Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 936
Moderna seeks FDA authorization for 4th dose of covid shot
WASHINGTON — Drugmaker Moderna asked the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday to authorize a fourth shot of its covid-19 vaccine as a booster dose for all adults. The request is broader than rival pharmaceutical company Pfizer’s request earlier this week for the regulator to approve a booster shot for...
Arnold Schwarzenegger tells Putin in video: Stop this warVideo
Film icon Arnold Schwarzenegger told Russians in a video posted on social media Thursday they’re being lied to about the war in Ukraine and accused President Vladimir Putin of sacrificing Russian soldiers’ lives for his own ambitions. Schwarzenegger is hugely popular in Russia, and apparently also with Putin. The President...
Artifacts bring Vietnam War to light for Springdale High School History Club
History classes and movies don’t show a lot of things about the wars the United States has fought. For instance, Ethan Zahner, a senior at Springdale Junior-Senior High School, wasn’t aware of all of the dangers facing soldiers in the Vietnam War. “I did not know that they had to...
State legislative redistricting causes changes in Alle-Kiski Valley communities
With the state Supreme Court affirming the commonwealth’s new legislative district maps this week, state House and Senate representation changed in many communities in the Alle-Kiski Valley. Pennsylvania’s highest court Wednesday rejected final legal challenges to affirm the state’s new legislative district maps. A list of local communities and how...
March Madness delivers on the court and at Western Pennsylvania casinos, sportsbooks
After weeks of tying up loose ends on carefully crafted brackets, Western Pennsylvanians joined millions of Americans putting their March Madness predictions to the test in a wave that will eclipse Super Bowl LVI’s record-breaking number of bettors. Predictions are that 45 million people will wager a combined $3.1 billion...
Pittsburgh police investigate harassment at Shadyside home, notify FBI
Pittsburgh police are investigating several incidents of what they call “harassment and intimidation” in Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood and have notified the FBI. Detectives are looking for individuals who allegedly defaced yard signs with “political and anti-national” messages on an undisclosed property in Shadyside, according to the city’s public safety blotter....
Republican gubernatorial candidate Jake Corman talks energy and gas taxes in Carnegie
Pennsylvania state Senator and candidate for governor Jake Corman visited Bob’s Diner in Carnegie Thursday to meet and greet potential voters. The diner in the former mill town and Pittsburgh suburb is a well-known political stop for Pennsylvania candidates. Bob’s was full with a hungry lunch crowd, and Corman, a...
Average U.S. mortgage rates rise; 30-year loan breaches 4%
WASHINGTON — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates rose this week as the key 30-year loan vaulted over 4% for the first time since May 2019. The increase came amid expectations that with inflation at a four-decade high, the Federal Reserve would raise its benchmark short-term interest rate at its policy...
Developer looks to build at Pittsburgh site housing property up for historic designation
A developer is looking to build a mixed-use development on Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Uptown neighborhood — though the fate of the project may be determined by whether the Tito House, which is located on the site, earns historic designation. Fountain Residential Partners — which specializes in college housing —...
Police allege Greensburg man burned down Hempfield house to mask coin theft
A Greensburg man jailed since January, accused of burglary and criminal trespass in the break-in of a Hempfield home to steal silver coins, was charged Thursday with burning down the house. Randy W. Bryner, 58, of Greensburg is charged with arson and reckless endangerment. State police fire marshals also charged...
Police: Suspect nabbed in fatal Wilmerding shooting
A North Versailles man is accused of fatally shooting a man in Wilmerding on Thursday morning, Allegheny County Police said. The suspect, Jason E. Grubb, 47, was arrested at a family member’s residence in the Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood around 1:30 p.m. and was taken to Allegheny County Jail, police said. Pitcairn...
AG: 30 pounds of fentanyl, $535K, 6 cars seized during Braddock drug bust
A task force with the state Attorney General’s Office seized more than 30 pounds of fentanyl worth more than $1.4 million from a Braddock home during an arrest that also turned up a half dozen cars and guns, officials said Thursday. Domonique Taylor, 37, faces more than a dozen charges...
