Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1111
‘Dangerous’ crowding on South Side prompts Pittsburgh police to step up patrols, citations
Unruly pedestrians and crowded sidewalks have created a “dangerous and untenable” situation on Pittsburgh’s South Side, according to police, and officers will step up patrols and start issuing citations Friday night. Pittsburgh police officials said Thursday the increased volume of people headed to East Carson Street has meant “nearly impassable...
New $16M apartment complex, retail project in Hill District unveiled via digital groundbreaking
A new bright facade soon to be seen on Centre Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Hill District as a mixed-use housing and retail project broke ground this week. The ceremonial shovels still hit the dirt, but the event was held digitally on Thursday. The Hill Community Development Corp. announced the New Granada...
State’s Level Up funding supplement helps 3 of Westmoreland’s least wealthy school districts
Administrators at three Westmoreland County school districts are glad to accept supplemental state funding approved this year for Pennsylvania’s least wealthy districts. But, it may take a little while to decide how best to spend the extra money, which Gov. Tom Wolf announced Wednesday as part of a $300 million...
Neighbor Spotlight: Edgeworth’s Helen and Don Berman celebrate 74 years of marriage
Editor’s note: Neighbor Spotlight is a monthly feature that aims to let our readers learn more about the people in their communities who are working to make them a better place, who have interesting stories to tell or who the community feels deserve “15 minutes of fame.” If you would...
Pittsburgh tax prep company owner, employee indicted on charges of falsifying returns
A Hill District man who owns a tax preparation business with offices in Downtown Pittsburgh and Homestead has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of tax and wire fraud. The 15-count indictment handed up on June 29 accuses Brian A. VanDusen, 51, of Webster Avenue, with filing...
Oregon resident fulfills dream of traveling to Pittsburgh to create a Terrible Towel
Daniel Seddiqui has a piece of Pittsburgh he helped create. The California native, who lives in Bend, Ore., came to the city as part of his quest to visit 65 cities to craft a meaningful piece of each destination that reflects its culture and industry. He is calling the venture...
Westbound Turnpike lanes temporarily closed between Butler Valley, Cranberry until midnight
The Pennsylvania Turnpike’s westbound lanes will be closed briefly tonight between the Butler Valley and Cranberry exits until just before midnight, Turnpike officials announced. Westbound travelers can take Route 8 north, Route 228 west and I-79 south, which will bring them to the Cranberry interchange. From there, they can follow...
Allegheny Land Trust closes deal to acquire the former Churchill Country Club for about $3 million
The Allegheny Land Trust officials announced Wednesday that they have closed on the deal to purchase the former Churchill Valley Country Club. It’s an event more than two years in the making. The 151-acre site at the Churchill/Penn Hills border will be preserved for recreation. The Sewickley-based Allegheny Land Trust...
Police: 16-year-old boy hospitalized after shooting in McKees Rocks
A 16-year-old boy was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries Wednesday after being shot in McKees Rocks, police said. Allegheny County emergency dispatchers were notified around 3:15 p.m. of a shooting victim in the 800 block of Gray Street. On scene, officers with the Allegheny County Police Department, who responded to...
Trump Organization CFO surrenders ahead of expected charges
The Trump Organization’s Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg surrendered to authorities early Thursday ahead of expected charges against him and former President Donald Trump’s company, according to multiple news outlets. Weisselberg was seen walking into the the courthouse in lower Manhattan around 6:20 a.m. with his lawyer. New York prosecutors...
Cosby’s release leaves accusers dismayed, but women’s advocates say no court can erase their ‘courage and resolve’
PHILADELPHIA — It was late morning in Las Vegas when a caretaker told Autumn Burns that Bill Cosby was about to be released from prison. Assuming it had to be a joke, Burns responded: “Oh, come on.” Then the news flickered on, and Burns, who is 74 and blind, listened...
Over 100 deaths may be tied to historic Northwest heat wave
SALEM, Ore. — The grim toll of the historic heat wave in the Pacific Northwest became more apparent as authorities in Canada, Washington state and Oregon said Wednesday that they were investigating more than 100 deaths likely caused by scorching temperatures that shattered all-time records. Oregon health officials said more...
