Top Stories category, Page 513
Legalizing marijuana could generate $255M in revenue for Pa., Gov. Shapiro says
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is hoping to capitalize on what he predicts would generate more than a quarter-billion dollars in revenue if the state legalizes adult-use marijuana. During his budget address Tuesday, he pointed to neighboring states Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland that have legalized recreational use...
Proposed power line route triggers concerns for residents in Derry, Ligonier townships
Gene Giernacky fears he may lose use of part of his rural 15-acre retirement property in Derry Township, while Mike Adams could face the prospect of seeing the timber he intends to use as a heat source for his neighboring home toppled by a utility company. They were among more...
Marianne Williamson suspends her presidential campaign, ending long-shot primary challenge to Biden
WASHINGTON — Self-help author and spiritual guru Marianne Williamson on Wednesday announced the end of her long-shot Democratic challenge to President Joe Biden. The 71-year-old onetime spiritual adviser to Oprah Winfrey contemplated suspending her campaign last month after winning just 5,000 votes in New Hampshire’s primary, writing that she “had...
Mom sues Pittsburgh Public Schools, Starbucks over daughter’s alleged rape during school hours
The mother of a Pittsburgh teen who claims her daughter was raped during the school day by three fellow Allderdice High School students at a nearby Starbucks has filed a lawsuit over the incident. The lawsuit, which includes claims for negligence, was filed Tuesday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court....
Animal welfare groups warn pausing city spay/neuter program will lead to more homeless cats
Jackie Cafaro works day and night to rescue cats left abandoned on Pittsburgh streets. She’s developed Catcalls Rescue, the nonprofit she co-founded in 2021, into an operation that saves, spays or neuters and puts up for adoption 40 to 60 cats a month — with the help of about 30...
South Fayette man heads to trial on charges he filmed sex with girl
A South Fayette man is headed to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court on charges that he had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl and used “multiple iPhones” to film the pair having sex, court records show. Matthew Alexander Trax, 24, allegedly had sex several times with the girl, including...
Coming soon: Salina Bridge to be replaced, part of historic span to be kept for posterity
Replacement of the historic Salina Bridge that connects Bell and Kiski townships will cost $33 million. The apparent low bidder for the project was Mekis Construction Corp. based in Fenelton, according to PennDOT. Project manager Troy Pritts said he expects construction to start by spring. The price tag includes additional...
Derry to consider 2-year pause before revisiting future of disbanded K-9 program
Derry council is expected to consider a two-year moratorium on any revival of the borough’s police dog program, which was disbanded in October following the August euthanization of its police dog, Smoke. In addition to the moratorium, council Tuesday will consider allowing a privately funded memorial stone for Smoke at...
Ex-Pittsburgh building inspector pleads guilty to accepting stove, fridge as bribes
A former City of Pittsburgh building inspector pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal bribery charge for soliciting over $5,400 in items from a developer. Walter Eiseman entered the plea in U.S. District Court before Judge Mark Hornak. Prosecutors said during the hearing that Eiseman, a city building inspector at the...
2 officers wounded by gunfire at a suburban Philadelphia home that is then gutted by fire
EAST LANSDOWNE — Two police officers were wounded Wednesday by gunfire at a suburban Philadelphia home that was later set on fire and consumed by the blaze, possibly with multiple people inside, authorities said. Officers from East Lansdowne, Lansdowne and Upper Darby responded to the house in East Lansdowne in...
‘We’re having buns of fun’: Oscar Mayer Wienermobile stops in RossVideo
The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile made a stop at the BJ’s Wholesale Club in Ross Township on Wednesday. The vehicle, which is famously shaped like a giant hot dog on a bun, drew a large crowd of people who wanted to get a peek inside the vehicle and get a...
Highlands varsity band boosters fear online scammer stealing craft show fees
Members of Highlands varsity band boosters fear that someone is running an online scam to collect craft show registration fees and defraud the group from its profits. “I’ve had a couple people call to let me know they’ve received emails to pay with PayPal,” said Desirae Dunmire, the boosters’ vice...
