Police: Watson Institute nurse stabbed by woman wielding knife during hostage situation

A New Castle woman is accused of stabbing a nurse, taking a boy hostage and biting police officers during an incident at a school in Leet Wednesday.

Leet police said Rochelle Lynn Pinkle, 40, was subdued with a Taser because she would not surrender to officers, a criminal complaint against her states. She bit two officers while being taken into custody.

Leet police said they were notified of a stabbing at The Watson Institute shortly after 9 a.m. The school, at 301 Camp Meeting Road, focuses on educating children with special needs, according to its website.

Leet police Chief Michael Molinaro said officers arrived on scene within minutes, but it took about 25 minutes before Pinkle could be taken into custody.

A female nurse was stabbed twice in her upper back inside of the school, a criminal complaint against Pinkle states.

Police said the assailant, later identified as Pinkle, went out to the parking lot and entered a school van with a student, a 14-year-old boy, inside.

While negotiating with Pinkle, officers saw her holding a knife toward the boy’s upper body and head at an arm’s length away, the complaint states. Police did not describe the knife.

Officers were able to remove the boy from the van and into the care of school workers, according to the complaint, which does not explain how that was accomplished.

The boy was not hurt, Molinaro said.

Pinkle, however, would not willingly surrender to officers, the complaint states. A Taser was deployed and Pinkle was taken into custody, during which multiple officers were kicked in their legs and the two were bitten.

Because she had been tased, Pinkle was taken to Heritage Valley Sewickley to be checked.

Police did not reveal in the complaint any reason or motive for Pinkle’s actions.

Leet police filed several charges against Pinkle including four felony counts of aggravated assault, a felony charge of endangering the welfare of children, and misdemeanor charges of simple assault, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, resisting arrest, possession of a weapon school property and possessing instruments of crime.

No attorney for Pinkle was listed in court records.

Pinkle was arraigned early Thursday morning and sent to the Allegheny County Jail on $50,000 bail. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 30 before District Judge Robert L. Ford.