Suspended teacher suing school district
A suspended city school teacher has filed a federal lawsuit against Pittsburgh Public Schools and Superintendent John Thompson for what she claims was unfair punishment for her role in a school testing controversy.
Beth Lynn Boysza, a teacher in the district for 15 years, was suspended without pay for a semester after parents complained that she had attached Post-It Notes to her students' standardized math test booklets, compromising the integrity of the exams.
In the lawsuit filed Thursday, Boysza said the notes did not provide answers to any questions and the school district encouraged the practice, yet she was the only one to be disciplined. The suit also claims the suspension was illegal because Boysza did not receive a hearing prior to the suspension.
Boysza claims the suspension will cost her about $35,000 in lost wages.
Strip District man charged in stickups
Pittsburgh police arrested a Strip District man accused of armed holdups at three businesses Downtown and in Oakland.
Donald Edward Gibson, 57, of Penn Avenue, was in the Allegheny County Jail Tuesday on three counts of robbery. Two officers on patrol Downtown arrested him Monday after recognizing him as a wanted man.
Witnesses identified Gibson as the man who used a gun to rob H.K. Montaj Clothier on Smithfield Street, Downtown, on Aug. 28; the Avalon Exchange on Atwood Street, Oakland, on Sept. 8; and the Oasis Coffee Shop on William Penn Way, Downtown, also on Sept. 8.
No store employees or witnesses were injured in the robberies, police said. Gibson faces a hearing in City Court on Oct. 23.
Allegheny County
Film explores effect of gun violence
The Million Mom March of Allegheny County will show a film on gun violence in America tonight at the Manor Theater in Squirrel Hill.
"American Gun" features the late actor James Coburn as a father coping with the loss of his daughter. The film's writer and director will be on hand to answer questions.
The screening will be at 7:30 p.m. at the Manor Theater, 1729 Murray Ave. A reception will follow at 9:30 at the Murray Avenue Grill. Admission to the film costs $15 and admission to the reception costs $10. All proceeds will benefit the Million Mom March of Allegheny County.
For more information, call (412) 780-9818.
Power line test
Overhead power lines along a one-mile section of the reconstructed Overbrook Line will be energized tonight to begin a testing phase, the Port Authority of Allegheny County said.
The Port Authority will perform periodic tests of light-rail vehicles, the power system, signals and other facets of the Overbrook Line, primarily during evenings and weekends, until its scheduled opening for public service in June.
Initially, tests will be conducted between South Hills Junction and Denise Street. Only Port Authority employees and the transit agency's contractors are permitted along the right-of-way during the testing phase.
Pedestrians and motorists should be aware that LRVs will be traveling through crossings at intersections with Castle Shannon Boulevard, Poplar Avenue, Grove Road, Sleepy Hollow Road and Killarney Road. The crossings have signals and/or gates.
Braddock
Owner of grocery shot, police say
Police say the owner of a grocery store in Braddock was shot Tuesday evening during an apparent robbery attempt.
Allegheny County police are investigating the incident at Kim's grocery store in the 700 block of Braddock Avenue. The identity and condition of the owner, who was shot in the left leg, were not released. The incident occurred around 6 p.m. Police could not say if any money was taken or if they had any suspects.
Cranberry
Police say mom, dad took baby to drug deal
Cranberry police acting on a tip expected to bust a young couple for selling heroin, but they didn't expect to find the pair's infant daughter, too.
Anthony Curtis Noel, 23, and Kelly Leigh Yunk, 22, were arrested at 3 p.m. Monday in the parking lot of the Target store along Route 228, Sgt. David Kovach said.
Police said Noel, of Ferdinand Street, North Versailles, and Yunk, of East Drive, West Mifflin, were charged with possession and delivery of a controlled substance, criminal conspiracy and endangering the welfare of children after they sold eight bags of heroin.
Kovach said the 2-month-old child appeared to be in good health and was released to Yunk's mother.
Noel and Yunk remained in the Butler County Prison Tuesday in lieu of $25,000 bond. Their preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 22.
Cranberry Connector phase is completed
Drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike will be able to exit directly from the toll road to Interstate 79 and Route 19 beginning late tonight.
The ramps -- part of the $44.3 million Cranberry Connector project -- are scheduled to open between 10 and 11 p.m.
Motorists will be able to access both the north and southbound lanes of I-79 and Route 19. However, access from I-79 to the Turnpike will not be available until the spring, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials have said.
The connector will provide a direct link between the Turnpike and I-79, allowing drivers to stay off busy Route 19 as they travel between the two major highways.
