Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 851
Leet officials fire police chief with no prior public notice
Leet police Chief Michael Molinaro, who filed a federal lawsuit in June against the township alleging political retaliation, was fired Monday by commissioners. Molinaro had been on paid leave since April, pending an investigation. Commissioners approved terminating Molinaro after meeting privately during a workshop meeting and then adding it to...
Man taken into custody following a SWAT situation in Millvale
A SWAT situation in Millvale resulted in a man being arrested Wednesday night. Allegheny County dispatchers said police, fire and EMS activity began around 6:30 p.m. along the 600 block of Evergreen Avenue. Millvale police said a man surrendered to authorities hours later and emergency responders were able to clear...
Pennsylvania universities reject GOP call to freeze tuition
HARRISBURG — Four Pennsylvania universities said Wednesday they will follow through with tuition increases despite calls from House Republicans to roll back the price hikes. The lawmakers, including Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Franklin, the GOP nominee for governor, argue Penn State, University of Pittsburgh, Lincoln and Temple are receiving federal funds...
Josh Shapiro pitches economic plan during visit to Pittsburgh’s robotics row
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro pitched his economic plan during a Pittsburgh campaign stop Tuesday and said one of his goals as governor would be to ensure that the region becomes the world leader in the robotics industry. “I am here today to plant a flag and say we will...
Florida man accused of submitting $25M in fraudulent Medicare claims through Ellwood City hospital
A Florida businessman has been charged in federal court in Pittsburgh with conspiring to submit $25 million in fraudulent Medicare claims through an Ellwood City hospital for unnecessary cancer genome screenings. Daniel Hurt, 58, of Fort Lauderdale, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, pay...
Sen. Joe Manchin says he has health, energy, tax deal with Schumer
WASHINGTON — In an unexpected turnabout, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin announced Wednesday they had reached an expansive agreement that had eluded them for months on health care, energy and climate issues, taxes on higher earners and corporations and trimming of the federal debt. For months,...
Allegheny County health officials announce availability of monkeypox vaccine, eligibility still limited
Vaccine availability to those at risk for contracting monkeypox remains limited, but Allegheny County health leaders say they are working on a plan to expand eligibility as supply increases. Twenty cases of the virus have been confirmed in the county. Vaccines are being offered to people who have had a...
Woman accused of tattooing underage girl’s neck without permission from parents, faces charges
A tattoo artist who rents space at a parlor in Springdale was charged by police with tattooing a butterfly on an underage girl’s neck without getting permission from a parent. Shaolin Ameris Barr, 21, of the 2000 block of Constitution Avenue in Arnold was charged with misdemeanor counts of corruption...
Family seeks release of Oakmont teacher being held in Russian prison
Marc Fogel has lived in six countries and taught overseas for 35 years, including stints in Mexico, Malaysia, Colombia, Oman and Venezuela. Last summer, Fogel and his wife, Jane, were about to start their 10th and final year teaching at the Anglo American School in Moscow. But when they arrived...
‘What was that?’ Building manager, business owners describe parking lot collapse in Penn Hills
Benjamin Bair had just shown an apartment minutes before he heard a crashing sound. “I instantly stopped and was like, ‘what was that?’” said Bair, the building manager for the apartments where the parking garage collapsed on Tuesday evening in Penn Hills along Frankstown Road. “Seconds after … like boom,...
Former Greensburg-area dentist to testify in trial over wife’s safari death
DENVER — A wealthy dentist accused of shooting and killing his wife in their cabin at the end of an African safari trip testified Wednesday that an unfamiliar shotgun they brought with them to hunt a leopard accidentally went off, wounding her as she hurried to pack early in the...
Should you wait for the omicron booster? Why experts say you should ‘get it now!’
If you’re like most Americans, you’ve gotten your primary doses of a covid-19 vaccine, but you haven’t gotten the recommended booster shots. So if it’s been several months since your last primary dose, you’re probably due for a booster. But the companies behind two of the more popular covid-19 shots,...
