Top Stories category, Page 46
New York Attorney General James to challenge U.S. Attorney Halligan’s appointment
WASHINGTON — New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday said her legal team plans to ask a federal judge to dismiss the criminal charges against her on the grounds that the U.S. Attorney in Eastern Virginia who obtained the indictment was unlawfully appointed, according to a court filing. James’...
Tropical Storm Melissa lumbers through the Caribbean, killing an elderly man in HaitiVideo
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Tropical Storm Melissa lumbered through the Caribbean Sea on Thursday, bringing a risk of dangerous landslides and life-threatening flooding to Jamaica and southern Hispaniola — an island shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Officials urged residents in flood-prone areas to seek higher ground. The...
Hill District bar reopens with new style and same charm
Fifty years after first opening her Hill District bar, Roberta “Mrs. Bert” Brassell is once again behind the counter following nearly a year of renovations. At 83, she’s reopened the neighborhood staple as Black Beauty Bar & Grill, proving that while the name and the seating may be new, the...
U.S. reopens Alaska wildlife refuge to oil and gas development
The Trump administration on Thursday announced a series of steps to open up Alaskan wilderness to energy and infrastructure development, including by allowing oil and gas drilling in the remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The administration has announced a string of policy swings involving the sprawling refuge for polar bears,...
Judge upholds life sentences for Monessen man in 1973 rape, double murder case
A judge has rejected an appeal from a Monessen man who has spent 50 years in prison for the 1973 murders of two young children and the rape of their mother. Attorneys for John Veltre Jr., 69, claimed that Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Stewart II abused his...
Pa. officials roll up sleeves for covid shots and encourage residents to follow
At a Harrisburg pharmacy Thursday, Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen and Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys rolled up their sleeves for covid shots to underscore the vaccine’s continued availability. “Today I want to encourage everyone who is six months or older to talk to a health care provider or pharmacist...
Pa. union organizer deems strike timing ideal for unionized Starbucks baristas
Starbucks Workers United is launching a strike authorization vote Friday amid stalled talks for a first contract between union baristas and the coffeehouse chain. Baristas are also planning 70 “practice pickets” in 60 cities as the vote unfolds to draw attention to their demands for better staffing, pay and working...
Average age of first-time mothers rises over 31 at Allegheny Health Network hospitals
People are having children later in life — a trend that’s especially pronounced in Western Pennsylvania. The average age of first-time mothers who gave birth in 2024 at an Allegheny Health Network labor and delivery unit was 31.1 years old — three years higher than the national average, according to...
Trump calls off federal agent deployment to San Francisco
Donald Trump will not deploy federal agents to San Francisco, the U.S. president and the California city’s mayor said in separate social media posts on Thursday, a surprising stand-down as Trump pressures Democratic-led cities around the country to step up enforcement against crime and illegal immigration. San Francisco Mayor Daniel...
As vaccine policies shift under Trump admin, Pa. pediatricians focus on keeping patients informed
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. As federal vaccine policies and messaging shift under the Trump administration, pediatricians across Pennsylvania are working to maintain proven...
Springdale Zoning Hearing Board considers data center developer’s requests
The Springdale Zoning Hearing Board has been left to mull more than a half dozen requests from developers of the proposed data center in the borough after a lengthy meeting Wednesday night. Board Solicitor Charles Clark said he expects the board to render a decision within 30 to 45 days....
Trump to quadruple Argentine beef imports while U.S. ranchers fume
President Donald Trump’s administration is quadrupling the country’s low-tariff imports of Argentine beef in his attempt to lower grocery store beef prices, a White House official said Thursday, evoking fury from the nation’s cattle ranchers. Raising the tariff rate quota on Argentine beef to 80,000 metric tons will let the...
Starbucks workers union to begin voting on strike amid stalled contract talks
Starbucks baristas’ union said on Thursday it would vote on whether to authorize an unfair labor practice strike at unionized locations to demand that the company return to the negotiating table. Contract talks between the coffee-chain giant and the union, which represents more than 12,000 baristas, began last year, but...
