Articles written by Rick Boston
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Blair County Resident Opinions Mixed on Legalizing Marijuana
Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has been travelling across the state asking for the public's feedback on the legalization of recreational marijuana. Fetterman plans to visit all 67 counties in the commonwealth during a listening tour that began...
Saturday Fire Destroys Freedom Township Home
Fire ripped through a double-wide trailer in East Freedom on Saturday morning, April 13, chasing the occupants out of bed before completely consuming the interior. A passerby noticed smoke coming...
Roaring Spring Council Notifies Library of Yearly Lease Termination
The Roaring Spring Borough Council met for its regular monthly meeting on Monday evening, April 8, in the borough building. Representatives from the Roaring Spring Community Library informed council that they have received the certified letter sent...
Blair County Coroner Candidates Debate Duties, Efficiency of Office
The Republican candidates for the Office of Blair County Coroner squared off in a debate on Tuesday evening, April 9, in the ballroom at the Altoona Grand Hotel. Incumbent Patricia Ross, who has held...
Blair County DUI Task Force Targeting 'High Offense' Areas
The Blair County DUI Task Force was formed to keep the streets safe from impaired driving. Comprised of state and local law enforcement, the task force identifies and targets areas that have a high...
Three Face Charges After Child Found Walking Streets
Three people are facing charges of child endangerment after police say a 3-year-old boy was found alone, walking the streets of Roaring Spring. According to the charges filed by Roaring Spring police, a man discovered the child walking by Greenlawn...
A Mother's Grief: Claysburg Woman Loses Two Daughters to Addiction
Editor's Note: "A Mother's Grief," written by Herald Staff Writer Rick Boston, won Honorable Mention in the 2019 Professional Keystone Press Awards. Peggy Miller of Claysburg exists in two places....
'Restore Pennsylvania' Initiative Aims to Update Infrastructure
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has said the state is "falling behind" on keeping up with the rest of the country when it comes to maintaining its infrastructure. From aging transit systems, crumbling...
Roaring Spring Library Looking at Options for its Future
According to a 2016 Institute of Museum and Library Services report, there are 9,057 public libraries in the United States, making up approximately 7.4 percent of the more than 120,000 libraries...
Blair Commissioner Erb Seeking Second Term; Broadband Service is Goal
Editor's Note: Over the next few weeks, the Herald is publishing a series of articles regarding candidates for office who will appear on the May 21 primary election ballot. These articles are...
Post-High School Opportunities Focus of CHS Career Expo
A question everyone faces is, "what am I going to do after high school?" For a lot of kids, the prospect of leaving the familiarity of the school halls and venturing out into the world for the next...
Roaring Spring Alcohol Sales Question to Be on May Ballot
Exceeding the 156 signatures needed, the organizers of the The Roaring Spring Alcohol Referendum accomplished its main goal, which is to let the voters decide if there will be alcohol sales permitted...
Public Buys Blair County Sheriff's Office a New K-9 Vehicle
Last summer, an important member of the Blair County Sheriff's office was taken off of full-time duty through no fault of his own. Canine officer Rik, a 5-year-old Belgian Malinois, Blair County's onl...
Claysburg Man Jailed on Sexual Assault Charges
A Claysburg man has been jailed on charges relating to the sexual abuse of a 16-year-old minor, which the victim revealed during a counseling session last year. Joseph Michael Douglas, 33, is facing...
Hopewell Man Jailed in Domestic Dispute, Police Standoff
A Hopewell man is behind bars after a standoff with police following a domestic dispute. State Police, Bedford, were called to a home along Lunenberg Road, South Woodbury Township, Bedford County, on...
First Assistant DA Pete Weeks Describes Drug Crisis
Operation Our Town was the focus of the 54th meeting of the Blair County Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Club meeting held at the Casino at Lakemont Park on Thursday morning, March 14. Operation Our...