Did Doug Mastriano play a role in Trump’s fake elector plot? Campaign remains silent
Two competing versions of state Sen. Doug Mastriano’s role in Donald Trump’s fake elector scheme emerged this week. Mastriano, now the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania, has yet to clear it up. According to a New York Times report Tuesday, Mastriano had been designated as the state’s “point person”...
Stocks rise on Wall Street after new Fed rate hike, earnings
Stocks on Wall Street are solidly higher in afternoon trading Wednesday after the Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate by a widely expected three-quarters of a point as the central bank ratchets up its campaign to quell surging inflation. The Fed’s move, its second three-quarters of a point hike...
Rape case against Derry Township man to remain in adult court
A 21-year-old Derry Township man awaiting trial on more than 100 offenses including 30 charges of rape will be prosecuted as an adult, a judge ruled. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani rejected a defense request to transfer the case, filed last year against Tyler Alan Eisworth, to...
‘Never covid’: Some people have managed to avoid contracting covid-19, but their numbers are dwindling
Jordan Berkes is a member of a shrinking fraternity — he’s never contracted covid-19. For two and a half years, the Shaler resident has managed to dodge the virus, its numerous variants and the occasional surge of cases. As the latest wave of covid — the omicron subvariant known as...
Monessen councilman sues former mayor for libel, slander
A lawsuit alleging libel and slander was filed Tuesday by a Monessen councilman against the city’s former mayor. Councilman Anthony Orzechowski claims published comments and statements by Mayor Matt Shorraw in the months leading up to last year’s election and continuing into 2022 were intentionally false and erroneously suggested criminal...
No Mega Millions winner; jackpot now over $1 billion
DES MOINES, Iowa — A giant Mega Millions lottery jackpot ballooned to $1.02 billion after no one matched all six numbers Tuesday night and won the top prize. The new estimated jackpot will be the nation’s fourth-largest lottery prize. The jackpot has grown so large because no one has matched...
Report: Trump effort to create fake electors enlisted Mastriano
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is using a grand jury in Washington to investigate efforts by former President Donald Trump and his inner circle to create false electors and pressure former Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the 2020 election, according to a person familiar with the matter. Marc Short,...
6-year-old hit, killed by car in Glen Hazel
A child riding his bike late Tuesday in Glen Hazel was struck and killed by a vehicle, officials said. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said 6-year-old Jamel Austin of Pittsburgh died from multiple blunt force trauma of the head and trunk. Police originally reported that Austin was 5. Pittsburgh...
Parking lot at Penn Hills apartment complex collapses, residents displaced, no injuries reported
Penn Hills officials are investigating the cause of a parking lot collapse Tuesday at an apartment complex off of Frankstown Road. About 20 cars were damaged in the mishap but no injuries were immediately reported. The incident was reported at about 6:20 p.m.. Penn Hills Police Chief Ron Como said...
Steelers make long-awaited return to Saint Vincent: ‘Some guys love it. Some guys hate it.’
After a two-year absence, the Pittsburgh Steelers returned to their summer training home in the foothills of the Laurel Highlands, reporting to Saint Vincent College on Tuesday to officially kick off the start of another NFL season. Some came willingly, eager to spend the next three weeks living in cramped...
New studies bolster theory coronavirus emerged from the wild
Two new studies provide more evidence that the coronavirus pandemic originated in a Wuhan, China market where live animals were sold — further bolstering the theory that the virus emerged in the wild rather than escaping from a Chinese lab. The research, published online Tuesday by the journal Science, shows...
Victim ID’d of Sunday shooting in Homewood
The man fatally shot early Sunday morning in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood has been identified by authorities. Kyle Wilson, 28, was shot around 3:15 a.m. in the 7200 block of Kelly Street and died about an hour later in a local hospital, according to Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. Wilson was...
Suspect arrested in McKees Rocks double shooting in May
A Penn Hills man accused of shooting two people in McKees Rocks on May 29 was arrested Tuesday afternoon in Plum, Allegheny County Police said. The suspect, Taelaun Claybourne, 21, as taken into custody in the 500 block of Unity-Trestle Road in Plum around 3 p.m. Police are accusing Claybourne...