‘We’ve been shortchanged’: Hill District group blasts Penguins after team loses development rights to old Civic Arena site
After nearly two decades sitting on exclusive rights to develop the Lower Hill District site that once housed the Civic Arena, the Pittsburgh Penguins have lost their stake, drawing derision for taking so long to create so little. A 2007 agreement with Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority and Sports & Exhibition...
Senate to vote on paying ‘essential’ workers as shutdown hits Day 23
WASHINGTON ‒ The Senate is set to vote Thursday on a Republican-backed bill to pay some federal workers who are working through the government shutdown as the shutdown rolls into Day 23. The bill, known as the Shutdown Fairness Act and sponsored by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, would pay employees...
Mafia-backed sports betting scandal involves NBA coach, star player
NEW YORK — The head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers and a player for the Miami Heat were arrested Thursday along with more than 30 other people in two cases alleging sprawling criminal schemes to rake in millions by rigging sports bets and poker games involving Mafia families, authorities...
How Trump is demolishing the White House East Wing for his new ballroom
Workers have demolished much of the 83-year-old East Wing in preparation for President Donald Trump’s planned $250 million ballroom at the White House. Demolition work began without prior public notice on Oct. 20, when workers took down the entrance to the East Wing. Dismantling continued the next day when much...
Heating bill help delayed for low-income Pennsylvanians amid federal shutdown
A program that helps low-income Pennsylvania residents pay heating bills will be delayed because of the federal government shutdown. The commonwealth’s Department of Human Services on Wednesday announced the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) will begin Dec. 3, a month later than usual. The start date was pushed back...
Hempfield Township hauls in $180K from auction after 66,000 people browsed
Hempfield raked in $180,500 in proceeds from an online auction of 116 pieces of surplus equipment. More than 66,000 people looked at what Hempfield had for sale through Anderson Auctioneers, including trucks, firefighting equipment, traffic signals, kitchen appliances, chairs and reflector lamps. “That’s impressive,” said township Supervisor Jay Anderson. “There’s...
Threatened loss of SNAP benefits weighs heavily on recipients
Amy Smidga says if she doesn’t receive her monthly SNAP benefit for purchasing food in November, it could sabotage her efforts to control her diabetes. “I get SNAP of $265,” she said. “It’s going to hurt me because it does help with what I need. Without the SNAP benefit, it’s...
Fetterman, McCormick back Senate-rejected plan to pay some federal workers during shutdown
Pennsylvania’s two U.S. senators — Republican Dave McCormick and Democrat John Fetterman — voted Thursday to pay some federal workers during the government shutdown, but the GOP measure failed to get enough support in the Senate. Democrats tried to push through a measure of their own that would have paid...
‘You gonna meet death, cuz’: Victim’s defiant words caught on video in Homewood slaying
A Braddock man filmed himself on a cellphone video accusing a “childhood friend” of plotting to “do something to me” moments before police say that friend fatally shot him outside a Pittsburgh bar last month. In six expletive-laced videos, Kevin Venson, 55, insulted and threatened Sean Carter on Sept. 12...
U.S. puts sanctions on 2 Russian oil companies as Moscow holds nuclear drills
The United States hit Russia’s major oil companies with sanctions on Wednesday and accused the Russians of a lack of commitment toward ending the war in Ukraine, as Moscow conducted a major training exercise involving nuclear arms. The new sanctions were introduced one day after plans for a summit between...
Deer Lakes School Board delays decision on relocating bus stop near sex offender’s home
Residents were left unimpressed Tuesday night after Deer Lakes School Board members voted to table a motion that would set a policy that would require all school bus stops to be at least 300 feet away from any Megan’s Law offender’s residence. The motion comes after state Rep. Jeremy Shaffer,...
Judge laments crimes he claims are linked to Hempfield casino as blackjack player is sentenced for having loaded gun
A Jeannette man will serve two years of probation for illegally possessing a loaded handgun while playing blackjack in a Westmoreland County casino. Kenneth J. Czarnecki, 26, pleaded guilty to one felony charge of carrying a firearm without a license while gambling at Live Casino Pittsburgh at Westmoreland Mall in...
