Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1781
Peduto, Moms Demand Action founder call for passage of gun lawsVideo
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto on Tuesday called for Congress and the Pennsylvania General Assembly to pass gun regulations — including a ban on military-style rifles — within 30 days. Standing with Shannon Watts, founder of the anti-violence group Moms Demand Action, Peduto said such action is long overdue, citing the...
New Stanton robbery suspect accused of spitting in jail guard’s face
A New Stanton man arrested in connection with a robbery spree last month was charged Tuesday for allegedly spitting in a guard’s face at the Westmoreland County Prison. Westmoreland County detectives said Anthony David Gillingham Jr., 31, spit in the male guard’s face when he was denied an extra blanket...
Ross fires officer charged with illegally using police computers
Ross commissioners Monday fired a township police officer charged with illegally using department computers to search internal files. Following a nearly two-hour closed-door session during its Aug. 5 meeting, the board voted 5-4 to terminate Officer Mark Sullivan, 39, an eight-year veteran of the Ross police department. Sullivan was charged...
Woman says Ohio gunman showed her Tree of Life shooting video on 1st date
An ex-girlfriend of the man who killed nine people in Dayton, Ohio, says he showed her a video of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting on their first date. Adelia Johnson said in an email to The Associated Press that she doesn’t know what would have caused him to open fire outside...
Pittsburgh Restaurant Week expands far and wide for summer edition
Turn off the oven, unplug the slow cooker and close the lid on the grill: It’s time to celebrate the Summer 2019 edition of Pittsburgh Restaurant Week. Brian McCollum, director of Pittsburgh Restaurant Week, has cooked up a lot of deals for what he calls the “most delicious time of...
Nobel laureate Toni Morrison dead at 88
NEW YORK — Nobel laureate Toni Morrison, a pioneer and reigning giant of modern literature whose imaginative power in “Beloved,” ”Song of Solomon” and other works transformed American letters by dramatizing the pursuit of freedom within the boundaries of race, has died at age 88. Publisher Alfred A. Knopf announced...
The Apple credit card is here
NEW YORK — The Apple credit card designed primarily for mobile use is here. Some iPhone users who requested a notification about Apple Card will get invites Tuesday to apply through Apple’s Wallet app. The company plans to expand sign-ups more broadly in coming weeks. The card, announced in March...
Trump’s America: Where politics dictate ‘racism’ definition
ERIE — It was the last morning of the workweek, and Scott Bremner, a popular talk-radio host, found himself — again — in the role of accidental referee on the issue of race. And again, the discussion was inspired by racial provocations from President Donald Trump. For one caller, critics...
Hundreds hold vigil at NRA headquarters for shooting victims
FAIRFAX, Va. — Hundreds of people held vigil outside the National Rifle Association’s headquarters in Virginia for the dozens slain in mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. Gun control groups including March for Our Lives organized Monday’s “Vigil for Remembrance and Change,” which sought to honor the...
Charles Manson prosecutor: Keep them all locked up forever
LOS ANGELES — Stephen Kay was a fresh-faced prosecutor just 27 years old and three years out of law school when circumstances handed him the Charles Manson “family” murder case. Over the next half-century, it would come to define his career and lead to death threats that to this day...
Woman arrested after police find guns, drugs in Duquesne home
Duquesne police seized more than 800 bags of heroin and two guns while serving a search warrant Monday night in Duquesne. Police said they arrested Tosha Daniel Cunningham, 40, after executing the warrant at her home along Lincoln Avenue. Cunningham allegedly told officers that neither the drugs nor guns were...
2 hurt when boat becomes trapped under barge on Ohio River
A man and a woman were hurt when their boat became trapped underneath a barge that was being towed by a tug boat on the Ohio River early Tuesday morning, according to Pittsburgh public safety officials. The incident was reported around 12:15 a.m. in the area below the Point and...
