Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1103
Advance registration and fee required to bid on tax delinquent Westmoreland properties
Potential buyers at Westmoreland County’s next sale of tax-delinquent properties will have to register in advance and pay a required fee to be eligible to bid at auction. County commissioners are expected on Thursday to approve a new $25 registration fee to cover administrative costs. New registration provisions, enacted through...
‘I’m considering leaving the country’: Prosecutors read texts from Glenshaw man charged in Capitol riot
In text messages sent in the days and weeks after the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, prosecutors said, a Shaler area substitute teacher worried that he would be arrested and that his actions would prohibit him from being able to teach in the future. Robert Morss, 27, was arrested last month...
Westmoreland commissioners blast airport authority over vote on Arnold Palmer restaurant lease
It’s been a month since the Westmoreland County Airport Authority approved a new lease for Arnold Palmer Regional Airport’s restaurant, but it continues to draw flak about the move from county commissioners. The new restaurant lease was approved by a 7-2 vote in June, allowing DeNunzio’s Italian Chophouse to continue...
Vandergrift police officer, suspended after encounter with Black restaurant patron, returns to work
Vandergrift Police Officer William Moore, who was suspended last month for unprofessional conduct, is back on duty. Council member Casimer Maszgay confirmed Tuesday that Moore returned to his beat last week. Vandergrift Police Chief Joe Caporali refused to comment on Moore’s return, citing a personnel matter. Moore also declined to...
National covid-19 cases rising again, doubling over 3 weeks
The covid-19 curve in the United States is rising again after months of decline, with the number of new cases per day doubling over the past three weeks, driven by the fast-spreading delta variant, lagging vaccination rates and Fourth of July gatherings. Confirmed infections climbed to an average of about...
‘This is a test of our time,’ Biden says in Philly speech on voting rightsVideo
PHILADELPHIA — President Joe Biden called the right to vote “a test of our time” and called on Americans to protect it amid GOP-led changes to election laws and threats to voting rights in a speech Tuesday at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. “Some things in America should be...
Doctor who ran North Hills pill mill pleads guilty in federal court
A former doctor from Hampton pleaded guilty Tuesday to health care fraud and money laundering stemming from his illegal prescription of painkillers. Andrzej Zielke, 66, will be sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Nora Barry Fischer on Nov. 1 on six counts, including unlawful dispensing of a controlled substance. “Mr....
Driver clung to tree ‘for dear life’ after turnpike crash in Mt. Pleasant Township, fire chief saysVideo
A Butler area man was “holding on for dear life” to tree branches Monday night along the Pennsylvania Turnpike after being ejected from his SUV that launched over a hillside after crashing, Mt. Pleasant fire Chief Jerry Lucia said. “He was about 8 or 9 feet up in the branches...
Wolf administration refuses to release details on multimillion-dollar unemployment mistake
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration is refusing to provide details on the scope and timeline of an internal investigation...
Greensburg YMCA to hold meeting on future plans
The Greensburg YMCA, which reopened on June 14 after having been closed since September, plans to provide its members and general public with an update on its operations during two town hall meetings on July 27. The YMCA staff, board members and directors will offer insight into its plans for...
‘Crown,’ ‘Mandalorian’ top Emmy nominations with 24 each
LOS ANGELES — “The Crown” tied with “The Mandalorian” for the most Emmy nominations Tuesday with 24 apiece, but the Marvel universe also got bragging rights with runner-up “WandaVision.” Emmy nominees with local ties include Pittsburgh native Billy Porter (lead actor in a drama) for “Pose,” which also received nominations...
R.K. Mellon gifts Duquesne $2 million for new college of medicine
Duquesne University’s long-planned college of medicine received a financial boost Tuesday with a $2 million gift from the Richard King Mellon Foundation. University officials said the grant will help build the foundation of a new college of medicine designed to graduate primary care doctors to help alleviate the shortage of...
Defense tries to suppress woman’s statements in kidnapping, death of Penn Hills toddlerVideo
Penn Hills police Officer Dennis Wynn knew a toddler had been kidnapped the afternoon of Aug. 31, 2019, and heard the bulletin describing the suspect and the type of car she was driving. So nearly 2½ hours later, when he saw the Toyota Yaris on Rodi Road, he pulled it...
