Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1422
More coronavirus cases found at Westmoreland Manor; county calls in National Guard to helpVideo
As coronavirus cases at Westmoreland Manor continue to rise, county commissioners on Thursday called in the Pennsylvania National Guard to take over testing of residents and staff at the county-owned nursing home. County officials said Thursday another 14 residents and four employees tested positive for the virus. That brings the...
New Kensington woman sues Pittsburgh police for wrongful arrest after mistaken identity
A New Kensington woman who said she was assaulted after being wrongfully arrested last year as a result of mistaken identity is suing the Pittsburgh police and the officer who filed the charges. Desiree Pinkston, 35, said in her federal complaint that Pittsburgh officer Morgan Logan, who was investigating a...
Pittsburgh school district will review, publicize school police arrest data
Pittsburgh Public Schools is taking new measures to analyze and address school police data. The district this week approved a proposal by Superintendent Anthony Hamlet to conduct an external investigation into data pertaining to school arrests, citations and out-of-school suspensions. The data will be sorted into characteristics like gender, race...
Pittsburgh hip-hop artist Mars Jackson talks new album, social justice, ways to ‘Look Up’
Pittsburgh hip-hop artist Mars Jackson has a knack for surprising people. He performed in art galleries, like Penn Avenue’s Most Wanted Fine Art, when clubs weren’t his style. Threads of soul, jazz and gospel are prominently displayed in his melodic brand of hip-hop music. He openly discusses the benefits of...
Rejecting Trump, both parties’ leaders see orderly electionVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power if he loses the election drew swift blowback Thursday from both parties in Congress, and lawmakers were already turning to unprecedented steps to ensure he can’t ignore the vote of the people. Congressional leaders, including Senate...
What are ‘naked ballots’ and why they could determine the presidential election outcome in Pa.
HARRISBURG — Democrats are launching a digital ad targeting Pennsylvanians voting by mail to explain how to correctly fill out and return the ballots, hoping to avert worried predictions that 100,000 votes or more could be invalidated because the ballots aren’t put in the proper envelope. The so-called naked ballots...
New poll shows Biden still leading, but little change in presidential race among Pennsylvania voters
Nearly a month into the official 2020 general election campaign, with their camps moving full steam ahead and frequent rallies in Pennsylvania, President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden have done little to move the needle among Keystone State voters, a new poll shows. A Franklin & Marshall College...
Hundreds march through Downtown Pittsburgh in wake of Louisville police decisionVideo
Hundreds of demonstrators marched through Downtown Pittsburgh on Wednesday night in honor of Breonna Taylor, to protest the lack of harsh charges against the Louisville officers involved in her killing and to amplify the voices of Black women. Organizers told the crowd, which formed at Freedom Corner in the Hill...
Pennsylvania colleges take a hit in undergraduate enrollment
A new national survey of fall college enrollment trends by the National Student Clearinghouse found the impact of covid-19 and a shrinking pool of new high school graduates has left its mark on Pennsylvania colleges. The survey based on preliminary numbers from about 22% of the nation’s colleges and universities,...
Leechburg Area students to return to face-to-face instruction Oct. 5
Leechburg Area School District students will return to face-to-face instruction Oct. 5. “I’m thrilled that the students are coming back,” Superintendent Tiffany Nix said. Students have been learning online exclusively since school started Sept 2. The original back-to-school plan approved in June offered students a choice of returning to school...
Louisville police say 2 officers shot, wounded amid protestVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville police say two officers have been shot amid protests in Louisville over a lack of charges in the Breonna Taylor case. Police say a suspect is in custody. Police Chief Robert Schroeder said one officer is alert and stable and the other officer is in surgery...
Trump won’t commit to peaceful transfer of power if he losesVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Wednesday again declined to commit to a peaceful transfer of power if he loses the Nov. 3 presidential election. “We’re going to have to see what happens,” Trump said at a news conference, responding to a question about whether he’d commit to a peaceful...
Community gathers to express support for Hempfield man diagnosed with rare diseaseVideo
More than 100 people gathered Wednesday evening at Hempfield Area High School as part of a rally for Eddie Coletta, a 1995 Hempfield graduate battling a rare disease. The high school marching band played “Sweet Caroline,” a nod to Coletta’s love for the University of Pittsburgh; cheerleaders chanted “Stay tough,...
