Valley News Dispatch category, Page 423
Police: Brackenridge woman accused of bludgeoning dog to death with hammer in front of children
Brackenridge police arrested a woman after her boyfriend told them she beat the family’s dog to death with a hammer in front of their children. Bianca Simone Lee, 32, of Nelson Avenue, was arrested on charges of aggravated cruelty to animals and two misdemeanor counts of cruelty to animals in...
Family seeks justice for former Springdale High football player shot to death
The family of Jorden “Flashlight” Lee Puskar, who was shot to death Jan. 22 in Avalon, is looking for justice — and the death penalty for the suspect in the killing. Puskar, 21, of Coraopolis was a 2019 graduate of Springdale High School, where he played tight end for the...
Squaw Run in Fox Chapel deemed off limits for elevated pathogens
Portions of Squaw Run in Fox Chapel are off limits for recreation after the Department of Environmental Protection found the water quality to be impaired, according to a new report released by the agency. At least one of the stream’s unnamed tributaries also was identified in the report. “Squaw Run...
West Deer receives grants for Bairdford Park project, West Deer Fire Company No. 3 station relocation project
Two grants from the Gaming Economic Development Tourism Fund came to West Deer last month, contributing to the township’s ongoing work on its parks and to the volunteer fire company’s station development. The township was awarded $59,000 for its Bairdford Park project. This is the second grant given to the...
Leechburg First United Methodist Church to hold ‘Souper Bowl Sunday’ lunch event
Leechburg United Methodist Church will be holding its first special luncheon on Sunday to help raise awareness about food insecurity. The event, to be held at the church, is dubbed the “Souper Bowl Sunday Lunch & Special Collections.” “This is an opportunity to raise awareness for people who suffer from...
Police: Brackenridge woman leapt from second-story window in New Kensington to avoid arrest
New Kensington police say a woman leaped out of a second-story window to get away from officers who came to arrest her for trashing a house and swinging a knife at the owner when he told her to leave. Khayla Jean Loughner, 32, of Eighth Avenue, Brackenridge, was charged with...
The Stroller, Feb. 3, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Valentine’s hike planned Feb. 13 at Outdoor Discovery Center Naturalist Dave Beale will lead a free 1-mile Valentine’s forest hike at 10:30...
Plum church gets charitable boost to its homeless assistance project
A Plum church’s program to help the homeless has received a boost through a Tarentum-area charitable trust. Unity Community Church, located along Unity-Trestle Road, launched its Feed the Flock Project last year through a $5,000 grant from the Ira R. Wood and Frances Wood Charitable Trust. It was designed to...
New Kensington-Arnold students to take snow-covered sidewalk concerns to cities’ officials
Despite temperatures well above freezing, stretches of sidewalks in New Kensington and Arnold still could be found covered in snow Wednesday as the region braced for the next winter storm expected to bring a mix of snow and ice. The last measurable snow fell Jan. 28, according to the National...
Westmoreland DA Nicole Ziccarelli seeks removal of 2 elected constables
Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli is seeking to remove two elected constables from office, one in Arona and another in New Kensington. Ziccarelli, a first-term Republican who took office in January after ousting Democrat John Peck — who served as the county’s top prosecutor for a quarter century —...
Threat of building collapse forces partial closure of Longfellow Street in Vandergrift
Portions of Longfellow Street in Vandergrift were closed for a time Wednesday afternoon after demolition crews evacuated a condemned building. Vandergrift Volunteer Fire Department No. 2 Chief Albert Wells confirmed there were no injuries. Borough officials roped off the building at 326 Longfellow St. and said it’s unsafe for the...
State Rep. Carrie DelRosso announces run for lieutenant governor
Another Pittsburgh-area politician is entering the crowded race for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor as state Rep. Carrie DelRosso, R-Oakmont, announced Wednesday that she is seeking the Republican nomination. A Scranton native who settled in the Pittsburgh region after attending the University of Pittsburgh, DelRosso won an upset victory in 2020 when...
