Top Stories category, Page 526

NEW YORK — Donald Trump has become the first former U.S. president to be charged with a crime, the culmination of a political rise defined by unprecedented scandal. The vote of a Manhattan grand jury to indict the Republican former president on charges related to hush money payments made on...

The federal government filed a lawsuit against railroad Norfolk Southern over environmental damage caused by a train derailment on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border that spilled hazardous chemicals into nearby creeks and rivers. The U.S. Department of Justice said it’s seeking to hold the company accountable for “unlawfully polluting the nation’s waterways...

A fortuneteller accused of bilking clients will remain in the Westmoreland County Prison after she was arrested earlier this month in Florida. Alexis Mitchell, 29, was charged with theft and other offenses after a North Huntingdon man claimed he paid her $10,000 for illegal fortunetelling services last August. Police said...

We say goodbye to March and hello to April this weekend. Here are some ways to spend it. Final chance This is the last weekend for the 58th Carnegie International, “Is it morning for you yet?” at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Oakland. The Carnegie International is the longest-running...

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, March 31, 2023: High wind watch The National Weather Service has issued a high wind watch for parts of Western Pennsylvania from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. The watch is in effect for the ridges until 2...

Motorists traveling along the Pennsylvania Turnpike near New Stanton or along Arona Road parallel to the turnpike can see what a $120 million warehouse project covering more than 1 million square feet looks like. The walls have been constructed, and doors for loading docks are visible. The extensive earthmoving that...

The control tower at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport will receive an $855,000 upgrade funded by federal money. “The tower was built in ’81 and it’s going to be a general refurbishment of the tower’s integrity,” said Gabe Monzo, Westmoreland Airport Authority director. The Unity airport has received more than $5...

Some called the criminal charges long overdue. Others called for caution. Still, others described the indictment of former President Donald Trump as “partisan” and unfair. Western Pennsylvania political leaders on Thursday had various takes on the historic indictment. Trump was indicted by a New York state grand jury Thursday on...

PARK CITY, Utah — Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn’t at fault for the crash. A jury dismissed the complaint of a retired optometrist who sued Paltrow over injuries...

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s parliament on Thursday ratified Finland’s application to join NATO, lifting the last hurdle in the way of the Nordic country’s long-delayed accession into the Western military alliance. All 276 lawmakers present voted in favor of Finland’s bid, days after Hungary’s parliament also endorsed Helsinki’s accession. “This...

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, decried Wednesday’s hoax shooting reports that shut down schools in Pittsburgh and other Pennsylvania communities in remarks on the House floor. “Active shootings aren’t normal. Shooting hoaxes aren’t normal. The evacuations and drills are not normal. There’s nothing about this that’s normal,” Lee said Wednesday....

WASHINGTON — Joint Base Andrews, one of the nation’s most sensitive military bases and home to Air Force One, has been locked down after reports of a man carrying an “assault-style” rifle on Thursday, authorities said. The Maryland base was locked down after the person was reportedly seen near the...

One of the first things George Wolfe said to Hannah Isenberg was that he was not a “total weirdo.” Each already had heard of the other. Isenberg knew Wolfe was a big fan of the Canadian rock band Rush; Wolfe knew Isenberg was a niece of the band’s legendary drummer,...

A Chicago woman was jailed this week in connection with a catalytic converter theft ring in Southwestern Pennsylvania that authorities said caused $200,000 worth of damage. Westmoreland County authorities initially sealed the arrest papers for Maria D. Padilla, 37, because of ties to a street gang in Chicago and concerns...

A former Alle-Kiski Valley man accused of posing as a wealthy homebuyer to scam a Richland Township family who agreed to sell their home and other property to him for $5.1 million was arrested in Rhode Island on Friday, according to authorities. Timothy Paul Bierly, 27, who previously lived along...

PHILADELPHIA — The Berks County Coroner’s Office on Wednesday released the names of the remaining victims of the explosion at the R.M. Palmer chocolate factory in West Reading that killed seven people. The remaining five were identified as: Susan H. Halvonik, 63, a Connellsville native who lived in Upper Providence...

Organizers of Greensburg’s SummerSounds concert series don’t like to book the same act two years in a row. They’re making an exception this year, though, to bring back the top draw from 2022. Elton Rohn, the Canadian Elton John tribute artist who packed St. Clair Park on July 7, is scheduled...

ROME — Pope Francis has shown a “marked improvement” following intravenous antibiotics for a bronchitis infection and could be released from the hospital in the coming days, the Vatican and his doctors say. The 86-year-old pontiff, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, ate breakfast, read...

Russia’s security service arrested an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal on espionage charges, the first time a U.S. correspondent has been detained on spying accusations since the Cold War. The newspaper denied the allegations and demanded his release. Evan Gershkovich was detained in the city of Yekaterinburg while...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Nine people were killed in a crash involving two Army Black Hawk helicopters in Kentucky, a military spokesperson said. Nondice Thurman, a spokesperson for Fort Campbell, said Thursday morning that the deaths happened the previous night in southwestern Kentucky during a routine training mission. A statement from...

How dare you? This short sentence — equal parts earnest question, alarmed utterance and angry interjection — is directed at the person or persons, organization or movement behind computer-generated “swatting” calls made Wednesday reporting active shooter situations. Allegheny County 911 received calls about Central Catholic and Oakland Catholic. Both schools...