Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1527
Indiana man accused of sexual abuse of children, indecent assault
A 36-year-old Indiana County man was charged Wednesday with 26 counts of sexual abuse of children and one count of indecent assault after state troopers say they found multiple still images and one video recording depicting child pornography. Robert Earl Rout III of Indiana was arraigned before Homer City District...
U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency to return retiree’s $82K in seized cash
An Allegheny County retiree who lost his life savings when the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency seized $82,373 in cash from his daughter as she attempted to board a flight at Pittsburgh International Airport late last summer will get his money back, his lawyers said Wednesday. Attorneys with the Institute for...
Pittsburgh zoo can’t comply with proposed reptile ordinance
The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium can’t comply with a proposed city ordinance regulating crocodiles and alligators, according to the bill’s sponsor and a zoo official. Council on Wednesday postponed a vote on the legislation to give members time to sort out the problem. City Councilman Bruce Kraus last week...
Speeders beware: Work zone cameras are live
Beware work zone speeders: Cameras are watching. Drivers going 11 mph or faster over the posted speed limit in an active work zone will be targeted by electronic devices through Pennsylvania’s new Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement program. Two timing devices were used around the state for 60 days during...
Looking for hand sanitizer? Good luck finding it
NEW YORK — The hand sanitizers on Amazon were overpriced. A Walmart this weekend was completely sold out. Only on his third try was Ken Smith able to find the clear gel — at a Walgreens, where three bottles of Purell were left. He bought two. “I didn’t want to...
Allegheny County Health Department names new director
A search committee made up of members of the Allegheny County Board of Health and the community has selected Dr. Debra Bogen as its nominee to lead the county Health Department. Bogen, the vice chair for education in the UPMC Children’s Hospital pediatric department, will replace Dr. Karen Hacker, who...
Son of Lower Burrell district judge, in jail on drug charges, denied unemployment
The son of a Lower Burrell district judge who is finishing a six-month jail term related to multiple drug offenses had his bid to collect unemployment compensation quashed this week by a state appellate court. A three-judge Commonwealth Court panel affirmed the state Unemployment Compensation Board of Review finding that...
Bloomberg drops out of presidential race, endorses BidenVideo
NEW YORK — Billionaire Mike Bloomberg ended his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination on Wednesday and endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden. It was a stunning collapse for the former New York City mayor, who had his 2020 hopes on the Super Tuesday states and pumped more than $500...
Spotted lanternfly lands in Western Pa.; Allegheny, Beaver on list of quarantined counties
Western Pennsylvania residents are in for a rude awakening if the spotted lanternfly becomes as pervasive here as it is in the eastern part of the state. “Pittsburgh doesn’t yet understand the nuisance factor,” said Shannon Powers, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. “It’s an incredible nuisance when you’re...
Pennsylvania drivers 40th in the nation in gas consumption
Could that pesky gas tax be taking a toll on Sunday drivers in the Keystone State? Could drivers here be turning to more fuel efficient vehicles, or is pothole avoidance syndrome taking a toll? Regardless of the cause, it looks as though gas consumption here may be edging down ever...
Experts recommend approaches to discussing coronavirus with kids
It’s not easy for parents to talk to children about many things, and coronavirus is quickly becoming an unavoidable topic. The challenge is finding the middle ground between giving kids good information and giving them reason to be concerned, according to several child psychologists who spoke to the Tribune-Review. So,...
Police: Harrison teen thought he killed boy he attacked with crowbar
The suspect in Tuesday’s alleged attack at a school bus stop in Fawn thought he killed the teen he struck repeatedly with a crowbar. “I just did a homicide,” Russell Smith, 17, of Harrison told police who arrested him following the assault, according to a criminal complaint filed in the...
Dedication set for New Kensington playground with memorial to murdered girl
A late April dedication ceremony is planned for New Kensington’s new JFK Park, which will include a memorial to a city girl murdered more than 40 years ago. A bench and plaque in memory of Tiffany Miller will be part of the playground, which is named for President John F....
