Rich Cholodofsky stories, Page 9
Hunker man pleads guilty in forged check theft scheme, ordered to repay victims
A three-year theft ring operated by a Hunker man swindled dozens of businesses and led to the prosecution of two innocent people whose stolen checks were used in the scheme. Police said William D. Barnhart used forged stolen checks to purchase high-priced merchandise throughout the region. Barnhart, 56, pleaded guilty...
Bubble bursts for Greensburg record attempt
Greensburg blew it. The city’s attempt to set a new world record for group bubble-gum blowing fell short Saturday. But organizers pledged to try again. “We did get a Westmoreland County record but did not make the world record,” said Amy Beeghly, president of the Greensburg Business & Professional Association,...
Father’s Day fishing derby brings out dads and kids
The lure of the lake made Father’s Day special for Sean Joyce and his two boys. Joyce, along with 14-year-old Declan and Finn, celebrating his 12th birthday, were among the hundreds at Twin Lakes Park, straddling the border between Unity and Latrobe for Westmoreland County’s annual Father’s Day Fishing Derby....
Man killed in Safari Club shooting in Duquesne
One man was killed following a shooting late Friday night inside a Duquesne bar. The shooting was reported just before midnight at the Safari Club on the 700 block of Grant Avenue, Allegheny County police said. Witnesses told investigators there was a physical altercation inside the bar that led to...
New York men plead guilty in sweepstakes scam that prompted sting in Unity
Two men from New York soon will be paroled after serving two months in jail for swindling an elderly Unity woman while posing as delivery men who offered a $5 million lottery award. Floyd B. Forrest, 26, and Reheem J. Anderson, 22, each pleaded guilty Wednesday to one felony theft...
McKeesport man pleads guilty to gun theft from North Huntingdon home
An Allegheny County man on Tuesday pleaded guilty to the theft of guns from a North Huntingdon home in 2021. John Steven Hudak, 49, of McKeesport was charged nearly three years ago with the theft and illegal possession and sales of 13 guns from a home safe while its owner...
Palace Theatre moves to cashless payments
The Palace Theatre in Greensburg has gone cashless. Audience members looking to purchase snacks and drinks while attending shows will be required to use plastic and digital payment options, according to Daniel Stainer, spokesman for the Westmoreland Cultural Trust. The trust, which owns and operates the Palace Theatre, instituted the...
‘Snowbirds’ jet team highlights 100th anniversary of Westmoreland air show
Westmoreland County Airport Authority officials expect as many as 50,000 spectators will gather at the runway next weekend to gaze into the sky as nine acts perform air stunts and flyovers. It will be the 100th anniversary of the first air show held at what is now called Arnold Palmer...
Ex-wife pleads guilty to lesser charge following testimony in child porn trial
Westmoreland County prosecutors on Monday dismissed four felony and one misdemeanor counts related to allegations of child pornography against a Mt. Pleasant woman. Jennie Lynn Dulaney, 23, pleaded guilty to an amended summary count of disorderly conduct and was ordered to pay a $25 fine. Her testimony last month led...
Democratic turnout surpasses Republicans in Westmoreland primary election
Westmoreland County’s primary election results are in the books. The county elections board gave final certification to the hundreds of races on the Republican and Democrat ballots last month, setting the stage for November’s general election. Election Bureau Director Scott Ross said nearly 54,000 ballots were cast for the May...
Mt. Pleasant man pleads guilty to torture of girlfriend’s dog
A Mt. Pleasant Township man is facing a 4-year prison sentence for the torture of a dog owned by his now former girlfriend. Zachary Robert Hixson, 30, pleaded guilty Monday to two felony counts including aggravated cruelty to animals, neglect of an animal and animal cruelty in connection with allegations...
Westmoreland write-in votes push Republican row office candidates to victory on Democratic ticket
Democratic and Republican voters in Westmoreland County nominated the same row office candidates to represent their parties in the fall general election. Republican challengers Katie Pecarchik and John Ackerman, as they did in the GOP primary, defeated current officeholders in the Democratic primaries for register of wills and coroner with...
