Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 23
Latrobe man alleges packing firm wrongly fired him after he reported safety issues
A Latrobe man claimed in a federal lawsuit filed this week he was improperly fired from a packaging manufacturer as retaliation after reporting suspected safety issues. Patrick Mitchell, in a six-count complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, said he became ill while working at Opco Inc., a Latrobe-based...
Vandergrift woman pleads guilty to sex assault of teen
A Vandergrift woman was sentenced serve up to four years in prison for sexually assaulting a teen girl. Ashley Elizabeth Valore, 36, pleaded guilty to felony counts of statutory sexual assault and aggravated indecent assault for repeated encounters with a 15-year-old girl. According to court records, the teen told police...
Hyde Park man to serve probation for child pornography possession
A Hyde Park man was spared a prison sentence Tuesday, arguing that his personal domestic challenges led to depression that caused him to spiral into criminal behavior. Joshua Glen Townsend, 34, was ordered to serve one year on house arrest as part of a three-year probation sentence. He pleaded guilty...
Sewickley Township woman to serve 6-15 years in prison for fatal Arona Road crash
Jason Yarosik said his aunt was the glue that held his family together. Dawn Coyne, 57, of Madison spent years caring for her ailing husband who died from cancer in 2017, loved all three of her now adult children and served as a manager of the Goodwill store in North...
Greensburg man pleads guilty to assault on police officer
A Greensburg man was ordered Monday to serve up to 42 months in state prison for the drunken aggravated assault of a police officer last year in Latrobe. Bruce Hudak, 41, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and drunk driving offenses in connection an incident last Aug. 17. According to court...
Westmoreland transit ends ConnectCard fare system
The Westmoreland County Transit Authority on Friday halted the use of the cashless ConnectCard fare system that had been in place on its fixed-route bus system since 2018. Initially touted as customer service advancement that allowed bus riders to pay fares without having exact cash, the system never flourished, suffered...
South Greensburg man’s scuffle with security at Hempfield Area High School could have been avoided, judge says
A South Greensburg man was sentenced to serve one year of probation for an altercation with security officers who attempted to prevent him from entering Hempfield Area High School without a mask during covid-era restrictions in 2021. Richard Michael Bettis, 58, was convicted during of misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest,...
Westmoreland Judge Feliciani recognized for drug court advocacy
In the nine years since its inception, Westmoreland County’s Drug Court has helped dozens of participants struggling with addiction to turn their lives around. Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani has been at the center of that program since its beginning in 2015 and recently received the Anthony “Tony” Marcocci...
Latrobe man called danger to community sentenced to 3-year prison term
A Westmoreland County judge said he had no choice this week but to impose a three-year maximum prison sentence for a Latrobe man who pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of a teenage girl. Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger ordered Cristofer R. Dowden, 25, to serve at least 18...
Westmoreland OKs new jobs, more pay for human service staffers
Westmoreland commissioners on Thursday added 32 jobs to the county payroll to expand the fledgling human services department and help ease staffing concerns at Westmoreland Manor. Commissioners also extended the workday for 10 human services administrators in what officials said was a coordinated effort to enhance public outreach and could...
Judge limits taxpayer funds for father’s death penalty defense in New Kensington slaying
A Westmoreland County judge said she will limit defense spending of taxpayer funds for the pending trial of a Brackenridge man who faces a potential death sentence in connection with the alleged killing of his 9-year-old son. Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio said Wednesday excessive costs incurred by public defenders...
Beaver Run’s water levels remain OK despite dry spell, authority officials say
Water levels at Beaver Run Reservoir remain far above the limit where conservation efforts need to be enacted, Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County officials said Wednesday. The recent dry spell that has turned lawns brown and wilted flower gardens in Western Pennsylvania has so far not stressed the primary water...
North Huntingdon man pleads guilty to sexual assault of teen
A North Huntingdon man was ordered Tuesday to serve up to four years in prison for sexual assault of a teenage girl. Brandon Roy Satolli, 29, pleaded guilty to felony counts of statutory sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and child pornography in connection with allegations from last July in which...
