District
Voters in the state House 58th District have seen this race before — seven months ago, to be exact, when Republican Eric Davanzo and Democrat Robert Prah Jr. vied to serve out the remaining time of a vacant term. Davanzo, 44, of South Huntingdon won by less than 1,000 votes...
Greensburg seeks public opinion for Spring Avenue Park redesign
Greensburg had to cancel its plans for a renovation kickoff party in Spring Avenue Park, but city officials hope residents will still share their opinions about the park’s future online. The original plan was to host a gathering in the park Saturday afternoon with games, activities and surveys to get...
State police seize 2 kilos of fentanyl on turnpike near New Stanton, charge 2 N.Y. men
Two New York men are in federal custody after state troopers this week allegedly found more than two kilos of fentanyl stashed in a secret compartment of an SUV on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County. Federal magistrate Patricia Dodge on Wednesday found that there was probable cause for Juan...
Westmoreland County coronavirus transmission remains ‘substantial’ for 2nd week
Westmoreland County ended the week with a “substantial” level of coronavirus cases, which means local school officials will have to decide whether to follow state recommendations to switch to virtual learning for all students. Data released Friday by the state Department of Health lists about 124 cases of the virus...
North Huntingdon residents seek demolition of smelly ‘cat house’
Residents living near the odor-emanating North Huntingdon house where some 70 cats had to be rescued want the township to tear it down now, not years from now. “The place stinks,” is how James “Rick” Keenan described the neighboring house at 820 Leger Road, where Matthew Jacobs previously lived with...
West Mifflin man pleads guilty to killing woman found in Sewickley Township
A West Mifflin man will serve at least 13 years in prison after pleading guilty Friday to killing a woman in 2018 and leaving her body in a wooded area of Westmoreland County. Dale Terence Cooper, 37, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder before Judge Beth A. Lazzara in the death...
Mt. Pleasant man accused by state agents of selling heroin, meth from Norvelt home
Agents with the state attorney general’s office allege that a Mt. Pleasant man used a home in the bedroom community of Norvelt as a base for a drug sales operation for several months. David Meade Keefer, 33, was arrested Thursday at the well-kept, two-story frame home at 1136 West Laurel...
Text messages lead to sex charges against Scottdale man
A series of text messages discovered by a parent on a teenage girl’s cell phone led to sexual assault charges against a Scottdale man. Albert C. Fletcher III, 35, was charged by borough police with corruption of minors, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a person less than 16 years old,...
Westmoreland County reports 64 new covid-19 cases, 2 new deaths
Westmoreland County on Friday reported 64 new cases of covid-19, bringing the total known cases to 3,900. The county’s 7-day average has dropped to 84 cases from an all-time high of 96 just five days ago. With 393 new tests reported, the county’s daily positivity rate is 16.28%. That’s after...
Postal Service ramps up for election season, delivering 1.5M pieces of political mail daily in Western Pa.
Call it junk mail if you will, but Jeffrey Hauser takes those political ads piling up daily in your mail seriously. Less than two weeks before the Nov. 3 election, the Latrobe postmaster demonstrated just how seriously the Postal Service takes the flow of countless campaign mailers and mail-in ballots....
Cochran returns to challenge Warner for 52nd state House District seat
Former state legislator Harry Young Cochran, a Democrat, is looking to return to Harrisburg by challenging incumbent Ryan Warner, a Republican seeking his fourth term in the 52nd state House district. The race will be decided on Nov. 3 in part by Westmoreland County voters in Scottdale and the Bessemer...
Greensburg houses of worship unite for coronavirus prayer initiative
Greensburg’s houses of worship have different doctrines, but they all have one thing in common, according to the Rev. Kevin Haley of First United Methodist Church. “We all have these different theologies, different backgrounds, but we all pray,” Haley said. Seven of the city’s religious institutions have teamed up for...
Joyce challenged by retired FBI agent for 13th Congressional District
Voters in the massive 13th Congressional District — stretching from Westmoreland County to Gettysburg — will chose between a freshman incumbent who embraces the agenda of President Trump and a Democratic challenger who wants to serve as an opposition to power. The race is between state Rep. John Joyce, a...
Seton Hill to display never-before-seen photos of Holocaust massacre
When Harry Knights went to war in Europe, he picked up a camera. His photographs captured the aftermath of a German massacre of concentration camp prisoners near the end of World War II. “He was a witness, and he recorded what happened around him,” said James Knights, Harry Knights’ son....
6th Westmoreland Manor resident dies from covid-19
Westmoreland County officials on Thursday reported the coronavirus-related death of a Westmoreland Manor resident, the sixth resident to die from the disease. The announcement came on a day when new cases throughout the county totaled 133, Westmoreland’s second highest daily increase since the pandemic began. The number of coronavirus cases...
Police: North Huntingdon cat hoarder said animals took over his house
Police said a North Huntingdon man told them he stopped staying at his township home because cats had overrun it. In September, authorities rescued 73 cats from the property on Leger Road and removed 11 that died. Since being surrendered to Frankie’s Friends in New Kensington, another 22 cats died...
Westmoreland County schools could face difficult closure decisions as coronavirus risk remains high
Westmoreland County school districts face difficult choices as the county’s coronavirus transmission risk is expected to remain “substantial” for at least another week when the state updates its three-tiered Early Warning Monitoring System. Leaders will need to weigh student safety and legal liability as they decide whether to close schools...
Dollar General opens new location in Penn Township
Dollar General opened a new store in Penn Township, along Harrison City-Export Road. The 9,000-square-foot store is located near the Penn Crossing shopping plaza. “Our customers are at the center of all that we do, and meeting customers’ needs is Dollar General’s top priority when choosing store locations,” spokeswoman Mary...
Westmoreland County: Almost 70,000 mail-in ballots approved
The Ohio company processing mail-in ballots for Westmoreland County has sent more than 64,000 to the post office and is up-to-date with its processing, a county election official said Thursday. Midwest Direct of Cleveland, which prints and mails the ballots, handled 64,604 ballots as of Tuesday, with an additional 3,800...
Blairsville man accused in month-long burglary spree in Westmoreland County
A Blairsville man was arrested this week, charged in a month-long burglary spree that targeted all-terrain vehicles, transport trailers, specialty tools and pieces of heavy equipment from drilling companies, construction sites and private storage units along the Route 22 corridor in Derry Township. Michael C. Hamrock, 43, was charged with...
Westmoreland County reports 2nd highest number of daily coronavirus cases
Westmoreland County added 133 new coronavirus cases Thursday, its second highest daily increase in cases, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported. The county also reported two new deaths. The county’s seven-day average is 91 cases and the county’s seven-day case total is 635. The total number of cases in the...
North Huntingdon police get 4-year contract extension
North Huntingdon police officers agreed to a wage freeze next year followed by pay raises of 2% in 2022, 2.5% in 2023 and 3% in 2024 under a four-year contract extension reached with the township. Township commissioners on Wednesday unanimously approved the contract that township Manager Jeff Silka called a...
Veteran state House member Petrarca challenged by Silvis, a longtime film stuntman, in 55th District
Democrat Joe Petrarca is asking voters on Nov. 3 to return him to Harrisburg for a 14th term representing residents of the 55th District in the state House. Republican challenger Jason Silvis is hoping those voters instead will help him end that long run. “I think people are ready for...
