Westmoreland category, Page 716

At least three new commissioners will take office in North Huntingdon starting in December, and maybe fourth, depending upon whether the 7th Ward incumbent can beat his challenger. Commissioner Duane Kucera, 68, a Democrat representing the 7th Ward, is seeking his second term against Republican Eric Gass, 54, who lost...

The race for Westmoreland County treasurer features a two-term incumbent and a newcomer with a political pedigree. Republican Treasurer Jared Squires, first elected in 2011, is running for reelection against Democratic challenger Matt Mascara. The treasurer’s office is responsible for overseeing money collected and disbursed by the county. The office...

A state grant approved Thursday is expected to help expand Westmoreland County’s drug court program. Officials said the two-year $50,712 grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency will pay for enhanced drug testing of participants that will improve supervision and monitoring efforts of the four-year-old program. “This will...

Wind and rain might be scarier than ghosts and ghouls for Halloween tricks-or-treaters. Westmoreland, along with Fayette and Indiana counties, are under a wind advisory until midnight Thursday. Wind gusts up to 55 mph are possible, according to the National Weather Service. The agency downgraded those areas from a tornado...

The Salvation Army last year provided holiday gifts to 180 Ligonier Valley children in financial need. The need continues this year, and eligible area families who want to make sure their kids ages 13 or younger have something special in their stockings are encouraged to submit wish lists at the...

Returning to the scene of a crime was not a good idea for a New York City man charged with trying to use a man’s stolen identity to buy computers. Vaughn L. Lawhorn, 46, of Brooklyn, was arrested at Best Buy in Hempfield Wednesday as he attempted to purchase two...

Issues within Hempfield will come to a head next week at the ballot box when a pair of challengers face two incumbents for seats on the township’s board of supervisors. Democrats Scott Graham, 51, and Daniel Kremer, 67, are vying for seats held by Tom Logan, 63, and Doug Weimer,...

Attendees have the opportunity to don artful outfits for Latrobe Art Center’s annual signature fundraiser, “An Evening in The Neighborhood XII: Silent & Live Auction.” “Polka Dots & Plaid” is the theme for the semi-formal event, scheduled for 6 p.m. Nov. 13 at Latrobe Country Club. “This fundraiser helps us...

Students in a business class at Penn-Trafford High School raised almost $100,000 for charity since the class started 14 years ago, and they expect to pass the six-figure mark this year. Students in the “Introduction to Administration and Management” class sell T-shirts of their own design, with the profits going...

Motorists traveling east on Interstate 70 once more can exit and enter at Route 31, with the opening of ramps that were closed for construction. The ramps opened to traffic on Tuesday as work progressed on revamping the interchange in South Huntingdon from a cloverleaf to a diamond configuration. “If...

Parents of a former Hempfield Area High School student filed a lawsuit this week, claiming their son was assaulted, intimidated and harassed by a teacher and, ultimately, forced to move to another school. According to the Westmoreland County court filing, the family contends John Testa Jr., a technology education teacher,...

More than a year since a new mini casino at Westmoreland Mall was proposed, construction crews will start work in Hempfield next month. Work on the the 100,000-square-foot casino dubbed “Live! Casino Pittsburgh” will begin Nov. 13, making room for 750 slot machines and 30 table games, a sportsbook area,...

A male pedestrian who was stopped by Southwest Greensburg police in a neighborhood where multiple gunshots were heard early Wednesday told officers he fired two shots in the air after an argument with his girlfriend. Edwardo Romero-Gross, 18, of Greensburg, was charged by police with reckless endangerment, disorderly conduct, carrying...

Shoemaker and historian Brett Walker will return to Fort Ligonier, where he sometimes appears as a re-enactor and where he is working on a project to examine and catalog a large cache of mid-18th-century archaeological shoes. This time, at 6 p.m. on Nov. 8, Walker will present “St. Crispin’s Lance...

While most local municipalities are not spooked by the possibility of rain and wind on Halloween, others are taking a more cautious route and postponing trick-or-treating this year. The National Weather Service is predicting an almost 100% chance of rain and wind gusts over 30 mph Thursday night. Lee Hendricks,...

Three members of a Jeannette family were arrested Wednesday after a search of their home by police and state narcotics agents turned up a large amount of suspected cocaine, prescription pills and drug packaging materials, according to court documents. James W. Smith and Takeitha Smith, both 42, and Ronell L....

The four candidates for Westmoreland County commissioner looked to the future Tuesday night during one of the last campaign events leading up to next week’s general election. Each candidate said the county needs to attract new residents and to promote jobs and tourism but offered few specific programs or policy...

When Big East Youth Football League teams get together for four championship games this weekend in Vandergrift, squads from Franklin Regional will have a chance to win half of them. The Franklin Area Midget Football Association’s 7/8 and 11/12 teams will go up against Gateway and McKeesport, respectively, on Saturday...

A clergy sexual abuse survivor whose testimony sent a Greensburg diocesan priest to prison stepped forward Tuesday to blast the church for opposing a law that would allow adults with old claims to sue the church. Josh Kiley, the 37 year-old man whose tale of sexual abuse as a 10-year-old...

The race for Westmoreland County register of wills pits the incumbent against one of the office’s longtime staff members. Democrat Katie Pecarchik, 51, is challenging Sherry Magretti Hamilton, 42, a Republican who is in her first four-year term. Pecarchik, a Hempfield resident, questions how much time Magretti Hamilton spends at...

A Westmoreland County judge on Tuesday authorized defense attorneys for an Indiana man on death row for the shooting deaths of his mother, sister and aunt to use up to $2,500 of taxpayer money to help formulate another appeal of his murder convictions. Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio approved...

Westmoreland County will participate in a study expected to clarify the status of local broadband internet service and what might be needed to improve coverage in the region. The Southern Alleghenies Planning and Development Commission was awarded a $50,000 grant to map out broadband needs in Westmoreland along with Bedford,...