Westmoreland category, Page 752
Friendly, furry faces recognized for easing Westmoreland court proceduresVideo
What could have been a cacophony of canines instead was more a parade of well-behaved — and mostly silent — pooches at the Westmoreland County Courthouse on Thursday. During an appreciation luncheon, the dogs and their handlers were recognized for participating in the nearly year-old therapy dog program, launched by...
Greensburg Garden and Civic Center celebrates 50 years
The Greensburg Garden & Civic Center is home to horticulture enthusiasts — and a lot more. In addition to the Greensburg Garden Center, it hosts the Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra, Greensburg Civic Theater and several other community organizations. Weddings, meetings, seminars and political events are held in its meeting space, while...
Blairsville convicted murderer wants public to pay for appeal expert
Taxpayers should not foot the bill to help a former Blairsville man craft a new appeal for his murder convictions in the execution-style slayings of his mother, sister and aunt, Westmoreland County prosecutors said in court Thursday. District Attorney John Peck and Assistant District Attorney Jim Lazar argued there was...
Westmoreland Veterans Affairs director to be keynote speaker for Smithton dinner
Matt Zamosky, director of Westmoreland County Veterans Affairs, will address those attending an early Veterans Day dinner on Nov. 2. The program, including presentation of colors and recognition of Vietnam veterans, begins at 6 p.m. at the Smithton Volunteer Fire Department social hall, 609 Center St. It’s sponsored by the...
Export man accused of selling meth to undercover state agent
An Export man was arraigned Wednesday on charges of selling crystal methamphetamine to an undercover agent with the state attorney general’s office Sept. 30 and Oct. 9. Ryan J. Fredericks, 24, was charged with multiple criminal charges including two felony counts of manufacturing and delivery of a controlled substances by...
3 Westmoreland locations collecting prescription medication for Take Back Day
Three police departments in Westmoreland County will be participating in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Take Back Day initiative on Saturday. The departments will be collected unused, unwanted or expired prescription medication in the nationwide effort to prevent those pills from ending up in the wrong hands. The administration holds two...
Shopping, snacks planned at Hanna’s Town candlelight open house
A Nov. 8 candlelight open house will recreate 18th-century ambience at Historic Hanna’s Town in Hempfield. Set for 4-8 p.m., the free event will feature food and drink and the opportunity to shop for new holiday merchandise at the historical site at 809 Forbes Trail Rd. Visitors will be greeted...
Police: Driver under the influence of cocaine in Salem crash that killed 1, injured 2
State police accuse a former New Alexandria man of being under the influence of cocaine during a fatal crash in Salem over the summer. Brian Keith Clemons, 42, of Normantown, W.Va., was arrested Wednesday in connection with the Aug. 10 crash on Route 22. He is charged with homicide by...
Greensburg honors Offutt Field icon ‘Huddie’ Kaufman
For a few minutes before Wednesday’s middle school football game in Greensburg, the attention turned from the field to the press box. All eyes were on Howard “Huddie” Kaufman, sitting in his usual perch as team timekeeper. Mayor Robert Bell was there to declare it “Huddie Kaufman Day.” “He’s been...
Suspect who blamed Jeannette murder on his twin now says he was in Florida at time of killing
An Allegheny County man awaiting trial for a 2017 Jeannette murder now claims he was in another state at the time of the fatal shooting. The lawyer for Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee filed court documents Wednesday in which he said he will pursue an alibi defense at trial, which is scheduled to...
Alex Hribal’s appeal rejected in Franklin Regional rampage
A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday upheld the 60-year prison sentence for Alex Hribal, the Murrysville teen convicted of wounding of 20 teens and a security guard during a 2014 knife rampage at Franklin Regional High School. A three-judge panel rejected the appeal from Hribal, 22, who claimed the sentencing...
Penn woman accused of baseball bat assault in Jeannette
A 32-year-old woman was arrested Tuesday inside a public housing complex in Jeannette where police say she fled after assaulting a woman with a baseball bat. Heather L. Kunkle of Penn was charged by city police with aggravated assault, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, defiant trespass, flight to...