Woodbury Man Jailed on Drug Charges After Search
A Woodbury man is in jail after being found with various drugs and drug paraphernalia at the Turkey Hill in Roaring Spring. Roaring Spring police were called to the Turkey Hill on the night of March...
Probation Check Leads to Arrest of Freedom Twp. Man
A probation check on a Freedom Township man led to the discovery of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Dustin Scott Hallet, 24, was arrested after agents from Blair County Adult Probation and Parole...
Area Hunters Learn a Vaccine for CWD Being Developed
Could there be a cure for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)? Wildlife and CWD Biologist John Eveland believes so, and said one is on the horizon, but is still at least five years away. Eveland spoke to a...
Charged Teacher Resigns, Waives Formal Arraignment
A Martinsburg woman who was a teacher in the Altoona Area School District and was charged in January on felony counts of disseminating obscene or sexual explicit materials to a minor and unlawful...
Blair County Judges Honor Courthouse Staff for 'Making the Place Work'
Blair County's five judges paid tribute to their staff and the departments that take on the task of ensuring justice is served with fairness and compassion, on Tuesday afternoon, March 11. For the...
Proposed Minimum Wage Hike Causes Cove Concern
According to the United States Department of Labor's Bureau of Statistics, there are 3,415,000 hourly paid workers in Pennsylvania. Of those, 43,000 earned the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour...
Martinsburg Nurse Facing Charges for Stealing Morphine
A registered nurse is facing charges for stealing medication from the nursing home she was employed at. Nichole S. Soyster, 46, of Martinsburg, turned herself in to Altoona police on Tuesday, Feb. 26, after an investigation by police and the...
State Supreme Court Denies Williamsburg Man's Appeal
A former Williamsburg man, convicted in 2008 of the sexual assault of a 6-year-old in the Williamsburg area, had his request for an appeal to be heard by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied. Court records show that in 1998, Howard Scott Allison,...
Friends, Family Search for Missing Bakers Summit Man
On Jan. 19, Matthew W. Smith, of Bakers Summit, was dropped off at a home just north of Freedom Township in Brooks Mills, Blair Township. That was the last time anyone has seen or heard from him. On...
Duncansville Man Jailed For Alleged Claysburg Apartment Break-In
A Duncansville man who police said broke into a Claysburg apartment and assaulted a woman is behind bars. On Feb. 19, Greenfield and Freedom Township police were called to an apartment along Penndale...
Long-time Cove Business Changes Owners
Since 1991 motorists driving down State Route 164 saw the sign for Over's Country Store, a Cove staple for more than 46 years. Soon the sign will change, but the business people have come to rely on...
Hunters, Game Commission at Odds Over CWD Management
The growing concern about how to manage the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) among the deer herd in southern Blair and northern Bedford counties has put the Pennsylvania Game Commission at...
Freedom Twp. Supervisors Approve Beer Sales At McKee Sheetz
The Freedom Township Supervisors held a public hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 5, to hear a request from Sheetz, Inc. to approve the inter-municipal transfer of a restaurant liquor license from Altoona to...
Three Arrested in Theft of $60,000 from Greenfield Twp. Home
Three area women, all under the age of 20, are behind bars after police said they stole $60,000 in cash from a Greenfeld Township home in September. Sarah J. Kramer, 19, of Martinsburg, and Kilee N....
RS Municipal Authority Goes High-Tech to Manage Water System
If you walked under the streets of Roaring Spring Borough you would have to navigate a series of pipes that carry water to every home, business and fire hydrant in the borough. The underground maze...
Renovations Continue on Blair County's 'Most Important Building'
John Rita, a conservator of art and architecture, said buildings talk to him. As a young boy, he wrote in his journal, "I see faces in the paint peelings as an erosion of time," and that it gives him...
CO Leak At The Dream Underscores Importance of Detectors
A carbon monoxide leak at The Dream restaurant in Hollidaysburg on Saturday, Feb. 2, forced the evacuation of customers. According to reports, a carbon monoxide detector in the kitchen area began...