Case against Unity man charged with murder of missing girlfriend on hold for 2 months
Kathe Gross has waited more than seven years to see justice for her daughter. Following a court hearing Tuesday, Gross learned she will have to continue to wait as a trial for the Unity man charged with her daughter’s murder was delayed yet again. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Michael...
Westmoreland GOP concedes endorsements had little impact on county primary
Days after two Republican row officers were ousted by former longtime Democrats who only recently switched to the GOP, party officials in Westmoreland County are looking for reasons why. The apparent primary victory of Katie Pecarchik over Register of Wills Jon Wian and John Ackerman’s defeat of incumbent Coroner Tim...
Judge to decide future of Ligonier pavilion
Ligonier Borough neighbors are asking a Westmoreland County judge to enforce a zoning board ruling and rescind permits that allowed owners of a boutique hotel to build and host events in an adjoining designer pavilion. A land use appeal filed this week challenged a legal claim made by owners of...
Mentally ill Greensburg mother to serve prison sentence for daughter’s attempted murder
A Greensburg woman told a Westmoreland County judge she believed her best option to protect herself and her then-6-year-old daughter from an imagined serial killer with whom she believed she had been romantically involved was to end their lives in her own way. Skye C. Naggy, 32, on Friday insisted...
Judge rejects defense call to dismiss death penalty case in New Kensington son’s slaying
A Westmoreland County judge on Friday rejected claims from a Brackenridge father facing a potential death penalty that prosecutors are biased and have insufficient evidence to prove he killed his 9-year-old son three years ago in New Kensington. Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio in a 19-page ruling found there was...
MAWC details uninterrupted service amid storm power outages
Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County officials said Wednesday the agency continued to serve its more than 123,000 customers even as late April’s violent storms shut off power to hundreds of thousands of residents. “Nobody noticed we kept the water flowing,” said authority business manager Brian Hohman as administrators briefed authority...
Sheriff, county argue over Westmoreland vehicle tracking policy
A policy adopted last summer by Westmoreland County commissioners to implement GPS tracking on all county vehicles is executive overreach and a safety risk to law enforcement personnel, lawyers argued in court on Wednesday. Implementation of the policy was put on hold last fall after Sheriff James Albert filed a...
Pecarchik wins over GOP incumbent in Westmoreland register of wills primary
Westmoreland County Republicans Tuesday nominated former acting Register of Wills Katie Pecarchik to serve an abbreviated two-year term to head the office, apparently ending the short tenure of her replacement. Pecarchik, 57, of Hempfield defeated incumbent Jon Wian, who was endorsed by the GOP committee, and Kimberly Horrell, a former...
Ackerman upsets Carson to win GOP primary for Westmoreland coroner
Former Westmoreland County Deputy Coroner John Ackerman was poised to upset first-term incumbent Coroner Tim Carson in Tuesday’s Republican primary. With 294 of 306 precincts reporting, Ackerman had 53% and a nearly 1,700 vote edge over Carson, who received more than 46%. All results are unofficial until certified by the...
New Florence cheers as voters OK alcohol sales
New Florence residents voted Tuesday to approve alcohol sales in the borough. According to unofficial results, 64% of residents voted in favor of a referendum to reverse laws from the 1930s that banned beer and liquor sales in the small borough of 640. New Florence council President Jason Beatty, one...
Westmoreland’s released jail inmates offered free rides home
Westmoreland County Prison inmates have a new way to get home when their incarceration ends. An expanded program operated by Sage’s Army, a private nonprofit focused on drug addiction and recovery, is offering free rides for inmates. Janie Olson, the agency’s director of operations, told members of Westmoreland County’s Prison...
Murrysville man to serve up to 15 years in prison for 2023 fatal crash
Ten minutes after Kelly Poholsky took a call from her husband as she drove home from work Oct. 7, 2023, she came upon what appeared to be the scene of a bad accident. Only later that night did she learn the covered body that lay on the ground as she...
Westmoreland transit puts changes on hold amid funding uncertainty
Long planned revisions of Westmoreland County’s public transportation service are on hold as officials await clarity on funding. Substantial alterations in the county transit authority’s fixed-route bus system were expected to be launched this year, including the start of a pilot project to convert a small portion of the service...
