Regional category, Page 288
1 injured, 2 arrested in shootout near WVU campus
Morgantown police have arrested two men in connection to a shootout stemming from a robbery early Saturday morning near the campus of West Virginia University. Police said the shooting occurred around 1:15 a.m. at an apartment on College Avenue, according to Morgantown’s CBS-affiliate WDTV. Edward Kolleh, 29, and Ethan Horseman,...
Police look for suspects in $1K purchase using stolen Home Depot gift card
State police are asking for help in identifying a man and a woman who are suspected of using a stolen gift card to buy $1,000 worth of items at the West Mifflin Home Depot . Police say the pair was caught on surveillance cameras making the purchase on Sunday. According...
Winter heating grants available to low-income households
As winter temperatures sweep the region, homeowners are reminded that crisis grants are available to income eligible households without heat or in danger of being without heat. Through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), those who qualify can receive cash grants ranging from $200 to $1,000 to assist...
Federal judge blocks measure giving Lake Erie legal rights
TOLEDO, Ohio — An unusual ballot measure approved by voters in Ohio’s fourth-largest city to give legal rights to Lake Erie has been struck down by a federal judge. A coalition of environmental groups had led the effort in Toledo as a way to add new protections for Lake Erie...
Authorities: Altoona teens charged in fatal shooting during robbery
ALTOONA — Three teenage boys face murder charges in the fatal shooting of another teen who was killed when they tried to steal marijuana from him, authorities said. The three teens — two 15-year-olds and a 16-year-old, all form Altoona — were arraigned Thursday and remanded to the county jail....
Walmart looks to expand alcohol sales in Western Pa.
Walmart wants to expand its sales of alcoholic beverages in Pennsylvania to its store in Unity and two other stores in Beaver and Clearfield counties. Unity supervisors are scheduled a March 12public hearing in March on the retail giant’s plan to transfer to the store at 100 Colony Lane an...
80-foot fall, vandalism at Western Pa. parks top week’s headlinesVideo
Two parks in the Western Pennsylvania area made the news this week, both for the wrong reasons, while endings were announced for a private school in the North Hills, double coupons at Giant Eagle and security at Pittsburgh International Airport. Woman falls at McConnells Mill Jocie Van Kirk, a 21-year-old...
Student killed in WVU apartment complex shooting; 2 charged
A West Virginia University student was killed in a shooting early Friday morning at a university-run apartment complex near the campus, officials said. Eric James Smith, a sophomore from Clementon, N.J., was identified as the victim in the shooting, which happened around 4 a.m. at the College Park Apartments. Officials...
Murrysville police arrest 3 connected to thefts in Allegheny, Westmoreland counties
The arrests of three people in Murrysville this week may help solve multiple crimes in Westmoreland and Allegheny counties. Murrysville police searched a Wiestertown Road home, where they seized a quantity of crystal methamphetamine, smoking pipes, digital scales, a stolen handgun and multiple other stolen items, according to court papers....
Pittsburgh infectious disease specialist: ‘It’s time to prepare for coronavirus surge’Video
With the continued spread of the coronavirus and misinformation about the disease, Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician Dr. Amesh Adalja has become a highly sought after expert on the subject. A senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Adalja works on pandemic preparedness, emerging infectious...
Somerset County woman ordered to pay $251K restitution for keeping dead relative’s Social Security benefits
A Somerset County woman convicted of keeping a deceased relative’s Social Security benefit payments for 21 years was sentenced this week to pay $251,000 in restitution and serve one day in jail. U.S. District Judge Kim R. Gibson also sentenced Donalee Harvey, 73, of Meyersdale, to three years of supervised...
Everything you need to know about Leap Day
Like the Summer Olympics and presidential elections, Feb. 29 happens just once every four years. Here’s everything you need to know about the science and history of Leap Day. Why is it necessary? As you might remember from elementary school, a day is the time it takes for Earth to...
Pennsylvania reports 1st child flu-related death of season
Pennsylvania health officials have reported the first pediatric flu death in the state this season — one of a dozen new flu deaths in the past week. Deaths were recorded for the week ending Feb. 22 in each of the four age groups reported by the state health department. That...