'Mutual Violence' Defined Martinsburg Couple's Relationship
Publisher's Note: We at the Herald are sensitive to the disturbing nature of this news story. We received a telephone call on Tuesday asking us to consider the effects of the story on children. We...
Area Teacher Charged With Inappropriate Student Contact
A Martinsburg woman who teaches special education at Altoona Area High School turned herself in to police last Friday, Jan. 25, to face felony charges after an Altoona police investigation turned up...
Claysburg Woman Charged In Husband's Sept. Death
A Claysburg woman has been jailed without bail in connection with the shooting death of her husband last September. Nancy Lee Focht, 71, of Claysburg, Kimmel Township, was arrested on Sunday, Jan....
Government Shutdown Could Be Trouble For Cove Farmers
As the government shutdown enters its second month, a lot of attention has been focused on the thousands of government employees who have either been furloughed or have been forced to work without...
Domestic Incident In North Woodbury Twp. Leaves Two Dead
Two people who were involved in a deadly domestic dispute in North Woodbury Township, Blair County, just outside of Martinsburg Borough, were both found dead on Monday morning, Jan. 21. According to...
East Main Street In RS In Front Of Appvion Restricted To One Way
The Roaring Spring Borough Council held its first meeting of the new year on Monday, Jan. 14. The new year brought old problems as council once again discussed the ongoing issue with the wall along...
Blair County Commissioners Talk Home Rule At Chamber Event
The Blair County Commissioners were the guest speakers at the monthly Blair County Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Club held at the Casino at Lakemont Park on Thursday, Jan. 10. Commissioners Terry...
N.E. Man Jailed in Strangulation
A New Enterprise man is behind bars, charged with simple assault and strangulation stemming from a domestic incident in an apartment in South Woodbury Township, Bedford County, on Jan. 7. According to the criminal complaint, police were dispatched...
R.S. Police Dept. Providing Free Firearm Safety Kits to Residents
According to statistics from the Center for Disease Control and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, a child will find a loaded gun in his home today and pick it up. That gun will discharge...
Duncansville Man Jailed for Indecent Assault of Minor
A Duncansville man faces a list of charges, including felony counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, unlawful contact with minors and corruption of minors,...
R.S. Council Passes Fireworks Ordinance
The Roaring Spring Borough Council, at its last meeting of the year on Dec. 10, wrapped up the year by adopting some ordinances and approving department budgets. Ordinance 2018-7, the Fireworks Ordinance, regulates the discharge of consumer...
Killer of Roaring Spring Woman Resentenced to Life in Prison
When the United States Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences without parole for juveniles under the age of 18 (unless it can be proven they are unable to be rehabilitated) were...
Ward Looking Forward to Challenge of Senate in 2019
In 2014, Judy Ward won election to the Pennsylvania General Assembly, becoming the first female to represent the 80th District in the state House. On Jan. 1, 2019, Ward will be sworn in to the...
Council Fears E. Main Street Wall Collapse is 'Inevitable'
A portion of the wall along East Main Street, Roaring Spring, across from Appvion, collapsed on Saturday, Dec. 15, sending several large stones onto the street. The portion of the wall that gave out...
Congressman-elect Joyce Sets Goals for First Term
Calling himself a "homegrown tomato," Dr. John Joyce said he is taking the allegiance and support of the community with him when he is sworn in as a member of the 116th U.S. Congress on Jan. 3. Joyce...
Ground Broken On Solar Array At Bedford County Jail
By RICK BOSTON Staff Writer State and county leaders broke ground Wednesday, Dec. 12, on a 1.7-megawatt solar array on the grounds adjacent to the Bedford County Jail. The solar array, set to be...
W-burg Man Jailed For Fake Urine Sample
A Williamsburg man who was on active probation was arrested for providing a fake urine sample to his probation officer. According to the criminal complaint, state probation and parole officers went to the home of Joseph M. Castro, 35, of...
