Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1691
Court ponders discipline against Penn State case prosecutor Frank Fina
HARRISBURG — A lawyer for the agency that investigates misconduct by Pennsylvania lawyers says a yearlong law license suspension is justified against one of the primary prosecutors in Jerry Sandusky’s 2012 child molestation trial. Amelia Kittredge with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel argued Wednesday in favor of the punishment against...
Rudy Giuliani attacks GOP impeachment lawyer after Sondland testimony
NEW YORK — Rudy Giuliani defended himself against damaging allegations in the impeachment inquiry by attacking his own side. After Gordon Sondland, ambassador to the European Union, threw him under the impeachment bus in blistering testimony Wednesday, Giuliani lashed out in real time against the GOP counsel co-running the hearing,...
Mickey the macaroni penguin celebrates 35th birthday at Pittsburgh zooVideo
Mickey the macaroni penguin is doing Yankee Doodle dandy. At 35 years old, she is said to be among the oldest penguins living in captivity in the United States. She celebrated her milestone birthday at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium on Wednesday, making loud trumpet calls and pecking at...
Latrobe woman lived long enough to see her Christmas sleigh wish fulfilled
Rita Ruffner was all about Christmas, so much so that she wanted her son, a former Hollywood set designer, to make a Santa’s sleigh for her front yard. Jeffrey Michaels, 51, of Las Vegas started work on the sleigh this summer. He finished days before his mother’s 80th birthday Oct....
Chelsa Wagner acquitted of disturbing peace, jury hung on felony charge
A jury Wednesday found Allegheny County Controller Chelsa Wagner not guilty of disturbing the peace during a confrontation with Detroit police but could not reach a verdict on a more serious charge of resisting and obstructing officers. Wagner was accused of interfering with Detroit police March 6 as they prepared...
Police: Armed robbery in Beechview leads to standoff in Mt. Oliver; suspect in custody
An armed man who police believe robbed a discount store in Beechview at about noon Wednesday was taken into custody after a short standoff in Mt. Oliver Borough, a Pittsburgh police spokesman said. The standoff closed a section of Brownsville Road for about an hour, according to Pittsburgh Public Safety...
Prince Andrew to step back from public dutiesVideo
LONDON — Britain’s Prince Andrew said Wednesday he is stepping back from public duties with the queen’s permission. Andrew said it has become clear to him in recent days that his association with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has become a “major distraction” to the royal family’s work....
Trump directed Ukraine quid pro quo, key witness Ambassador Sondland saysVideo
WASHINGTON — Ambassador Gordon Sondland declared to impeachment investigators Wednesday that President Donald Trump and his lawyer Rudy Giuliani explicitly sought a “quid pro quo” with Ukraine, leveraging an Oval Office visit for political investigations of Democrats. But he also came to believe the trade involved much more. Besides the...
Former altar boys sue Pittsburgh diocese alleging years of sexual abuse
Two former altar boys have accused a priest of almost daily sexual abuse for more than three years in the 1980s, according to a 27-page lawsuit filed against the Diocese of Pittsburgh, Bishop David A. Zubik and St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in McDonald. The diocese has yet to be served...
Beer here! Brentwood Distributing launches online beer delivery services
Since 1956, the Dangelo family has delivered beer to bars, restaurants, hotels and other businesses throughout the Pittsburgh region. Thanks to modern technology, they’ve expanded their reach to include all of Pennsylvania. In June, the Dangelos’ wholesale company, Brentwood Distributing, launched Beverages2U. People across the state can now use the...
Search on in Hempfield for bike-pedaling bank robberVideo
A search is on for a man police say robbed a Hempfield bank Wednesday before making his escape by pedaling a bicycle up Walton Tea Room Road. The robbery happened at 9:22 a.m. at CFS Bank, less than half a mile from Hempfield Area High School. State police temporarily locked...
New acts rule Grammys as Lizzo, Lil Nas X, Billie Eilish lead nominationsVideo
The Grammys are screaming “Cuz I Love You” to Lizzo: The breakthrough singer-rapper scored a whopping eight nominations, including bids for the top four awards, making her the show’s top-nominated act. Lizzo picked up nominations for album of the year with her major-label debut, “Cuz I Love You”; song and...
