Megan Guza stories, Page 20
Pa. agriculture secretary tours 4 Pittsburgh urban farms
Pennsylvania’s Urban Agriculture Week featured four farms and gardens across Pittsburgh, and Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding toured each on Tuesday as part of his statewide tour. “At the end of the day, (Urban Agriculture Week) gives us a chance to tell a story about food, about agriculture and sharing...
Infant reported missing found safe in North Versailles
An infant reported missing Tuesday morning who was last seen the day before was found safe in North Versailles, according to Allegheny County Police. Eight-month-old Royalty Lomax was reported missing early Tuesday. Detectives said in a news release issued around 11 a.m. that she had been found. Authorities did not...
Pittsburgh zoo goes ahead with Asian Lantern Festival after judge denies restraining order sought by Cleveland zoo
A federal judge in Ohio has denied the Cleveland zoo’s request for a temporary restraining order against the Pittsburgh zoo over alleged trademark infringement related to the Pittsburgh zoo’s upcoming Asian Lantern Festival. U.S. District Judge James Gwin denied the motion late last week, something attorneys for Pittsburgh Zoo &...
2 young amateur Pittsburgh boxers receive champions’ welcome upon return from National Junior OlympicsVideo
A pair of young Pittsburgh boxers received a champion’s welcome Sunday night when they returned from the 2021 National Junior Olympics in Texas. Delbert ‘Sonny’ Taylor, 19, and Michael ‘Spoonie’ James, 15, represented 412 Boxing and Third Avenue Boxing Gym in the 10-day championships in Lubbock. Tailor and James both...
McKeesport Lower 10th Ward could be without water for more than a week
Residents in McKeesport’s Lower 10th Ward could be without water for at least a week, according to the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County. Those living in the ward have been advised not to use tap water since Friday when fire tore through McKeesport Auto Body on Rebecca Street. Fire suppressing...
Alle-Kiski Valley firefighters practice driving firetrucks in tight spaces
Parallel parking is often the most difficult part of any driver training course — staying between the orange barrels, learning to use your side mirrors and hoping you don’t hit the curb. Now imagine doing it in a 40-ton fire rescue truck. “This is like a driving test, but way...
Kiski Township traffic stop turns up drugs, guns
Police arrested an Indiana man this week after a traffic stop turned up drugs and guns, authorities said. Sahid Nasir-Evans, 27, faces charges related to firearms violations and possession of marijuana, said Kiski Township Police Sgt. Thomas Dessell. Officers stopped Nasir-Evans just after 1 a.m. Monday on Route 56 near...
Brookline couple faces charges after 6-week-old tests positive for cocaine
A Brookline couple faces charges after doctors discovered cocaine in the system of their 6-week-old infant, according to charges filed by Pittsburgh police Thursday. Matthew Bell and Lindsey Satterfield both face charges related to drug possession, assault and child endangerment. According to the criminal complaint, Satterfield took her infant son...
Police: Desperate notes in Walmart, Fallingwater led to woman held captive
The first note appeared just over a week ago. Stuck to a mirror in the women’s restroom at the Walmart on Washington Pike in Scott, a handwritten note pleaded for help, police said. The writer, a woman, wrote that she was being held captive by a man named Corey Brewer...
Second man charged in slaying of Penn Hills teen
Police this week filed homicide charges against a second man in connection with the May slaying of a Penn Hills teenager. Daeshuan Eric Smith, 19, of Penn Hills, is charged with homicide, conspiracy and carrying a firearm without a license. He’s alleged to have taken part in the May 23...
Whitehall restaurant hit with consumer alert for live roach infestation
Live roaches and roach nests in the kitchen prompted the Allegheny County Health Department to issue a consumer alert for a Whitehall restaurant this week, inspection reports show. The Namaste India II Restaurant on Radford Road was not shut down, though the department issued it a yellow consumer alert placard....
Officials: 60% of eligible Allegheny County residents fully vaccinated
About 60% of Allegheny County residents over the age of 10 are fully vaccinated against covid-19, health director Dr. Debra Bogen said Wednesday, and case counts, deaths and hospitalizations have remained low. The numbers represent an effort by the state to weed out some instances of double counting and miscounting...
