Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1039
Allegheny County jury begins deliberations in South Side sexual assault case
Adnan Pehlivan’s defense attorney conceded Monday that his client may have acted strangely at Kopy’s bar on Pittsburgh’s South Side the night of May 15, 2018. In closing arguments during Pehlivan’s trial on sex charges, defense attorney Lee Rothman said it was true that his client bought himself and three...
Derry Township man pleads guilty to sexual assaults of women in Ligonier, Penn Township
Two women told a Westmoreland County judge that three years after they were sexually assaulted by a man they once considered a friend, they still struggle to deal with the emotional and physical implications of the attacks and his continued freedom. “I’ve felt like a prisoner since that day,” a...
2 women charged with stealing $3,000 in merchandise from Walmart at Pittsburgh Mills
Two women were charged Saturday by Frazer Township police with stealing nearly $3,000 worth of merchandise from a Walmart store over five days after one of them was spotted, according to police, shoplifting a supplement that claims to improve brain health. Police were dispatched to the Walmart at the Pittsburgh...
U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle won’t seek another term in officeVideo
U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle said Monday he will serve out the rest of his 14th term in office but not seek reelection next year. “I believe the time has come to pass the torch to the next generation,” said Doyle, 68, a Democrat from Forest Hills. Doyle is the most...
Construction of affordable housing in Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood to begin next yearVideo
A Shadyside developer is partnering with the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority, Pittsburgh Housing Development Corp. and Larimer Consensus Group to build 10 affordable homes in Larimer. Construction will begin on the first two in the first quarter of 2022. Officials hope to have families living in them by the end...
Irwin police arrest man they said became combative with first responders, officers
A 49-year-old Trafford man who police say became combative with paramedics and officers responding to a call Friday was charged with multiple offenses, including aggravated assault on police officers and making terroristic threats. Irwin EMS were dispatched to Vine Street about 8:30 p.m. Friday to assist Paul Hudak, who said...
3 charged with receiving stolen property after guns reported missing from Adamsburg home
Three people are charged with receiving stolen property in connection with guns reported missing from an Adamsburg home, according to state police. Nine handguns were discovered at a Hempfield man’s house last week after investigators uncovered text messages and photographs of some of the missing firearms on a cell phone...
Former President George W. Bush speaks at Eradicate Hate Global Summit
Former President George W. Bush urged Americans to look toward unification as a way to beat back hatred during pre-recorded remarks Monday at the Eradicate Hate Global Summit in Pittsburgh. Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, who was Bush’s Secretary of Homeland Security, introduced the 43rd president on the same recording....
New Stanton man accused of raping woman at Hempfield party
A New Stanton man is scheduled for a preliminary hearing this month on rape accusations stemming from a 2020 house party in Hempfield, according to court papers. State police said a DNA sample from Anthony Edward Lucas, 26, matched evidence found on his accuser. Troopers said the accuser reported on...
Colin Powell dies, exemplary general stained by Iraq claims
WASHINGTON — Colin Powell, who served Democratic and Republican presidents in war and peace but whose sterling reputation was forever stained by his faulty claims to justify the U.S. war in Iraq, died Monday of covid-19 complications. He was 84. A veteran of the Vietnam War, Powell rose to the...
Betty Lynn, Thelma Lou on ‘The Andy Griffith Show,’ has died
MOUNT AIRY, N.C. — Betty Lynn, the film and television actor who was best known for her role as Barney Fife’s sweetheart Thelma Lou on “The Andy Griffith Show,” has died. She was 95. Lynn died peacefully Saturday after a brief illness, The Andy Griffith Museum in Mount Airy, North...
Teen girl hurt in Knoxville shooting
A 16-year-old girl was hospitalized Sunday night after Pittsburgh Police said she was shot in the leg. The girl was found on Rochelle Street in Knoxville after a ShotSpotter alert just before 9:30 p.m., according to police. Officers used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding from a gunshot wound on...
No injuries reported in Leechburg duplex fire
No one was hurt in a fire Monday morning at a Leechburg duplex, according to fire department officials. The blaze was reported at 1 a.m., according to an Armstrong 911 dispatcher. Thick smoke was seen pouring out of the two-story Market Street building. A state police fire marshal is investigating....
