Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1696
Magic word is ‘persevere,’ Super Soaker inventor tells Pittsburgh studentsVideo
There’s something satisfying about shooting a high-powered stream of water. Aside from firefighters, that feeling wasn’t readily available until Lonnie Johnson invented the Super Soaker toy water gun in the 1980s. Johnson, now 70, of Atlanta, invented the Cadillac of water guns accidentally, he said Thursday. He was at home...
WPIAL championship Saturday football facts and figures
The only numbers that count on championship Saturday are the final digits posted on the giant scoreboard at Heinz Field. But here are some numbers and historical facts that won’t mean a thing come kickoff time. Listen to all four title games on the TribLive High School Sports Network. •...
Sewickley woman pleads guilty to embezzling $8.7 million from Warrendale company
A Sewickley woman pleaded guilty to charges related to embezzling around $8.7 million from a Warrendale construction company, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Sue O’Neill, 55, admitted to wire fraud and filing false income tax returns charges that related to the embezzlement scheme while she was employed at Marco Contractors Inc....
New Kensington native Anthony Breznican recounts panic after California school shooting
New Kensington native and Santa Clarita writer Anthony Breznican had just dropped off his children at elementary school Thursday morning when he swung around and went back. There’d been a shooting. Not at his children’s school, but a high school nearby. When police officers who live in the neighborhood began...
Police: 2 teens shot in Carrick
Police are investigating a shooting that injured two teenage boys Thursday afternoon in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood, officials said. Officers responded to a report of shots fired near Westmont and Copperfield avenues shortly before 3:30 p.m., Pittsburgh Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said. They arrived to find two teens suffering from...
Pa. climate-related costs estimated at $261 million, according to auditor general
Climate change and the severe weather events becoming increasingly common because of it are posing a threat not only to the quality of life of taxpayers but also their wallets, state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said in a new report. Pennsylvania racked up an estimated $261 million statewide in climate-related...
Pelosi says Trump’s Ukraine actions amount to ‘bribery’
WASHINGTON — House Democrats are refining their impeachment case against the president to a simple allegation: Bribery. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday brushed aside the Latin phrase “quid pro quo” that Democrats have been using to describe President Donald Trump’s actions toward Ukraine. As the impeachment hearings go public,...
Train car derails, lands in creek in Fayette County
A train car derailed Thursday in Upper Tyrone, flipping off the track and landing in a small tributary of Jacobs Creek, according to Fayette County 911. No injuries were reported. An estimated few hundred gallons of a flammable industrial solvent, known as HF1000, leaked into the stream, according to Jim...
Witness: Allegheny County Controller Chelsa Wagner grappled with Detroit cop
DETROIT — A security guard testified Thursday that Allegheny County Controller Chelsa Wagner grappled with a Detroit police officer during an incident eight months ago at a hotel and warned him, “You don’t know who you’re messing with.” Wagner is accused of interfering with Detroit police officers March 6 as...
Police: Unity man sexually assaulted teen girl, bought her heroin
A Unity Township man was jailed Thursday on state police allegations that he sexually assaulted a teenage girl and bought her drugs. Michael Alan Rager, 33, is charged with statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, child endangerment, corruption of minors and indecent assault. The girl told police she was...
West Virginia woman caught with loaded gun at Pittsburgh International Airport
A West Virginia woman was stopped at a Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint Wednesday after the Transportation Security Administration discovered a loaded .380-caliber handgun in her carry-on. The gun was loaded with seven bullets, including one in the chamber, according to TSA. This was the 33rd firearm detected at Pittsburgh...
Review: Elton John wows Pittsburgh audience in farewell show
Elton John has seemingly been everywhere lately. Last summer his life story in movie form “Rocketman” hit theaters. Last month his autobiography “Me” landed on bookstore shelves. A big part of the book is John’s brutally frank descriptions of how substance abuse messed up his life. Wednesday night he was...
