Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 3
Westmoreland voters opt for computers over paper ballots
The biggest winner on Election Day in Westmoreland County was the touch-screen voting machine. County voters overwhelmingly rejected the use of optional paper ballots at the polls, as just 5% of those who cast ballots at Westmoreland’s 306 precincts used pen and paper to vote Tuesday. “It proves me right....
1 incumbent wins, another ousted in race to reshape Southmoreland School Board
One incumbent and three challengers won seats Tuesday to serve four-year terms on the Southmoreland School Board. Incumbent Stephanie Geyer was reelected while newcomers Nathan Alexander, Mellisa Moore and David Thomas appeared to win seats on the board, defeating incumbent Brian Shipley and challenger Bud Santimyer. With all precincts reporting,...
Popovich win 5th term as West Newton mayor
Democrat Mary Popovich, West Newton’s mayor, held off a challenge Tuesday from a political newcomer to win a fifth term in office. Popovich, 71, defeated Republican Robert Kepics, who was making his first run for public office. With all precincts reporting, Popovich received more than 61% of the vote. Kepics...
East Huntingdon supervisors win reelection
Republican incumbents Jeff Keefer and Justin Morrow won landslide victories Tuesday for seats on the three-member East Huntingdon board of supervisors. Keefer, 55, defeated Democratic challenger Wayne Godfrey, 65, a retired truck driver, to win his first four-year term in office. Keefer was appointed to the board in June 2024...
Westmoreland judges win retention
Westmoreland County voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly returned three local judges to the Common Pleas Court bench. With all 306 precincts reporting, incumbent judges Tim Krieger, Scott Mears and Harry Smail Jr. won new 10-year terms. Krieger’s retention was supported by 65% of voters, Mears’ by 66% and Smail’s by 66%....
Westmoreland finalizes state loan, threatens more job cuts as budget impasse continues
Westmoreland commissioners voted Monday to accept an $11.6 million state loan, a move they say is necessary to fund essential social service programs through the end of the year. Even in doing so, more furloughs of county staff and partial closures of the county courthouse could follow as early as...
Attorney General’s Office sues Hempfield contractor
The state’s Attorney General’s Office has filed a civil lawsuit seeking to bar a Hempfield home improvement contractor from doing business in Pennsylvania. A three-count lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County accuses A&S Contracting and Roofing, LLC and its owner, Stephen Spallone, of violating Pennsylvania’s Consumer Protection Law and Home Improvement...
Westmoreland judges seek return to bench amid political headwinds
All three Westmoreland County judges who are seeking new 10-year terms on the Common Pleas Court bench know there is political attention this year on judicial retention. They also worry the large sums of cash spent to campaign for and against the retention of three Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices could...
Assault charge upheld against hunter in 2023 shooting
The criminal case against a hunter charged with aggravated assault after allegedly wounding a man in a Smithton field nearly two years ago will proceed to a trial, a judge ruled Friday. Following a lengthy hearing that featured testimony from the shooting victim and a state game warden, Westmoreland County...
North Huntingdon fire station sued for wrongful death
The widow of a Herminie man has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a North Huntingdon volunteer fire station, claiming staff served her husband excessive alcohol, which resulted in his fatal fall. Brandon M. Schmeltz, 44, died on Feb. 12, about two weeks after a fall down a staircase in...
Lawsuit over Westmoreland courthouse garage project settled
A lawsuit filed by a Allegheny County construction company to rebuild an underground garage and public courtyard at the Westmoreland County Courthouse has been settled. Commissioners on Thursday voted to pay Carl Walker Construction of Robinson an additional $700,000 for work the company said it was required to perform to...
Candidates seek to lower political temperature on Southmoreland school board
Two incumbents and four challengers are seeking four seats on the Southmoreland School Board in the Nov. 4 election. The nine-member board has been embroiled in controversy over the past two months after director Catherine Fike was accused of disclosing confidential information about a student’s mental health during the board’s...
