Thursday, May 23, 2013
2-year-old Maddox Derkosh died after falling into a wild African painted dogs exhibit last year.
The parents 2-year-old Maddox Derkosh, who was killed after falling into a wild African painted dogs exhibit last fall, have filed a lawsuit against the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium for unspecified damages, according to WPXI. The lawsuit filed on behalf of Jason and Elizabeth Derkosh of Whitehall Borough claims that zoo officials had ample warning that parents routinely lift their children onto a rail overlooking the exhibit so that the children can see the dogs better, according to the report. The lawsuit states that zoos across the country have more and better safeguards in place to keep children safe. Click here to read the family's full statement, published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Join Patch for more community news or join us …
Friday, May 17, 2013
The National Transportation Safety Board recommends reducing the limit. Some say it would save lives. Others say it's unreasonable.
One drink could be the standard for drunken driving—at least for some people if the National Transporation Safety Board has its way. On Tuesday, the NTSB recommended states lower the blood-alcohol threshold for driving under the influence from 0.08 percent to 0.05 percent. About 10,000 deaths a year are related to drunken driving. The NTSB says the lower limit would save 500 to 800 lives a year. However, officials at the American Beverage Institute called the proposal "ludicrous." It said the average woman could reach the 0.05 percent limit by having just one drink. According to the Post-Gazette, a blood-alcohol level of 0.05 would be attained by a would be attained by a 130-pound woman with two drinks consumed within one hour. A 180-pound…
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Officers responded to 10 shoplifting incidents in just one week.
With so many retail stores along the McKnight Road corridor, it might not be surprising that shoplifting is a common crime in Ross Township. But just how common? According to incident reports provided by Ross Township police, officers responded to 10 reports of shoplifting between April 30 and May 6. The incidents were spread out and included stores inside Ross Park Mall, North Hills Village and McIntyre Square. Several smaller, independent stores were also hit. "With the Ross retail corridor being so big, it brings a significant amount of retail theft," said Ross Detective Brian Kohlhepp. Ten cases in a week might not seem like a lot, but Kohlhepp says the police department's statistics are just a small percentage of the shoplifting …
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Police are looking for a white man, in his late 20's, who held up an Exxon Station on McKnight Road Wednesday morning.
Ross Township police are searching for one suspect in the robbery of the Exxon Gas Station just south of the intersection of McKnight and Nelson Run Roads late Wednesday morning. Wednesday evening, Ross police released surveillance video of the hold up. (see video) "It was dead -- this guy came up and he had his right hand in his hoodie pocket and he walked in and looked around to make sure there was no one there with me," Caralin Fohl, the only employee on duty at the time, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "He just told me open the cash register and told me to get on the ground face down," Fohl told the P-G. "It was a very scary experience, to say the least." Fohl told the paper she didn't recognize the robber as a regular customer. …
The hold up occurred shortly around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Ross Township police are searching for at least one suspect in the robbery of the Exxon Gas Station just south of the intersection of McKnight and Nelson Run Roads. The holdup was reported around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. There are no reports of any injuries, and it's not known if the suspect, believed to be a white man in his late 20's or early 30's, carried a weapon. Check back with North Hills Patch for further developments. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter. Check out some of today's other top stories here.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The accident occurred around 3:30 Tuesday afternoon.
One woman was hurt after losing control of her car while driving toward McKnight Road from Ross Park Mall Tuesday afternoon. Ross Township police say the vehicle swerved across both lanes of traffic before coming to a stop on the side of the road. The driver, a woman in her mid 30's, was the only person in the car and was taken to the hospital. No word on her name or condition. Police say it's possible she suffered from some sort of medical condition. Officers say there was no evidence that drugs or alcohol played a part in the accident. The road was closed for a short time, but has since reopened. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter. Check out some of today's other top stories here.
Officer Vernon "Port" Moses is being honored on Peace Officers Memorial Day.
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a proclamation, which designated May 15th as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week in which that date falls as Police Week. Currently, tens of thousands of law enforcement officers from around the world converge on Washington, DC to participate in a number of planned events, which honor those that have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Ross Township has lost one officer in the line of duty, and recently several members of the department investigated the circumstances surrounding the murder of Constable Vernon "Port" Moses. Moses died on May 3, 1932 when, at the time, he was the lone Ross Township police officer. Officer Michael J. Thomas, Sgt. Matt Grubb, Detective Brian Kohlhepp and Chief Robert …
Monday, May 13, 2013
Investigators believe Saturday's fire at the now closed lounge was intentionally set.
Ross Township Fire Marshal John Reubi said a fire Saturday at the closed Shadowood Lounge at 4844 McKnight Road was no accident. "It's suspicious for sure," said Reubi. "Fortunately, the fire did not spread very far before firefighters extinguished it." Reubi said it appears the fire started underneath some steps in the rear of the building, but because of recent rains, the area was wet and the fire had not gained much momentum before fire crews arrived. No one was hurt and the incident remains under investigation. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter. Check out some of today's other top stories here.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
A car hit a utility pole at the intersection of McKnight Road and Stevens Drive.
Up to 2,800 Duquesne Light customers in Ross and West View awoke to no electricity Sunday morning after a car collided with a utility pole at the intersection of McKnight Road and Stevens Drive in Ross Township. (Click on view larger map for exact location). No word of if anyone was seriously hurt in the accident, which occurred around 4 a.m. "We hope to have everyone restored by 4 p.m. this afternoon," said Brian Knavish, Duquesne Light Spokesman. Meantime, a portion of McKnight road in that area which was temporarily closed, is now open again. The power outage also forced PennDOT to close the HOV Lanes. Our Newsletter subscribers heard this breaking news first. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter. Check …
Saturday, May 11, 2013
The call came in shortly after 7 p.m.
Dozens of firefighters converged on the closed Shadowood Lounge at 4844 McKnight Road in Ross Township shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday night, and quickly extinguished a small fire in the rear of the building. No one was hurt. No word yet on what caught fire, but investigators were closely studying what appeared to be an electrical box near the back door. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter. Check out some of today's other top stories here.
Kim Behr
7:32 pm on Thursday, May 23, 2013
If you think they have a right to sue your as crazy as they are. People abuse our court system today with these unnecessary lawsuits, like this one. more ›