Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1717
4 teens shot at Clairton graduation party, all listed in stable condition
A graduation party in Clairton turned tragedy early Saturday morning when four teenagers were shot. Allegheny County Police are investigating the events leading up to the shootings at the party in the 600 block of Waddell Avenue. The four victims — between the ages of 14 and 18 — were...
The unlikely pairing of the professor and the lifer yields results for Pittsburgh Police
No question, they made for an odd couple. The college professor and the inmate serving life in prison for second-degree murder were indeed an unlikely pairing. It began in 2011 when Duquesne University professor Norman Conti met inmate Robert Wideman when he took a group of students into the now-shuttered...
Elections experts say cybersecurity threats demand federal funding
Unfunded cybersecurity needs are leaving state and local election officials to stand on the front lines of threats from sophisticated international interests, a new report asserts. “Defending Elections,” a report from the Brennan Center for Justice, highlights growing concerns that myriad unmet security needs pose a threat to fair elections....
50 years after moon landing, Western Pennsylvania sets sight on return to space
Like many American baby boomers, Randa Relich Milliron has vivid memories of the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969. The Belle Vernon native was in her early teens as she sat glued to a television set throughout the day and well into the night that culminated in the...
DNA from dreadlocks at 2015 Pittsburgh murder scene leads to Va. man’s arrest
A Virginia man whose two dreadlocks containing body tissue were found at a 2015 murder scene in Pittsburgh was arrested this week after DNA tests matched him with the hair samples, Pittsburgh police said. The suspect, Aaron Cross, who is incarcerated in Riverside Regional Jail in North Prince George County,...
Penn Township man pleads to damaging Siemens Corp. computer programs
A 62-year-old Harrison City man pleaded guilty in federal court in Pittsburgh on Friday to intentionally damaging his employer’s computer programs for a two-year period, the U.S. Attorney for Western Pennsylvania said. David Tinley, 62, admitted to inserting “logic bombs” into computer programs he designed for Siemens Corp. in Monroeville,...
Pittsburgh Police: Sheraden woman assaulted by pair who tried to steal her dog
A Sheraden woman was assaulted Friday afternoon by people who came to her door and attempted to steal her dog, initial reports indicate. Pittsburgh Police arrested two suspects involved in the incident, Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said. A third adult accompanying the accused pair was not charged. The woman...
Greater Latrobe School District finds next superintendent within its ranks: Georgia Teppert
Greater Latrobe School Board found the district’s new superintendent close to home, promoting Assistant Superintendent Georgia Teppert on Friday to take on the top administrative post beginning Aug. 1. Teppert has filled several administrative roles since joining the district 20 years ago as assistant senior high principal. “I’ve had the...
Lifeguard rescues man from bottom of Highland Park pool
A lifeguard pulled a man in his 60s from the bottom of the Highland Park swimming pool Friday afternoon, police said. The man, whose name was not released, was in critical condition Friday night at UPMC Presbyterian hospital in the city’s Oakland neighborhood, Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz...
Vanessa German, Joe Negri, Roger Humphries to receive Governor’s Awards
Prolific Pittsburgh visual and performance artist Vanessa German has been named the 2019 Governor’s Awards for the Arts, Artist of the Year. German is founder of Love Front Porch and the ARThouse, community arts initiatives for the children of Homewood. German’s visual art work is in private and public collections...
Alle-Kiski Valley businesses ready for onslaught of folks trying to beat the heat
Stanford Home Center in Allegheny Township ran out of air conditioners early Friday, but only momentarily, as other stores stocked up on water and beverages and braced for the rush as residents cope with uncharacteristic searing temperatures. “We’ve been selling air conditioners like crazy,” said Stewart Claypool, one of the...
Pa. parents told they could lose kids over unpaid school lunches
KINGSTON — A Pennsylvania school district is warning that children could end up in foster care if their parents do not pay overdue school lunch bills. The letters sent recently to about 1,000 parents in Wyoming Valley West School District have led to complaints from parents and a stern rebuke...
