Top Stories category, Page 668
Appeals court rejects Thomas Stanko’s bid to lower federal prison sentence
A federal prison sentence was upheld by appeals court judges who considered an appeal from a Unity man serving time in a gun case. Three Third Circuit judges last month rejected an appeal from Thomas G. Stanko, 52, who was sentenced in July 2022 to seven years and three months....
Ohiopyle ‘Hobbit House’ rental entices visitors to outdoor adventure
Whether Gollum haunts the premises remains to be seen, but Gandalf greets visitors at the Ohiopyle Hobbit House. The “Lord of the Rings”-themed vacation rental property is newly open amidst 60 wooded acres southwest of the popular Fayette County adventure destination. A larger-than-life-size statue of the wizard character of J.R.R....
Officials stop in Greensburg to urge fireworks safety, burn prevention
Fireworks were blamed for causing a Memorial Day house fire in Penn Township, a scenario local officials are hoping won’t be repeated somewhere else over the Fourth of July holiday. “You can ruin what is supposed to be a happy occasion through the careless use of fireworks,” cautioned Greensburg Mayor...
McKeesport homicide-by-car accusations headed to Allegheny County Court
A Pittsburgh man is headed to court on charges he repeatedly attacked a McKeesport woman with his car, killing her in front of a member of her family. Brandon K. Pendleton, 31, of the city’s Sheraden neighborhood, waived his preliminary hearing Friday morning, court records show. District Judge Kim Berkeley...
Munhall funeral home director accused of leaving corpse to decompose headed to Allegheny County Court
An area funeral director is headed to trial for leaving a dead man’s body unrefrigerated for more than a week after the man’s family argued about funeral home fees. District Judge Patrick D. Campbell sent the case of Michael Aldrich, 75, of West Mifflin, to Allegheny County Court following a...
Penn State, Pitt, others get hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds, but tracking it is a challenge
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for our regional newsletter, Talk of the Town. STATE COLLEGE — Each year, Pennsylvania’s legislature sends hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to...
Pittsburgh man sentenced to prison for DUI crash that injured 3 women on South Side
An Allegheny County judge sentenced a Pittsburgh man to 1 to 7 years in prison in connection with a 2021 drunken driving crash on Pittsburgh’s South Side in which three injured women had to be cut from a vehicle. In addition to being sentenced on a DUI charge, Andre Perkins,...
3-year-old shot in Robinson
A 3-year-old boy was shot in the 100 block of Village Drive in Robinson Township, according to Allegheny County Police . Police found the boy with what appeared to be a graze wound from a gunshot to his leg around 2 p.m. Friday. The boy was taken to UPMC Children’s...
New Kensington police seeking Ohio man in double attempted homicide
An arrest warrant has been issued for an Ohio man who New Kensington police say shot at two people last Sunday. City police charged Iven Cashua Miller Jr., 36, of Cleveland with two counts of attempted criminal homicide, two counts of attempted aggravated assault, one count of person not to...
Borrowers disappointed with Supreme Court ruling striking down student loan relief
Out of cellphone range and running low on hope, Annie Quinn kept refreshing her phone while traveling through rural Maryland on Friday, bracing for what nine U.S. Supreme Court justices would decide about her financial future. The news, as she feared, wasn’t good. When her phone signal returned, Quinn, 38,...
Recovering Titan with the Odysseus underwater robot was complex, dangerous, emotional
BUFFALO, N.Y. — When Edward Cassano and his colleagues arrived in the remote stretch of ocean where the Titan submersible had gone missing, they quickly learned that they would have to do what other deep-sea experts had already tried unsuccessfully: to find the lost sub in some of the most...
Pittsburgh synagogue attacker viewed himself as a warrior, victims as enemy combatants, psychologist says
Robert Bowers didn’t realize he’s mentally ill. The Baldwin man — who violently attacked a Squirrel Hill synagogue Oct. 27, 2018, killing 11 congregants — suffered from mental health problems as early as age 10. He spent 9 months in three Pittsburgh-area psychiatric hospitals at 13. He tried to kill...
