Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 1899
Woman buys out Payless shoe store for Nebraska flood victims
HAYS, Kan. — A Kansas woman donated 204 pairs of shoes to Nebraska flood victims after buying everything that was left at a closing Payless store. The Hays Post reports the shoes were part of a flood relief shipment taken to farmers in Nebraska by Fort Hays State’s agriculture sorority,...
Troy Hill’s Scratch Food & Beverage debuts Revival Nights
If you’re missing some of the cuisines from Market Square’s now-closed Poros or the Cultural District’s Six Penn Kitchen, you’re in luck; because you’ll be able to relive the dishes and cocktails at Scratch Food & Beverage starting next month. Scratch Food & Beverage’s owner Don Mahaney and the restaurant’s...
Section of O’Hara road reopens after crash, power outages
A truck crashed a into pole Tuesday night in O’Hara Township, knocking out power and closing part of Freeport Road overnight. The crash was reported at 11:45 p.m. at the intersection of Freeport Road at Fairview Avenue, PennDOT spokesman Steve Cowan said. The crash sheared the pole and took wires...
New record store to open in New Kensington below judge’s office
District Court is in session most weekdays at 1100 Fourth Ave. in New Kensington. It’s the address of District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. And, while those who frequent the chambers may be fighting a rap with the law, the building’s basement will soon be a haven for hardcore music...
Caliente Pizza owner brews up a new craft beer week
There won’t be Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week this year, but a similar week of events is still brewing. Caliente Craft Beer Week will be held April 26-May 5 at all five locations of Caliente Pizza & Draft House in Bloomfield, Hampton, Mt. Lebanon, Aspinwall and Monroeville. The pizza and beer...
Lori Lightfoot will be Chicago’s 1st black, female mayor
Former federal prosecutor Lori Lightfoot defeated a longtime political insider Tuesday to become Chicago’s next mayor, the first black woman and openly gay person to lead the nation’s third-largest city. Lightfoot, who had never been elected to public office, easily defeated Toni Preckwinkle, who served on the City Council for...
D. Raja concedes, Democrat Pam Iovino takes 37th state Senate seat
Democrat Pam Iovino will be the new senator for Pennsylvania’s 37th state Senate district. Republican D. Raja conceded the race at about 9:30 p.m., when unofficial vote tallies showing Iovino leading by almost 4,000 votes with more than 87% of precincts reporting. With all 214 Allegheny County precincts reporting, Iovino...
Reports: Avocados would run out in 3 weeks if border shuts down
Americans could run out of avocados in three weeks, if President Trump follows through on a threat to shut down the U.S./Mexico border, according to the head of the largest avocado distributor and grower in the world. Steven Barnard, president and chief executive of Mission Produce, claims shutting down the...
Apollo woman pleads guilty to fraudulently collecting Social Security benefits
An Apollo woman admitted to defrauding the federal government of more than $25,000 in Social Security benefits by lying about her marital status, prosecutors said Tuesday. Tara Jo Frain, 33, pleaded guilty to a theft charge for pocketing Supplemental Security Income benefits that she knew she wasn’t entitled to receive,...
Chinese woman carrying malware allegedly got into Mar-a-Lago
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A woman carrying two Chinese passports and a device containing computer malware lied to Secret Service agents and briefly gained admission to President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club over the weekend during his Florida visit, federal prosecutors allege in court documents. Yujing Zhang, 32, approached a Secret Service...
Trump defers push for health plan as a result of GOP resistance
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell warned President Trump to hold off action in Congress to replace the Affordable Care Act, telling him to instead take it on the road as a 2020 campaign issue. The two spoke Monday ahead of Trump’s evening tweets suggesting he had moved off...
Editorial: Pittsburgh gun ban is politics’ fault
On Tuesday, Pittsburgh’s council passed a package of laws that would ban some weapons within the city limits and regulate access for people deemed an “extreme risk.” There are people who see this as a step forward in a nation where gun violence has become heartbreakingly commonplace while action to...
