Tony LaRussa stories, Page 32
Injuries reported in wreck along Route 30 in Hempfield Township; closed lane snarls traffic
A section of eastbound Route 30 in Hempfield Township is down to a single lane following a two-vehicle accident with injuries, according to authorities. The wreck occurred shortly after 6:15 p.m. near the intersection of Westwood Drive near the Alpine Pools store, according to a Westmoreland County 911 supervisor. First...
Truck flips, spills load on Parkway East; road open while debris being cleared
Crews are clearing debris from the Parkway East near Churchill after a tractor-trailer overturned and spilled its load across the road and down a hillside, according to authorities. The accident was reported shortly after 2:30 p.m. near Exit 11 and emergency responders were still on the scene at 4 p.m....
Pittsburgh police seek tips from public about Lincoln Place teen missing since March 30
Pittsburgh police are seeking the public’s help to locate a teen missing since Wednesday. Keenu Brooks, 13, was last seen at 6 p.m. on March 30 at at his school, Sister Thea Bowman School in Wilkinsburg. Anyone with information is asked to call detectives with the city’s Special Victims Unit...
Fire levels barn in Upper Burrell, horse escapes unharmed to nearby pasture
A barn in Upper Burrell was destroyed by fire on Saturday morning but no animals were injured, according to authorities. Multiple fire companies responded to the fire reported at 6:16 a.m. along Horseshoe Lane, officials said. An assistant chief from the Lower Burrell No. 3 department was the first to...
Documentary chronicles Lower Burrell veteran’s Vietnam War experiences
Hal Shaffer knows first-hand about the sacrifices and suffering war can bring. Now the 74-year-old Lower Burrell man is sharing his story about serving and being wounded during the Vietnam War as part of a documentary series being produced by John Bailey, “Duty, Courage, Honor: Southwestern Pennsylvania Goes to War.”...
Building the Valley: Frankie’s Friends Cat Clinic creating training center for ‘quick fix’ spay and neuter technique
For as far back as Dr. Becky Morrow can recall, people concerned about the welfare of cats have been on the losing side of a battle to find enough homes for the animals available for adoption. “For too many years we’ve been trying to bail out the bathtub by adopting...
Police acting on tip nab 2 stolen guns, drugs in Tarentum; suspect jailed
Police said they charged a Tarentum man with multiple felonies after officers got a tip he was illegally buying and selling guns. Jarrell Miller, 36, of the 200 block of Conroy Way, faces felony charges that include two counts of illegal possession of a firearm, two counts of receiving stolen...
North Hills charity expands service to Alle-Kiski Valley with free monthly mobile food distribution
Editors note: The original version of this article contained incorrect times and dates for when the food distribution will take place. A charitable organization that has provided a range of social services to residents in the North Hills for the past 35 years is expanding its footprint to help needy...
District judge launches 22nd annual ‘Drugs Kill Dreams’ campaign aimed at Armstrong County children
When Ford City District Judge J. Gary DeComo launched a youth anti-drug campaign in 2000, he knew that helping kids make choices that lead them away from drug abuse would take more than a catchy slogan, a pep talk and handing out sports memorabilia. But it was a start. “Those...
Plans announced to preserve iconic North Park water tank to serve as observation towerVideo
A casual visitor to North Park could easily mistake the 101-foot-tall, bullet-shaped structure near the Lodge pavilion as nothing more than a rusting, abandoned curiosity. Built in 1937 during the Works Progress Administration, the cylindrical steel tank along North Ridge Road — officially known as the Allegheny County North Park...
Police: Man arrested for pointing gun at group, firing into air at Sheldon Park Apartments
A resident of the Sheldon Park Apartments in Harrison faces multiple charges after neighbors told police he pointed a gun at a group of people before firing a shot into the air, police said. Trenton Ezell Simmons, 31, was charged with two felony gun charges along with making terroristic threats,...
Officer taken to hospital after fall while breaking up brawl at Sheldon Park complex
A Brackenridge police officer was taken to the hospital after falling backward onto a concrete sidewalk while breaking up a fight Sunday at the Sheldon Park Apartments in Harrison, according to authorities. Officers were dispatched to the public housing complex after residents called 911 to report a large fight at...
