June 10, 2023 2:26 am
It took less than four hours for a jury to deliver a split verdict in the trial of Michaela Hildreth. Hildreth, 27 of Ninevah avoided the most serious charge of attempted homicide. She was convicted of two felony counts of aggravated assault. She was also convicted of one misdemeanor charge of simple assault and three reckless endangerment charges. Hildreth and her boyfriend J.T. Mruk were with Amy Mruk searching for a missing rifle that belonged to the Mruk’s son. Amy Mruk was arguing with her estranged husband and Hildreth when she left the group to walk to a friend’s Chartiers Township home where they believed the gun may have been. Hildreth drove up to the home and met Amy Mruk in the street. Amy Mruk began assaulting Hildreth and when she was pulled away from the vehicle, she returned with her hands raised and Hildreth shot her. The judge revoked Hildreth’s bond and sheriff’s deputies led her to the Washington County Jail. Hildreth will be sentenced on September 6.
June 10, 2023 1:59 am
A Washington man was killed Thursday afternoon in a one-car crash in South Franklin Township. The Washington County Coroner’s Office says 32-year-old Derek Hartzog died in the Washington Hospital Emergency Room following an accident just before three o’clock on S Bridge Road. Authorities say he lost control of his vehicle and plowed into a tree. Officials say he was not wearing a seatbelt. State Police are investigating the cause of the crash and an autopsy is pending. Hartzog was the only person in the vehicle.
June 10, 2023 1:15 am
The Washington County Chamber of Commerce welcomed Matthew Heiskell the new Vice President and General Manager of the Hollywood Casino at the Meadows. In a Breakfast Briefing event held at the casino, Heiskell outlined his career from its start in Mississippi to his taking the job here in Washington County six months ago. He outlined the nuts and bolts operation of the casino but also highlighted much of what keeps customers returning to the casino. He boasted $400,000 in daily winnings and quality restaurants and lounges that pour 400 gallons of beer and 200 shots of liquor daily. Heiskell promoted near term and long term improvements that Hollywood Casino at the Meadows will be taking on. Currently, the casino is moving to a “3 C’s” payment system. The payment system will be contactless, cardless and cashless and controlled entirely by a customer’s phone. It will be used on slots, gaming tables and restaurants. Long term plans include the event center moving from a summer only tent format to a permanent structure that will hold concert events all year long.
June 9, 2023 2:49 pm
MIAMI (AP) — The indictment alleges Trump kept classified documents in the bathroom and shower at his Florida estate, as well as various other locations that included a ballroom, storeroom, office and bedroom. Prosecutors noted that “tens of thousands of members and guests” visited the “active social club” of Mar-a-Lago between the end of Trump’s presidency in January 2021 through the August 2022 search. They argued that “nonetheless” Trump stored documents “in a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, and office space, his bedroom, and a storage room.” The indictment featured photos of various rooms piled high with boxes full of documents. (Photo ABC)
June 9, 2023 4:50 am
PARIS (AP) — France’s president is heading to the Alps to be at the side of families traumatized by the savage stabbings of four very young children and two adults. Investigators were working Friday to unravel the motives of a Syrian man taken into custody after Thursday’s attack in Annecy, a lakeside town ringed by mountains. President Emmanuel Macron’s office said he and his wife Brigitte were traveling together to comfort wounded victims, meet their families and people who came to their aid. The four critically injured child victims are aged between 22 months and 3 years. They were rushed to hospitals in the French city of Grenoble and Geneva in neighboring Switzerland.
June 9, 2023 4:49 am
MIAMI (AP) — Donald Trump has been indicted on charges of mishandling classified documents at his Florida estate. The remarkable development makes him the first former president in U.S. history to face criminal charges by the federal government that he once oversaw. The indictment carries unmistakably grave legal consequences, including the possibility of prison if he’s convicted. But it also has enormous political implications, potentially upending a Republican presidential primary that Trump has been dominating. And it sets the stage for a sensational trial centered on claims that he willfully, and illegally, hoarded sensitive national security information. The Justice Department did not immediately confirm the indictment publicly.
June 8, 2023 10:05 pm
MIAMI (AP) — Donald Trump said Thursday that he has been indicted on charges of mishandling classified documents at his Florida estate, igniting a federal prosecution that is arguably the most perilous of multiple legal threats against the former president as he seeks to reclaim the White House. The Justice Department did not immediately publicly confirm the indictment. But two people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to discuss it publicly said that the indictment included seven criminal counts. One of those people said Trump’s lawyers were contacted by prosecutors shortly before he announced on his Truth Social platform that he had been indicted. The indictment enmeshes the Justice Department in the most politically explosive prosecution in its long history. Its first case against a former president upends a Republican presidential primary that Trump is currently dominating, and any felony charges would raise the prospect of a yearslong prison sentence.
June 8, 2023 6:06 pm
A Monongahela man pleaded guilty to felony and misdemeanor charges relating to his taking of a car in California in March of this year. Antwane Cunningham, 30 was on parole and probation for 4 previous violations. On March 1, Cunningham allegedly took a car from a convenience store parking lot in California. He led police on a high speed chase along Rt. 88 before he crashed the car in Speers. Cunningham pleaded guilty to felony flight to elude an officer and theft of a moveable object. He also pleaded to a misdemeanor DUI charge. Cunningham will spend the next 3-6 years in state prison, all of the probation and parole sentences from the 4 previous incidents were revoked and will be served concurrently with the state sentence.
June 8, 2023 6:05 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is giving whiskey maker Jack Daniel’s a reason to raise a glass. The justices on Thursday handed the company a new chance to win a trademark dispute with the makers of a dog toy that mimics the whiskey’s signature bottle. The justices unanimously said a lower court’s reasoning was flawed when it ruled for the makers of the Bad Spaniels toy. The court did not decide whether the toy’s maker had violated trademark law with their toy, which squeaks and resembles the whiskey’s signature bottle. Instead, the justices said a lower court needed to redo its analysis in the case and sent it back for further review.
June 8, 2023 12:22 pm
Three longtime administrators in Washington County have announced plans to resign at the end of June. Michael Namie, who currently serves as the chief of staff for the county commissioners, Finance Director Josh Hatfield and Human Services Director Kimberly Rogers say they will be leaving their current positions as of June 30th. Each director gave a different reason for their decision with the exception of Namie. Namie, who had served as the county’s controller for several years declined to offer a reason for his departure. Hatfield says he is leaving to accept a new job, but declined to say where he would be working. As for Rogers, she says she and her husband have purchased a home in West Virginia and they are planning to retire there. Washington County Commission Chairperson Diana Irey-Vaughan though, says she believes the mass resignations stem from political infighting between the elected row officers and other county officials, along with the uncertainty about who will be in charges of the board of commissioners next year following the November general election. Irey-Vaughan is also leaving her position. She announced earlier this year that she would also be retiring when her term ends in January.
