Western PA Local News category, Page 527
Game Commission pitches in $1.3 million for Indiana Township land purchase
The Pennsylvania Game Commission will cover half of the $2.6 million cost to buy 280 acres in Indiana Township as part of an Allegheny Land Trust-led conservation effort. Game commissioners voted unanimously last week to put $1.3 million toward purchasing two parcels near Emmerling Community Park, along with additions to...
Killer of off-duty Oakdale cop fires lawyer, disrupts sentencing
A Pittsburgh man on Wednesday disrupted his sentencing for the 2022 road-rage killing of an off-duty Oakdale police officer by firing his lawyer, arguing with the judge and inconveniencing the victim’s relatives. Kevin McSwiggen, 42, of the city’s Greenfield section, was scheduled to be sentenced by Allegheny County Common Pleas...
Westmoreland happenings: Oktoberfest dinner, collectibles sale, meetings, more
Fundraisers • Community Church of Hecla, 537 Hecla Road, Mt. Pleasant Township, will host a turkey dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 12 at the church. Dine in or takeout. Details and takeout orders: 724-516-0494 or 724-466-2855. • First United Church of Christ, Irwin, will have an Oktoberfest dinner...
Ex-Pittsburgh building inspector gets probation, avoids prison in bribery case
A former Pittsburgh building inspector will not go to prison after pleading guilty in federal court to accepting bribes. U.S. District Court Judge Mark Hornak on Wednesday sentenced Walter Eiseman, 59, to 18 months of probation and 90 days of home confinement. Eiseman also must pay a $1,500 fine and...
Westmoreland approves tax break for developers restoring blighted property in Trafford
Developers seeking to set roots in Trafford will receive a tax break following approval by the county last week. Trafford Borough Council approved in June an ordinance establishing a Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance — or LERTA — zone that will give a real estate tax break to developers who...
Washington County woman sues ex for sending nude images to hundreds of co-workers
Selena Ball and Michael Grisetti had been together for years. They worked for the same company, Crown Castle Inc. at Southpointe in Washington County, shared a home and had two young children. At some point between mid-2021 and April 2022, Grisetti video-recorded Ball getting out of the shower. But she...
Feeling marginalized, Freeport mayor to call it quits
Freeport Mayor Zack Gent is planning to step down at the end of the year due to his new, on-the-road job and what he called clashes with council over fiscal responsibility. The five members in attendance at this week’s council meeting barely reacted when Gent informed them of his surprise...
New Kensington fire station named for city’s only firefighter to die in the line of duty
New Kensington’s only volunteer firefighter to die in the line of duty has been gone longer than he lived, but he has not been forgotten. Eric Lee Mangieri was 25 years old when he became trapped in a burning house on Freeport Road on Aug. 7, 1995. A memorial to...
Pine survivor’s story promotes early checks for ovarian cancer
In September, she took a trip to Texas. In November, she’ll be in the Big Apple. “Last year, I went to Arizona,” Desolina Postreich said as she approached her 14th birthday. “That was my first time ever flying alone.” While she enjoys her opportunities to travel around the country at...
Morning Roundup: Ambridge hostage situation ends with man in custody
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning: Wednesday, Oct. 9: Ambridge standoff involving 2-year-old ends peacefully A roughly five-hour standoff in Ambridge on Tuesday afternoon ended peacefully, according to authorities. A large police presence was seen in the area of 6th Street in Ambridge at around...
The Stroller, Oct. 9, 2024: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Evening of activities planned...
Mega Millions lottery ticket price and jackpots to jump next year
Michelle Majocha figures the odds are pretty good that more than doubling the cost of the Mega Millions lottery ticket from $2 to $5 next April won’t help sales of a lottery game that offers a jackpot of millions. With the news this week the consortium directing the 45-state Mega...
Carnegie Mellon among 40 private universities named in federal price-fixing lawsuit
Forty of the nation’s leading private colleges and universities, including Carnegie Mellon University, are accused in a federal class-action lawsuit of conspiring with the College Board to, in effect, overcharge students. The suit was filed Monday in Chicago before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The...