2 tornadoes, straight line winds caused damage during storms in Beaver, Butler
Two tornadoes and straight line winds left behind damage in Beaver and Butler counties during heavy storms Saturday morning, according to the National Weather Service in Moon. The tornadoes struck in Shippingport, Monaca and Freedom in Beaver County just after 6 a.m. The first one in Shippingport was rated EF0...
Steelers’ Mike Tomlin calls end-of-regulation replay review ‘an embarrassment’
Even after a win, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was not in the mood to mince his words. Typically measured when it comes to talking about officiating, Tomlin was livid about how the final sequence of regulation during Sunday night’s game played out. “I hated it,” Tomlin said of an...
‘You can’t fix it with facts’: Doctors share patients’ excuses for covid vaccine refusal
Misinformation and denial about covid-19 and its vaccine have left Dr. Heather Walker and her colleagues in the emergency department at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital feeling defeated. “No matter what you do, it’s not enough,” she said. “It’s exhausting for everyone.” It’s also perplexing for doctors. How can a patient...
4 shot, 2 others injured during Lancaster mall shootingVideo
Six people were injured during the shooting and immediate aftermath at a Lancaster mall on Sunday afternoon, according to police. Lancaster city officers are still investigating the shooting that occurred at Park City Center mall around 2:30 p.m. According to an update on Sunday evening, the shooting stemmed from a...
Gateway signage to be part of Greensburg GetGo project
Gateway signage for the City of Greensburg will be included at a new GetGo fuel station and convenience store slated to be built at the former Family Video store along S. Main Street. The project, which will be located at 531 S. Main St., consists of tearing down the Family...
Pittsburgh teen charged in double shooting outside Kennedy bowling alley
A Pittsburgh teen was charged Sunday with shooting two people, one fatally, on Saturday night outside a bowling alley in Kennedy Township. Allegheny County Police arrested Malik Smith, 19, of Pittsburgh during an investigation into the double shooting, which happened just before 10:30 p.m. at the Kennedy Lanes bowling alley...
Westmoreland Land Trust hosts road-rally fundraiser
A handful of dark clouds were gathering on the horizon Sunday morning as classic, modern and muscle cars lined up at the Donohoe Center in Hempfield for the first Westmoreland Ramble, a road rally to benefit the Westmoreland Land Trust. But with a positive forecast and a 66-mile course that...
Short-term food bank numbers are down, but long-term food insecurity remains an issue nationwide
Hunger and food insecurity across the United States have dropped measurably over the past six months, but the need remains far above pre-pandemic levels. And while that demand has lessened somewhat in Pittsburgh and the surrounding region, local food bank officials are also seeing an uptick in applications for the...
Bitcoin-mining power plant raises ire of environmentalists
An obstacle to large-scale bitcoin mining is finding enough cheap energy to run the huge, power-gobbling computer arrays that create and transact cryptocurrency. One mining operation in central New York came up with a novel solution that has alarmed environmentalists. It uses its own power plant. Greenidge Generation runs a...
In quiet debut, Alzheimer’s drug finds questions, skepticism
The first new Alzheimer’s treatment in more than 20 years was hailed as a breakthrough when regulators approved it more than four months ago, but its rollout has been slowed by questions about its price and how well it works. Several major medical centers remain undecided on whether to use...
Gang with past abductions blamed for kidnapping missionaries
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A notorious Haitian gang known for brazen kidnappings and killings was accused by police Sunday of abducting 17 missionaries from a U.S.-based organization. Five children were believed to be among those kidnapped, including a 2-year-old. The 400 Mawozo gang kidnapped the group in Ganthier, a community that...
Risky business: Some Capitol riot defendants forgo lawyers
Some of the defendants charged in the storming of the U.S. Capitol are turning away defense lawyers and electing to represent themselves, undeterred by their lack of legal training or repeated warnings from judges. That choice already has led to some curious legal maneuvers and awkward exchanges in court. A...
