Top Stories category, Page 331
Joe Biden coming to Pittsburgh
President Joe Biden is returning to Pittsburgh this upcoming weekend, the White House reported Wednesday evening. Biden will travel to Pittsburgh for political engagements on Saturday, according to the White House. It will be the third visit to Pittsburgh this year, following a political speech at the United Steelworkers building...
As he did in 2020, Trump says he plans to vote early
Donald Trump plans to vote early in this year’s presidential election — something that isn’t new to him, but which goes against the rhetoric he uses at his campaign rallies. Trump, who was president from 2017 to 2020 and is seeking a second term in the Oval Office, has long...
Pittsburgh leaders argue over discounts for landlords buying vacant city land
Pittsburgh City Council is considering halting a program to sell vacant blighted properties on the cheap while council members debate who should be allowed to enjoy the discount. The Side Yard Sale Program allows property owners to purchase certain vacant, city-owned properties adjacent to their own for $200. Some council...
Pittsburgh police chief plans pay cut so he can referee collegiate basketball
Pittsburgh Police Chief Larry Scirotto said Wednesday that he will take a salary reduction as part of his deal to return to refereeing NCAA college basketball games. Scirotto last week announced he would resume refereeing, something he had given up when Mayor Ed Gainey named him chief last year. He...
U.S. confirms North Korea has sent 3,000 troops to Russia for training, possible Ukraine combatVideo
WASHINGTON — The U.S. said Wednesday that 3,000 North Korean troops have deployed to Russia and are training at several locations, calling the move very serious and warning that those forces will be “fair game” if they go into combat in Ukraine. The deployment raises the potential for the North...
Harris says Trump ‘is a fascist’ after John Kelly says he wanted generals like Hitler’sVideo
ASTON, Pa. — Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that she believes that Donald Trump “is a fascist” after his longest-serving chief of staff said the former president praised Adolf Hitler while in office and put personal loyalty above the Constitution. Harris seized on comments by former chief of staff...
Lawsuits claim dozens of children were sexually abused inside Pennsylvania juvenile facilities
HARRISBURG — A set of lawsuits was filed Wednesday by people who claim they were sexually abused inside Pennsylvania juvenile detention and treatment facilities, making more than 200 people to have launched such cases since May. The New York-based Levy Konigsberg firm said it filed on behalf of more than...
McDonald’s tries to reassure customers after deadly E. coli outbreak
McDonald’s said Wednesday that customers should feel confident ordering from its restaurants despite a deadly E. coli outbreak linked to its Quarter Pounders. McDonald’s U.S. President Joe Erlinger said in an interview on the “Today” show that the company has removed the Quarter Pounder from its menu in the 10...
Carnegie woman identified as pedestrian killed when struck by vehicle in Point Breeze
Authorities say a Carnegie woman was killed when she struck by vehicle Wednesday morning in Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze neighborhood. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Vira Petrakh, 51. She was a pedestrian who was struck at the intersection of South Dallas Avenue and Reynolds Street at...
Cracks in new Pittsburgh airport garage fuel concern, controversy
Allegheny County Council President Pat Catena is sounding the alarm on a series of cracks found recently in the massive parking garage being built as part of Pittsburgh International Airport’s $1.5 billion modernization project. The Allegheny County Airport Authority, which is managing the project, said it is aware of cracks...
Former investigator at state AG’s North Huntingdon office could lose pension if convicted
A North Versailles woman accused of taking money from the Pennsylvania attorney general’s North Huntingdon office while she was an employee there could lose her pension if she’s convicted. The Public Employee Pension Forfeiture Act requires a Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System member or participant who commits certain crimes related...
Allegheny Health Network’s Forbes Hospital to begin paying property taxes under proposed settlement
Gateway school board members will consider a settlement that would bring in more than $250,000 in back taxes from Allegheny Health Network’s Forbes Hospital campus as well as nearly $60,000 in annual taxes moving forward. At issue is a small portion of AHN’s 50-acre hospital campus in Monroeville. The property...