Upper St. Clair mom wins battle for names of cops who fatally shot her son
For months, Susan Shepherd fought to learn the names of the police officers who fatally shot her mentally ill son in Upper St. Clair so she could sue them. But Baldwin Borough, Bethel Park and Brentwood refused to tell her who pulled the trigger on Jan. 7 when members of...
North Huntingdon man to serve jail time for possessing child porn
A North Huntingdon man was ordered to serve at least nine months in jail after he was sentenced Tuesday for possession of child pornography. James Frederick Molzer, 32, pleaded guilty in July to 11 felony counts in which investigators said he possessed multiple images of children performing sex acts. According...
Judge says New Kensington murder case likely to move forward
A Westmoreland County judge said Tuesday a New Kensington man charged last summer with the murder of his former roommate has been found to be mentally competent. Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Mears said a psychological evaluation appears to have cleared the path for the prosecution of Nico Lee Harris,...
Innamorato proposes 46.5% Allegheny County property tax hike
Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato proposed a 46.5% property tax hike Tuesday evening to help address a growing budget deficit. Innamorato included the 2.2-mill increase in her $3.1 billion budget proposal for 2025. It would be the county’s first property tax hike since 2011 and the largest one in recent...
Jeannette police officer charged with falsifying traffic stop reports
A Jeannette police officer is facing 18 misdemeanor charges because, investigators say, he was falsifying reports related to traffic stops, according to court papers. Matthew S. Painter, 40, of Penn Township was charged Tuesday with tampering with records. He is on paid administrative leave, according to city Manager Ethan Keedy....
Pittsburgh councilman pitches selling Municipal Courts Building to Allegheny County for $9M
A Pittsburgh councilman wants to sell the Municipal Courts Building to Allegheny County for $9 million to save the city the costs of upkeep and utilities at the Downtown facility. Councilman Anthony Coghill, D-Beechview, introduced legislation Tuesday that would instruct the city to scrap its existing lease agreement with the...
No charges yet in crash that killed 11-year-old Roxanne Bonnoni in Natrona
Seven weeks after 11-year-old Roxanne Bonnoni was struck and killed by a vehicle near her North Canal Street home in Harrison, there is no word on whether the driver of that vehicle will face charges. Allegheny County Police, who led the investigation into the incident, said their report and evidence...
Pa. Supreme Court hears challenge to life without parole in Pittsburgh felony murder case
Nearly 200 spectators packed a Pittsburgh courtroom Tuesday as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments on whether the mandatory sentence of life without parole for second-degree murder violates the state constitution. The punishment, often called death by incarceration by opponents, applies to nearly 1,100 people in Pennsylvania currently serving time...
Greensburg officials weigh options for Advance Furniture site: park, merchants, apartments
An empty parcel in Greensburg’s downtown could be home to a small park, a spot for merchants and space for gatherings and activities. Calling it a “small but mighty lot,” Chelsea Puff, senior project manager with Strategic Solutions, said a simple approach is the tentative plan for the site. The...
Monessen ‘Wall of Fame’ class includes Joe Montana’s midget football coach
Carl Crawley’s favorite sport? Whichever one was in season. “I played volleyball and we won the state championship,” said the 1957 Monessen graduate. “I was a baseball player and could knock the ball out of the park. Basketball, football, I ran track. My favorite was the one I was doing...
Spacefaring tree takes root at Pittsburgh’s Riverview Park
A tree grown from a seed that orbited the moon is taking root in Pittsburgh. Allegheny Observatory and Riverview Park were chosen to be the caretakers of a Moon Tree, according to Kerry Handron, special events and outreach coordinator at the observatory. The small sweetgum tree was delivered this summer...
Murrysville bridge over Turtle Creek to close for repairs
The small bridge carrying Old William Penn Highway over Turtle Creek in Murrysville will close next week for temporary repairs. Beginning Oct. 14, the bridge near the intersection Old William Penn Highway and Hills Church Road will close as work crews begin temporary repairs aimed at bringing its weight limit...