Moon
Choir, rock group to perform tonight
The Moon Area Middle School choir will perform with Nashville-based a cappella rock group Blue Jupiter during a concert tonight at the school. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7. The show is open to the public and tickets cost $7 at the door.
The four members of Blue Jupiter, including Fox Chapel native Chris Chatham, began their first Artists in Residency Concert Series program Tuesday at the middle school. The two-day program includes rehearsals, clinics, school assemblies and classroom studies.
The group's next stop will be at Canon-McMillan School District Oct. 22 and 23, with a public performance at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 23 at Canon-McMillan High School.
For more information, call (888) 462-5873 or e-mail tickets@bluejupiter.com .
Dormont
Police plan charges in car chase
Dormont police said Tuesday they plan to file criminal charges against a man who led officers on a car chase that ended on Route 51 in Carrick.
Officers were trying to take Terry John Brennan, 52, of Dormont, for an involuntary psychiatric commitment at about 8:30 p.m. Monday when he sped away from his home, police Chief Russ McKibben said. Officers chased him into Pittsburgh and through Mt. Oliver before police placed spike strips in front of his car to disable it.
Brennan was not injured and was being evaluated at UPMC South Side.
East Hills
Hearing set for man suspected in shooting
An East Hills man faces a hearing next week in connection with the shooting of a teenager during a violent home invasion at a neighbor's house.
Roberto L. Smith, 20, of Wilner Drive, was arraigned Tuesday morning in City Court on charges of robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and conspiracy in connection with the July 16 incident.
Rico Sears, 17, and several relatives told Pittsburgh police that Smith and another man raided their home in the 2200 block of Wilner Drive and pistol-whipped the teen while searching for money. Sears was shot in the back of the leg as he escaped, police said.
Two witnesses picked Smith's picture from photo arrays, police said. Police are still searching for the accomplice.
PittsburghDuquesne names first female vice president
A seasoned fund-raiser has been named the first female vice president in Duquesne University history.
Carol A. Carter, vice president for development at The Pittsburgh Foundation, was named vice president for university relations by President Charles J. Dougherty.
Carter will be responsible for institutional advancement and public affairs, and her duties will include oversight of all aspects of Duquesne's fund-raising efforts and alumni relations programs.
With nearly 30 years of higher education fund-raising experience, including positions at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, Carter has led fund-raising efforts that have resulted in more than $650 million.
RegionEcstasy dealer's sentence reduced
A New York man who played a role with his brother in a multimillion-dollar Ecstasy distribution ring had his sentence reduced Tuesday in federal court for cooperating with authorities.
Senior U.S. District Judge William Standish reduced the sentence of Igor "William" Logatchev, 22, of Staten Island, from 46 months to 20 months.
Last week, Logatchev's brother, Oleg "Alex " Logatchev, 24, of Mt. Washington and Staten Island, who operated the Ecstasy network from his defunct Strip District after-hours bar Club Phlo, had his sentence reduced from nine years to 41/2 years.
Allegheny CountyRoddey wants judge to reconsider ruling
Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey is asking Common Pleas Judge Joseph James to reconsider his decision to overturn Roddey's line-item veto of a portion of the 2003 county budget.
James ruled Friday that the chief executive can veto a budget item completely, but cannot arbitrarily change the budget amount approved by County Council. Roddey vetoed about $1.5 million from the Special Sheriff Revenue Fund in this year's budget.
County Solicitor Chuck McCullough had said James' decision sets the stage for an appeal to the state Supreme Court.
WilkinsburgJamaican man admits to drug charges
A twice-deported Jamaican man pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to re-entering the United States and opening a Wilkinsburg restaurant where he sometimes sold marijuana packed in Styrofoam takeout containers, a prosecutor said.
Herbert Henry Heath, of Firethorn Drive, Monroeville, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh to drug conspiracy, money laundering and immigration charges. Sentencing was set for Jan 17.
Heath was deported in 1993 and '96 as an illegal alien convicted on felony drug charges. He assumed a new identity as Robert McIntosh and re-entered the country in the late 1990s and opened the Caribbean Corner Restaurant in Wilkinsburg.
Between 1997 and 2002, Heath and his co-conspirators distributed approximately 2,000 pounds of marijuana, authorities said.
Washington CountyMan charged with passing counterfeit bills
A Washington County man was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of conspiracy and passing counterfeit currency.
Jonathan Brayton, 25, of Burgettstown, was charged in the two-count indictment with being part of a group that conspired from November through December 2002 to manufacture and pass counterfeit bills.
Brayton faces a possible maximum sentence of 25 years in prison and $500,000 fine.
