Thursday, May 23, 2013
Their 2-year-old boy, Maddox Derkosh, fell into a wild African painted dogs exhibit last year and was killed.
The parents of the 2-year-old boy named Maddox, 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. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
There were nearly 4,000 motorcycle accidents in Pennsylvania last year.
The Greater Pittsburgh Motorcycle Safety Council was just created in response to the increased number of motorcycle crashes occurring regionally. According to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation data, there were nearly 4,000 motorcycle crashes in Pennsylvania last year. Tragically, 210 people lost their lives in those crashes. In PennDOT's District 11-0, which encompasses Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties, there were 429 motorcycle crashes in 2012, resulting in 13 fatalities. With the growing number of licensed motorcyclists statewide, the council is charged with raising safety awareness among motorists and motorcyclists. The organization is composed of motorcycle groups, local police officers and safety advocates. …
40.44817
-80.00421
115 Federal St, Pittsburgh, PA
PNC Park
/articles/council-created-in-response-to-increased-number-of-motorcycle-crashes-c1237294
/locations/9404341
Monday, May 20, 2013
The suspect allegedly told a Castle Shannon firefighter that he had bomb materials in his briefcase.
The elderly man accused of causing the evacuation of South Hills Village Mall last month was in tears apologizing to the judge and thanking Bethel Park police for treating him well at the end of his preliminary hearing on Monday. District Judge Robert Wyda continued the hearing for Frank Zahler until July 1 so that behavioral health specialists could help Zahler discover the underlying cause of why he made the "callous and stupid" remarks on April 21, just days after the Boston Marathon tragedy. "What you said was clearly wrong," Wyda told Zahler. "We need to get things mentally and emotionally under control. "You need to continue to work with these people (health specialists) to help you help yourself." Zahler was handcuffed in the middle…
40.33297
-80.03111
5100 W Library Ave, Bethel Park, PA
Judge Robert Wyda's Office
/articles/hearing-for-south-hills-village-bomb-scare-suspect-ends-with-tears-e8ac0ae1
/locations/9403607
Friday, May 17, 2013
Incessantly barking dogs and the feeding of feral cats, among other things, are now illegal in the borough. Read more here.
The Whitehall Borough Council passed an ordinance on Wednesday night that restricts animal activity in the borough on a number of fronts. The ordinance makes it illegal for someone to feed wild and stray animals in Whitehall. It also makes it illegal to own a pet that creates an offensive odor or excessive noise, such as incessant barking. The ordinance can be viewed on the borough website and in this article's media gallery (below the photo of the dog.) The new law expands on an existing domestic animals law that deems it illegal to maintain, keep, raise or house animals in the borough like horses, cows, sheep, goats, hogs, ducks, turkeys, chickens and bees. That restriction remains, but the abovementioned restrictions on wild and stray …
40.35093
-79.978899
Borough of Whitehall Municipal Complex (Administrative Offices and Outdoor Recreation)
100 Borough Park Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/whitehall-council-passes-animal-nuisance-ordinance
1833209
/locations/9400140
The National Transportation Safety Board recommends reducing the limit. Some say that it would save lives. Others say that it's unreasonable.
One drink could be the standard for drunken driving—at least for some people—if the National Transporation Safety Board (NTSB) has its way. On Tuesday, the NTSB recommended that states lower the blood-alcohol threshold for driving under the influence from 0.08 percent to 0.05 percent. About 10,000 deaths per year are related to drunken driving. The lower limit would save 500 to 800 lives per year, according to the NTSB. We asked Baldwin-Whitehall folks on Facebook what they thought of the recommendation, and five people supported it. No opposition was voiced. However, officials at the American Beverage Institute called the proposal "ludicrous." They said that the average woman could reach the 0.05-percent limit by having one drink. …
Thursday, May 16, 2013
And one other drugs story in these Whitehall police notes.
Whitehall Woman Charged Police are charging Briana Wisniewski, 20, of 525 Greenlee Rd. in Whitehall Borough, with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia after officers responded to a call from the 1600 block of Parkline Drive in Whitehall's Wallace (Prospect) Park area at around 11:30 p.m. on May 9, according to Whitehall police Deputy Chief Richard M. Danko. Not Exactly What They Were Looking for Whitehall police officers went to the 1700 block of Skyline Drive in the Prospect Park area at around 8:05 p.m. on Sunday in search of a female who was allegedly trying to break into cars there. While officers were checking buildings in the area during their search for the female, they reported smelling the odor…
40.365911
-79.968024
1600-1700 Parkline Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/whitehall-woman-charged-with-heroin-possession-after-overdose-call
/locations/9393919
40.3671
-79.964079
1700-1800 Skyline Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/whitehall-woman-charged-with-heroin-possession-after-overdose-call
/locations/9393920
40.35093
-79.978899
Whitehall Police Department
100 Borough Park Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/whitehall-woman-charged-with-heroin-possession-after-overdose-call
1838979
/locations/9393921
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
A suspect has been arrested.