Drone strike in Baghdad kills high-ranking militia commander, officials say
BAGHDAD — A U.S. drone strike hit a car in the Iraqi capital Wednesday night, killing three members of the powerful Kataib Hezbollah militia, including a high-ranking commander, officials said. The strike came on a main thoroughfare in the Mashtal neighborhood in eastern Baghdad. A crowd gathered as emergency response...
Medical examiner rules the decapitation of a baby during delivery was a homicideVideo
ATLANTA — A medical examiner has classified the death of a Georgia couple’s baby that was decapitated during delivery as a homicide, their attorneys announced Wednesday. Treveon Taylor, Jr.’s parents have sued the hospital and the doctor who delivered him in July. Both denied any negligence. The Clayton County Medical...
Senate Republicans block bipartisan border package, scuttling deal they had demanded from Democrats
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans blocked a bipartisan border package Wednesday, scuttling months of negotiations with Democrats on legislation intended to cut back record numbers of illegal border crossings. Many Republicans said the election-year compromise wasn’t enough, even as supporters of the bill insisted it was the best possible in divided...
Black-owned 2C Premium blends success with specialty coffee
When her two children were young, Teresa Hunt was a single parent constantly on the go, shuffling them between sporting events and daily activities — and her constant companion was coffee. When her kids left home for college, she took advantage of her newfound free time. Now the founder of...
Netanyahu rejects Hamas’ demands, complicating efforts toward a cease-fire and hostage-releaseVideo
JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday rejected Hamas’ terms for a cease-fire and hostage-release agreement, vowing to continue the war until “absolute victory” and dismissing any arrangement that leaves the militant group in full or partial control of Gaza. Netanyahu’s remarks, made as U.S. Secretary of State...
NTSB sets date this month to determine probable cause of Fern Hollow Bridge collapse
The National Transportation Safety Board will meet later this month to determine the probable cause of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse. The 447-foot-long span collapsed in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park the morning of Jan. 28, 2022. Six vehicles, including a Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus, fell into the ravine below, injuring several...
Missing Marine Corps helicopter carrying 5 troops from Nevada to California has been locatedVideo
SAN DIEGO — A Marine Corps helicopter that had been missing with five troops aboard as an historic storm continued drenching California was found Wednesday morning in a mountainous area outside San Diego. The aircraft was located just after 9 a.m. by civil authorities near the mountain community of Pine...
Tim Benz: Duquesne players, staff rally around Keith Dambrot during his wife’s cancer battle
Duquesne point guard Kareem Rozier said he could see the strain affecting his head coach after the team’s win Wednesday against Chicago State. “Right after the game, you could tell he was hurt,” Rozier said. “He knew what he had going on the next couple of days with his wife....
Pa. woman says voices told her to kill 5-year-old son, police say
A Cambria County woman is in prison after police say she killed her 5-year-old son. Cambria County coroner Jeff Lees ruled that the death of Samson Bowser was a homicide and caused by asphyxia due to “compression of the chest and obstruction of the airway,” WJAC reported. Police and EMS...
Trump’s presidential bid hangs in the balance at the Supreme Court. Here’s what to know
WASHINGTON — The fate of former President Donald Trump’s attempt to return to the White House is in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court. On Thursday, the justices will hear arguments in Trump’s appeal of a Colorado Supreme Court ruling that he is not eligible to run again for...
Social media platform Bluesky takes aim at Elon Musk’s X
The social media platform Bluesky has opened to the public and could compete with X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, and Meta’s Threads. Bluesky offers users a place to post texts and images that show up on a feed — similar to the interface of X and Threads. The...
Morning Roundup: Brentwood shooting suspect arrested; Carnegie man sentenced for sexually assaulting children
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Feb. 7: Brentwood shooting suspect arrested Police have arrested a man they believe was involved in a shooting last week in Brentwood. Joseph Luman, 45, was arrested by Pittsburgh police with help from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task...
Harbor Freight, Starbucks approved as latest additions to booming New Kensington corridor
Plans for more development along New Kensington’s Tarentum Bridge Road commercial district have been approved. City council on Monday unanimously approved three resolutions related to the construction of a Harbor Freight tools store and a Starbucks cafe in Riverview Plaza. Their construction follows a new Aldi grocery store, which opened...
