Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 32
More than 122,000 water customers in region will see rates increase by 9%
Water and sewer rates will increase in April for Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County customers. Authority board members Wednesday unanimously approved 9% increases as part of a $117 million budget officials said was impacted by rising costs associated with the water and sewer service. “The board directed management to keep...
Water conservation to continue as Beaver Run Reservoir level rebounds
Despite recent rains and snowfall that helped boost water levels at Beaver Run Reservoir, mandatory conservation remains in place for about 56,000 Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County customers. Authority officials said water levels have rebounded at the reservoir that straddles Bell and Washington townships. The reservoir serves the northern half...
Former Westmoreland jail guard pleads guilty to conspiring in assault of inmate
A former jail guard pleaded guilty Tuesday for his role in the assault of an inmate at Westmoreland County Prison. Prosecutors said Brian J. Prinkey, 26, of Connellsville, was working as a corrections officer on Aug. 20, 2022, when he conspired with two inmates who were accused of beating a...
Court-appointed defense lawyers costs nearly doubled in 2023
A change implemented last year in how Westmoreland County pays defense lawyers appointed by judges to represent indigent criminal defendants nearly doubled costs for the program in 2023. Faced with opposition from the pool of lawyers who sought higher pay, the county in June shifted back to a system where...
Housing authority sets construction goals for 2024
Tenants could begin moving into the Westmoreland County Housing Authority’s newest facility as early as May, officials said Friday. Construction of the 50-unit Grand View Senior Residences development in North Huntingdon started last year and is expected to be completed this spring, according to housing authority Executive Director Michael Washowich....
Greensburg woman’s sentence in 2010 torture killing upheld
The 60 years-to-life prison sentence being served by a Greensburg woman for her role in the 2010 torture killing of Jennifer Daugherty has been upheld by a state appeals court. In an opinion released Thursday, a three-judge panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court rejected a defense request to invalidate the...
Jury acquits New Stanton man of rape, but finds him guilty of lesser offenses
A Westmoreland County jury on Wednesday found a New Stanton man not guilty of raping a woman at a Hempfield Halloween party in 2020 but they convicted him of a sexual assault charge. Anthony Lucas, 28, was accused of barging into a bathroom during the party in 2020 and forcing...
Man found in North Huntingdon motel with teen runaway convicted of drug, gun counts
A man was convicted Wednesday of charges that he illegally possessed a gun and drugs when he was found in a North Huntingdon motel with a runaway teenager from Beaver County. Robert Easley, 42, formerly of Ohio, claimed during a three-day trial in Westmoreland County that police planted a handgun...
Trial begins for New Stanton man charged with bathroom rape at 2020 Halloween party
A Mt. Pleasant woman testified Monday that she intentionally kept quiet during an alleged rape in a bathroom because her daughter was sleeping in the next room. “I just left the bathroom and didn’t call out for help because my daughter was in the next room sleeping,” she said in...
DA drops alleged rape case after accuser declines to testify
Westmoreland County prosecutors on Monday dismissed rape and related charges against a Blairsville man who police claimed was linked to alleged sexual assaults through DNA evidence. Felony counts of rape, sexual assault, possession of child pornography and other offenses were dropped as jury selection in the case against Lawrence Paul...
Greensburg man pleads guilty to Hempfield bank robbery
A Greensburg man pleaded guilty Monday to the robbery of a Hempfield bank two years ago. Jonathan Smith Jr., 31, will remain free on $50,000 unsecured bond until he is sentenced in about three months. He pleaded guilty to charges of robbery, theft, receiving stolen property and making a terroristic...
What’s that? Robot stands guard at Hempfield concrete business
Editor’s note: “What’s That?” is a recurring feature in the Tribune-Review’s Westmoreland Plus edition. If there’s something you’d like to see explored here, send an email to gtrcity@tribweb.com. A 10-foot statue may surprise some motorists as they pass by the front entrance to a Hempfield concrete company. The steel creation...