Westmoreland commissioners pass resolution to condemn political violence
Westmoreland County commissioners unanimously approved a bipartisan resolution Thursday to condemn political violence, days after the measure appeared unlikely to pass. The vote followed a public plea from Smithton resident Karen Primm, who was injured in an alleged attack by a counter-protester during a recent No Kings rally in front...
Judge reinstates house arrest for Jeannette man charged with assault of county detective
A Westmoreland County judge has reinstated house arrest for a Jeannette man accused of breaking into an off-duty county detective’s home last year and assaulting him. The reversal by Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger came after the alleged victim, Detective Nick Caesar, voiced safety concerns about defendant Jonathan E....
Murrysville massage parlor worker pleads guilty to prostitution
A woman charged in connection with a raid at a Murrysville massage parlor pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor prostitution charge on Wednesday. Police said Weihong Wang, 63, was one of two women working last month during a raid of the Asian Garden Spa on Route 22. Police said Wang offered...
Commissioners vow to keep Westmoreland government running as state funds dry up
Westmoreland County government will continue to function as state funding dries up amid the ongoing budget impasse in Harrisburg, commissioners said Tuesday. Despite the uncertainty, county officials plan to keep operating essential human service programs as they await word on a pending application to the state Treasury for a $14...
Impact of property tax relief from gambling revenue clouded by outdated formula
Pennsylvania property owners have received tax relief for the last two decades as part of the deal that legalized casino-style gambling. Property owners are slated to receive more than $1 billion in tax relief this fiscal year, a nearly 42% increase over the last 10 years. But as the pot...
Judge nixes request for AI lawyer in pending New Kensington murder case
A Washington County man charged with the 2022 murder of a New Kensington man told a Westmoreland County judge Friday he wants to represent himself at his upcoming trial with the help of an artificial intelligence lawyer. Larry Osborn Nix II, 42, of West Brownsville is awaiting trial for criminal...
Incumbents face same Democratic challenger in race for 2 East Huntingdon supervisor seats
East Huntingdon incumbent supervisors Jeff Keefer and Justin Morrow have the same job. They also have the same opponent in separate races for two seats on the township’s governing board. Keefer, 55, a Republican, is seeking a four-year term. A former member of the township’s road crew, Keefer was appointed...
Judge upholds life sentences for Monessen man in 1973 rape, double murder case
A judge has rejected an appeal from a Monessen man who has spent 50 years in prison for the 1973 murders of two young children and the rape of their mother. Attorneys for John Veltre Jr., 69, claimed that Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Stewart II abused his...
Judge laments crimes he claims are linked to Hempfield casino as blackjack player is sentenced for having loaded gun
A Jeannette man will serve two years of probation for illegally possessing a loaded handgun while playing blackjack in a Westmoreland County casino. Kenneth J. Czarnecki, 26, pleaded guilty to one felony charge of carrying a firearm without a license while gambling at Live Casino Pittsburgh at Westmoreland Mall in...
Hempfield man sentenced to probation, house arrest for stalking teen at school bus stop
A Hempfield man was ordered to serve seven years on probation after he pleaded guilty to charges related to claims he propositioned a teenager last year at a school bus stop. Police claimed Michael D. Thomas, 72, made sexual comments to a 13-year-old Wendover Middle School student as she waited...
Judge rejects bail request of Jeannette man awaiting retrial for 1993 fatal fire
A judge on Wednesday denied bail for a former Jeannette man awaiting retrial on charges he set a fire three decades ago that killed his wife and two young children. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Stewart III ruled that state law prohibits bail for defendants who face a...
Westmoreland commissioners OK loan to pay for human services amid state budget impasse
Westmoreland commissioners on Tuesday authorized the county’s finance department to apply for a $14.1 million state treasury loan to fund essential human services amid Pennsylvania’s ongoing budget stalemate. The commissioners said an infusion of cash is needed as county resources used to pay key service providers that care for children...
Injured No Kings protest participant calls on Westmoreland commissioners to condemn political violence
A Smithton woman injured during an altercation at Saturday’s No Kings protest in Greensburg is calling on the Westmoreland County commissioners to formally condemn political violence. Karen Primm, 70, said she sustained a gash to right arm when she was struck by pole of a flag waved by an apparent...
