Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 58
$20 million self-driving vehicle testing, training facility to be built in East Huntingdon
A $20 million facility for testing and research of self-driving vehicles will be built in Westmoreland County, state officials announced Thursday. The project unveiled by PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian will be built on about 100 acres of state-owned land at the Regional Industrial Development Corp. in East Huntingdon. Officials said...
Westmoreland transit touts rider gains
Ridership on Westmoreland County Transit Authority vehicles continues to rebound from a slump hastened by the coronavirus pandemic, officials said this week. Through the first seven months of 2022, the number of passengers traveling on Westmoreland’s public transportation bus system has increased to more than 12,800 per month. Overall, ridership...
Westmoreland municipal authority moves forward with water, sewer upgrades
More than $2 million in upgrades, including water line replacements in Murrysville, were approved Wednesday by the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County. The authority will spend more than $1.3 million to replace a water line on Murry Highlands Circle and McWilliams Road that serves about 50 customers. Officials said the...
High-speed motorcycle chase in Hempfield results in probation, house arrest sentence
A Scottdale man pleaded guilty this week to charges in connection with a high-speed motorcycle chase last summer that police said reached speeds in excess of 107 mph. Cameron Scott Ulery, 27, told a Westmoreland County judge he fled from police after leaving Live! Casino Pittsburgh at Westmoreland Mall in...
Former Fort Pitt Brewery in Jeannette among dozen of properties bought by land bank
Westmoreland County’s Land Bank purchased a dozen tax delinquent properties Monday, including a former brewery building in west Jeannette that officials long have described as blighted and targeted for removal. The county’s tax office sold 27 properties at Monday’s judicial sale and earned more than $199,600. Officials put 49 parcels...
Lawyers argue for new trial, reduction of $19 million verdict for pool injury
Lawyers for a Washington Township family ordered to pay $19 million to a Vandergrift man injured in a swimming pool accident nearly a decade ago on Monday called for a Westmoreland County judge to toss out the jury verdict and order a new trial. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Harry...
Western Pa. counties weigh options with election funding grants
Pennsylvania counties could see substantial financial relief this fall with money newly allocated by state lawmakers to help pay to run elections. State lawmakers last month approved a $45 million program to finance elections in Pennsylvania. Counties have until Aug. 15 to apply for grants that will be based on...
Scottdale fire chief hired as new deputy coroner
Westmoreland County Coroner Tim Carson has found his newest deputy close to home. Carson, the former mayor of Scottdale, announced the hiring of Scottdale Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dave Wendell for a job as part-time deputy as the first-term coroner continues to compile his staff. Wendell, 45, works as a...
Boil water advisory issued in Rostraver
Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County water customers in Rostraver are under a boil water advisory following a Thursday night water main break. Officials said 265 customers, many along the Interstate 70 corridor and an area near Cedar Creek Park, are under the advisory. Authority spokesman Matthew Junker called the advisory...
Valley High School music teacher pleads guilty to sexting students
A former music teacher at Valley High School in New Kensington was ordered to serve nine months on house arrest and five years on probation for sending sexually-themed text messages to two students. Sean Timothy O’Neil, 35, of North Apollo, pleaded guilty in two related cases on Thursday in which...
Judge rules appeal in Jeannette murder, arson case filed decades late
A Jeannette man serving three consecutive life sentences for setting the 1993 fire to his home that killed his wife and two children was decades late in filing his appeal, a Westmoreland County judge ruled. James Young, 55, claims his conviction on three counts of first-degree murder was based on...
Greensburg rape victim demands justice as attacker sentenced to prison
The sister of a Greensburg woman raped by a neighbor at knifepoint asked that justice be served as part of a plea bargain finalized Thursday. “Never did I think anything like this would happen. I thought I was going to die,” the woman wrote in a letter read in court...
Military service sways judge in gun case sentencing
A Mt. Pleasant man would have been given more jail time on a firearms conviction if he weren’t a wounded veteran, a judge said. Prosecutors argued for multiple consecutive sentences that totaled more than 40 years behind bars be imposed against Michael Charles Lint, 36, for convictions to charges that...