Judge rules former Derry man charged with sexual assaults of multiple teens competent to stand trial
A former Derry man will stand trial in five cases in which he is charged with sexual assaults and other crimes against multiple teenage girls over the last year. Christopher Fraser, 20, was charged last year in connection with allegations he had improper sexual contact with children ranging from 12...
‘I will never be who I was before the shooting,’ woman shot on Pa. Turnpike tells gunman
As Morgan King drove to her Eastern Pennsylvania home after a weekend in Pittsburgh, the last thing she expected was to be shot in a fit of road rage. King, 40, was hospitalized for five days for injuries suffered from the shot fired by Andrew Skinner, 33, of Monroeville moments...
Death penalty prosecution can continue against New Kensington man accused of child’s murder
A Westmoreland County judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors have enough evidence to bring a New Kensington man to trial and seek the death penalty for the alleged first-degree murder of a 2-year-old boy in 2020. Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears rejected defense claims that medical evidence was insufficient to prove...
Delmont man pleads guilty to sexual assault of teen
A Delmont man pleaded guilty Wednesday to the sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl. Dezhane M. Amey, 23, was sentenced by Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger to serve nine months on house arrest as part of a two-year probation term in return for his plea to one...
Judge rejects Monessen teen’s bid to transfer homicide case to juvenile court
A Monessen teenager will be prosecuted as an adult for the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old friend in late 2022. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Mears, in a ruling made public on Wednesday, rejected defense calls to transfer the criminal homicide case against now 17-year-old Terry Newton to...
Pay hikes approved for Westmoreland lawyers, jail guards
Starting salaries for Westmoreland County assistant district attorneys and public defenders will increase 24% this year under terms of a new labor deal approved Tuesday. The county’s salary board, which includes the three commissioners and Controller Jeffrey Balzer, signed off on the four-year labor deal for the collective bargaining unit...
Prosecutor calls New Florence man convicted of assaulting police a ‘menace to society’
Although he was acquitted of murder charges in the 2015 fatal shooting of a St. Clair police officer, Ray A. Shetler Jr. remains a “menace to society” who should kept in prison, a Westmoreland County prosecutor told a judge Tuesday. Shetler, 39, was in court Tuesday to be sentenced for...
Kertes retained as board chairman
Westmoreland County Commissioners on Tuesday retained Sean Kertes as the board’s chairman. Kertes, a second-term Republican from Greensburg, was unanimously elected to head the board of commissioners, a position he has held since he first took office in 2020. As chairman, Kertes runs the board’s public meetings. It’s a duty...
Westmoreland County in 25 years: Bots, planes and Taylor Swift?
Westmoreland County’s chief clerk, Vera Spina, spent months collecting items for a time capsule she hopes will be a window into the past when it is opened in 25 years. The capsule was sealed and buried in front of the courthouse and will be opened in 2048. What will the...
Longtime judge Rita Hathaway, Westmoreland’s 1st woman president judge, set to retire
Rita Hathaway was a young mother and third grade teacher in 1983 when she suspected one of her students had been the victim of abuse. When her efforts to intervene on behalf of the child went unanswered, she decided she’d never again be in a position where she couldn’t help....
Murrysville landmark owner backs leniency for building’s arsonist
Monica Meehan sat quietly in a Westmoreland County courtroom Friday to watch the man who burned down her business, the Spaghetti & Steakhouse and Hot Rod Lounge in Murrysville, receive a state prison sentence. “It’s pretty devastating and the land is for sale now,” Meehan said. “At the time, things...
Westmoreland commissioners approve $4 million stake for airport expansion
Westmoreland County will provide the final piece of financing needed to double the size of the terminal building at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport near Latrobe. The county’s airport authority will receive $4 million from Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corp. “We want to support our assets in our area. This is...
Teen who fled Westmoreland juvenile shelter faces new charges
The teenager charged with second-degree murder in connection with a shooting last year in New Kensington is facing additional criminal offenses related to an attack against a shelter worker and his disappearance from an unsecured facility this month. Assistant District Attorney Jackie Knupp said Thursday those new charges warrant the...
