Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1568
McDonald’s in Pittsburgh’s Strip District closes without explanation
Pittsburgh’s Strip District has a case of fallen arches. A McDonald’s restaurant that been a longtime fixture along Penn Avenue in the Strip has closed without explanation, according to Dan Kamin, president of Kamin Realty and the property owner. Kamin said McDonald’s corporate offices notified him in late fall that...
South Fayette retiree, daughter sue to recover $82K seized at Pittsburgh airport
A 79-year-old retired railroad engineer and his adult daughter Wednesday sued two federal agencies in an effort to recover more than $82,000 seized last summer inside Pittsburgh International Airport. Rebecca Brown, 54, of Lowell, Mass., said her father, Terry Rolin, a resident of the South Fayette village of Morgan, had...
Tempers flare briefly on 8th day of jury selection in Wilkinsburg mass shooting case
Tempers briefly flared before interviews began Wednesday on the eighth day of jury selection in the 2016 Wilkinsburg mass shooting case. Cheron Shelton, 32, and Robert Thomas, 31, both face five counts of homicide, one count of homicide of an unborn child and a multitude of other charges related to...
New charges filed against Allegheny Township man accused of raping girls
A 48-year-old man already accused of raping two Alle-Kiski Valley girls faces new charges after another alleged victim has said she was assaulted as a child and as an adult. Eric A. Wright, who had been living in Allegheny Township, is accused of exposing himself to the third girl, watching...
Waterworks Giant Eagle among 1st to eliminate plastic bags
Several shoppers at The Waterworks Market District bustled about the parking lot early Wednesday, toting armfuls of reusable bags, seemingly prepared for the company’s initiative to eliminate single-use plastics. The O’Hara-based retailer announced its plan in December to rid all of its stores of single-use plastics by 2025. Most notably,...
15 can’t-miss Pittsburgh shows for your summer music calendarVideo
Whether you prefer Charlie Daniels to Justin Bieber, or Harry Styles to Ozzy Osbourne, there should be something for you on the Pittsburgh summer concert calendar. From country to pop to metal, here are 15 can’t-miss shows to consider. Charlie Daniels Band/Marshall Tucker April 30, UPMC Events Center, Moon Charlie...
Hempfield Steak ‘n Shake joins list of ‘temporarily closed’ locations
Over 100 Steak ‘n Shake restaurants across the country — including at least six in the Pittsburgh region — sit empty as the burger chain moves toward a franchise-based business model. The Hempfield location most recently joined Steak ‘n Shake locations in Frazer, Robinson and Center Township, while locations in...
Pittsburgh police nab suspect in North Side graffiti case
A Sharpsburg man with a history as a graffiti artist was arrested Tuesday by Pittsburgh police for allegedly painting on Norfolk Southern property near Federal Street on the city’s North Side. The graffiti covered 264 square feet and could cost $7,000 to clean up, according to Detective Alphonso Sloan, the...
Who wants to buy a house-bus in Pittsburgh?
One can’t help but notice this house rolling down the road that’s for sale. Pennsylvania native Andrew Weidman, 27, is visiting Pittsburgh for the winter, hoping to sell “Lucy Half-Bus.” It’s a 2003 Ford E350 converted former school bus, powered by Ford’s legendary 7.3 diesel, with 137,000 miles on the...
Pelosi names Schiff, Nadler as prosecutors for Trump trial
WASHINGTON — Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday named two House chairmen who led President Donald Trump’s impeachment inquiry as prosecutors for Trump’s Senate trial. Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who led the probe, and Judiciary Chair Rep. Jerrold Nadler, whose committee approved the impeachment articles, as among the managers of...
Pa. man gets up to 5 years in state prison for 9th DUI conviction
A judge in Warren County hopes the ninth time’s the charm: He’s sentenced a man to one to five years in state prison for his ninth charge of driving under the influence, Erie News Now reported. Fletcher Kay, 64, of Warren was stopped by Conewango police July 20 with a...
Police: Carrick man arrested with 6 bricks of suspected heroin on Route 22 in Salem
An Allegheny County man was arrested Tuesday after state police said they found six bricks of suspected heroin in his car during a traffic stop on Route 22 in Salem, according to court papers. Michael Patrick Crawley, 39, of Carrick, was being held in the Westmoreland County Prison on $100,000...
