Westmoreland category, Page 871
Public corruption retrial of Westmoreland sheriff Held likely off until after primary
An appeal filed by Westmoreland County Sheriff Jonathan Held seeking to reverse a judge’s refusal to dismiss public corruption charges is expected to delay his retrial until after the May primary election. Held, 44, of Hempfield is awaiting his second trial on charges he forced on-duty sheriff’s department staff to...
Planned restaurant near Westmoreland Mall gets new name: IronRock Tap House
An upscale restaurant planned for outside Westmoreland Mall is getting an new name. Originally proposed as Sedona, the yet-to-open restaurant will now be called IronRock Tap House. This comes after its marketing team and owner Greg Cammerata decided the new name was a better fit for the vision and concept....
Saint Vincent names new dean
Margaret Watkins, a member of the Saint Vincent College philosophy faculty since 2009, was named dean of the School of Arts, Humanities and Social Studies, officials at the Unity college announced Monday. Watkins was named a professor in 2018. She previously filled in as interim dean of the school. During...
Future looks bright for hemp in Westmoreland County and Pennsylvania
Hemp fields could be coming soon to Hempfield, now that a new program from the state Department of Agriculture lifts the limits on the long-banned crop. “We think it’s a big win for everyone,” said state Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Hempfield. Farmers still must apply through the state in order to...
What you should know about CBD, America’s new favorite alternative medicine
Cannabidiol is everywhere — from chocolates to bath bombs and lotions to dog treats. Purported benefits of the cannabis-derived products run the gamut. It’s been advertised as an anxiety reducer, pain reliever, sleep aid and cancer treatment. More commonly known as CBD, the plant extract has become a popular form...
Armstrong County man accused of repeatedly harassing Delmont woman
A 47-year-old man who was cited last month for repeatedly harassing a Delmont woman was arrested Saturday by borough police after again allegedly contacting the victim and her mother. Patrick J. Daugherty of Leechburg was arraigned on charges of intimidating a witness and harassment for repeatedly messaging the victim through...
Coroner: Woman died from natural causes after becoming unresponsive at Westmoreland jail
A Monessen woman who became unresponsive at the Westmoreland County Prison in November died of natural causes, according to the county coroner’s office. Ashlee Jackson, 35, died Nov. 25 at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital, two days after she was found unresponsive in her cell. She had a medical condition, according...
Troopers looking for man, woman who stole credit cards from Panera customer
A man and woman slipped three credit cards out of a Greensburg woman’s purse last month at a Panera Bread location in Westmoreland County and bought two Apple laptop computers at Best Buy, according to state police. Troopers are looking for the suspects who they said sat behind the victim...
Irwin revives proposed amusement tax
Irwin officials are reviving a controversial proposal to create an amusement tax that would increase the price of event tickets sold in the borough by 5 percent — a levy that would hit hardest the revitalized Lamp Theatre. Council is expected to discuss the ordinance during a workshop meeting at...
Westmoreland notables: Norwin grad takes on responsibilities for Penn State’s THON
Standing on a stage in the middle of Penn State’s Bryce Center last year, 13 students held up a blue and yellow sign announcing THON had raised over $10 million. The room, filled with thousands of students and kids who are battling cancer, exploded with applause. The annual student-run event...
Role-playing group offers support for veterans
Veteran X isn’t a real person, but his problems are. He might have housing issues or a drug addiction. Maybe he isn’t sure how to get his discharge paperwork or health care. The solutions Veteran X finds to deal with situations like those are aimed at helping real veterans through...
Land use change proposed to add homes at Unity development
Unity supervisors are expected to vote in February on a land use change that would allow developer Don Paulone to construct 17 dwelling units along Route 30, on an undeveloped portion of the Villas at Grayhawk planned residential community. In 2004, the township approved a plan for commercial use of...
Police: Greensburg company stiffed $25K on work done at Somerset County home
A Somerset County man is accused of using four laborers supplied by a Greensburg company for work at his home and failing to pay them. Joseph William Battisto, 56, owes the workers $25,424, according to police. He was arrested Monday evening. Authorities said Battisto in July contacted People Ready in...