Student loan payments start again soon. Supreme Court’s ruling means higher bills for many
WASHINGTON — In a good month, Celina Chanthanouvong has about $200 left after rent, groceries and car insurance. That doesn’t factor in her student loans, which have been on hold since the start of the pandemic and are estimated to cost $300 a month. The pause in repayment has been...
Pittsburgh hiring private security for July 4 celebrations at Point State Park
Pittsburgh will use a private security company for bag checks at its annual Fourth of July celebrations at Point State Park, according to a spokesperson for the mayor. The city is responsible for security at the state park during the Fourth of July event, said Olga George, a spokesperson for...
Supreme Court rejects plan to wipe out $400B in student loans; Biden vows ‘fight is not over’
WASHINGTON — A sharply divided Supreme Court ruled Friday that the Biden administration overstepped its authority in trying to cancel or reduce student loans for millions of Americans. The 6-3 decision, with conservative justices in the majority, said the Biden administration overstepped its authority with the plan, and it leaves...
Pittsburgh’s July Fourth celebration features Clarks, fireworks and more
The city of Pittsburgh will light up the stage before it illuminates the sky on the Fourth of July on Tuesday. Four hours of entertainment are planned to precede the Zambelli fireworks show on the river near Point State Park. There will be other programming, as well as events at...
Supreme Court rules for designer who doesn’t want to make wedding websites for gay couples
WASHINGTON — In a defeat for gay rights, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled on Friday that a Christian graphic artist who wants to design wedding websites can refuse to work with same-sex couples. One of the court’s liberal justices wrote in a dissent that the decision’s effect is to...
Tractor-trailer crash shuts Pa. Turnpike between Irwin-Monroeville for hours
A crash involving a tractor-trailer early Friday shut down the westbound lanes of the Pennsylvania Turnpike between the Irwin and Monroeville exits for several hours. The wreck was cleared and all lanes between Exits 67 and 57 were reopened by 9 a.m., according to PennDOT. The crash was reported at...
Smoky air in Western Pa. improving, still unhealthy for some
The air quality in the Western Pennsylvania region is still rough, but it’s getting better as winds push smoke from Canadian wildfires toward the eastern seaboard. Despite the improvement, it’s still not good for some people to breathe outside. On Friday, with air quality improved slightly, the National Weather Service...
Morning Roundup: City activates fireworks task force to crack down on scofflaws
Here are some of the latest news items from Friday, June 30: Pittsburgh fireworks task force activated for July Fourth holiday It’s legal to buy fireworks in Pennsylvania. But there are rules about how, when and where to use them in the City of Pittsburgh. The city’s Department of Public...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: June 30-July 2
It’s the first weekend of July. Some people will have a four-day weekend with the July 4 holiday on Tuesday. We know there will be fireworks and furries with the Anthrocon convention — but here are some other ways to spend it. Fridays at the Frick Monthly outdoor concerts return...
Anthrocon attendees have added concerns with heat and smoke combination
Wearing a 30- to 50- pound fur suit in temperatures in the mid-80s with high humidity can be uncomfortable enough. Add in the smoke from the Canadian wildfires, and breathing can be a challenge. “There is always a concern about inclement weather of every type,” said John “KP” Cole of Orlando,...
Man wanted on Jan. 6 charges arrested in former President Obama’s Washington neighborhood
WASHINGTON — A man armed with explosive materials and weapons, and wanted for crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, was arrested Thursday in the Washington neighborhood where former President Barack Obama lives, law enforcement officials said. Taylor Taranto, 37, was spotted by law enforcement...
New Kensington Bridge to close for 6 weeks starting in July
A scheduled closure to the New Kensington Bridge will happen a year sooner than expected. The six-week closure is tentatively scheduled for July 17, with July 24 as a backup date, according to PennDOT spokesperson Steve Cowan. Motorists also can expect the section of Freeport Road passing under the bridge...
‘It’s unhealthy for everyone’: Lingering wildfire smoke affects more than just at-risk groups
Air quality advisories in response to lingering smoke from Canadian wildfires have focused on at-risk groups — young children, the elderly and people with existing pulmonary and heart issues. But, on Thursday, the Pittsburgh Pirates delayed the start of an early afternoon game by 45 minutes while they reviewed weather...