Trial under way for Youngwood man accused of raping teen girls
A Youngwood man was so detailed in his confession to alleged sex crimes against children he included his victim’s ages in a handwritten letter to his Westmoreland County Prison cellmate, according to evidence presented at trial Tuesday. Jared Letosky told jurors during the first day of the rape and sexual...
More condoms, fewer cigarettes found in annual beach cleanup
SANDY HOOK, N.J. — Volunteers cleaning up New Jersey beaches last year found everything but the kitchen sink. Oh wait, they found one of those, too. Unsurprisingly, nearly 82% of the trash removed during Clean Ocean Action’s beach sweeps last spring and fall was plastic, including beverage bottles, shopping bags,...
McKeesport bus driver snagged by state’s Child Predator Unit for alleged explicit messages
A McKeesport bus driver is accused of sending sexually explicit messages and photos to a Massachusetts police officer posing as a minor, leading to his arrest Monday by agents from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office. Todd Murray, 55, faces five felony charges, including corruption of minors and unlawful contact with...
Police: Customer chokes Giant Food Store cashier over smashed potato chips
A Giant Food Store customer angry that a cashier was apparently being careless with his snack chips confronted and choked the man, police allege. Bradley Bower, 55, of New Cumberland, will be arraigned on a charge of simple assault at the time of his preliminary hearing, which is set for...
Drs. Cyril Wecht, Sanjay Gupta examine ‘deaths of despair’ in HBO documentary
A new HBO documentary relies on Dr. Cyril Wecht, the renowned forensic pathologist, to provide medical support for the idea that stress is dramatically reducing the life expectancy of Americans. “One Nation Under Stress,” which premiered on HBO on March 25, opens with a bird’s eye view of Western Pennsylvania...
Lower Burrell mayor with 2 donated lungs now sets sights on a new kidney
After surviving a double lung transplant in 2015, the mayor of Lower Burrell is looking for a new kidney. But you would never know Rich Callender, 51, needs a new kidney, as he often arrives at city hall by 9 a.m. on weekdays, ready to tackle the problems of the...
No developers answer Greensburg’s call for hotel pitches
The Greensburg Community Development Corp. asked developers for their best pitches for a downtown hotel, but the extended deadline has come and gone, with no proposals submitted. Ashley Kertes, director of the corporation, said she’s in talks with several developers interested in bringing a hotel to the city, though they...
Mercury spill keeps Marshall postal facility closed for over a week
The U.S. Postal Service Network Distribution Center remains closed more than a week after a mercury spill suspended retail services at the Marshall facility. The mail processing plant mainly handles packages mailed to and from Western Pennsylvania and some customers are still waiting to receive their mail. “We still don’t...
Highlands posts names of delinquent property taxpayers
As warned, the Highlands School District released the names of those delinquent in their school district property taxes. The lists for the four communities within the school district — Brackenridge, Fawn, Harrison and Tarentum — were posted to the district’s website on Tuesday. That was one day later than expected....
‘Hamilton’ star Leslie Odom Jr. to deliver CMU commencement address
Tony and Grammy Award-winning actor and singer Leslie Odom Jr. is returning to Carnegie Mellon University. And the 5,800 graduates of CMU’s class of 2019, including those receiving bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees, will be in the room where it happens. Odom, who is best known for playing Aaron Burr...
Ohio proposal would honor presidential popular vote
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s coveted 18 electoral votes would be delivered to the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote under a proposal making its way toward the state’s fall ballot. The proposed constitutional amendment, whose summary language was certified Monday, would force state lawmakers to assure the powerful...
Penguins’ Kris Letang donates $58K to 7-year-old fan with leukemia
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang is doing what he can to help a 7-year-old fan with T-cell leukemia. After practice last Thursday, Letang delivered a check for $58,000 to help defray medical expenses incurred by 7-year-old Ian Rosenbaum of Stoystown in Somerset County. Rosenbaum was in Pittsburgh for an appointment...
Steelers draft hat inspired by Pittsburgh’s coat of arms
The Pittsburgh Steelers official draft day hat features a piece of the city. New Era and the NFL released the 2019 draft hat collection on Tuesday. According to New Era, the hats tried to feature something local related to the team. For the Steelers’ lid, they included a checkerboard lifted...