Convicted cop killer Rahmael Holt sentenced to deathVideo
A Westmoreland County jury sentenced convicted cop killer Rahmael Holt to death after deliberating for less than three hours Thursday afternoon. The same jury on Tuesday convicted Holt, 31, of shooting and killing New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw after an attempted traffic stop two years ago. “One year, 11...
2 dead in California high school attack; gunman shoots self
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. — A student gunman opened fire Thursday at a Southern California high school, killing two students, wounding three others and shooting himself in the head, authorities said. He was in grave condition. The shooting occurred around 7:30 a.m. at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, about 30...
Poll: Americans struggle to identify true facts
WASHINGTON — In a sharply divided country, here’s something many Americans agree on: It’s hard to know what’s a true and honest fact. A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USA Facts finds that regardless of political belief, many Americans say they have a...
NBC’s ‘Dateline’ to recount Blairsville dentist’s murder
The 2006 murder of Blairsville dentist John Yelenic will be recounted in the Friday installment of NBC’s “Dateline.” Titled “The Premonition,” the two-hour segment of the long-running investigative series will air at 9 p.m. Among those interviewed for the show is Janelle Lydic, a Blairsville police corporal who was among...
HUD: Homeless veteran numbers drop this year in Pennsylvania
Veteran homelessness in Pennsylvania dropped by nearly 13% in 2019, according to the annual Homeless Assessment Report by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Those numbers mirror the national trend, which HUD officials say continues to decline. “In Pennsylvania, we’ve made great strides over the years in our efforts...
Old dogs, new tricks: 10,000 pets needed for scienceVideo
SEATTLE — Can old dogs teach us new tricks? Scientists are looking for 10,000 pets for the largest-ever study of aging in canines. They hope to shed light on human longevity too. The project will collect a pile of pooch data: vet records, DNA samples, gut microbes and information on...
Fact check: GOP presses empty Ukraine meddling theory during impeachment hearingsVideo
WASHINGTON — Congressional Republicans pressed the discredited theory that Ukraine meddled in the 2016 U.S. election in defending President Donald Trump in Wednesday’s impeachment hearings. A look at some of the remarks in the House Intelligence Committee proceeding: REP. DEVIN NUNES, top Republican on the panel: “The Democrats cooperated in...
Despite female push, Garth Brooks bests Carrie Underwood at CMA AwardsVideo
The Country Music Association Awards almost fully honored and highlighted the women of country music — whose songs have been heavily dismissed on country radio over the years — until two words were uttered when they named its entertainer of the year: Garth Brooks. Wednesday night’s show kicked off with...
Police: 2 dead in Homewood shooting
Two people were fatally shot Wednesday night in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, according to police. The woman who died was Kierra Eddisha Harris, 26, of McKees Rocks, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said Thursday. The medical examiner said Harris died of gunshot wounds to the neck and chest. Her death...
As rockets rain down, Israel intensifies its strikes in Gaza
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli aircraft struck Islamic Jihad targets throughout the Gaza Strip on Wednesday while the militant group rained scores of rockets into Israel for a second straight day as the heaviest round of fighting in months showed no signs of ending. The death toll rose to...
Plum Town Center construction manager approved, borough plans moving forward
More pieces are falling into place for a proposed Plum municipal center. Council voted 5-0 Wednesday night to appoint Massaro Construction of O’Hara as the Plum Town Center’s construction manager at an estimated cost of $425,000. Councilmen John Anderson and Mike Pastor were absent. The project’s estimated cost is $12...
Allegheny County Council holding 2 budget hearings, no property tax hike next year
Allegheny County Council held the first of two public hearings on the proposed 2020 county budget Wednesday, reviewing sections of the budget including county administration, health and human services, public works, facilities management and the health department. The $1 billion budget was proposed by Chief Executive Rich Fitzgerald in October....
Greensburg Salem approves borrowing up to $13 million for repairs
The Greensburg Salem School Board on Wednesday approved issuing up to $13 million in bonds to pay for school repairs, but opponents said a new school board might counteract the measure early next year. The vote passed 6-3. Board members Charlotte Kemerer, Ron Mellinger, Nicholas Rullo, Rachel Shaw, Lynna Thomas...
