Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1136
‘Soul-crushing’: U.S. covid-19 deaths are topping 1,900 a dayVideo
Covid-19 deaths in the U.S. have climbed to an average of more than 1,900 a day for the first time since early March, with experts saying the virus is preying largely on a distinct group: 71 million unvaccinated Americans. The increasingly lethal turn has filled hospitals, complicated the start of...
Pa. health leaders ready covid boosters for 65 and older population
Pennsylvania health officials on Tuesday pledged that covid-19 vaccine providers would be ready when federal guidance on potential booster shots comes down, something that is expected to come Thursday. An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration last week issued a narrow recommendation in terms of which Americans should...
Options shrink for Haitian migrants straddling Texas borderVideo
DEL RIO, Texas — Options narrowed Tuesday for thousands of Haitian migrants straddling the Mexico-Texas border as the United States government ramped up expulsion flights to Haiti, and Mexico began flying and busing some away from the border. Dozens of migrants upset about being deported to Haiti tried to rush...
Warden pauses militaristic training at Allegheny County Jail after board voteVideo
Allegheny County Jail Warden Orlando Harper on Tuesday said that he has “paused” controversial militaristic training at the facility being offered by Joseph Garcia and his company, Corrections Special Applications Unit — a day after the Jail Oversight Board voted to cancel a no-bid contract with them. Harper said at...
Steelers’ JuJu Smith-Schuster learns to sign during school for deaf visitVideo
Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster learned something at The Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf in Edgewood on Tuesday. Students in one of the classrooms showed him how to sign the words “defense,” “special teams” and, of course, “offense.” During his surprise visit to the school, he interacted with elementary,...
Arnold woman to stand trial for supplying heroin in 2020 overdose death in Lower Burrell
An Arnold woman will stand trial on charges of selling heroin last spring to a Lower Burrell woman who overdosed and died. Sentrilla A. McDonald, 41, of Victoria Avenue, waived her right to a preliminary hearing Tuesday before District Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec in connection with the May 4, 2020,...
Pittsburgh man indicted in connection with New York torture-murder case
A grand jury in New York this week indicted a Pittsburgh teenager in connection with the gruesome kidnapping, torture and murder of a man found dead earlier this year in rural Potter County. Malik Weems, 18, was indicted alongside two New York men on charges of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping...
Gateway School Board adjourns meeting after confrontation among audience members over masks
Gateway School Board members walked off stage before their scheduled meeting Monday night when several people in the audience argued over a mask mandate. Before the meeting, the crowd was reminded of the state mandate to wear a mask in Pennsylvania school buildings. A few in attendance pushed back, with...
Greensburg council hires consultant for comprehensive plan
A Pittsburgh-based company will help Greensburg city leaders update their 14-year-old comprehensive plan. Environmental Planning and Design, which is working with the city to renovate Spring Avenue Park in the 5th Ward, was unanimously hired as a consultant by city council last week at a cost not to exceed $149,910....
Johnson & Johnson: Booster dose of its covid shot prompts strong response
LONDON — Johnson & Johnson released data showing that a booster dose to its one-shot coronavirus vaccine provides a strong immune response months after people receive a first dose. J&J said in statement Tuesday that it ran two early studies in people previously given its vaccine and found that a...
Ohio man arrested after high-speed chase on Pennsylvania Turnpike
An Ohio man was arrested after a high-speed pursuit on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Somerset County on Sunday, state police said. State police said a trooper attempted to stop Kung’u Celli Njung’e, 26, of Trotwood, Ohio, for multiple traffic violations. He refused to pull over and a high-speed pursuit began....
Deer Lakes kindergartner inspires community while battling brain cancer
When Sara Latronica told her son, Noah, he had brain cancer, he didn’t understand it was not a common disease. She remembers him asking every person he encountered if they had cancer. “We had to tell him that he had something rare,” she said. The 5-year-old was diagnosed with brain...