Plum house sustains fire heavy damage, 1 resident taken to hospital
A Plum woman was sent to the hospital March 3 after her home was gutted by fire. An Allegheny County dispatcher said the one-alarm blaze at 845 Mount Hood Drive began shortly after 10:30 p.m. Holiday Park Fire Chief Jim Sims said the woman and her boyfriend were out of...
Trump says he spoke to a Taliban leader, had ‘good talk’Video
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump confirmed Tuesday that he spoke on the phone to a Taliban leader, making him the first U.S. president believed to have ever spoken directly with the militant group responsible for the deaths of thousands of U.S. troops in nearly 19 years of fighting in Afghanistan....
Mt. Oliver man, 19, charged in connection with Pittsburgh area shooting last week
A Mt. Oliver teen is charged with firearms violations in connection with a shooting in the Pittsburgh neighborhood last week. Allegheny County Police arrested Kyreese Thomas, 19, at his home Tuesday. He is charged with persons not to possess a firearm and firing a gun into an occupied structure. A...
Sanders wins top prize, California; Biden surges nationwide
WASHINGTON — Bernie Sanders seized victory in Super Tuesday’s biggest prize, California, while a resurgent Joe Biden scored wins in the upper Midwest and African American strongholds in the South, in a dramatic offensive. The two Democrats, lifelong politicians with starkly different visions for America’s future, were battling for delegates...
Pitt, Edinboro cancel study abroad programs
The University of Pittsburgh said Tuesday it has canceled all university-sponsored travel study programs over spring break that require air travel because of the spread of coronavirus. The decision affects study abroad and study away programs. Pitt also is requiring students studying abroad in France, Germany and Spain to return...
Witnesses place New Kensington woman in house where police say cop killer stashed gun
A series of witnesses told a Westmoreland County jury on Tuesday that the cousin of the man convicted of killing New Kensington police officer Brian Shaw was in and out of a nearby city home the shooter ran to after the 2017 murder. Michael Luffey, 35, one of a group...
4 locals caught in national elder fraud sweep; hotline set up to help potential victims
A National Elder Fraud Hotline is being launched by the Justice Department. The hotline was announced as U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady joined other federal officials in touting a national elder fraud sweep that included four people from the region who are being prosecuted for crimes against seniors, according to...
Dow sinks 2.9% after rate cut fails to stem market’s dreadVideo
NEW YORK — Fear and uncertainty continue to control Wall Street, and stocks fell sharply Tuesday after an emergency interest-rate cut by the Federal Reserve failed to reassure markets wracked by worries that a fast-spreading virus will cause a recession. The Dow Jones Industrial average sank 785 points, or 2.9%....
Dave Crawley accuses KDKA, CBS of age discrimination, retaliation after Regatta plunge
Longtime Pittsburgh television news reporter David Crawley claims in a federal lawsuit he was discriminated against because of his age and retaliated against by his employer, KDKA-TV and its parent company CBS Corp., after he was hurt in a 2017 stunt he was assigned to do during the Three Rivers...
Tensions rise as U.S. death toll from coronavirus reaches 9
SEATTLE — Tensions over how to contain the fast-spreading coronavirus escalated Tuesday in the United States as the death toll climbed to nine and lawmakers expressed doubts about the government’s ability to ramp up testing fast enough to deal with the crisis. All of the deaths have occurred in Washington...
Remains on Fox Chapel property identified as missing Verona manVideo
The remains of a Verona man missing since December were found Tuesday near the Fox Chapel home of a man accused of fatally shooting a Baldwin resident last month, investigators said. The mother of Christian Moore-Rouse, 22, of Verona, said the remains were that of her son. Rouse’s mother, Lee...
Walmart workers in East Huntingdon credited with assisting police in drug arrest
Police arrested a woman and confiscated 35 bags of suspected heroin after employees at the East Huntingdon Walmart became suspicious and contacted state troopers Monday. Amanda Skyee Crosby, 26, of Bullskin, Fayette County, is in the Westmoreland County Prison on $35,000 bond on charges of delivery, distribution and possession of...
