Oct 31, 2014 4 min read

Insurance fraud charge: Theresa A. Anton, 37, of 527 Broad Ave., Belle Vernon, is charged by the state attorney general’s office with insurance fraud and attempted theft, court records show. She is accused of attempting to seek State Farm benefits for injuries she claimed to have suffered in a vehicle accident in Highland Terrace in December 2011, when borough police said she wasn’t a passenger in the car. Anton is free on $5,000 bond set Thursday by District Judge Mark Wilson.

Man robbed: Dalton Lawson, 21, of 409 Seventh St., Donora, is charged by borough police with robbery, simple assault and theft, accused of striking Shakai Brooks and stealing the man’s wallet on Heslop Avenue about 9 p.m. Oct. 11, court records show. Lawson is free on $25,000 bond after being arrested on a warrant and arraigned Thursday before District Judge Mark Wilson.

Child endangerment charge: Brian Joyce, 40, of 218 Garden St., Monongahela, is charged with child endangerment, accused of leaving an 8-year-old girl alone in his vehicle for about two hours, beginning about 1 a.m. Oct. 11, in a parking lot at 1223 W. Main St., court records show. Joyce is free on $5,000 bond set Thursday by District Judge Mark Wilson.

Distributorship cited: Cox Distributing at 114 Railroad St. in Monongahela was cited for selling alcohol to a minor on Sept. 22, according to state police’s Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement.

Construction equipment stolen: Equipment and tools stored inside a garage at Maxim Construction along Linden Creek Road in North Strabane were stolen during a burglary last week, township police said. Police did not have a value on the items that were stolen. The burglar broke in through a garage door.

Car into creek: A McMurray woman escaped injury late Wednesday when her vehicle left East McMurray Road, traveled along a guardrail and landed in a small creek, township police said. Brooke Krontinis, 29, of 182 Fireside Drive, told police she was driving east at 11:23 p.m. and just as she adjusted her glasses, a deer ran in front of her vehicle. The vehicle swiped a guardrail and landed in the creek in front of 242 E. McMurray Road after shearing a gas meter, police said.

Election signs stolen: A representative of the Republican Party of Peters Township reported election signs were stolen in the 2800 block of Washington Road northbound and in the 3000 block of the southbound lanes, township police said. The signs were placed Oct. 18 and were missing 10 days later. The theft of the signs, valued at $400, was reported at 10:16 a.m. Thursday.

Man accused of assaulting wife: State police charged Joshua L. Owens, 35, of 59 St. Cloud St., Somerset, with terrorist threats, simple assault and harassment after troopers said he pushed his wife to the floor and put his boot on her neck during an argument shortly before 1 a.m. Friday. Police said Owens also pointed a shotgun at her before she left the residence. District Judge Jay Weller arraigned Owens early Friday morning, and he was taken to Washington County jail on $5,000 bond.

Driver uninjured in crash: A woman who crashed her sport utility vehicle into a tree in South Franklin Township early Wednesday morning walked away from the scene without notifying authorities, state police said. Brenda K. Hertzler, 55, of West Finley, crashed the SUV in the 200 block of Pleasant Grove Road about 2 a.m. and left, police said. A driver saw the crashed vehicle hours later and called police, Hertzler, who was not injured, faces charges of careless driving and leaving the scene of an accident, police said.

Disorderly conduct at hospital alleged: Sylvia L. Hawkins, 52, of 110 W. Wylie Ave., Washington, was charged with resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and trespassing after city police said she yelled at emergency room staff at Washington Hospital shortly after 7 p.m. Thursday. Police said she struggled with officers and refused to leave the hospital. Hawkins was arraigned by District Judge Jay Weller and taken to Washington County jail on $3,000 bond.

Argument at city home: James Elliot, 51, of 430 ½ W. Chestnut St., was charged with two counts of disorderly conduct, one for unreasonable noise and the other for engaging in a fight, after city police said he yelled at his girlfriend at their home and became argumentative with officers about 10:30 p.m. Monday.