Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 907
North Huntingdon nursing home workers go on strike
Nursing home workers at The Grove in North Huntingdon walked off the job Friday and onto the picket line, demanding better pay, benefits and conditions for the residents. “We want better wages and more affordable health care (insurance) premiums,” said Shannon McBride, president of the local Services Employees International Union...
U.S. hiring slows as employers add a still-solid 315,000 jobs
WASHINGTON — America’s employers slowed their hiring in August in the face of rising interest rates, high inflation and sluggish consumer spending but still added 315,000 jobs. The government reported Friday that last month’s job gain was down from 526,000 in July and below the average gain of the previous...
Trump search inventory released, reveals new details on docs
WASHINGTON — FBI agents who searched former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month found top secret records in an office and storage room, along with empty folders with classified banners on them and more than 10,000 government records without any classification markings at all, according to a more detailed...
Daycation destination: Coshocton, Ohio, America’s canal town
Coshocton, Ohio, is less than a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Pittsburgh, located between Columbus and Canton in the Ohio Valley foothills. And it’s the perfect place to take a “daycation.” Explore lush gardens and tour historic Civil War-era architecture in the once-booming port along the Ohio and Erie Canal. The first...
4-year-old accidentally shot by grandmother inside Pa. home
A 4-year-old boy was accidentally shot in the stomach by his grandmother Thursday, according to a report from WPVI. It happened around 8:30 p.m. on the unit block of East Penn Street in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. According to WPVI, the grandmother owns the gun and has a valid...
Wendy Bell talks with Trump: Pardons promised to Jan. 6 rioters
In an interview Thursday with conservative Pittsburgh broadcaster Wendy Bell, former President Donald Trump said — if he becomes president again — he would issue full pardons and an apology to rioters involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. “We’ll be looking very, very seriously at...
Pittsburgh woman arrested in fatal East Hills shooting
Pittsburgh police have arrested a Pittsburgh woman in the fatal shooting of a man late Thursday in the city’s East Hills neighborhood. Toddia Smiley, 25, is charged with criminal homicide and tampering with evidence in the death of Damien Jackson, 29, of Homestead. Officers responded around 10:45 p.m. and found...
Authorities identify man fatally shot by Pittsburgh Police officer
A Pittsburgh police officer assisting in the search for a missing woman shot and killed a man who authorities say answered the door with a gun in his hand in the city’s Westwood neighborhood. Brian Fisher, 43, was pronounced dead at the Rydal Street home where he’d answered the door....
Doug Mastriano sues Jan. 6 committee over deposition authority
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s Republican nominee for governor on Thursday sued the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, contesting its legal ability to force him to answer questions about it. The lawsuit filed by Doug Mastriano contends that the committee lacks appointees of House Minority...
Jan. 6 panel asks former Speaker Newt Gingrich for information
WASHINGTON — The House panel investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection is seeking information from former House Speaker Newt Gingrich about his communications with senior advisers to then-President Donald Trump in the days leading up to the 2021 attack on the Capitol. The committee’s chairman, Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, wrote in...
Electrical fire damages Vandergrift family’s home
A Vandergrift family of six is out of their home after it was damaged by fire Thursday. The fire at 429 Walnut St., a two-story house at the corner of Walnut and Irving streets, was reported about 4:30 p.m., a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher said. Firefighters from several volunteer companies...
Ginni Thomas emails urged lawmakers to overturn Biden’s win in Wisconsin
MADISON, Wis. — The wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas contacted at least two Wisconsin state lawmakers, including the chair of the Senate elections committee, urging them to overturn President Joe Biden’s 2020 election win in the tightly contested state, emails obtained Thursday by The Associated Press show....
Fans celebrate long-waited return of Backyard Brawl
Pitt and West Virginia fans waited over a decade for the return of the Backyard Brawl, and they weren’t going to wait another minute longer to start partying in the Acrisure Stadium parking lots. There was a line of traffic to get into the stadium parking lots well before they...
