Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 50

Plum Senior High School’s long-running telethon benefiting Make-A-Wish is back, and the fundraising campaign is closing in on a major milestone. If this year’s $42,000 goal is reached, the district will have raised $1 million for the nonprofit that grants wishes to children with critical illnesses. “Everyone wants to reach...

Two teachers who work at other schools and a chemist who works at her brother’s pizza shop are slated to join the New Kensington-Arnold School Board in December. Jane Graham, Nick DiCarolis and Sarah Yurga all were unopposed in the Nov. 2 election. The trio will join the nine-member school...

The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office on Friday identified the man who died Wednesday morning after being hit by a pickup in Duquesne. Deveon Franklin, 18, of Duquesne, died at a hospital at 7:40 a.m. Wednesday, following the incident around 6 a.m. in the 100 block of Kennywood Boulevard. The...

Woodland Hills High School students participated in classes virtually Friday because of a threat made against the school, according to a message from its principal. In a Facebook post Friday morning, Principal Shelly Manns said that officials on Thursday night received a screenshot of an individual who had made a...

A male juvenile was in stable condition after being shot Thursday night in Glassport, Allegheny County Police said. Police said they received a report of shots being fired in the 700 block of Oak Way around 9 p.m. First responders found spent casings and other evidence of a shooting in...

A missing 82-year-old man from Armstrong County has been found and is safe, according to Pennsylvania State Police. Previously, state police said Fred Fair went missing on Thursday from Cowansville, about 5 miles north of Worthington. He was considered at-risk, and state police issued an advisory on Friday. Before he...

A loaded .380-caliber gun was found in a woman’s duffle bag at Pittsburgh International Airport on Thursday morning, Allegheny County Police said. Federal Transportation Security Administration officers found it in an X-ray machine around 5:20 a.m. at the main security checkpoint and alerted county police. The TSA said the black...

Small Business Saturday is going to be big in New Kensington. More than 40 businesses, from downtown to Parnassus, are expected to participate in the first New Ken Shop Small Crawl on Nov. 27, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The event will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. “We want...

Pittsburgh police are warning the public about a recent string of catalytic converter thefts from vehicles. Police said four catalytic converters have been taken from vehicles over the past three weeks in the Friendship, Bloomfield and Garfield neighborhoods. Other similar thefts or attempted thefts have been reported throughout the city...

One person was killed and three others were injured Wednesday in a head-on crash on Interstate 79 in Butler County, state police said. The crash happened shortly before 5 p.m. on the highway in Muddy Creek Township. State police said James E. Dapper, 58, of Zelienople, was driving a pickup...

Anyone who enjoys warm, dry days better get out Wednesday and enjoy it, for it will be here but a day. The high temperature is expected to rise into the mid-60s this afternoon, with a high of 67 expected in the Pittsburgh area, National Weather Service meteorologist Lee Hendricks said....

One man was killed and a second was critically hurt after they were hit by a pickup in Duquesne Wednesday morning. According to Allegheny County Police, the collision at Duquesne and Hoffman boulevards was reported shortly after 6 a.m. The men, whose ages were not released, were taken to unidentified...

A pizza shop in Pittsburgh’s Greenfield neighborhood was robbed early Wednesday morning, according to police. The robbery at Vocelli Pizza in the 4200 block of Murray Avenue was reported around 2:30 a.m. According to police, a man was locking up the business when two men approached from behind and forced...

The driver of a tractor-trailer reported driving erratically on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and accused of fleeing from a traffic stop was apprehended after crashing in Ohio Monday, according to state police. State police charged Ricardo Andres Kostyk, 30, of Clearwater, Fla., with a felony count of fleeing or attempting to...

A Brackenridge woman is accused of hitting a man with a car on the side of Route 28, then fleeing with her 1-year-old son in her car. State police charged Shakeira Ladaisa Hardin, 25, with felony counts of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a child and misdemeanor charges...

The death of a 20-year-old man shot in Pittsburgh’s East Hills Tuesday has been ruled a homicide. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the man as Michael Smith, who died at the scene at 2300 Wilner Drive and East Hills Drive. According to police, officers responded to alerts of...

Citizens Bank is making good on its previously announced intention to close its branch in downtown New Kensington on Wednesday, a bank spokesman said. Citizens said in August it would close the office at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Ninth Street on Wednesday. “The branch is still slated to...

A pair of ventilation fans blowing out the aroma of chocolate used to draw people into a storefront on New Kensington’s Fifth Avenue. That’s when Herman’s Nuts and Chocolates was located there. Today, it’s women’s clothing from brands known in Los Angeles and New York that are bringing people through...

A Zelienople man is accused of exposing himself in a Target parking lot in Richland Township. Northern Regional police on Monday charged Kevin Lee Clark, 28, with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct stemming from an incident at 550 Grandview Crossing Drive on Oct. 28. In a criminal complaint against Clark,...

A 79-year-old Indiana County woman who was reported missing Monday evening was found Tuesday in Allegheny County and is safe, state police said. Relatives reported Nancy C. Smith, 79, of Dilltown, missing when she did not return home from a shopping trip Monday evening, state police said. Trooper Cliff Greenfield...

Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying a man suspected of committing multiple burglaries in the East Deer and Frazer area Sunday morning. According to Frazer police, the suspect stole multiple items from unlocked vehicles beginning around 4:30 a.m. He started on Bailies Run Road in East Deer...

Pittsburgh police are asking for the public’s help in finding a missing woman. According to police, Allyson Harding was last seen around 10 a.m. Thursday in Oakland. She left the area on foot. Harding is described as 5 feet 2 inches tall, 160 pounds, with long brown/purple/blonde hair and hazel...

A 35-year-old woman died after a single vehicle crash in Washington County Monday night, the county coroner said. The coroner identified the woman as Abbey Rhoades, of Washington. The crash happened around 10:30 p.m. on Moore Road in South Franklin. According to the coroner, Rhoades was alone and driving north...

New Castle police say there won’t be any charges filed in what initially was though to be the kidnapping of a 16-year-old girl there. According to WPXI-TV, Police Chief Robert Salem said investigators determined the missing girl was not kidnapped and no charges will be filed in the case. Police...

A Vandergrift man died Saturday night as his twin brother was trying to rush him to a hospital after the man was shot at an Upper Burrell bar. According to police, Andy Jenereaux got from Woodpeckers Pub and Grub to near the New Kensington bridge about 5 miles away before...