Westmoreland category, Page 845
Rostraver man loses 3rd appeal of life sentence for murder
A Westmoreland County judge on Friday rejected the appeal of a Rostraver man serving a life prison term for the 2015 murder of his sister’s boyfriend. Billy Ray Boggs Jr., 52, has, for the last three years, sought to withdraw his guilty plea to a count of first-degree murder for...
Man identified in fatal Derry Twp. crash
A 77-year-old Blairsville man was killed Friday afternoon in a head-on collision along Route 217 in Derry Township, state police at Greensburg said. Robert L. Cochran of Indiana Avenue was killed when his southbound sport-utility vehicle was hit by a northbound vehicle as it approached the area of Curnow Drive...
Jeannette Legion will mark 100th year with dinner, music
Jeannette American Legion Post 344 will celebrate its 100th anniversary with a March 16 dinner. Doors will open at 5 p.m. at the post hall, a former movie theater at 109 S. Fifth St., Jeannette. The $30 cost includes dinner, catered by local restaurant DeNunzio’s, at about 7 p.m., and...
Vacant house in Jeannette catches fire for 2nd time in 2 years
A vacant house on South Seventh Street caught fire Friday for the second time in two years. Jeannette Fire Capt. Joe Matijevic is not interested in returning for a third. “I’m hoping we can get it demolished,” Matijevic said Friday night as fire crews cleaned up the scene on the...
1 dead in Derry Twp. crash on Route 217
At least one person has died following a two-car crash Friday that closed a stretch of Route 217 in Derry Township. The crash happened just before 5 p.m. near the intersection of Route 217 and Curnow Road, according to Westmoreland County emergency dispatchers. Route 217 was closed for about four-and-a-half...
Test boring will restrict Route 119 traffic in Youngwood
Motorists will encounter a series of single-lane closures on sections of Route 119 and adjoining streets in Youngwood beginning next week. According to PennDOT, daytime traffic restrictions will occur as needed on weekdays, allowing crews to conduct test borings in preparation for planned reconstruction of the roadway beginning in 2020....
Franklin Regional students incorporate drumming, lasers, blacklights into gym classVideo
Franklin Regional Middle School students, through a grant from the FR Panther Foundation, spent part of their Friday drumming to dance music with lasers and blacklights. Health and physical-education teacher Barbara Haybarger said the fitness drumming program helps students with rhythmic movement, building confidence and learning to collaborate with peers....
ATF still investigating Jeannette fatal fire evidence; trial date to be set later
Investigators continue to analyze evidence collected at the scene of a 2018 Jeannette fire in which an elderly woman died. Assistant District Attorney Leo Ciaramitaro said Friday in a court hearing for the man accused of setting the April 9 blaze that evidence collected at the scene is still being...
Man rejects plea deal in East Huntingdon pedestrian fatality case
A New Stanton motorist prosecutors contend was under the influence of drugs when he struck and killed a pedestrian on Christmas Eve 2016 in East Huntingdon rejected a plea deal on Friday that would have required him to serve up to 40 years in prison. Matthew Ramsay, 31, is charged...
Derry man wanted on fugitive warrant arrested in Bedford County
A Derry Township man, who authorities feared fled the area to avoid trial for allegedly raping a 6-year-old girl, was arrested this week in Bedford County. The Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Department warrant team and state police in Bedford teamed up to arrest William M. Brady, 36, at a Walmart near...
2 arrested after Monessen police seize ‘significant amount’ of suspected heroin, 4 guns
Monessen police arrested two people Friday after seizing a “significant amount” of suspected heroin and four handguns during a raid at an address where a man was fatally shot in June. Authorities served a search warrant at a Summit Avenue apartment just after 6 a.m. in connection with a drug...
Hempfield’s Bovard neighborhood to be checked for mine subsidence
Several homes in the Bovard neighborhood of Hempfield could be prone to mine subsidence, according to the Department of Environmental Protection. Officials believe between 60 and 80 homes in the Bovard area could be located in a subsidence prone area, according to agency spokeswoman Lauren Fraley. Mine subsidence occurs when...