Ex-NYPD officer Thomas Webster gets 10 years in prison for Jan. 6 attack
WASHINGTON — A retired New York Police Department officer was sentenced on Thursday to 10 years in prison for attacking the U.S. Capitol and using a metal flagpole to assault one of the police officers trying to hold off a mob of Donald Trump supporters. Thomas Webster’s prison sentence is...
Defense in Tree of Life case wants to know jurors’ religious affiliation
Attorneys for the man accused of killing 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill nearly four years ago want permission to ask potential jurors about their religious affiliation. In a motion filed this week in federal court, attorneys for Robert Bowers asked that either they or...
2 flown by medical helicopter after multi-vehicle crash in Fayette County
Two people were flown by medical helicopter for treatment at a trauma center as a result of a crash Thursday afternoon in Fayette County. The wreck involving four vehicles was reported shortly before 2:30 p.m. on Route 51, near Quaker Church Road in Perryopolis, according to a Fayette County 911...
McKeesport man accused of shaking infant son, causing severe injuries
A McKeesport man who police said was exasperated with his crying infant son and frustrated that he had to look after him is accused of shaking the infant so hard that his brain bled. A criminal complaint filed Wednesday said Michael Barber, 29, gave witnesses and police several different explanations...
Swindell Bridge on Pittsburgh’s North Side to reopen to traffic
Pittsburgh officials announced that Swindell Bridge in Pittsburgh’s North Side was reopening to all traffic Thursday. The bridge was closed on July 1 because of debris falling from the underside of the span. The bridge connects Northview Heights with Perry South over Interstate 279. Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure...
Civil trial seeking $5M to start in case of West Mifflin football player concussed during practice
Shane Skillpa said he was 16 when he suffered a concussion during a summer football practice at West Mifflin High School in 2009. Although he “saw stars” and was dazed and confused, Skillpa claims his coaches had him return to practice. Skillpa said he began exhibiting common concussion symptoms days...
Truck driver averts serious injury after colliding with freight train in Brackenridge
The driver of a box truck escaped serious injury when the vehicle collided with a freight train while making a turn to cross railroad tracks in Brackenridge. The crash was reported at 12:05 p.m. involving a northbound Norfolk Southern train and a vehicle from YRC Freight, which has a depot...
Man gets federal prison for detonating IED in Lawrenceville
A man accused of throwing an improvised explosive device onto a Lawrenceville street last year did not set out to hurt anyone, his attorney said, but was most likely carrying out a “drug-fueled, ill-conceived prank.” Charles Baker, 35, of Lawrenceville, pleaded guilty Thursday to three federal counts, including possession of...
U.S. advisers endorse updated covid shots for fall boosters
U.S. health advisers on Thursday endorsed new covid-19 boosters that target today’s most common omicron strains, saying if enough people roll up their sleeves, the updated shots could blunt a winter surge. The tweaked shots made by Pfizer and rival Moderna promise Americans a chance at their most up-to-date protection...
Twitter readies edit feature for premium users
Permanently misspelled tweets might soon be a thing of the past. Twitter said Thursday it will roll out an editing feature to subscribers of its premium Twitter Blue service later this month. In an update on its plans to introduce an edit button, the social media company said it has...
Decline in gas prices continuing into Labor Day weekend, price tracking service says
Going into the Labor Day weekend, which many mark as the traditional end of summer, gasoline prices are expected to be the lowest since March 3 and 20% less than July 4, price tracking service GasBuddy said. According to GasBuddy, prices this holiday weekend will continue to fall slightly from...
Police academy classes could help address Pittsburgh police staffing concerns
After some Pittsburgh City Council members raised concerns Wednesday about the dwindling number of officers in the city’s police bureau, Mayor Ed Gainey announced two new police academy classes are planned. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police now has 852 officers, according to Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz. She said the...
