Crime & Safety

Police Blotter: Motorist Cited After Striking Pedestrian With Car

A car driven by Jessica Kaye, 21, hit Zack Gittins, 18, as he attempted to cross Route 65.

A pedestrian is recovering after recently being struck by a car in the borough.

said Zack Gittins, 18, of Sewickley, was taken by ambulance to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh after suffering a severe concussion along with head, neck and hip injuries in the Feb. 18 accident.

Jessica Kaye, 21, of was cited with failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, police said.

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The accident occurred about 4:25 p.m. at the intersection of Walnut Street and Route 65 while Gittins was walking across the street. Police said several witnesses reported Gittins was in the crosswalk attempting to cross Route 65 from Walnut Street when Kaye’s car turned from Walnut and struck Gittens.

Gittins crawled to a grassy area next to the road after being struck, police said. Several witnesses, including Gittins' father, came to his assistance. Police said Gittins was coherent and talking after being struck by the car. Edgeworth Police assisted at the scene.

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Kaye told police she had a green light and the sun was shining brightly in her eyes, so she never saw Gittins until after her vehicle struck him, police said.

Gittins' father told police from the hospital that his son was in a neck brace and had been admitted for an overnight stay, police said.

 

Sewickley Police also responded to the following recent incidents. Each incident reflects police records and is not an indication of guilt.

  • Police were called at 9:50 p.m. Feb. 23 to Monte Cello’s, 616 Beaver St., for a report of four men on a roof. Police arrived and discovered a cleaning crew on the roof cleaning the ducts. The owner of the restaurant was also there, police said.
  • Shortly before 1 p.m. Feb. 23, police found an elderly Ambridge woman walking along the 300 block of Ohio River Boulevard toward Burger King. The officer stopped traffic and let the woman into the police car. She told the officer she was walking to Edgeworth Commons for an appointment. Police drove the woman to her destination.
  • A Baden woman was transported to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital following a three-vehicle accident involving a garbage truck in Glen Osborne. Police said Kathryn Tomkowski, 44, of Baden suffered neck injuries. The crash occurred in the 1600 block of Ohio River Boulevard shortly after 8 a.m. Feb. 23 when a South Hills Disposal Co. garbage truck driven by Eric Zimmerman, 47, of Ambridge, attempted to change lanes on the boulevard. Traffic slowed, causing a vehicle driven by Charles McGuire, 49, of Rochester to strike the back of Zimmerman’s garbage truck. The impact pushed Zimmerman’s garbage truck into Tomkowski’s car, police said.
  •  No one was injured following a two-vehicle crash at 6:45 p.m. Feb. 22 in Glen Osborne. Police said the incident happened at the intersection of McKown and Beaver streets when a car driven by Marianna Orr, 58, of Sewickley, proceeded through the intersection and struck a car driven by Peter Ritzo, 66, of New Stanton, PA.
  • Police responded shortly before 2 p.m. Feb. 21 to assist Ohio Township police with a damaged tractor-trailer. Police arrived and found a trailer fully loaded with 45,000 pounds of Coca-Cola with side damage and heavy damage to the frame and bed. The truck was placed out of service and the contents transferred to another trailer, police said.
  • A Crescent Township woman was charged after police said she was loud and belligerent in the emergency room at Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital. Robin Froman 52, is charged with public drunkenness and disorderly conduct. Police arrived to the hospital at 12:26 a.m. Feb. 20 and found Froman climbing into a car driven by her father. Hospital security told police Froman was taken to the emergency room for injuries sustained in a domestic dispute in Crescent. Security said Froman was loud, swearing and going through cabinets in the treatment rooms. Police asked Froman for her identification, but she refused, police said. She was then asked to get out of her father’s vehicle. Police said she pushed the officer’s arm away and became combative, attempting to knee an Edgeworth police officer in the groin. She was restrained against her father’s car and handcuffed. Police said Froman was visibly intoxicated and unable to stand on her own. She was cited at the police department and released into her father’s custody.
  • Police received a report on Feb. 19 that someone broke into a carriage house on Thorn Street. Police said two windows were broken out at the house and a jacket was left lying on the side of the house. Officers took the jacket and planned to examine it to see whom the jacket belongs to, police said.
  • Police responded 11:40 p.m. Feb. 18 to a call for Leetsdale Police in the 400 block of Washington Street where several people were reported to be intoxicated and fighting. Two juveniles were treated for injuries from the fight before police transported them to the Leetsdale station to contact their parents, police said. Both juveniles were cited with underage drinking.
  • Police were dispatched at 1:44 a.m. Feb. 18 to assist Leetsdale Police with a van pursuit. The van, driven by James Kohler, 51, of Ambridge, eventually stopped in a parking lot on 14th Street in Ambridge. Police said Kohler was taken to the ground and handcuffed. Police said he was transported to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital for a blood–alcohol test and later taken to Coraopolis police lock up.
  • Police responded at 10:20 p.m. Feb. 17 to a report of a suspicious vehicle driving through a parking lot in the 300 block of Ohio River Boulevard for about 20 minutes. Police said the car was gone when officers arrived.


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