Sunburn tattoos? Don’t put your skin at risk, dermatologists sayVideo
Even if it’s not a good idea, somebody is bound to try it. Witness this summer’s social media buzz around “sunburn tattoos.” To create sunburn tattoos, tanners cover a portion of skin with a decal, stencil or sunscreen and then head out into the sun with the rest of their...
New Kensington swears in police dog honoring slain Officer Brian ShawVideo
New Kensington Mayor Tom Guzzo swore in the newest member of the city’s police force Monday evening — after the new recruit was done scratching. Deuce, an almost 2-year-old Belgian Malinois, was acquired with the help of slain police Officer Brian Shaw’s family. His parents, Stephan and Lisa Shaw, and...
Kennametal says ‘softening markets’ hurt quarterly sales, earnings
Kennametal Inc. saw sales, net income and earnings per share drop as a result of softening of its markets during the fourth quarter that ended June 30 compared to a year ago, but it still posted increases in sales, net income and earnings for the 2019 fiscal year, the company...
Nick Cumer, Dayton shooting victim from Western Pa., was ‘someone we all could look up to’
Nick Cumer spent many long days and nights at Washington High School polishing his craft on the trombone. But, when he enrolled as a freshman at Saint Francis University, Cumer was told that the Cambria County school’s newly forming band had enough trombone players. What they needed was someone who...
What you do when a shooter strikes could save or cost you your life
The median police response time to an active shooting incident is three minutes, according to FBI statistics. While fast by law enforcement standards, potential victims are essentially on their own in those first critical minutes. “Most of the violence is over in less than five minutes,” said J. Pete Blair,...
Mitch McConnell campaign blasted for photos of tombstones for political foesVideo
It is not a good look for Team Mitch. The Mitch McConnell campaign tweeted an image during the weekend of a mock graveyard with the names on tombstones of the Senate majority leader’s political opponents. And the timing could not be worse. Two mass shootings where more than 30 people...
Bloody weekend renews hope of passing new gun control measures in D.C., Pennsylvania
A weekend of bloodshed, bookended by mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, may have moved the needle on gun control measures. U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, says he is optimistic the bill he and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., first partnered on in 2013 to expand background...
Safe2Say fields tips, puts focus on mental health services for students
Between Westmoreland and Allegheny counties, almost 3,240 calls were reported through Pennsylvania’s Safe2Say Something Program, a 24-hour tipline that allows students, parents and teachers to anonymously report something suspicious online or from a person who poses a threat to themselves or others. According to a report released by Pennsylvania Attorney...
Stocks suffer worst rout of year as China escalates trade warVideo
NEW YORK — stocks plunged to their worst loss of the year Monday and investors around the world scrambled to sell on worries about how much President Trump’s worsening trade war will damage the global economy. China let its currency, the yuan, drop to its lowest level against the dollar...
Pittsburgh has stepped up security for large events, festivals in wake of mass shootingsVideo
Pittsburgh has stepped up security for large events and festivals in wake of mass shootings in Pittsburgh and across the country, Mayor Bill Peduto said Monday. Peduto said a Public Safety Department team now reviews all permits for large events to determine the best positions for police officers in and...
Mark Madden: These Steelers could benefit from Hall of Fame expansion
In 2020, the Pro Football Hall of Fame will induct a one-time-only class of 20 new members to commemorate the NFL’s 100th anniversary. Ten senior-era players will be included. Nine players from the Steelers’ dynasty in the 1970s are enshrined in Canton. Does this decision open the door for more?...
Peduto steps up personal security amid death threats over Pittsburgh gun bills
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto said he’s been threatened with death and challenged to fistfights since the passage of controversial gun legislation that would limit the use of some firearms, ammunition and accessories in the city. Peduto said his bodyguard, a Pittsburgh police officer, now accompanies him to functions at night...
Body found after person reportedly jumped into Yough River after crash on I-70
A body was discovered in the Youghiogheny River on Monday afternoon after rescuers responded to a report of a person jumping into the river following a crash on Interstate 70, according to a Westmoreland County dispatcher. The crash was reported at 2:40 p.m. on the westbound side of the highway,...