African penguin wows Mother of Sorrows students in Murrysville
National Aviary officials brought their “Penguins Are Cool” program to Mother of Sorrows School in Murrysville on Monday as part of Catholic Schools Week. Students learned about the world’s 18 species of penguin and had a chance to meet an African penguin as they learned about its special adaptations and...
Hempfield consultant announces GOP bid for Westmoreland County commissioner
A microbiologist who left a university teaching job last summer to open his own consulting business announced Monday he will be a Republican candidate for Westmoreland County commissioner. Doug Chew, 48, of Hempfield said if elected he will donate a portion of his salary to help fund the county’s drug...
Student art from 1940s gives glimpse of Manor Borough history
Nestled behind desks and under a water pipe in Hempfield Area High School’s basement sat five pieces of Manor history in the form of original art. The paintings give a glimpse into what the borough looked like in 1943-44 from the perspective of Manor School students. “You see the age...
Power restored in Mt. Pleasant area after outage as Super Bowl starts
Hundreds of West Penn Power customers in the Mt. Pleasant area may have only caught a glimpse of the Super Bowl on Sunday. A circuit lockout in the area cut power to 500 to 1,500 customers around 7 p.m., just after the game’s kickoff, said Eyad Gheith, a spokesman for...
Pittsburgh woman dies in Derry Township crash
A 59-year-old woman from Pittsburgh’s Greenfield neighborhood died after she was ejected from her vehicle Saturday morning in Derry Township. Westmoreland County Coroner Ken Bacha said Mary A. Mastriano was the front passenger in a Dodge Caravan headed west on Route 22 around 10 a.m., when the van traveled off...
Route 30 section could be renamed in honor of former fire chief Ed Hutchinson
Part of a busy local highway could soon be renamed in honor of the late J. Edward Hutchinson, Greensburg’s legendary former fire chief. State Sen. Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, said she is working with colleagues and the Hutchinson family to christen a two-mile stretch of Route 30 as the J. Edward...
Woman pinned beneath vehicle following Derry Township crash
Emergency crews are on the scene of a crash on Route 22 near its intersection with Rushwood Road in Derry Township, just east of New Alexandria, where dispatchers say a woman is pinned beneath her vehicle. The crash was reported shortly after 10 a.m., and emergency officials also reported that...
Hate crime symposium to be held at Saint Vincent
Online anti-Semitism and the prosecution of hate crimes, including the October mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue and the 2015 slayings at a historic African-American church in Charleston, S.C., will be among topics of a March symposium at Saint Vincent College in Unity. Robin Valeri, professor of psychology at St....
Rostraver man gets up to 5 years in jail for driving drunk in crash
A Rostraver man will serve up to five years in jail for driving drunk when he collided with another vehicle in which a young child rode as a passenger. John Summers, 47, pleaded guilty in November to drunk driving and related offenses in connection with the April 14, 2017, crash...
Ligonier man’s appeal in 2011 murder case rejected
First-degree murder convictions against a Ligonier man serving two consecutive life prison sentences for the 2011 killings of a Washington Township couple were upheld by a state appeals court. In a ruling issued this week, a three-judge panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed a ruling issued last year by...
Work on New Stanton highway ramps will stretch into 2020
PennDOT is set this month to begin improvements to ramps and lighting at the intersection of Route 119, Toll Route 66 and the New Stanton-Youngwood Road in New Stanton. Expected to start Monday and continue through April 2020, the project will stretch between the Technology Drive exit on Route 119...
State funds OK’d for Route 119 in Youngwood, Latrobe underpasses
An overdue update of the Route 119 corridor in Youngwood and repair of deteriorating sidewalks in Latrobe railroad underpasses were among 50 Pennsylvania projects that got a boost Friday with a combined $44.5 million in funding from the state’s Multimodal Transportation Fund. The $400,000 approved for Youngwood is designated for...
