Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 105
State warns of scammers posing as court officials
Pennsylvania court officials this week warned of a recently reported telephone scam seeking payments for bail and expenses to help incarcerated family members. Officials said the rouse involves a call from what appears to be the state’s Commonwealth Court telephone number and a demand for payments through PayPal. Officials cautioned...
Municipal authority laborer sues power companies after cutting into unmarked power line
A Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County laborer in a lawsuit filed against West Penn Power and First Energy claims he was injured when he cut an unmarked electrical line during water line repairs last year in Delmont. Michael Obney, 39, of Hempfield contends he sustained electrical burns on his hands...
Westmoreland 911 quizzes callers about coronavirus as county prepares outbreak plan
Callers to Westmoreland County 911 are being asked if they have potentially been exposed to the coronavirus or are experiencing any symptoms of the illness. Operators on Tuesday started questioning callers seeking assistance for breathing issues or other respiratory symptoms if they’ve been to the countries hit hardest by the...
$10K bond request denied for man accused of raping 12-year-old who later gave birth
A Westmoreland County judge on Monday rejected a bond request from a Connellsville man awaiting trial on charges of raping a 12-year-old girl in 2013. Prosecutors say the girl gave birth to the man’s child nine months later. Shawn Melville, 42, was charged last year with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse,...
Sewickley man sent to prison for sexually assaulting 2 mentally disabled women
A Sewickley man will serve up to four years in prison for sexually assaulting two mentally disabled women at his home in 2018. Wayne E. Smith, 75, pleaded guilty Monday to forcing the women, ages 23 and 24, to have sex — acts they were unable to consent to because...
First defendant in Youngwood murder cases pleads guilty, gets 15 to 30 years in prison
Matthew Genard was weeks away from a fresh start in Florida when he was brutally stabbed to death during a drug-related robbery more than two years ago in Youngwood. Genard’s eldest sister told a Westmoreland County judge on Monday that the family’s youngest sibling was ready to turn his life...
Candidates for 58th state House seat preparing for special, general elections
Robert Prah Jr. has been campaigning for more than a year, and he’s got the Army-green notebook to prove it. Prah, a Democrat from Rostraver, will appear on the ballot during a special election March 17 to fill the remaining nine months of the vacant state House seat representing the...
Prize-winning golden retriever Daniel gets honor from Westmoreland CountyVideo
Daniel, the prize-winning golden retriever at the 2020 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York, took a star turn in Greensburg on Thursday. The dog, soon to be 6, was the guest of honor at the Westmoreland County Courthouse when he and owner Tammy Tomlinson of Hillock Golden Retrievers...
Westmoreland County inks deal with unions, doles out raises for nonunion workers
A new four-year labor deal with Westmoreland County’s largest unions was approved Thursday that gives raises to workers but also imposes a surcharge on employees who use tobacco. Commissioners ratified the deal with the Service Employees International Union Local 668 and SEIU HealthCare Pennsylvania, which represents courthouse employees and nursing...
Westmoreland commissioners fund tourism plan, earmark funds for marketing
The 2020 tourism plan for Westmoreland County includes more than $834,000 in new projects and reserves a large purse for what officials hope one day will be spent on an agressive marketing campaign to lure tourists — and their wallets. Projects include upgrades to county parks, financing for the annual...
Jury convicts woman for helping New Kensington cop killer, hiding gun
A Westmoreland County jury Thursday convicted a New Kensington woman of helping her cousin avoid capture and disposing of the handgun prosecutors say was used to kill a city police officer. Jurors deliberated seven hours over two days before finding Lisa Harrington, 33, guilty on four counts of hindering the...
Eric Davanzo lands endorsements in 58th state House special election
Eric Davanzo, the Republican candidate for the vacant state House seat in the 58th District, announced Wednesday he received a series of endorsements leading up to the March 17 special election. Davanzo, 53, said he received endorsements from the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association; the Fraternal Order of Police, Frank J....