Ceremony to honor local Vietnam veterans
Local Vietnam veterans will have the opportunity to be honored as the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War approaches. In a collaboration between Congressman Conor Lamb, who represents Pennsylvania’s 17th Congressional District, and the Vietnam War 50th Commemoration, a program developed by the Department of Defense, officials are searching for...
Bail set for Hempfield man accused of marijuana dealing
A Hempfield man accused by police of having more than 50 of pounds of marijuana at his home could get out of jail to await trial — if he comes up with half a million dollars. District Judge Mark Mansour set bond at a total of $500,000 in two cases...
Wind storm outages dwindling; some businesses restored Thursday
Most of the estimated 121 West Penn Power customers in Westmoreland County without electricity were expected to have power by the end of the day Friday, the utility said. Most of the outages are leftovers from Sunday’s wind storm, although a few were added from overnight weather that dropped 2...
Westmoreland County coroner reports highest caseload in department history in 2018
The Westmoreland County Coroner’s office responded to the highest caseload in the department’s history last year, according to Deputy Coroner Joshua Zappone. The coroner’s 2018 annual report — officially released Friday — shows about a 50-case increase since 2017, marking a gradual increase in cases since 2008. Of the 2,875...
Death penalty upheld for ‘Greensburg Six’ roommate Melvin Knight
A Westmoreland County judge has upheld the death penalty imposed against one of the six Greensburg roommates convicted in the 2010 torture slaying of a mentally disabled woman. Common Pleas Court Judge Rita Hathaway ruled evidence presented in a sentencing trial last November was sufficient to support a jury finding...
Western Pa. business owners finding right fit in downtown communitiesVideo
When considering where to open her new business several years ago, Jenifer Amundson says there was never any question on location. Greensburg is her hometown and where Amundson, 52, and her husband, Jon Amundson, 53, make their home. “We were looking for a building in downtown Greensburg. We were going...
Claridge event to give ailing Army veterans ‘Hope’
An upcoming veteran-focused event in Claridge will serve as a fundraiser for Army veterans dealing with medical issues. The “Veteran X Celebration of Hope” on March 20 at the Bushy Run American Legion is being planned by nonprofit group Devil Dogs. Veterans, their families and the public are invited, vice...
Greensburg diocese launches quarterly TV show and magazine
The Greensburg Catholic Diocese takes to the airwaves this weekend for the launch of a new multimedia outreach program, complete with a quarterly 30-minute Sunday morning television show. The program airs at 11:30 a.m. on WTAE-TV, Channel 4, the local station that once employed Jennifer Miele — the diocese’s chief...
Several hundred power customers remain without electricity in wake of Sunday’s winds
About 700 West Penn Power customers remained without electricity late Thursday, four days after high winds left hundreds of thousands in the dark and cold. As of 11:40 p.m Thursday., just eight Duquesne Light customers were in a similar situation. Duquesne Light was reporting four customers were without power on...
State appeals court upholds verdict in 2017 Excela stent cases; several others still pending in court system
A state appellate court affirmed a 2017 Westmoreland County jury verdict that cleared a doctor and Excela Health of wrongdoing for implanting cardiac stents into a patient who claimed they were unnecessary. The appeal involved a lawsuit filed by a North Huntingdon man who claimed five of the seven stents...
Jeannette woman rescinds murder plea, will head to trial
A Jeannette woman accused of violently beating her boyfriend to death on Thursday withdrew her guilty plea to third-degree murder. Crystal Belle, 39, pleaded guilty in September for the June 11, 2016, beating death of 19-year-old Khalil Parker, of Brentwood, Allegheny County, in her South Seventh Street home. The deal...
U.S. Rep. Reschenthaler opens district offices in Hempfield, Washington, Pa.
U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, the region’s newest congressman, on Thursday said he has opened district offices in Hempfield and Washington, Pa. Both offices will be open for constituent services from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Hempfield office is at 700 Pellis Road, Suite 1, fronting...
Rostraver man accused of faking drug test
A 45-year-old Rostraver man was accused this week of submitting an altered urine sample to the Westmoreland County Probation office after a probation officer noticed a white tube protruding from the man’s underwear as he was performing the court-mandated drug test. Brett Michael Toman was arraigned Wednesday before District Judge...