Steelers safety Donnie Shell named to Pro Football Hall of Fame
Bill Cowher wasn’t the only member of the Pittsburgh Steelers to get advance warning about his selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When the 15-member Centennial Slate was unveiled Wednesday morning during NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football” telecast, former Steelers safety Donnie Shell arrived on set for an...
Theories persist about mystery drones seen in rural Western regions
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — People insist they have spotted fleets of large drones crisscrossing rural America’s night sky, their mission mysterious, raising questions that have veered into conspiracy theories and launching an investigation. Authorities in Colorado have tried to put those theories to rest, announcing that they have confirmed nothing unusual...
Police searching for woman who escaped Pittsburgh corrections facility
State police are searching for a woman who left the Pittsburgh Community Corrections Center without authorization. Kaila Rae Rose Sloan, who is serving time for possession with intent to deliver, left the Shadyside facility Monday, police said. WANTED FOR ESCAPEOn 1/13/20, Kaila Rae Rose Sloan left the Pgh Community Corrections...
Key takeaways from Democratic presidential debate in Iowa
DES MOINES — Some key takeaways from Tuesday’s Democratic presidential debate in Des Moines, the final forum before the Iowa caucuses: CIVILITY AND SUBSTANCE OVER FIGHTING AND FRICTION After the United States’ killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Democrats were bracing for fights over foreign policy. Instead, a whole lot...
Ex-Trump aide Michael Flynn seeks to withdraw guilty plea
WASHINGTON —Former Trump administration national security adviser Michael Flynn filed court papers Tuesday to withdraw his guilty plea, saying federal prosecutors had acted in “bad faith” and breached their deal with him. The request comes one week after the Justice Department changed its position on Flynn’s punishment by recommending that...
3 injured in Route 380 crash in Washington Township; 2 rescued from smashed vehicle
Three people were injured Tuesday night in a two-vehicle crash that uprooted the center guardrail on Route 380 in Washington Township and snarled traffic on a stretch of the highway for more than an hour. None of the injuries appeared life-threatening, but all three victims were flown by medical helicopters...
Shooter in Jeannette murder was suspect’s identical twin, lawyer claimsVideo
The lawyer for a Penn Hills man accused of gunning down a man in the heart of Jeannette’s business district said the shooter was actually his client’s dead twin brother. Defense attorney Tim Dawson told a Westmoreland County jury Tuesday that Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee, 30, is not the man pictured in...
Juror excused in 2016 Wilkinsburg mass shooting case, total selected down to 9
Attorneys selected no new jurors — and one already seated was excused — on Tuesday in an Allegheny County death penalty case headed to trial next month. One juror selected last week in the case against Cheron Shelton and Robert Thomas was excused for unknown reasons. With none selected Tuesday,...
UPMC, Pitt test out wireless eyeball implant in hopes of restoring lost sightVideo
A surgeon at UPMC Mercy hospital implanted a wireless chip designed to act like a small, artificial retina in the eye of an Ohio woman last week in the first trial of the technology in the United States. The treatment could offer a novel way to restore the sight of...
Advocates push for Alina’s Law for additional protections in domestic abuse
A pair of Allegheny County lawmakers joined domestic violence prevention advocates and the parents of a murdered Pitt student Tuesday in Harrisburg in a renewed push for the passage of Alina’s Law. The measure was named for Alina Sheykhet, a 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student who was bludgeoned and stabbed...
Vandergrift’s reorganization redo gets contentious as residents vent frustration
A Vandergrift Council meeting quickly became a shouting match Monday — complete with insults and banging fists — and left several residents frustrated with their elected officials. Council held a special meeting to redo its reorganization meeting of Jan. 6, after it came to light that five members and the...
Pittsburgh working out glitches in $1.4 million snow tracking systemVideo
A Minnesota company was in Pittsburgh on Tuesday trying to work out bugs in the city’s new $1.4 million system for treating streets in the winter. Pittsburgh last year purchased technology and equipment from Minnesota-based Quetica LLC that permits officials to control and track snowplow operations, including routes, vehicles locations...
Man gets 10-20 years in prison for $1.2 million theft from Upper St. Clair church
A South Park man who pleaded guilty to stealing more than $1.2 million from a church in Upper St. Clair was sentenced Tuesday to 10 to 20 years in prison and ordered to make restitution to the church. David Reiter, 50, was the administrator at Westminster Presbyterian Church from 2001...
