Pittsburg, PA

Woodland Hills school board president charged in Rankin Borough theft case

Published

1 month ago

February 13, 2026

Woodland Hills school board president charged in Rankin Borough theft case

The president of the Woodland Hills school board has been charged with multiple felonies in connection with alleged credit card misuse from when she was the manager of Rankin Borough.

According to court records and police paperwork, Terri Lawson has been charged with theft by deception, forgery, tampering with records, and access device fraud and is accused of using a Rankin Borough credit card for personal purchases.

A criminal complaint filed by the Eastern Mon Valley Regional Police Department details the allegations against Lawson, who is also is the president of the Woodland Hills School District board of directors.

Police said that an investigation was opened earlier this year after the borough’s interim manager reported that Lawson, who used to serve as borough manager, had used a borough credit card for personal expenses last year.

According to investigators, Lawson allegedly used a borough credit card that she was the designated cardholder for on more than 130 different occasions over a six-month period between August 2025 and December 2025.

Police said that the credit card was used for purchases at a number of different retailers including, but not limited to Lowe’s, Amazon, Giant Eagle, Walmart, Sunoco, Sam’s Club, ALDI, TJ Maxx, Big Lots, Olive Garden, Target, and Applebee’s.

Investigators determined that Lawson allegedly charged over $10,000 to the borough’s credit card, with more than $9,800 of those purchases being for personal use.

According to police, Lawson made personal payments totaling over $5,500 towards the account between August 2025 and November 2025.

Police said that the borough is still owed nearly $5,000 in restitution.

According to court records, Lawson has yet to be arraigned on the charges filed by police and a court date has yet to be set.

KDKA has reached out to both Lawson and the Woodland Hills School District for comment.

Woodland Hills School District at the center of controversy

While no allegations have been made about wrongdoing within the school district, Lawson is the president of the board where Woodland Hills continues to operate under a cloud of controversy.

Superintendent Joe Malunchnik was placed on administrative leave last year and one board member said that the district leader was a whistleblower being railroaded for questioning past financial practices.

Last month, State Rep. Abigail Salisbury called for a criminal investigation into the district’s actions after hearing from constituents, many of whose concerns came from Maluchnik being placed on leave.

School leaders strongly denied that that the district is misusing funds.

While the majority of the board says it’s prohibited by law from discussing the probe, minority member Darnika Reed says the others want to get rid of Maluchnik for raising questions about district finances.

No charges have been filed in relation to misconduct within the school district leadership.

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Pittsburg, PA

Sidney Crosby leaves Penguins-Senators game, will not return

Published

9 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

Sidney Crosby leaves Penguins-Senators game, will not return

Updated on: March 26, 2026 / 10:25 PM EDT
/ CBS Pittsburgh

Sidney Crosby left the Pittsburgh Penguins’ game against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday and did not return.

The team initially did not disclose why Crosby was ruled out of the game, but coach Dan Muse told reporters postgame that Crosby has a lower-body injury. Crosby left the ice and went to the locker room early in the second period. The Penguins went on to beat the Senators in a shootout, 4-3.

Pittsburgh also played Thursday’s game without Evgeni Malkin, who has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury. It remains unclear how long he will be out, with the team only saying Malkin is “day-to-day,” according to a post on X from March 24.

Crosby returned to Pittsburgh’s lineup on March 18 against the Carolina Hurricanes after missing four weeks due to a lower-body injury suffered during the Olympic tournament. Crosby was injured during Team Canada’s quarterfinal win over Team Czechia after a hit by Anaheim Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas.

Crosby was placed on injured reserve and missed 11 games. In the five games since returning to the lineup, Crosby has tallied five points. This season, the 38-year-old star for the Penguins has a team-high 28 goals, and he is third on the team with 36 assists.

With 10 games remaining in the regular season, Pittsburgh (36-20-16) sits in second place in the Eastern Conference’s Metropolitan Division with 88 points. The Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Islanders both have 87 points.

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Pittsburg, PA

$1.5 million-winning Pennsylvania Lottery ticket sold at Pittsburgh hospital

Published

21 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

.5 million-winning Pennsylvania Lottery ticket sold at Pittsburgh hospital

March 26, 2026 / 9:15 AM EDT
/ CBS Pittsburgh

A Pittsburgh hospital will be getting a big bonus for selling a $1.5 million-winning Pennsylvania Lottery scratch-off ticket.

UPMC Magee-Women’s Hospital sold the Cash Spectacular ticket, and, as a result, will get a $10,000 bonus.

According to the Pennsylvania Lottery, the Cash Spectacular is a $30 game that offers the top prize of $1.5 million.

As they often do when a big winner such as this one happens, the Pennsylvania Lottery is reminding players that scratch-off prizes are valid for one year from the game’s end-sale date, which can be found on their website.

The Pennsylvania Lottery also said that scratch-offs are distributed at random, so neither the lottery nor the retailers know where winning tickets will be sold.

Pittsburgh area million-dollar winners

Since the calendar flipped to 2026, the Pittsburgh area has been one lucky place, with multiple million-dollar or more winning tickets sold since January.

The first came on January 8 when a $1 million scratch-off was sold at a North Huntingdon Township Walmart. The $20 Jackpot Scratch-Off yielded the top prize of $1 million.

Just a week later, again in Westmoreland County, a Match 6 Lotto ticket was sold at the North Huntingdon Sheetz, giving someone a $1.4 million prize.

One of the biggest jackpots of the year came earlier this month in Armstrong County, when one lucky player won $1 million for year for life.

That ticket was sold at a BP gas station on Buffalo Street in Freeport Borough. As a result, the BP got a $100,000 bonus.

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Pittsburg, PA

Flyers about

Published

1 day ago

March 25, 2026

Press Room

Days after kids got into a major brawl in Downtown Pittsburgh, some school leaders are reacting, trying to get ahead of more potential activity this weekend.

Pittsburgh Public Schools left a voice message for families Tuesday night, informing them about a flyer circulating on social media of a “downtown takeover” on Friday.

“This event is not sanctioned, not supervised, and poses a serious safety concern for our students. We urge all families to discourage their children from attending,” part of Pittsburgh Public Schools’ message said.

The location is unclear, but it’s scheduled for less than one week after a large brawl at Market Square, a place Pittsburgh Public Safety said has become a hub for kids and teens to gather, and where a fight early Sunday evening resulted in seven minors cited for disorderly conduct, and around 20 treated for exposure to pepper spray.

Jen Grippo, owner of Original Oyster House, said they were closed at the time. However, Grippo said they remain in close contact with their neighboring businesses about any activity.

“It was certainly disappointing,” Grippo said.

Grippo said she and Kathy Marsico, the operations manager at Nicholas Coffee and Tea Co., were already aware of the potential event on Friday.

“It’s a crazy world right now,” Marsico said. “It’s a cultural, social, kind of environment where the kids are very, you know, just attracted to that type of behavior.”

Marsico said police are urging all shops that don’t have cameras to put them up and to provide them with access to assist in these situations. She also said they work with an outreach team called AIM.

“They’re trying to make sure that the kids act responsibly and don’t take part in those types of events,” Marsico said.

Between these efforts and the PPS voicemail, businesses are encouraged by the proactive measures, but do feel more long-term solutions are needed, something the Pittsburgh Public Safety director said is in the works, as police confirmed to KDKA they’re monitoring the potential gathering that’s days away.

“We just want to make sure that even if the kids do come Downtown, you’re being safe, you’re being respectful, and you’re not going to cause a ruckus,” Grippo said.