Wilkinsburg group seeking merger with Pittsburgh delays action
A referendum about whether Wilkinsburg should merge with Pittsburgh won’t be pursued until next year’s election cycle, its supporters said Tuesday. “We have concluded that the compressed schedule required to place the referendum on the November 2021 ballot would not allow for the productive dialogue appropriate to address important details...
Couple, 26 cats displaced after house fire in ArnoldVideo
A couple and 26 cats could be looking for a place to stay after a house fire Tuesday morning in Arnold. Arnold Fire Chief Walter Gouza said the residents, Pete Pototsky, 65, and Wendy Zingarelli, 59 were able to get out of the home without injury. He said the fire...
Winning lottery ticket sold in New Kensington
Someone is going home a little richer Tuesday after winning the jackpot prize on a Treasure Hunt ticket sold in New Kensington. Lottery officials said the ticket was sold at the BP gas station at 7th Street and Linden Way. It was one of two winning Treasure Hunt tickets sold...
Power outages from early storms slowly being resolved
Utility outages caused by Tuesday’s powerful storms are slowing being resolved. About3,000 homes are still without power, according to Allegheny Power and Duquesne Light websites, but that’s down from more than 4,500 in the early morning hours. Allegheny Power reported about 100 regional customers without power, down from 1,700. Most...
Dispatch: Coroner called to scene of shooting in Beaver Falls
The Beaver County coroner was called to the scene of a shooting Monday night in which at least three people were injured, according to a Beaver County 911 dispatcher. Crews responded to the 900 block of 10th Avenue in Beaver Falls shortly before 9:30 p.m. for reports of the shooting....
Summer camps hit with covid outbreaks — are schools next?
The United States has seen a string of covid-19 outbreaks tied to summer camps in recent weeks in places such as Texas, Illinois, Florida, Missouri and Kansas, in what some fear could be a preview of the upcoming school year. In some cases the outbreaks have spread from the camp...
Dispatch: Crews rescue person ejected after crash on Turnpike
One person was treated by EMS after they were ejected from a vehicle in a crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and became stuck in a tree, according to a Westmoreland 911 dispatcher. Crews responded to the eastbound lanes of the Turnpike near mile marker 82.5 in Mount Pleasant Township around...
Top Pa. judge called charging Bill Cosby ‘reprehensible.’ Now the prosecutor is firing back
PHILADELPHIA — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s controversial decision to overturn Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction has sparked a rare public war of words between the court’s chief justice and Montgomery County prosecutors. In an interview Sunday with Harrisburg’s WHTM-TV, Chief Justice Max Baer justified the ruling that freed Cosby earlier...
Brackenridge man accused of abusing 9-year-old boy avoids jail, gets probation
An Allegheny County judge reluctantly accepted a plea agreement Monday that calls for no jail time for a Brackenridge man accused of sexually touching a 9-year-old boy and having naked photos of the boy and a 17-year-old girl he’d previously assaulted. John Patrick Godfrey, 43, pleaded guilty to two counts...
Westmoreland jail to house former Pagan leader and his accused attacker
The former Pagan’s Motorcycle Club leader who police said was a target of a North Huntingdon man now awaiting trial for two murders and shooting at three local homes will be under the same roof at the end of July. An amended court order signed July 9 by Westmoreland County...
‘It broke all our hearts’: Franklin Regional grad dies in Derry Township crash
Jackie Bearley said the support her family received after the death of her 18-year-old son, Damian, has been overwhelming. Damian Bearley died in a crash early Saturday morning after his car hit a deer in Derry Township, according to the Westmoreland County coroner. The Murrysville teen was driving south on...
U.S. officials flag ‘small’ reaction risk with J&J vaccine
WASHINGTON — Johnson & Johnson’s covid-19 vaccine may pose a “small possible risk” of a rare but potentially dangerous neurological reaction, U.S. health officials said Monday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement it has received reports of 100 people who got the shot developing Guillain-Barré...