Westmoreland prison guard union president charged in domestic violence case in North Irwin
The president of the union that represents guards at Westmoreland County Prison is charged with strangulation and other related offenses after an alleged domestic violence incident last weekend in North Irwin. Scott Allen Kennedy, 40, was arraigned earlier this week by North Huntingdon District Judge Wayne Gongaware and released on...
Prosecution says it will seek 1st-degree murder conviction for Jeannette slaying
Authorities will seek a first-degree murder conviction in connection with a fatal shooting last year in Jeannette, a Westmoreland County prosecutor said. Stuart Ali, 47, was charged with a general count of criminal homicide for the April 15, 2021 killing of 43-year-old Marcus Davis in Jeannette. Davis’ body was found...
What’s That: Greensburg’s Art in the Alley
A alley between the Union Trust Building and the Palace Theatre in Greensburg is more that just a shortcut from a parking lot to the Westmoreland County Courthouse. Since 2018 its been home to about 50 pieces of art affixed the building’s facades that onlookers can examine day and night....
Trib Total Media to host job fairs
Trib Total Media is hiring. The company will hold job fairs in both Greensburg and Tarentum from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 5. On-site interviews will be conducted and some positions are eligible for up to a $5,000 signing bonus, according to Human Resources Director Brian Osborne....
Judge: Jury to decide self-defense claim in Greensburg shooting
A Westmoreland County judge has ruled there is no basis to dismiss attempted murder and other charges against a man wounded in a downtown shootout in Greensburg earlier this year. Following a hearing Monday, Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani said a defense theory suggesting Evan Curley, 23, acted in self-defense...
Armstrong man pleads guilty for teen shooting in New Kensington
An Armstrong County man pleaded guilty Monday for his role in the shooting of a teenage girl two years ago in New Kensington. Police said Deonte Joseph Slomkoski, 19, was identified as the man who shot at the girl during a fight on Sept. 18, 2020 on Freeport Street. According...
Westmoreland courthouse garage project moves to building phase
Demolition of the two-story parking garage under the Westmoreland County Courthouse is complete, and construction of a new structure will begin Aug. 12. Greg McCloskey, the director of county operations, said Friday the $7 million project that started in April is on budget. It is, however, several weeks behind schedule,...
Greensburg man charged with assault of child
Greensburg police on Wednesday charged a city man with the assault of a 10-year-old boy. Charges of aggravated assault, strangulation, child endangerment and other related offenses were filed against Aaron Michael Adair, 30, in connection with an incident police said occurred July 21. Police said witnesses claimed they saw Adair...
JetBlue-Spirit deal brings hope and concern for Western Pa.
Westmoreland County Airport Authority Executive Director Gabe Monzo said he’s hopeful a $3.8 billion deal for JetBlue to purchase Spirit Airlines ultimately will be a boon for local travelers. But there are no guarantees. The deal was announced Thursday. Spirit has been the sole carrier at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport...
Rape case against Derry Township man to remain in adult court
A 21-year-old Derry Township man awaiting trial on more than 100 offenses including 30 charges of rape will be prosecuted as an adult, a judge ruled. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani rejected a defense request to transfer the case, filed last year against Tyler Alan Eisworth, to...
Monessen councilman sues former mayor for libel, slander
A lawsuit alleging libel and slander was filed Tuesday by a Monessen councilman against the city’s former mayor. Councilman Anthony Orzechowski claims published comments and statements by Mayor Matt Shorraw in the months leading up to last year’s election and continuing into 2022 were intentionally false and erroneously suggested criminal...
Trump, no; Steelers, yes: Westmoreland park police will work at Steelers training camp
Westmoreland County commissioners may have taken a pass at providing security for former President Donald Trump, but they decided to help beef up patrols for the Pittsburgh Steelers. County park police will be on hand at the team’s summer training camp, which began Tuesday at Saint Vincent College in Unity....