Funeral set for slain Pittsburgh officer Calvin Hall
The funeral for slain Pittsburgh police Officer Calvin Hall is scheduled for Tuesday at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in Oakland. Hall, 36, was shot several times while he was off-duty and visiting friends in Homewood early Sunday, police said. He died shortly after noon Wednesday at UPMC Presbyterian. An...
Lawsuit: Sheetz charged sales tax for bottled water
A Natrona Heights woman is accusing Sheetz of enriching itself by improperly charging a sales tax on bottled water. Jennifer Montgomery filed a class-action complaint against Sheetz in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, alleging she was illegally charged a sales tax on nonflavored mineral water that she bought from two...
Authorities to discuss whether charges will be filed in toddlers’ drowning deaths, funds being raised
A Uniontown police investigator plans to meet with the Fayette County District Attorney next week to review the results of his investigation to determine whether any charges will be filed in connection with the death of two young boys who drowned in their family’s swimming pool this week. Lt. Thomas...
Businesses, residents brace for weekend heat wave
A heat wave that could bring dangerous temperatures and a heat index exceeding 100 degrees has area residents and stores stocking up on fans and air conditioners, and is keeping HVAC companies on their toes. “It’s a nonstop kind of thing right at this moment,” said Chuck Cianciotti, owner of...
Trump campaign selling plastic straws as alternative to ‘liberal paper straws’
You can now show your support for the president and how you feel about environmental policy while also slurping a cold beverage. Donald Trump’s reelection campaign is offering plastic Trump-branded drinking straws as an alternative to “liberal paper straws” that “don’t work.” They are described as BPA-free, reusable, recyclable and...
Greensburg bishop to Trump, lawmakers: Fix ‘broken’ U.S. immigration system
Bishop Edward C. Malesic of the Greensburg Catholic Diocese has appealed to Pennsylvania lawmakers and President Donald Trump to solve the nation’s immigration impasse. In a letter dated July 12, Malesic expressed frustration with the continuing immigration “stranglehold” that is causing “tragic and inhumane consequences” for the United States. “I...
Steelers training camp first public practice a week away at Saint Vincent
It’s time to get the black and gold out again. The first Pittsburgh Steelers training camp public practice is a week away. That means the players — and fans — will once again descend on Saint Vincent College in Unity to check out an early look at the team or...
Another alligator found on the lam, this time in Shaler
Well, that “Gatorsburgh” thing is going to keep going. Another alligator, the fourth this year, has been found in the “City of Chompions,” this time in Shaler. The latest was found Friday morning in the parking lot of the Giant Eagle grocery store on Butler Plank Road in Shaler, township...
Where are Western Pennsylvania travelers headed this summer?
Western Pennsylvanians love their summer beach vacations. According to data compiled from AAA East Central TripTik requests, “the beaches of the Carolinas are the most popular destinations,” says Jim Garrity, the region’s public and legislative affairs manager. The AAA East Central region includes Western Pennsylvania and parts of Kentucky, New...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: July 19-21
It’s expected to be a scorcher, but at least the rain has moved out so we can enjoy one of the many events happening this weekend. Here’s what’s going on in Pittsburgh. Revved up Start your engines. The Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix is upon us. This weekend’s events include the...
Pittsburgh dancers recall hearing moon landing broadcast in Soviet bar
In the midst of the Cold War and during the summer that American astronauts were to walk on the moon, a group of Pittsburgh college students were asked by the U.S. State Department to take their Duquesne Tamburitzans show on a cultural exchange to the U.S.S.R. They were in the...
Looking to take a dip in the rivers? Swim at your own risk
With oppressive heat in the forecast, swimsuit-clad crowds are expected to not only hit local pools but area rivers and lakes where funky things can happen if swimmers don’t take a few precautions, according to experts. The good news is Southwestern Pennsylvania does not have flesh-eating bacteria and the rash...
Police take into custody ‘person of interest’ in slain officer case, search Homewood house
Police on Thursday took into custody a “person of interest” in the investigation into the fatal shooting of Pittsburgh police Officer Calvin Hall, officials said. Officials did not name the person nor elaborate on the individual’s possible connections to the killing of Hall, who was shot three times in the...