Allegheny County police Lt. Andrew Schurman told WPXI that Baldwin Borough police found a 24-year-old man who was shot in the head at a home in the 3400 block of Brickley Drive in north Baldwin early on Tuesday morning. The man is expected to survive the shooting, and Schurman told the TV news station that police arrested a suspect in the incident at the same house where the shooting occurred. The suspect's identity has not been released, however. Brickley Drive sits near Elm Leaf Park and below Pleasantvue Drive. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter.
40.37965
-79.952309
3400-3500 Brickley Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/man-shot-in-the-head-in-north-baldwin
/locations/9387344
Sunday, May 12, 2013
William Murphy III remains in jail and charged with an array of offenses.
William Joseph Murphy III, who has been charged with multiple counts of burglary, criminal trespassing, theft and receiving stolen property stemming from late 2012 and early 2013 incidents, is facing a non-jury trial that starts on May 16, according to an online docket sheet. The alleged south Baldwin Borough burglar remains in the Allegheny County Jail on $50,000 bail. Officers from multiple police departments detained Murphy at a Blossom Drive home on Jan. 4 as part of a burglary investigation in the area, according to Baldwin police Chief Michael Scott. The Baldwin-Whitehall Patch captured the detainment on video. Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter.
40.438787
-79.997136
437 Grant St, Pittsburgh, PA
Allegheny County Courthouse
/articles/alleged-south-baldwin-burglar-will-start-non-jury-trial-this-week
/locations/9398263
40.43476
-79.99244
950 2nd Ave, Pittsburgh, PA
Allegheny County Jail
/articles/alleged-south-baldwin-burglar-will-start-non-jury-trial-this-week
/locations/9398264
Friday, May 10, 2013
The group is accused of trying to skateboard inside of an abandoned swimming pool.
Police officers were called to the old Whitehall Country Club property along Provost Road at around 3:20 p.m. on May 1 in response to possible trespassers there, Whitehall police Deputy Chief Richard M. Danko said. When officers arrived, they reported finding a group of six men in their 20s and 30s and charged each of them with defiant trespass. "They read someplace on a website from other people that you could go to this property and skateboard in the abandoned swimming pool," Danko said. Danko said that the group took an unlocked chain off of a post near the property's entrance and pushed through a gate to gain access to the club's swimming pool area. The property's owner was driving by the area and saw the group. Charged were Nicholas …
40.371409
-79.994746
3091 Provost Rd, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/website-spurs-teens-into-breaking-into-old-whitehall-country-club-police-say
/locations/9376659
40.35093
-79.978899
Whitehall Police Department
100 Borough Park Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/website-spurs-teens-into-breaking-into-old-whitehall-country-club-police-say
1838979
/locations/9376660
And four other stories in these Whitehall police notes.
Man Sets Off Frisch's Alarm Police officers responded to a burglar alarm activated at Frisch's Restaurant in Whitehall Borough at around 3 a.m. on Sunday, Whitehall police Deputy Chief Richard M. Danko said. After investigating the incident at the popular Caste Village business, including interviewing a resident of nearby Grove Road, the officers learned that an individual had run from the restaurant area shortly after the alarm had gone off. Police tracked that individual down on nearby Weyman Road, Danko said, and identified him as Joseph Iannaccio, 28, of 332 Flowers Ave. in Pittsburgh's Hazelwood neighborhood, Danko said. Iannaccio was in "a highly intoxicated condition," according to the deputy chief, and was taken into custody …
40.36064
-80.008529
5000-5100 Azalea Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/man-charged-with-drunkenly-setting-off-frisch-s-burglar-alarm
/locations/9377058
40.35093
-79.978899
Whitehall Police Department
100 Borough Park Dr, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/man-charged-with-drunkenly-setting-off-frisch-s-burglar-alarm
1838979
/locations/9377059
40.357799
-80.001092
Caste Village
5301 Grove Rd, Pittsburgh, PA
/articles/man-charged-with-drunkenly-setting-off-frisch-s-burglar-alarm
1977849
/locations/9377060
Susan
5:16 pm on Thursday, May 23, 2013
I agree that the parent was at fault for placing the child in danger. While this is sad that it happened, suing the zoo is wrong and will not erase their grief. We are the ones that pay for it in the long run. No one placed that child on the railing except the parent. more ›