Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 427
Matthew Perry’s assistant among 5 people, including 2 doctors, charged in ‘Friends’ star’s death
LOS ANGELES — Five people including his personal assistant and two doctors have been charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s death in what prosecutors called a “broad underground criminal network” dedicated to getting the “Friends” star the powerful surgical anesthetic that killed him. The doctors preyed on Perry’s history of...
Vance and Walz agree to a vice presidential debate on Oct. 1 hosted by CBS News
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance have agreed to debate each other on Oct. 1, setting up a matchup of potential vice presidents as early voting in some states gets underway for the general election. CBS News on Wednesday posted on its X feed...
Police say Rostraver man drugged, raped woman
A Rostraver man was jailed Wednesday after state police said he drugged and raped a woman earlier this month. Nathaniel T. Johnston, 33, of the Collinsburg neighborhood, is charged with rape of a substantially impaired person, sexual assault and related offenses. The female accuser told troopers that Johnston gave her...
White House says prescription drug deals will produce billions in savings for taxpayers, seniors
WASHINGTON — Taxpayers are expected to save billions after the Biden administration inked deals with pharmaceutical companies to knock down the lists prices for 10 of Medicare’s costliest drugs. But how much older Americans can expect to save when they fill a prescription at their local pharmacy remains unclear, since...
Hurricane Ernesto aims for Bermuda after leaving many in Puerto Rico without power or waterVideo
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Hurricane Ernesto barreled toward Bermuda on Thursday after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico without power or water as sweltering heat enveloped the U.S. territory, raising concerns about people’s health. A hurricane warning was in effect for Bermuda, with Ernesto expected to...
Vance criticizes Biden, Walz during visit to Lower Burrell VFW
Vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance used his speech to an invitation-only crowd at Lower Burrell’s VFW post to criticize President Joe Biden’s administration for its withdrawal from Afghanistan. “We lost 13 brave service members we didn’t need to lose,” said Vance, flanked by Republican lawmakers, most of whom also are...
Morning Roundup: Standoff ends in arrest in Monongahela; Mayor Gainey’s communications director resigns
Here are a few news items for Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024: Standoff ends in arrest in Monongahela A Carnegie man was arrested Wednesday evening after an hourslong police standoff in Monongahela that began after a chase. Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh told Trib news partner WTAE that Emmanuel Houghton,...
Man accused of killing his mom in Homestead double homicide
A man accused in a double homicide in Homestead was arrested Wednesday, according to Allegheny County Police. John Malcolm Smith V, 25, of McKeesport is charged with fatally shooting Antoinette Porterfield, 45, and John West, 54. Porterfield is his mother, police said. They were killed Tuesday around 4 p.m. in...
Pennsylvania troopers stop drivers at similar rates no matter their race or ethnicity, study finds
HERSHEY — Pennsylvania drivers were pulled over and cited by state police last year at roughly comparable rates for various races and ethnicities, according to information about 450,000 vehicle stops that was made public on Wednesday. “The findings across multiple analyses demonstrated no substantive racial and ethnic differences in the...
President of Columbia University has resigned, effective immediately
NEW YORK — Columbia University President Minouche Shafik resigned Wednesday after a brief, tumultuous tenure that saw the head of the prestigious New York university grapple with protests over the Israel-Hamas war and criticism over how the school handled divisions related to the conflict. The school in upper Manhattan was...
Trump’s campaign called it an economic address. He made big promises but mostly veered off topicVideo
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Donald Trump made little effort to stay on message Wednesday at a rally in North Carolina that his campaign billed as a big economic address, mixing pledges to slash energy prices and “unleash economic abundance” with familiar off-script tangents on Democratic nominee Kamala Harris’ laugh, the mechanics...
Man killed in Wilmerding
Allegheny County Police are investigating the murder of a man in Wilmerding. Officers were dispatched to the 100 block of State Street for a shooting around 2:15 p.m. Wednesday. First responders found a man fatally shot. No further information about the victim or possible suspects was immediately available. Anyone with...
Retired Ligonier Valley teacher calls for investigation into how incident with special needs student was handled
It’s been a year and a half since Linda O’Sullivan had a life-changing encounter with a special needs student while she was working as an art teacher at Ligonier Valley High School. Now retired, the 60-year-old Ligonier Borough woman is still recovering from face, head and neck injuries resulting from...