County police: Baldwin couple charged with murder of their 1-year-old boy
A Baldwin couple has been charged with homicide and other crimes in connection with the death of their 1-year-old son. Thomas Snelsire and Tracy Humphreys, both 45, were charged Wednesday by Allegheny County Police with homicide, two counts of endangering the welfare of children, four counts of possession of controlled...
Ordered to close, Brentwood’s Crack’d Egg restaurant cracks back with lawsuit
A Brentwood restaurant ordered to close for failing to follow the governor’s orders to stop the spread of covid-19 sued Allegheny County and the health department on Wednesday, alleging civil rights violations. The owners of the Crack’d Egg, which opened in 2015 on Brownsville Road, were the subject of an...
Westmoreland prosecutors will seek death penalty for New Kensington man in 2-year-old’s death
Westmoreland County prosecutors will seek the death penalty against a New Kensington man charged with the fatal beating of his paramour’s 2-year-old son earlier this year. In court documents filed Wednesday, Assistant District Attorney Judy Petrush cited three aggravated circumstances that, if proved, warrant a sentence of death by lethal...
U.S. experts vow ‘no cutting corners’ as vaccine tests expandVideo
WASHINGTON — A huge international study of a covid-19 vaccine that aims to work with just one dose is getting underway as top U.S. health officials sought Wednesday to assure a skeptical Congress and public that they can trust any shots the government ultimately approves. Hopes are high that answers...
South Park man in prison for stealing $1.2M from church now charged with tax fraud
A man already serving five to 10 years in prison for stealing more than $1 million from an Upper St. Clair church was indicted by the federal government this week on tax fraud charges. David Reiter, 51, formerly of South Park, faces 16 counts of failing to pay taxes and...
Woman who claims Pittsburgh police used excessive force on her up for $40K settlement
Pittsburgh City Council is poised to approve a $40,000 settlement for a Trafford woman who claims she was assaulted by officers in her own home five years ago. Deborah Trzeciak, 60, filed a civil lawsuit against the city and five individual police officers in December, alleging excessive force and failure...
50,000 residents download Pennsylvania’s covid app in 24 hours
Pennsylvania’s new covid-19 contact tracing app has been downloaded by 50,000 people, Gov. Tom Wolf’s office said Wednesday. The mobile app, COVID Alert PA, was announced in August and officially launched Tuesday. The app notifies users if they have been exposed to covid-19 using Bluetooth technology. Without tracking identity or...
Pittsburgh Art Commission recommends removal of Columbus statue from Schenley Park
The Pittsburgh Art Commission unanimously recommended removal of the statue of Christopher Columbus that has been in Schenley Park for over 60 years. The recommendation, made during a Wednesday meeting of the commission, puts the issue before Mayor Bill Peduto, who will consider the issue and make a decision. The...
Baldwin couple wanted in connection with infant’s death turn themselves in to police
One month after a caseworker with Children, Youth and Families gave the all-clear on a Baldwin couple’s home, their 1-year-old infant was found dead from what police said Wednesday was a drug overdose. Thomas Humphreys was found dead in his parents’ Oakleaf Road home in Baldwin on Sept. 13. Investigators...
Gov. Wolf’s veto of House Bill 2787 stands as state House override falls short
To the dismay of many high school sports fans, Gov. Tom Wolf’s veto of House Bill 2787 will stand. The state House on Wednesday fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed to override Wolf’s veto with only 130 in favor of the override and 71 opposed. The House had...
Republicans seek to stay Pa. Supreme Court decision on ballot drop boxes and mail-in ballots
Top Republicans in Harrisburg have asked the state Supreme Court to stay part of its order allowing the use of ballot drop boxes and granting a three-day extension to count mail-in ballots while they appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. In an application filed Tuesday, the Republican lawmakers...
Louisville police officers not charged for killing Breonna TaylorVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Kentucky grand jury brought no charges against Louisville police for the killing of Breonna Taylor during a drug raid gone wrong, with prosecutors saying Wednesday that two officers who fired their weapons at the Black woman were justified in using force to protect themselves after they...