Mail-in ballots on way for elections to replace House seats vacated by Gainey, Wheatley
Allegheny County’s Elections Division has begun sending mail-in and absentee ballot packets to voters who will be participating in the special elections to fill state House seats vacated by Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey and his chief of staff, Jake Wheatley. The special elections to fill the seats in the 19th...
Former Westmoreland sheriff Jon Held pleads guilty to theft charge, gets probation
Jonathan Held, the former Westmoreland County sheriff once tried by state prosecutors in a public corruption case, pleaded guilty Thursday to a misdemeanor theft charge. A judge sentenced him to serve six months on probation. Held, 48, formerly of Hempfield, lives in Cape Coral, Fla. As part of his plea...
Rescuers search theater rubble as Russian attacks continue
KYIV, Ukraine — Rescue workers searched for survivors Thursday in the ruins of a theater blown apart by a Russian airstrike in the besieged city of Mariupol, while scores of Ukrainians across the country were killed in ferocious urban attacks on a school, a hostel and other sites. Hundreds of...
Pittsburgh’s bike share rolling out new fleet, including e-bikes
After seven years known as Healthy Ride, Pittsburgh’s bike share revealed a rebrand on Wednesday that includes new station locations and a new fleet that will include some electric-assist bikes, also known as e-bikes. The new system is called POGOH. The name is designed to suggest hopping — as if...
Man arrested after breaking into Pittsburgh Zoo after hours
Pittsburgh Police arrested a man who breached the fences at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium after hours on Wednesday night, according to police. The zoo’s 24-hour security was alerted to the incident shortly before 8 p.m., and police from Zone 5 arrived quickly afterward. Police spokesperson Amanda Mueller said...
Police: Man shot in the face in Clairton
A man shot in the face in Clairton is expected to survive, according to Allegheny County Police. Officers responded to the intersection of Holcomb Avenue and Wood Alley for a shooting around 4:20 p.m. Wednesday. First responders found a man with a gunshot wound to the face. Police said the...
Allegheny County to rely more on wastewater surveillance to calculate spread of covid-19
Two years and two days after the first covid-19 cases were reported in Allegheny County, Health Director Dr. Debra Bogen closed the latest chapter of the pandemic with optimism and provided insight on the new ways health officials will communicate pandemic data. The county will move away from biweekly briefings...
Pa. Supreme Court rejects legal challenges to state’s new legislative maps
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s highest court has affirmed the state’s new legislative district...
Hunker men accused of shooting dogs say they shot them after peacock’s killing
Two men were charged Wednesday in connection with the December fatal shooting of two dogs that were later found in a wooded area of Hunker. State police said James P. Hill, 76, and his neighbor Jason W. Beal, 35, shot and killed Hagrid, 5, and Aspen, 4. The bodies of...
What to know about the omicron subvariant BA.2
A new version of the coronavirus that causes covid-19 has made its way through Europe and other parts of the world, and it now has been detected in the United States, including locally. It is not a new strain, but rather a variant of a variant — a subtype of...
Hearings to be held on Pittsburgh City Council proposals to generate money for infrastructure fund
Some people opposed to a Pittsburgh City Council proposal to levy a 1% tax on college tuition and medical bills to generate money for infrastructure improvements appear to be more open to a separate proposal to seek money from nonprofits instead. The Fern Hollow Bridge collapse in January heightened concerns...
Owner of Gilpin personal care home accused of stealing $111K from dead resident’s account
State police accused the owner of a personal care home in Gilpin Township of stealing nearly $111,500 from a resident’s credit union account after the 75-year-old woman died. Carrie Ann Leway, 42, of the 300 block of Godfrey Road faces five counts each of forgery and identity theft, all felonies,...
Police: Man entered Gateway elementary school, recorded child in girls’ bathroom
A man lied his way into Ramsey Elementary School in Monroeville on Tuesday and recorded a child on his cellphone as she used the girls’ restroom, according to charges filed by Monroeville police. Brian Mintmier, 26, is charged with possessing an instrument of crime, possessing an instrument of crime on...