Giant Eagle to stop doubling coupons
Giant Eagle will no longer double manufacturer coupons beginning Sunday. With so many e-coupons and digital choices, the store is changing to accommodate technology. The O’Hara-based retailer will continue to redeem the coupons for face value. “As customer usage of manufacturer coupons continues to decrease both in our stores and...
Suspect in Indiana County arsons arrested again, charged with intimidating witnesses; reward for information increased
A former Indiana County firefighter arrested last fall in connection with three arson fires was arrested again Wednesday along with his father on charges of intimidating witnesses in the case. State police in Indiana and the state police fire marshal’s office in Punxsutawney said charges of intimidating a witness and...
Lottery ticket worth $1.2 million sold in Beaver County
A Pennsylvania Lottery fast play ticket worth more than $1.2 million was sold in Beaver County, the lottery announced Wednesday. The progressive top-prize winning ticket, worth $1,219,802, for the lottery’s “Extreme Green” game was sold at Darlington Beer Distribution on Old Darlington Road in Darlington on Tuesday. The retailer gets...
Snow returns to parts of Western Pennsylvania on Wednesday night
A stretch of mild weather will come to an end Wednesday night and snow will return, according to the National Weather Service. Rain is expected to become widespread this afternoon and change over to snow after 8 p.m. as it gets colder, meteorologist Myranda Fullerton said. Through early Thursday morning,...
Murrysville police arrest 3 connected to thefts in Allegheny, Westmoreland counties
The arrests of three people in Murrysville this week may help solve multiple crimes in Westmoreland and Allegheny counties. Murrysville police searched a Wiestertown Road home, where they seized a quantity of crystal methamphetamine, smoking pipes, digital scales, a stolen handgun and multiple other stolen items, according to court papers....
See how Pennsylvania students fared on SATs in 2019
The Pennsylvania Department of Education has released the average SAT scores at public schools across the state. The averages come from students in the class of 2019 who took the standardized test — about 2.2 million students nationwide, according to College Board, the institution that administers the test. The exam...
What to give up for Lent? Booze, chocolate, sex — and Lent itself — among top choicesVideo
Although rooted in ancient Christian practice, the idea of “giving something up for Lent” permeates American popular culture. Witness the Twitter Lent Tracker operated for a decade by OpenBible.info. The index tracks the number of mentions of Lent or “giving up” something during the week of Ash Wednesday — which...
Police: Somerset County Sheetz worker steals $17,100 in lottery tickets
A Meyersdale woman faces felony charges, accused of stealing $17,100 in lottery tickets from the Sheetz store where she worked, authorities said. Meyersdale police charged Cheryl Lynne Delawder, 37, of the 100 block of High Street, with retail theft, receiving stolen property, theft by unlawful taking and organized retail theft....
Pittsburgh Army Corps of Engineers to hold hearing on proposed battery plant at Lordstown, Ohio
Plans to build a $2.3 billion electric battery assembly plant near General Motors Corp.’s shuttered automobile plant in Lordstown, Ohio, will be reviewed during a March 12 public hearing in Lordstown, which is about 75 miles from Pittsburgh. General Motors is applying for approval on behalf of GigaPower LLC of...
Slippery Rock student recounts ‘horrifying’ 80-foot fall at McConnells Mill
Jocie Van Kirk, the 21-year-old Slippery Rock University psychology student who fell 80 feet on Sunday while hiking at McConnells Mill State Park with her friends, recounted the experience as “definitely one of the most horrifying things I’ve ever been through.” “I was absolutely terrified,” Van Kirk said. She said...
Former Uniontown funeral director sentenced to prison for scamming elderly clients
A former Uniontown funeral director who pleaded guilty to stealing from more than 80 elderly clients on Tuesday was sentenced to four to eight years in prison and ordered to pay $555,000 in restitution. Authorities said Stephen E. Kezmarsky III, 52, the former owner and operator of the Kezmarsky Funeral...
Comments sought for proposed Allegheny Tunnel Turnpike project in Somerset
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is accepting public comment through Thursday on six proposals, including one that would replace the existing Allegheny Tunnel in Somerset County with a $332 million-plus “cut” and bypass across the Allegheny Ridge. The commission and representatives from engineering consultant L.R. Kimball in Ebensburg recently held an open...