Jury deliberates late into night in trial of woman accused of aiding Holt after Officer Shaw killing
The jury in the trial of a New Kensington woman charged with helping her cousin avoid capture following the 2017 shooting death of police Officer Brian Shaw deliberated late into the night Wednesday but did not reach a verdict. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Rita Hathaway sent the jury...
Witnesses place New Kensington woman in house where police say cop killer stashed gun
A series of witnesses told a Westmoreland County jury on Tuesday that the cousin of the man convicted of killing New Kensington police officer Brian Shaw was in and out of a nearby city home the shooter ran to after the 2017 murder. Michael Luffey, 35, one of a group...
Couple continues to support daughter, grandsons 25 years after fatal Jeannette arson
For Warren and Pat Lupson, there was no question they would appear in a Greensburg courtroom for yet another appeal by the man serving three consecutive life sentences for murdering their daughter and two young grandsons in Jeannette. The Lupsons, as they did in 1995 for the trial and again...
Westmoreland County to sell Hempfield land for development, budget boost
Cash-strapped Westmoreland County might soon get some relief to its budget crunch with a land deal to sell 110 acres in Hempfield. Under details revealed Tuesday, the vacant land would be sold to the Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corp. — which would pay $2.4 million for property to be used...
Westmoreland giving chances to test-drive new voting system before the primary
Westmoreland County voters will have multiple opportunities over the next month to view and test new touch-screen computer systems that will be used to cast ballots for the first time this spring. Elections officials this week announced demonstration sessions will be conducted in Latrobe, Murrysville and New Stanton. “I think...
Greensburg man pleads guilty to hitting romantic rival with his car
A Greensburg man pleaded guilty Monday to using his SUV as a weapon against a romantic rival. The case against Seth M. Vanderella, 27, was the second time in less than two years that he admitted causing injuries to another person using a vehicle. On Monday, Vanderella pleaded guilty to...
Prosecutors tell jurors New Kensington woman hid gun used to kill police officer
As police fanned out across the region in the hours and days after the fatal shooting of New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw in search of his killer, the gunman’s cousin spirited away and disposed of the suspected murder weapon, prosecutors told a Westmoreland County jury Monday. Assistant District Attorney...
Westmoreland Transit adds drivers, cuts overtime costs
Westmoreland County Transit cut overtime costs by 42% in February, easing a budget crunch that impacted the agency during the first month after it took over operations of its fixed-route and shared-ride para transit services from a private contractor, officials said. The transit authority saw overtime for drivers reach more...
Project will temporarily relocate North Huntingdon park-and-ride lot
A nearly $1.7 million construction and resurfacing project at Westmoreland County Transit’s park-and-ride lot in North Huntingdon will begin in mid-March, temporarily forcing hundreds of daily commuters to catch the bus about a mile away at a vacant Allegheny County store lot. Transit authority board members last week approved a...
Party swaps change face of Rostraver politics
The balance of political power in Rostraver shifted recently when two of the township’s commissioners changed their political affiliations from Democrat to Republican. In January, board Chairman John Lorenzo, who was elected in November as a Democrat, and Henry Boldyzar Jr., whose current four-year term started last year, switched parties...
Westmoreland Co. looking for new director of juvenile detention center; former head quit after altercation
The director of Westmoreland County’s juvenile detention center resigned this week — a month after he was injured during an altercation between two teens at the facility. Controller Jeff Balzer, who serves as chairman of the county’s juvenile detention board of directors, confirmed Friday that Carlos Alejandre, who has served...
State Supreme Court turns away appeal in Latrobe robbery killing
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court won’t hear the appeal of a Johnstown man convicted of killing a good Samaritan who who tried to intervene in a 2016 Latrobe robbery. In a one-sentence order released this week, Supreme Court justices said they won’t consider the appeal filed by Austin Krinock, who was...
Jeannette man seeks dismissal of attempted murder charges
A Jeannette man wants attempted murder charges against him dismissed because he was not present when a man and juvenile were wounded during a robbery at a Sutersville home. Police contend Aaron Brown, 27, provided the weapons used in the Nov. 16, 2018, incident and, as a result, was charged...