Robots to deliver books, medicine, food to Pittsburgh neighborhoods
Residents in some Pittsburgh neighborhoods will be seeing a new wave of delivery service bringing food, books and medicine, all without human delivery drivers. The city is teaming up with the company Kiwibot for a pilot program that will collaborate with local businesses to provide free and equitable deliveries. Kiwibot...
Perry County man charged with felony, jailed on $50k cash bond for 43-cent ‘theft’
Joseph Sobolewski stopped at a convenience store in Perry County last month where he saw a sign for 20-ounce Mountain Dew bottles: 2 for $3. He grabbed a bottle, slapped $2 on the counter and walked out. What he didn’t know was a single bottle was $2.29, not $1.50. So...
Hempfield school directors consider joining lawsuits against school mask mandate
Members of the Hempfield Area School Board are considering whether to join a lawsuit or file their own against a mask mandate issued by the state earlier this month. In a 7-1 vote Monday night, board members directed Solicitor Michael Korns to gather information regarding already filed suits that are...
Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board votes to end contract with controversial training company
The Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board on Monday night voted to cancel a controversial contract with a corrections special operations group whose founder’s background raised significant questions about his history and qualifications. The vote was 4-3 with one abstention to cancel a $347,000 contract for training and weaponry with Corrections...
Hempfield, Highlands students face consequences for ‘Devious Licks’ TikTok challenge
A national social media trend to plunder school restrooms has made its way to at least two more Western Pennsylvania school districts, officials at Hempfield Area and Highlands school districts reported. The “Devious Licks” TikTok challenge dares children to vandalize schools — in most cases, bathrooms — and nab items...
Kinloch neighbors say Saturday’s triple shooting out of character for Lower Burrell
Teddy Hare has lived most of his his life in a home along Pittsburgh Street in Lower Burrell that’s in eyesight of the Kinloch fire hall. When he spotted police lights in the club’s parking lot on Saturday evening, he assumed it was just another speeding driver who got pulled...
Cafeteria worker faces charges for bringing gun to Pittsburgh elementary school
A Pittsburgh Public Schools employee was arrested after bringing a gun to Grandview Elementary in the city’s Allentown neighborhood on Monday, school officials confirmed. “While the employee does have a license to carry a firearm, they are not permitted on school grounds,” said district spokeswomen Ebony Pugh. The employee, a...
Pittsburgh pediatrician hopes ‘a lot of kids’ get vaccinated by HalloweenVideo
Parents eager to get children under 12 vaccinated for covid-19 received some encouraging news Monday. Pfizer announced its covid-19 vaccine works for children 5 to 11 and that it will apply to the Food and Drug Administration by the end of the month for emergency use in that age group....
Portion of Center Road to be closed for 28 days in October
A portion of Center Road in Plum, near the Monroeville border, will be closed for a 28-day period at the beginning of October. Plum Contracting Inc., along with the PA Turnpike Commission, will implement a 28-day detour of Center Road, effective Oct. 1. The purpose of the closure will be...
Supreme Court sets arguments in big abortion case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear arguments Dec. 1 in Mississippi’s bid to have the landmark Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing a woman’s right to an abortion overturned. The court issued its arguments calendar for late November and early December on Monday. Mississippi is asking the high court to...
Stocks drop the most since May on worries over China, Fed
Stocks on Wall Street closed sharply lower Monday, mirroring losses overseas and handing the S&P 500 index its biggest drop in four months. Worries about debt-engorged Chinese property developers — and the damage they could do to investors worldwide if they default — rippled across markets. Investors are also concerned...
$7.1 million deposited in fund to revitalize Pittsburgh’s Hill District
A $7.1 million infusion of cash has been deposited into a fund that aims to revitalize Pittsburgh’s Hill District neighborhood, the city announced Monday. The money is now in the Greater Hill District Neighborhood Reinvestment Fund. Administered by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the fund will make grants for development projects...
Former Pittsburgh Public Schools principal faces $750 fine for state ethics violations
A former Pittsburgh Public Schools principal is facing a $750 fine from the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission for failing to complete statements of financial interests between 2016 and 2018. Deonne M. Arrington has until Oct. 17 to pay the civil penalty, the commission said when it released its findings Friday....