Man accused of selling fentanyl, cocaine after informant buys drugs during sting, police say
Arnold police arrested a man from Pittsburgh’s South Side neighborhood on Tuesday after they said he sold narcotics to an informant during a sting operation. William Charles “Shug” King, 34, of the 700 block of South 21st Street, was charged with three felony counts of possession of drugs with the...
New Kensington police say DNA test on discarded beer can helped ID burglary suspect
New Kensington police say they used a DNA test on saliva from a discarded beer can to help identity a man they charged with stealing cash from his neighbor’s apartment. Don Levon Graves, 57, of the 300 block of Main Street in New Kensington, was charged with a felony count...
Police: 2 men arrested in Arnold by state-county task force face felony drug charges
Two men from Arnold face felony drug charges after a team of police raided a home on Tuesday and found nearly 2 ounces of powdered cocaine along with crack and oxycodone pills, according to authorities. Jerome Dockblandi Poole, 34, of the 1800 block of 3rd Avenue was charged with three...
State agents accuse Pine man of dealing drugs out of house, at park; felony charges filed
Agents from the state Attorney General’s office filed felony drug charges against a Pine man following an undercover investigation. Frank Joseph Marcello, 36, of the 900 block of Park Place Plaza, was charged with two counts of possession with the intent to deliver drugs and two counts of drug possession....
McCandless man faces felony charge after girl, 10, reports he tried to lure her away from friends
A man from McCandless was arrested after a 10-year-old girl told her mother that a neighbor tried to lure her away while they were playing outside. McCandless police charged Damon M. Bregg, 32, of 8600 block of Wittmer Road with a felony count of luring a child into a motor...
Police: Driver of car hit by coal truck in Kiski Township suffers minor injury
The driver of a vehicle that collided with a coal truck on Wednesday morning escaped serious injury, according to police. The two-vehicle accident was reported shortly after 10:30 a.m. along state Route 56 in front of Apollo-Ridge schools, police wrote in a news release. Police said the truck was traveling...
Apple tracking feature leads to arrest in theft of AirPods, other items in Harrison
A Harrison Township man faces felony theft charges after, police say, they used a feature on a pair of Apple AirPods stolen from a vehicle to track the headphones to the man’s home. Noah Joseph Bizic, 19, of Walnut Street was charged with two felony counts of theft by unlawful...
Kiski Township car crash leads to felony charges
An Apollo woman faces a felony charge after police responding to a report of a car crashing into a yard say they learned the vehicle was stolen and her boyfriend, who was driving, fled from the scene. Kiski Township police arrested Melissa Marie Wilson, 38, of Armstrong Avenue, charging her...
Owner of Gilpin personal care home accused of stealing $111K from dead resident’s account
State police accused the owner of a personal care home in Gilpin Township of stealing nearly $111,500 from a resident’s credit union account after the 75-year-old woman died. Carrie Ann Leway, 42, of the 300 block of Godfrey Road faces five counts each of forgery and identity theft, all felonies,...
Motorcyclist involved in March 4 wreck in Harrison dies from injuries
A motorcyclist who collided with the rear of an SUV in Harrison earlier this month has died from his injuries. James P. “Jim Bob” Stivers, 45, of Buffalo Township, died at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh on Saturday, according to family members. Police said Stivers was traveling behind an SUV...
Agents seize $22K in drugs during raids at 2 apartments in New Kensington
Police arrested two men and confiscated more than $22,000 worth of drugs when they raided a pair of apartments in the same building last week in New Kensington. The March 8 raids were conducted at a home in the 1200 block of Constitution Boulevard by agents from the state Attorney...
Tarentum police charge man with using stolen credit card to buy $5K in motorcycle parts from 2 shops
Tarentum police charged a man with stealing about $5,200 worth of motorcycle parts from Gatto Cycle Shop using a stolen credit card. Parrish Savon Middlebrook, 28, of Halcomb Avenue, Clairton, was charged with felony counts of theft, theft by deception, access device fraud and identity theft along with driving with...
Former bartender at Harrison Polish club accused of passing counterfeit $100 bills
A former bartender at a private club in Harrison faces a felony forgery charge after police accused her of passing counterfeit $100 bills she had stashed in her bra. Amber Snyder, 35, of the 800 block of Short Street in Tarentum, also faces two misdemeanor forgery charges in connection with...