State police seek return of suspect in stolen car case related to missing dog, Lucky
Lucky the dog has been missing for a month, but his owner’s heartbreak is still as fresh as when he first disappeared. “We’re just basically still hoping that we can find Lucky,” said Linda Folino, whose 87-year-old father, Willard Martz, is the dog’s owner. “He’s such a big part of...
The Home Stretch: Here’s the election news for Oct. 23
As Nov. 5 draws closer, political campaigns are making the most of every opportunity to sway the elusive undecided voter. Here’s how the sprint to Election Day is going. Where is everyone? Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris is in Pennsylvania today, where she will participate in a CNN...
Plans for improvements at Veterans Memorial Field, Springdale soccer field advance
Plans for renovations at two Springdale fields — one owned by the borough and the other by the Allegheny Valley School District — are moving forward. Springdale Council awarded a contract of about $580,000 to Harmar-based Panza Landscaping for installation of a retaining wall and sidewalks at Veterans Memorial Field,...
Steelers’ Friday Night Lights practice in Latrobe generated $121K
Dry skies, a higher admission price and a more efficient online ticketing system all contributed to $121,000 in revenue being collected from the Steelers’ Friday Night Lights practice held Aug. 2 in Greater Latrobe School District’s Memorial Stadium. That figure was a $40,000 increase from the previous year’s popular annual...
Morning fire destroys home in East Huntingdon; hydrant in Mt. Pleasant Village complex had no water pressure
Ben Ion, who lives on Holiday Court in East Huntingdon, was about to have breakfast Wednesday morning when he noticed a glow coming from a home across the street. He raced to the home, banged on a window and made sure the two people living there escaped the flames that...
In Pennsylvania, an influx of college graduates could push a key county toward Harris
BELLEFONTE, Pa. — It was love at first sight when Ellen Matis pulled up to this small Pennsylvania borough on a dreary winter day almost eight years ago. The road into town curved along the creek and then climbed uphill to a historic square where she chatted with regulars over...
Calls mount for district judge’s ouster over bail issues after Montour Trail fatal stabbing
Several local Republican politicians are demanding the removal of a controversial jurist after a criminal defendant freed last year by District Judge Xander Orenstein was arrested Monday in a fatal stabbing. Authorities say Anthony Quesen killed Benjamin Brallier, 44, a civilian employee of the Pennsylvania State Police who was jogging...
Conservative Norwin board members lament cancellation of Turning Point USA speech
The most vocal member of the conservative faction of Norwin’s school board this week condemned the way the district handled a request by Turning Point USA to speak to students after classes at the high school. School board member Alex Detschelt said Monday the administration’s decision to cancel an appearance...
Abatement, demolition planned for former Colfax Upper Elementary School in Springdale
Another Springdale landmark will soon be demolished — but it’s not a former power plant. Allegheny Valley School District officials set an April 10 demolition deadline for the former Colfax Upper Elementary School. The 64,000-square-foot building served students in the Allegheny Valley School District for more than 90 years before...
Dziados, Reschenthaler vie for District 14 seat in U.S. House
The two candidates seeking to represent Pennsylvania’s 14th Congressional District couldn’t be further apart on key issues. Three-term Republican incumbent Guy Reschenthaler has become a key member among the GOP’s power structure in the U.S. House, serving as deputy whip and an attack dog pushing his party’s agenda that he...
State legislators support in-depth study of PIAA policies, structure, finances
State legislators have voted to launch a comprehensive review of the PIAA. The “current status, management, structure, policies and finances” of the high school athletic association will be studied by the state Legislative Budget and Finance Committee under a House resolution passed Tuesday. The legislation instructed the committee to issue...
Quaker Valley High School project takes major step forward with Leet commissioners’ approval
After outlining more than a dozen conditions, including a new one publicly introduced just prior to the vote, the Leet commissioners approved land development plans for a proposed Quaker Valley High School. All five commissioners voted in favor of the proposed 167,000-square-foot school on Oct. 22. It is planned on...
Trump hurls a string of insults at Harris including ‘lazy,’ a racist trope against Black peopleVideo
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Tuesday hurled a series of personal attacks at Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her “lazy” — a word long used to demean Black people in racist terms — and repeatedly questioning her intelligence and stamina. At an event in Miami aimed...
