Natasha Lindstrom stories, Page 24

A man was in critical condition after medics rushed him to the hospital Thursday afternoon from a Swissvale neighborhood, police said. Officials received a report of a man in need of help near the 7500 block of Ellesmere Street around 12:25 p.m., Allegheny County Police Inspector Andrew Schurman said. Police...

A state board that reviews criminal cases agreed Wednesday to pardon Corry Sanders, the former McKeesport councilman-elect whose 26-year-old drug convictions blocked him from serving in office despite winning the 2016 municipal election. In a 5-0 vote, the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons recommended clemency for Sanders, 49, during a public...

Former Steelers lineman and four-time Super Bowl champion Sam Davis has died at 75, officials said Tuesday night. Police found Davis’ body near his home at an adult care housing complex on Versailles Avenue in McKeesport shortly before 9 p.m. — about 14 hours after Davis was reported missing by...

EQT Corp. is laying off 196 employees, nearly one-quarter of its workforce, the Downtown Pittsburgh-based natural gas producer announced Tuesday. Company officials attributed the decision to a broader restructuring plan to “create a more efficient and nimbler organization.” Slashing the 196 positions will save about $50 million in annual costs,...

Police took a suspect into custody after multiple people were stabbed Monday night near a public housing complex in East Pittsburgh, officials said. Medics took at least three people to the hospital in connection to the incident, an Allegheny County 911 shift commander said. The extent of their injuries were...

Police are searching for a man suspected of robbing a bank in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood on Monday afternoon, officials said. A man wearing dark ski glasses, a ball cap and dark clothing entered the Citizens Bank branch on Fifth Avenue shortly before 2 p.m., Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said....

Tens of thousands of Western Pennsylvanians shut out of UPMC and Highmark’s freshly inked deal don’t have much say in the health insurance plans they get — workers under 65 who rely on the coverage options their bosses choose. Kindergarten teachers, state troopers, pharmacists, municipal employees, community college professors, sales...

A Butler County woman has pleaded guilty to receiving more than $60,000 in fraudulent Social Security benefits by lying about her husband, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Pattie Lou Smith, 56, of Connoquenessing admitted to making false reports to the federal government on documents required to determine eligibility for benefits between...

Three men are behind bars on drug charges after police said they found about $20,000 worth of ecstasy, cocaine and methamphetamine hidden inside a home in the Mt. Vernon section of New Kensington. Andre Butler, 34, and Shawn Taylor, 47, both of Pittsburgh, and Dennis Corbett, 33, of New Kensington,...

A Pittsburgh man caught with more than 100 bricks of heroin at his North Side home has been sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Kawama Hightower, 41, was convicted of possession with intent to distribute heroin and crack cocaine and maintaining a drug-involved...

The relatives of a family of four displaced by a fire that gutted their longtime home in Pittsburgh’s Knoxville neighborhood are seeking help from the community. Sarah and Ed Holzwarth, their 11-year-old son, Trent, and 18-year-old daughter Jocelyn are one of two families whose houses on Reifert Street were destroyed...

A car caught fire Tuesday night near a kerosene tank in the parking lot of a Sheetz gas station in Plum, prompting officials to shut down the gas pumps and close the convenience store for several hours. No one was injured in the incident, officials said. Plum police and firefighters...

Police are investigating a series of suspected cases of shots being fired in Pittsburgh’s East End early Friday, officials said. Police received two ShotSpotter alerts about 12:30 a.m. — first, of gunfire near the 300 block of East Hills Drive; and then, moments later, gunfire in the 700 block of...

Nine-year-old Gabriel Wallace plopped a hard plastic scrub brush into a household bucket in the basement of Springdale United Presbyterian Church, then paused to adjust his black-rimmed glasses and pull out a pen and checklist. One bottle of laundry detergent, check. Five sponges, check. Thirty-six to 50 clothespins, check. Wallace...

A South Hills priest of more than four decades has been placed on leave over an allegation that he sexually abused a child in the 1990s, officials with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh said Thursday. The Rev. Robert Cedolia — who has been presiding over four parishes in the...

UPMC facilities are preparing to meet the “pent-up demand” among Highmark-insured patients who now can choose to go to UPMC doctors and hospitals, particularly when it comes to specialty care, UPMC’s chief financial officer said Tuesday. “We’re seeing (patient) volume increases,” said Robert DeMichiei, CFO of UPMC, a nonprofit health...

Police are investigating a stabbing Monday afternoon in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, officials said. Shortly before 4:30 p.m., police received a report of a man who had been stabbed in the back in the 700 block of Webster Terrace, Public Safety spokesman Chris Togneri said. The injured man was able to...

A jury on Monday found a Pittsburgh man not guilty of killing a Swissvale teen at a playground a little more than two years ago. William Smoot, 21, of the city’s Homewood neighborhood was acquitted of homicide and other charges connected to the 2017 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Vallen Davies-Mack....

The week after Donald Koenig took the helm of the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, a federal law took effect that ushered in unprecedented competition over veterans care nationwide. The Mission Act — bipartisan-backed legislation that took effect June 6, the 75th anniversary of D-Day — makes it easier than ever...

A Lawrence County doctor pleaded guilty to illegally prescribing and doling out fentanyl and other opioid painkillers while practicing at clinics in Western Pennsylvania and Ohio, federal prosecutors said . Dr. Thomas A. Ranieri, 66, took a plea deal in exchange for dropping 10 of the 24 counts filed against...

Ray Burns relished the chance to unwind by fishing ever since learning to cast a rod as a young child alongside his brother and dad. “He always just loved to be able to throw out a rod and relax and wait for a bite,” recalled Marcy Burns, his wife of...

A former Uber driver convicted of kidnapping and assaulting a woman he picked up while off-duty in Downtown Pittsburgh nearly two years ago will spend another eight months behind bars. Soumana Dao, 32, was sentenced Monday to a year in jail, and he will receive about four months of credit...

A federal grand jury indicted a Pittsburgh man on charges of delivering the heroin and fentanyl mix that resulted in a drug user dying of an overdose last year, prosecutors said Monday. Davonte Dugger, 20, faces narcotics charges stemming from a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation into the overdose death and...

Editor’s note: Building the Valley tells stories of businesses big and small and the employees who make them special. If you know of any standout employees, bosses or companies with a great story to tell, contact reporter Madasyn Czebiniak at mczebiniak@tribweb.com Amber Halliwell regrets not eating more the day she...