Conservator says he expects to scale back role in Register of Wills office
Conservator Jim Antoniono said Tuesday his intensive oversight of the beleaguered Westmoreland County Register of Wills Office is no longer needed. “I feel comfortable with the new leadership. My time over there is going to be really limited to just making sure it is going in the right direction,” Antoniono...
Marinucci appeal rejected by state Supreme Court
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal of a Greensburg woman who claims her 60-years-to-life prison sentence for her role in the 2010 torture slaying of a mentally disabled woman should be overturned. Angela Marinucci, 32, has argued the latest sentence imposed in 2022 was unconsitutional and was...
Texas lab to use advanced DNA testing to help Westmoreland investigators with cold cases
Westmoreland County investigators will tap into advanced DNA testing in an attempt to formulate new leads or identify suspects as part of an effort to solve violent crime cold cases. District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli this week announced the hiring of Othram Inc., a Texas-based company, to evaluate and study DNA...
Defense seeks to bar testimony in appeal of decades-old Jeannette arson murder case
Attorneys for a former Jeannette man in prison for the deaths of his wife and two young children killed three decades ago in a house fire are seeking to bar new testimony about the origins of the fatal blaze. James Young, 57, was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder...
Former medical provider removed from inmate’s lawsuit against Westmoreland jail
The former medical provider at Westmoreland County Prison has been removed from a federal lawsuit filed last year by an inmate. Robert James Frantz, formerly of Hempfield, claimed he was improperly cared for at the Hempfield lockup. Senior U.S. District Judge Joy Flowers Conti, in a ruling finalized Monday, dismissed...
Bretz reelected to head Westmoreland GOP
Westmoreland County Republican Committee members have reelected Bill Bretz as their chairman to oversee the local GOP for the next two years. Bretz, 52, was unopposed in his bid for a third term at the helm of the Republican committee which over the last decade has surged into power in...
Westmoreland authority targeted in ‘vendor impersonator scheme,’ official says
The Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County said Monday that it lost a significant amount of money in what the agency’s top legal official described as a “vendor impersonator scheme.” “This was not a data breach. It was a vendor impersonator scheme,” said Scott Avolio, the authority’s solicitor. “It was literally...
Rostraver church holds service for pets, owners
John Harkins and Lucy, his Schnauzer-Yorkie mix, have been together for just three months. They are a family and last Saturday, along with dozens of other local pets and owners, gathered at the First Presbyterian Church for the 9th annual Blessing of the Animals. Harkins, adopted Lucy in Florida earlier...
New errors discovered in Westmoreland Register of Wills Office lead to personnel changes
The ongoing review of records in the embattled Westmoreland County Register of Wills Office has unearthed more incomplete adoption files, leading to personnel changes enacted this week by the conservator appointed to oversee the office. According to court documents filed Thursday, conservator Jim Antoniono said staff found multiple cases of...
Westmoreland approves GPS tracking of county vehicles
Westmoreland County soon will begin intensive tracking of its vehicle fleet, including dozens of take-home cars used by employees and elected officials. Commissioners on Thursday revised the county’s fleet management policy to require drivers to log in to a GPS device installed in nearly every vehicle. The equipment will provide...
Advocates blast Westmoreland commissioners for not recognizing Pride Month
Local leaders of a LGBTQ+ rights advocacy group on Wednesday accused Westmoreland County commissioners of refusing to recognize local diversity. The group last week submitted a petition asking commissioners to proclaim June as Pride Month in the county. The request is not listed for consideration at Thursday’s commissioners meeting. “They...
Former nursing aide sentenced for jewelry theft from dementia patients
A former nursing aide was ordered to serve nearly 10 months in jail for the theft of jewelry from dementia patients at a Murrysville nursing home. Christina Louise Ankney, 40, of Braddock, Allegheny County, pleaded guilty in April to two misdemeanor counts of theft and receiving stolen property in connection...
