Renatta Signorini stories, Page 75

A Wexford man was killed in a crash on Interstate 79 south Monday, according to state police. Troopers said Kevin Kass, 44, was on foot at 5:20 a.m. in the left lane of the highway near milepost 68.5 in Sewickley Hills when he was hit by a Ford F-150. He...

The attorney for a Vandergrift woman accused in the 2018 fatal shooting of her cousin is expected to present a psychiatric defense at trial. Attorney Patrick Thomassey told Judge Scott Mears of the plan Monday during a hearing for Ashley Croft, 38. She is accused of fatally shooting John Edward...

A Derry woman was seriously hurt after crashing into a house in the borough Saturday afternoon, according to state police. Rebecca M. Bennett, 33, was taken by medical helicopter to UPMC Presbyterian in Pittsburgh for treatment. Troopers said Bennett was driving a Chevrolet S10 on West Fourth Avenue at 2...

Westmoreland County could be on the edge of a coronavirus case surge similar to one that hit around the holidays in 2020, Excela Health’s top doctor said. The number of deaths attributed to the virus has been higher than the same period last year and the rate of positive cases...

Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank officials are hoping to partner with health care providers at its Mt. Pleasant location to bring additional services to those in need. Co-founder Cathy Battle said the coronavirus pandemic has and continues to upend many lives, leaving some families without the ability to access health care....

Crumbl Cookies, a fast-growing bakery sensation, is coming to Westmoreland County. Mark and Tammy Ornowski of North Huntingdon plan to open a location in the township in early 2022 after spending months learning about the Utah-based brand that has gained a following on TikTok. Crumbl is the fastest-growing gourmet cookie...

Food providers at state parks across Pennsylvania are switching to compostable, paper, wooden or plant fiber alternatives for packaging and consumption, according to Department of Conservation and Natural Resources officials. It’s part of an effort to reduce the amount of waste and plastics that are associated with concessions. New contracts...

A North Versailles man was sentenced Tuesday to 40 months in a federal prison on a possession of child pornography charge after investigators said they found hundreds of illegal images on his cellphone, according to court records and prosecutors. Travis Kuhns, 28, was ordered to spend eight years and eight...

A former Greensburg woman was indicted by a federal grand jury after authorities said she used the identity of a person she met at a Hempfield drug treatment center to secure a bank loan and credit card, according to court papers. Nina Marie Barkley, 34, is charged with bank fraud...

State officials are encouraging people to stock up on opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone as overdose deaths climb locally and nationally. The coronavirus pandemic upended a lot of progress officials statewide had made on reducing the number of drug overdoses, said Jen Smith, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Drug...

It’s been eleven years since a state law was created to help municipalities target blighted property owners who owe taxes and other bills, in part, because of a costly situation in Jeannette. City officials are planning to tap into the law’s powers. Solicitor Tim Witt has a draft ordinance prepared...

A Pittsburgh man was sentenced Monday to 15 years in a federal prison on child pornography charges. Matthew J. Gourley, 49, was ordered to spend 10 years on supervised release after the prison term. In sentencing him, U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman IV said the crimes were “heinous, inexcusable,...

Full-time Jeannette employees are eligible to get a $500 bonus for working through the coronavirus pandemic. Council approved the measure this week in what Mayor Curtis Antoniak said was an effort to show workers they are appreciated. They deserve it, he said. “We have outstanding employees that worked through this,”...

No one was hurt in an incident that snarled traffic on Route 30 Thursday afternoon after a bucket truck pulled down wires, according to state police. The incident was reported just before 2 p.m. in Unity near the highway’s intersection with Giffen Drive, near Burger King and a GetGo under...

State police accuse a patient at Torrance State Hospital of raping a mentally disabled man there in an effort to be moved to a jail, according to court papers. Keith Lloyd Saltonstall, 50, formerly of Glenmoore, Chester County, waived his right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday on charges of sexual...

A Unity man suspected in the 2018 disappearance of Cassandra Gross pleaded guilty Tuesday to unrelated federal weapons violations. Thomas George Stanko, 51, pleaded guilty to two counts of illegally having guns because he is a convicted felon. His admission came in a video conference hearing from the Allegheny County...

Two military airplanes will visit Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in June for rides and tours, said Gabe Monzo, Westmoreland County Airport Authority executive director. The B-29 Superfortress, named Fifi, and a B-24 plane will make the trip to Unity through the Commemorative Air Force, a Texas-based museum of military aircraft....

Two educators at the Clairview School in Hempfield recently were honored by the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit. Adaptive physical education teacher Jeff Beard won the Annie Sullivan Award, and classroom assistant Beth Giesmann won the Outstanding Paraeducator Award. Both recipients were awarded during the unit’s board meeting in late October. Beard...

A Greensburg nurse is accused of writing fraudulent prescriptions for thousands of pills and filling them at pharmacies throughout the area, according to court papers. Kari A. Halaut, 54, used prescription pads belonging to her former employer after being fired and continued to write prescriptions while working at other nursing...

Two people were flown by medical helicopter from a multi-vehicle crash Monday in Sewickley Township, according to a Westmoreland 911 dispatch supervisor. The crash was reported at 10:20 a.m. on Herminie West Newton Road near the intersection of Harris Drive, just south of Herminie. Firefighters extricated at least one person...

Cold evenings are creeping in and three nonprofits want to help those in Westmoreland County who don’t have a warm place to spend the night. Cold weather shelters have opened for a seventh season at Welcome Home Shelter in Greensburg and Union Mission in Latrobe. Both will provide lodging and...

A Scottdale man was sentenced to two to seven years in a state prison last week for sexually assaulting two teen girls. Albert C. Fletcher III, 36, was ordered to spend another three years on probation. He pleaded guilty Thursday in two cases to charges of sexual assault, corruption of...

Railcar operators were overwhelmed with the amount of support last year for their annual Toys for Tots collection along the Southwest Pennsylvania Railroad line. Organizer John Gonder said just four railcars participated in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic wore on but the amount of donations only grew. “We had so...

Nearly five years have not erased the pain Rachael Tantlinger’s parents and brother feel as a result of her drug overdose death. Sometimes, it’s physically debilitating, said father, Chris Tantlinger. For mother Valerie Tantlinger, the raw emotion was still evident Friday in court testimony. Both directly addressed the man who...

A Jeannette man accused of setting a fatal fire in 2018 has until Tuesday to decide if he’s going to plead guilty or go to trial. Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio set the deadline during a hearing Friday after learning little progress had been made in the case since a court appearance...