Youngwood man accused of assaulting, threatening relative over use of car
State police arrested a Youngwood man Tuesday for assault and intimidation of a witness after he allegedly got into an argument with a relative about the use of a car. Alexander L. Soroka, 37, was arraigned before night court District Judge Denise Thiel for harassment, intimation of a witness and...
Unity zoning panel OKs small cell antennae in Whitney, HostetterVideo
Six small cellular antennae soon could be rising above the Unity villages of Hostetter and Whitney. The township zoning hearing board this week approved the devices meant to improve service for Verizon wireless customers. Chairman Matt Cavalier, Timothy Thomas, Dorothy Zello and Judge Jim Kelley granted a special exception allowing...
Cops: Woman who crashed into Greensburg Chinese restaurant was DUI
A 47-year-old Greensburg woman who smashed through the front of a Chinese restaurant over the weekend was driving under the influence and did not have a driver’s license, city police said. Eileen Marie Morreo is charged with DUI, reckless endangerment and reckless driving following the crash into Szechuan Garden at...
Volunteers pull about 300 tires from Yough River
Sixty-five volunteers pulled about 300 tires from a 4-mile stretch of the Youghiogheny River on Sunday, according to Westmoreland Cleanways director Ellen Keefe. But there is still more work to do. “We are definitely planning to do this next year,” she said. “This will become an annual event it looks...
Franklin Regional officials praise expanded student-assistance program
Franklin Regional support services Director Jennifer DiFulvio began seeing what she called a “pretty significant need” in student referrals across the district’s buildings in 2015. DiFulvio said counselors were “doing a large amount of work, meeting with students and connecting them with resources. We saw the need for some additional...
Greensburg man to introduce new organ at 150th celebration of Connellsville church
A Greensburg man will debut a new organ at a Connellsville church next month as part of the parish’s 150th anniversary celebration. J. Christopher Pardini, director of music and liturgy at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Greensburg and cathedral organist for the Diocese of Greensburg, will perform a recital on the...
Ex-Derry mayor, accused of brandishing gun near children, seeks to have charges reduced
The lawyer for Derry borough’s former mayor, accused of brandishing a loaded gun near children, said felony aggravated assault charges filed in the case should be dismissed. In a hearing Tuesday, defense attorney Tim Andrews argued Kevin Gross merely pointed a weapon as he attempted to intervene in a physical...
Ex-South Greensburg secretary will plead guilty to stealing from father, attorney says
South Greensburg’s former secretary, convicted last year of stealing more than $155,000 from the borough, will plead guilty next month to charges that he stole from his elderly father and lied about it to a county judge, his attorney said. During a hearing Tuesday, Assistant Public Defender Chris Haidze said...
Postal Service to honor Arnold Palmer with ‘Forever’ stamp
Golfing legend Arnold Palmer next year will share another distinction with fellow iconic Latrobe native Fred Rogers. The U.S. Postal Service announced Tuesday it will issue a stamp next year honoring Palmer. A stamp recognizing Rogers, beloved host of the children’s television program “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” was issued in 2018....
Madison man sentenced to jail for drunken police chase that damaged cruiser
A Madison man pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges in connection to a high-speed police chase. Police said Brian Allen Smith, 48, appeared suspicious when he was spotted Jan. 12 in Sewickley sitting in a black Honda, which he drove away after refusing to speak with a state state trooper who...
Bolivar man gets prison time for sex assault
A Bolivar man will serve up to 20 years behind bars for the sexual assault of a young girl. Bradley Grant Sarver, 47, was sentenced Tuesday to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison for an assault prosecutors said took place Christmas Day 2013. A 12-year-old...
Greensburg Bishop Malesic to visit pope in November
Greensburg Bishop Edward C. Malesic will make his first “ad limina” visit to the Vatican next month, the Catholic Accent reported. The bishop’s visit, in which he will report to Pope Francis on the status of the Diocese of Greensburg, comes at a time of declining priestly vocations, a shrinking...
Planned emergency drills at Jeannette schools canceled after ‘potential threat’
An emergency drill planned Wednesday in the Jeannette City School District was canceled after secondary school students were dismissed early Tuesday because of a potential threat, according to Superintendent Matt Jones. A new date for the drill will be announced soon, Jones said in a letter to parents. The critical...