2 million lights shine at Kennywood holiday attractionVideo
Kennywood Park visitors will immediately see the lights — tunnel of brightly colored, pulsating LED bulbs. There are 15,000 strung on three miles of aircraft cable at the West Mifflin amusement park. They shine like a prism and can be configured in 9,000 ways via a computer program. It’s the...
Suspect in Carrick double shooting arrested
The Allegheny County Fugitive Task Force arrested a man charged with shooting two teenagers in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood, according to the Pittsburgh Department of Public Safety. Cody Smith, 23, of Pittsburgh is charged with two counts each of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, robbery and recklessly endangering another person. Smith allegedly...
IronRock Tap House proprietors promise ‘cool, hip’ vibe in HempfieldVideo
When IronRock Tap House goes “live” next month, diners can expect to enjoy food prepared in a “scratch” kitchen, sourced as locally as possible, along with superior customer service, its owners say. Proprietors Greg and Christina Cammerata of Murrysville believe the location in front of Westmoreland Mall is a prime...
Rising sea levels are swallowing Outer Banks beaches, new report says
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Hurricanes aren’t the only hazard lapping at the shores of the Outer Banks, according to a report examining the threat of climate change on some of the country’s most beloved natural landscapes. Thanks to creeping sea levels and erosion rates, Cape Hatteras National Seashore made the list....
GOP-requested witness rejects Trump ‘conspiracy theories’Video
WASHINGTON — Sought by Republicans to testify, the former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine spoke up instead for Democrat Joe Biden in Tuesday’s impeachment hearings, rejecting “conspiracy theories” embraced by President Donald Trump and some of his allies. Kurt Volker said he has known Biden as an honorable man for...
Suspect in deadly Wilkinsburg home invasion identified
A Pittsburgh man is accused of homicide and other crimes in connection with a deadly home invasion in Wilkinsburg last week. Allegheny County police issued an arrest warrant for Brandon Franklin, 22. He’s wanted for allegedly killing a 42-year-old man at a home along Woodlawn Avenue on Nov. 14. The...
Police arrest teen girl in connection to fatal shooting of Pittsburgh man
Police arrested a 17-year-old Brighton Heights girl on Tuesday in connection with the robbery-related death of a Pittsburgh man, officials said. Shayla Johnson — who also has ties to McKeesport and Duquesne — is a suspect in the murder of Julian Carpenter. She was arrested in Homewood and booked into...
Police arrest accused of robbing North Shore PNC Bank
Pittsburgh have arrested a man suspected of holding up a PNC Bank on Pittsburgh’s North Shore. Authorities issued an arrest warrant for Jarrett Jones, 30, in connection with the Nov. 8 robbery of the PNC Bank branch on Federal Street alongside PNC Park, Pittsburgh public safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said....
Police: Oakmont native confessed to killing Bethel Park woman in Nevada
An Oakmont native who confessed to killing a Bethel Park woman in the Nevada desert two months ago will remain in Allegheny County Jail without bail, a judge ruled Tuesday. But John Matthew Chapman, 39, of Oakland, Md., has yet to be charged with the death of Jaime Mae Feden,...
Why former Pirates star Andrew McCutchen stays involved with PittsburghVideo
On a dreary Tuesday, on the sixth floor of UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, a roomful of young patients were busy working on a variety of different art projects. The children, inpatients at the hospital, visit regularly as part of what’s referred to as art therapy. The energy level in...
Pittsburgh receives perfect score for LGBTQ protections
Pittsburgh got a perfect score on the annual Municipality Equality Index Scorecard (MEI) on Tuesday, a report from the Human Rights Campaign that rates cities on their inclusivity of LGBTQ communities. The report bases scores on the existence of LGBTQ protections by city government, including non-discrimination laws, services and programs,...
Western Pa. lawmakers fight Gov. Wolf on Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
A group of lawmakers from Western Pennsylvania is challenging Gov. Tom Wolf’s effort to make Pennsylvania a member of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), saying the resulting carbon tax will hurt the state’s energy sector and consumers. The legislators said Tuesday that Wolf does not have the authority to...
Food giveaway helps feed 400 families in Pittsburgh’s West EndVideo
Robin Matthews didn’t think she would have Thanksgiving this year. She suffered a heart attack and had surgery in October. Her fiancee died of a heart attack the same month. A fire last week caused heavy damage to her Sheraden home. “I have nothing,” Matthews, 61, said. “My second floor...