New Kensington-Arnold approves preliminary budget with 5% property tax increase
A 5% property tax increase remains in New Kensington-Arnold School District’s preliminary budget, but it won’t be going any higher. The school board on Tuesday approved the district’s proposed $40.9 million budget for the 2022-23 school year. It was unchanged from when business Manager Jeff McVey discussed it with the...
Fired Harmar gas station clerk faces charges he stole $4,300 worth of winning lottery tickets, cash
Harmar Township police arrested a former gas station clerk on charges that he stole more than $4,300 worth of winning lottery tickets and cash during a one-week period in November. Joshua Andrew Lang, 19, of Spruce Street, Verona was charged Jan. 26 with a felony count of theft by deception...
The Stroller, Feb. 2, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Volunteers needed at cat rescue Kiski Valley Cat and Kitten Rescue is seeking volunteers to help at the shelter, located in Allegheny...
Clothing Closet in Tarentum sells wardrobe staples, lifts spirits
Ruth Conklin spends her Saturday mornings straightening shirts and jackets hung from racks in the basement of Central Presbyterian Church in Tarentum. A volunteer for five years, Conklin said the Clothing Closet is a hidden gem. “You can find brand-new winter coats, with tags, and a lot of very nice...
Lower Burrell engineer, a whole week into his career, helps team lift 60-foot bus out of ravine
Alex Delp was seven days into his engineering career with Allegheny Crane and Rigging last week when he found himself hovering 250 feet in the air overlooking the rubble of Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge. “It started out like any normal Friday,” said Delp, 23, of Lower Burrell. The day quickly...
Police from dozens of departments show up in force to support boy battling cancer at Children’s HospitalVideo
Fox Chapel, Sewickley and Plum police officers were among the cavalcade of crime fighters that came out Tuesday to support a boy battling cancer at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. Police from 76 departments spanning Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Westmoreland, McKean and Washington counties rode in 87 vehicles around the facility...
East Deer merger with Allegheny Valley Regional Police moves closer to reality
East Deer is coming closer to merging its police force with the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department after receiving two approvals for its application. The Allegheny Valley Regional Police Commission approved East Deer’s application during a special meeting Jan. 25. Then, on Friday, Jan. 28, the Springdale Township commissioners voted...
2 charged in homicides on Parkway East, Route 28 last year
Over the course of one deadly night, Howard Milligan shot and killed two people in separate incidents on Route 28 and the Parkway East last May, according to police. Milligan, 26, of Turtle Creek faces 17 charges in connection with the May 22 shootings, including two counts of homicide and...
Murrysville vocalist will parody Pat Benatar song at Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog DayVideo
A Pittsburgh band fronted by a Murrysville singer will play their parody of Pat Benatar’s “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” at Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog Day. The band No More Daisies is one of two finalists selected Sunday for the “Gobbler’s Knob Got Talent” competition. They will play at...
Man accused of threatening Westmoreland sheriff arraigned on new charge, pleads guilty to DUI
A 55-year-old man accused of making social media threats to harm Westmoreland County Sheriff James Albert and his family could soon be released from the county jail to begin a DUI sentence on electronic home monitoring, according to court documents. Matthew A. Betts was taken into custody Saturday after sheriff’s...
West Deer’s Annie Rieg twirls her way to the topVideo
Ask 18-year-old Annie Rieg what she does for fun and she’ll answer with a coy smile. “I dance around under flying metal,” said Rieg, a Deer Lakes graduate and resident of West Deer. In her freshman year at the University of Pittsburgh, Rieg is a member of the school’s Golden...
Tarentum crews work to repair 2 waterline breaks
Tarentum residents in two separate areas of the borough were without water Tuesday. Manager Michael Nestico said crews worked to repair waterline breaks in the area of West Ninth Avenue and Center Street and at East Seventh Avenue and Ormand Street. “Each break has interrupted water service for roughly one...
Man shocked by stun gun while fleeing arrest on domestic violence and drug charges, South Buffalo police say
South Buffalo police said they used a stun gun to subdue a man Saturday after he allegedly tackled an officer and ran off when they tried to arrest him for injuring a woman during an argument. Christopher Joseph Lordo, 36, of Ronald Drive, Buffalo Township was charged with a count...