6 more bodies pulled from tower rubble in highest daily toll; confirmed dead reaches 18
SURFSIDE, Fla. — Search crews going through the ruins of a Florida condo tower pulled six more bodies from the rubble Wednesday, bringing the number of confirmed dead to 18. It was the highest one-day toll since the building collapsed almost a week ago into a heap of broken concrete....
Arnold man facing drug charges dies after arrest
An Arnold man died Tuesday after being arrested on drug charges the previous day. Khalies Khorhid Lewis, 39, died Tuesday afternoon at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg, the Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office said. Although an autopsy has been completed, no information on the cause or manner of Lewis’ death...
Carjacking, kidnapping outside Westmoreland prison nets Jeannette man up to 30 years
A Jeannette man will serve up to 30 years in prison for carjacking a West Leechburg woman parked in front of the Westmoreland County Prison as her 13-month-old grandson was in the vehicle, which later crashed two miles from the lockup. Thomas Lee Williams, 38, formerly of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty...
‘The numbers prove it’: Allegheny County officials point to rising vaccination rates and falling case counts
Eighty percent of Allegheny County’s adult population is at least partially vaccinated against covid-19, officials said Wednesday, a rate that continues to rise as case counts and positivity rates continue to fall. “Let’s get that last 20%,” said Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, “so we can all feel safe, we...
Business owner sues Pittsburgh police, judge after parking lot dispute
A woman who says she was unlawfully detained after she called Pittsburgh police about a person illegally parked in a Greenfield lot that she owns filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday alleging retaliation and excessive force. Marsha Simonds, and her husband, Matthew, sued the City of Pittsburgh, as well as...
Guy Fieri says discrimination claim stemming from Hempfield restaurant ‘has been resolved’
Celebrity chef Guy Fieri in an interview with The New York Times this week said a situation involving a former line cook who alleged racial discrimination at Guy Fieri’s American Kitchen + Bar at Live! Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield was resolved. “The situation has been resolved,” Fieri said. “And I...
House creates committee to investigate Jan. 6 Capitol attack
WASHINGTON — The House voted largely along party lines Wednesday to create a special committee to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump crowd. The attack occurred while Congress was certifying the 2020 presidential results and forced Vice President Mike Pence and hundreds of lawmakers to...
Atlanta mayor: 2 officers ambushed, 1 wounded in shooting
ATLANTA — Two police officers responding to reports of gunfire in one of Atlanta’s busiest commercial districts were ambushed Wednesday, leaving one of them shot and wounded, the city’s mayor said. A bystander reported hearing a barrage of shots and said he later saw an officer, bleeding badly and, being...
2nd Oath Keeper pleads guilty to conspiracy in Jan. 6 riot
An Alabama man who stormed the U.S. Capitol with other members of the Oath Keepers extremist group pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy and is cooperating with prosecutors in another major boost for the Justice Department in its sweeping Jan. 6 investigation. Mark Grods, 54, is the second member of the...
Controller: Pittsburgh’s finances took hit in 2020, but population loss is bigger worry
If the reason the Pittsburgh labor force is shrinking is a decline in the city’s population, there’s reason to be alarmed, Controller Michael Lamb said Wednesday. “That’s the biggest concern to me,” Lamb said during a virtual news conference when he released the 2020 Popular Annual Financial Report. The report...
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld dies at 88
WASHINGTON — Donald Rumsfeld, the two-time defense secretary and one-time presidential candidate whose reputation as a skilled bureaucrat and visionary of a modern U.S. military was unraveled by the long and costly Iraq war, died Tuesday. He was 88. In a statement Wednesday, Rumsfeld’s family said he “was surrounded by...
Hempfield resident John Ventre announces bid for Pa. governor
Hempfield Republican John Ventre said he’s been stewing for years, believing Gov. Tom Wolf’s “one size fits all and scorched earth policies” hurt state residents. Ventre, 64, announced Wednesday he is running for governor in 2022. Wolf, a Democrat, will leave office in 2023 because of term limits. “You don’t...
Greensburg, area firefighters bid final farewell to one of their own, Richard A. Fry
In the sweltering summer sun, the firehouse bell rang out 21 times Wednesday as firefighters from across the greater Greensburg and Pittsburgh areas lined the driveways outside their departments to honor the death of one of their own. Richard A. Fry was a member of Greensburg Hose Company No. 7...