Database of police misconduct launches in PennsylvaniaVideo
Police departments statewide must now use a database to track complaints and misconduct allegations against officers, a move meant to keep problem officers from moving from department to department. The launch of the Police Misconduct Database comes one year after Gov. Tom Wolf signed the legislation into law. The legislation...
Former Beechview man who owned Chomp the alligator, other reptiles receives split verdict in neglect trialVideo
A former Beechview man who made his living selling exotic reptiles and more at expos will be barred from owning any animal for two years, an Allegheny County judge ruled Friday, finding that while he did neglect some of the mammals in his care, his reptiles were adequately cared for....
Owner of Chomp, Beechview’s wayward gator, dodges cruelty charge, still faces neglect charges
A judge acquitted the owner of a 5-foot alligator that escaped from his home in 2019 of one count of animal cruelty on Thursday, but the other 37 charges against him remain in play. Defense attorney Julia Gitelman on Friday intends to call several witnesses who she says will testify...
Cleveland zoo sues Pittsburgh zoo over Asian Lantern Festival name
The Cleveland zoo is suing the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium for trademark infringement, claiming the Pittsburgh zoo’s upcoming Asian Lantern Festival is a ripoff of the Cleveland zoo’s annual event in place since 2018. Cleveland Metroparks alleged in the federal lawsuit filed last week that the zoo has held...
Former Westmoreland jail warden sues commissioner, alleges discrimination and emotional distress
The former longtime warden of the Westmoreland County Prison sued county Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher this week, claiming in the lawsuit that “relentless and baseless harassment, discrimination and retaliation” forced him to retire early. John Walton, 62, filed the federal lawsuit Monday, alleging discrimination, harassment and retaliation based on sex,...
Carnegie man charged in overdose death of 4-year-old son
A Carnegie toddler overdosed on fentanyl after a day spent with his father, who has since been charged with involuntary manslaughter, police said. Van Redding, 36, is charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of his 4-year-old earlier this year. The child died May 7 at St. Clair...
Western Pa. advocacy groups move to support sexual violence survivors after Cosby decision
Advocacy groups pushed forward Thursday, working to provide support and comfort to sexual violence survivors hurt and retraumatized by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction. “Today and yesterday, we’ve certainly seen an increase in our help line calls,” said Lisa Perry, executive director of...
Woman accused of crashing on closed Tarentum Bridge charged with drunken driving, causing $200K damage
A Lower Burrell woman who police say drove past blinking signs onto the closed Tarentum Bridge, plowed into construction equipment, limped from the scene to a nearby gas station before police arrived and then fled an emergency room has been charged with driving under the influence. Allison Plusquellic, 39, also...
‘Dangerous’ crowding on South Side prompts Pittsburgh police to step up patrols, citations
Unruly pedestrians and crowded sidewalks have created a “dangerous and untenable” situation on Pittsburgh’s South Side, according to police, and officers will step up patrols and start issuing citations Friday night. Pittsburgh police officials said Thursday the increased volume of people headed to East Carson Street has meant “nearly impassable...
Police: Drugs, guns found in car after driver almost struck Duquesne officer
A West Homestead man faces DUI and other charges after he nearly hit a Duquesne police officer who was conducting a traffic stop early Tuesday, authorities said. The incident happened around 1:30 a.m. as a Duquesne City officer was making a traffic stop along Route 837. Police said a second...
‘The numbers prove it’: Allegheny County officials point to rising vaccination rates and falling case counts
Eighty percent of Allegheny County’s adult population is at least partially vaccinated against covid-19, officials said Wednesday, a rate that continues to rise as case counts and positivity rates continue to fall. “Let’s get that last 20%,” said Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, “so we can all feel safe, we...
New Special Agent in Charge of FBI’s Pittsburgh office talks priorities
Newly appointed Special Agent in Charge of the Pittsburgh FBI field office Michael Nordwall spoke on a range of topics in a news conference Wednesday, including the bureau’s priorities in Pittsburgh and the importance of help from the public. Nordwall comes from Washington, D.C., where he’d been serving as the...
Allegiant adds another Florida route in Pittsburgh
Budget airline Allegiant has added another nonstop flight from Pittsburgh to coastal Florida, airline officials said Tuesday. The flight, which will begin Nov. 11, is from Pittsburgh International Airport to Melbourne Orlando International Airport in Melbourne, Fla. The airport is about 50 miles southeast of Orlando and just across the...