North Huntingdon karate school owner in critical condition after motorcycle crash
Elizabeth Lindsay is no stranger to pushing physical limits. The owner of C.S. Kim Karate in North Huntingdon, Lindsay has practiced karate since she was 4 years old. The 39-year-old Greensburg resident earned a place in a national Black Belt Hall of Fame in 2019. Her brother, Peter Lindsay, believes...
Defense contends biased probe led to arrest in New Kensington boy’s death
Lawyers for Brackenridge man facing a potential death penalty if he is convicted of killing of his 9-year-old son contend the investigation that led to his arrest in 2022 was the product of biased prosecutors and based on insufficient evidence. Jean J. Charles, 44, is awaiting trial on charges of...
New home placements in Monessen help address ‘dire need’ for revitalization
Five houses that could be in place this fall in Monessen may be a harbinger of how Westmoreland County communities can move forward after clearing out abandoned homes. Westmoreland Community Action is embarking on the project that executive director Mandy Welty Zalich hopes will grow. Both county Commissioner Sean Kertes...
Hidden report reveals how workers got sick while cleaning up Ohio derailment site
The creeks around East Palestine, Ohio, were so badly contaminated by last year’s disastrous Norfolk Southern derailment that some workers became sick during the cleanup. Workers who reported headaches and nausea — while shooting compressed air into the creek bed, which releases chemicals from the sediment and water — were...
Innamorato nominates ex-Peduto staffer for Allegheny County manager position
Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato on Wednesday nominated John Fournier — the deputy city administrator for Ann Arbor, Mich. — to serve as county manager. Fournier previously spent a decade living in Pittsburgh and worked as deputy chief of staff for former Mayor Bill Peduto. Allegheny County Council must approve...
Plunge, scoop, repeat: ‘Industrial-strength’ cleanup of Pittsburgh’s rivers yields stinky, silty treasure
The demolition claw — its dirt-brown metal fingers guided by an excavator’s gray 50-foot-long arm — plunged Tuesday afternoon into the cloudy, brownish-green surface of the Allegheny River in search of discarded pieces of Pittsburgh. Chained to a rusty-bottomed 32-by-120 foot barge, the excavator sent its arm diving over and...
Longtime Buffalo Township movie theater set to close, reopen under local ownership
One of the few remaining movie theaters in the Alle-Kiski Valley is set to close, but only for a few weeks as new ownership takes over. The AMC Classic South Pike 10 cinema complex is scheduled to shutter its doors Thursday, according to Buffalo Township Supervisor Mike Oehling Jr. and...
Ernesto becomes a hurricane after pummeling northeast Caribbean and knocking out power in the region
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Ernesto strengthened into a hurricane Wednesday as it dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico and left half of all customers in the U.S. territory without power as it threatened to become a major storm en route to Bermuda. The storm was located about 180 miles...
Morning Roundup: Penn Hills playground improvements vandalized
Here are a few news items for Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024: Penn Hills playground damaged Penn Hills fire officials are looking into vandalism and damage at the newly improved Rosedale VFD Memorial Park. Fencing around the park was discovered ripped down on Tuesday. “We’re discouraged to see this damage performed,”...
Turtle noodler: Irwin man continues family legacy of catching turtles with bare handsVideo
Joe Clemens of Irwin has a dangerous hands-on hobby. Clemens is a fourth-generation turtle noodler, a pursuit where one catches snapping turtles with their bare hands from underwater holes in the banks of freshwater rivers, creeks and ponds. “I’m pretty much one of the last ones left around here in...
2 dead in Homestead shooting
Allegheny County Police are investigating the death of a man and woman found Tuesday in Homestead. Police were called to the 100 block of West 15th Avenue shortly after 4 p.m., responding to a report of shots fired. They received no response when hailing residents at the home, and a...
Firm suggests closing 16 Pittsburgh Public schools, opening 2 new ones
Pittsburgh Public Schools officials have received recommendations to close more than a dozen schools and potentially merge Carrick and Brashear high schools. A consultant hired by the district said, through a facility use report, that the urban school system should close 16 of its schools and open two new ones,...
