Ex-NYPD officer in Eric Garner’s death loses appeal to get his job back
NEW YORK — Former police officer Daniel Pantaleo, who was fired from the New York Police Department two years ago over the chokehold death of Eric Garner, has lost his appeal to get his job back. The state appellate panel ruled Thursday that Pantaleo was lawfully fired in August 2019...
Rep. Greene agrees not to block critics from Twitter account
LOS ANGELES — U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and a Los Angeles-based political action committee have reached a settlement that bars the Georgia Republican from blocking anyone from her public Twitter account or other social media while she’s in office. Greene also agreed to pay $10,000 to cover legal fees...
Rare Van Gogh masterpiece sells for $15.4 million in Paris
PARIS — A rare painting by Vincent Van Gogh was sold at auction Thursday by Sotheby’s Paris for 13.1 million euros ($15.4 million). The sale of “Street Scene in Montmartre” was highly anticipated as it was one of the few paintings by the Dutch Impressionist master to still have been...
Biden leaves door open for U.S. to stay longer in AfghanistanVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday left the door open for U.S. troops to stay in Afghanistan through the end of the year, and one of his top generals told Congress that Afghanistan’s military forces need American assistance to successfully counter the Taliban. Biden, at his first news conference...
Pa. to only get 66K doses of Johnson & Johnson next week, upending plans to vaccinate certain essential workers
As the state climbs past 1 million coronavirus cases, Pennsylvania learned that it will not get nearly as many fresh doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as the federal government initially projected. The state said it will receive about 66,000 doses next week, not 200,000. Pennsylvania has used its...
Pennsylvania passes 1 million covid cases
Pennsylvania passed 1 million covid cases on Thursday. The milestone comes as vaccinations continue amid rising cases statewide and stable cases closer to home in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 1,000,240 cases, a rise of 3,623 cases from Wednesday. The seven-day average of cases is...
Lawyer: Colorado shooting suspect needs mental health review
BOULDER, Colo. — The suspect in the Colorado supermarket shooting appeared in court for the first time Thursday, and a defense attorney immediately asked that he receive a mental health evaluation before the case against him proceeds. Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, did not speak during the brief hearing except...
Wolf administration refuses to release details of wasted covid vaccine doses
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — The Wolf administration is refusing to disclose details of wasted coronavirus vaccine doses, including how many have been discarded...
Ga. man receives final paycheck in 90,000 pennies
ATLANTA — A Georgia man said his former employer owed him a pretty penny, $915 to be exact, after leaving his job in November. But Andreas Flaten said he was shocked to see his final payment: 90,000 oil or grease covered pennies, at the end of his driveway earlier this...
AstraZeneca confirms strong vaccine protection after U.S. riftVideo
AstraZeneca insisted Wednesday that its covid-19 vaccine is strongly effective even after counting additional illnesses in its disputed U.S. study, the latest in an extraordinary public rift with American officials. In a late-night press release, AstraZeneca said it had recalculated data from that study and concluded the vaccine is 76%...
Ruling upholds Hawaii limits on carrying guns in public
HONOLULU — Hawaii’s strict limit on openly carrying firearms is lawful, a panel of federal appeals court judges ruled Wednesday in a lawsuit by a man who tried unsuccessfully several times to obtain a license to carry a loaded gun in public. George Young’s lawyer said he will ask the...
Police: Florida mom attacked student while wearing boxing glove
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Florida woman was wearing a boxing glove as she attacked a student on a middle school campus, police said. Edith Riddle, of Jacksonville, was arrested on a child abuse charge on March 18 by Duval County School Police, First Coast News reported. Police said a school...
In what is hailed as a conservation success story, bald eagle numbers have soared
The number of bald eagles — a species that once came dangerously close to extinction — in the United States has more than quadrupled over the last dozen years despite massive declines in overall bird populations, government scientists announced. A new survey by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found...
White headmaster of N.Y. school who made Black student kneel resigns
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — The white headmaster of a New York Catholic school who made a Black student kneel as part of an apology to a teacher has resigned, the school said Wednesday. The St. Martin de Porres Marianist school on Long Island posted a statement on its website saying it...
Oath Keepers militia, far-right Proud Boys coordinated plans for Capitol assault, Justice Department says
WASHINGTON — A leader of the Oath Keepers militia was communicating with members of the far-right Proud Boys in the weeks leading to the U.S. Capitol attack, federal prosecutors allege, suggesting for the first time the extremist groups had formed an alliance for the day of the deadly assault. The...
As thousands of unemployment claims expire, Pa. residents refile, wait on federal benefits
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Shawn McCreary has measured the last year in time waiting. As a substitute teacher, there have been exactly zero...
Florida woman says she was lost in sewer for weeks; police skeptical
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — A South Florida woman was rescued from a sewer system three weeks after she was reported missing when a passerby heard her cries for help, officials said. The 43-year-old woman, who has a history of mental illness and drug abuse, told Delray Beach officers she went...
U.S. women’s soccer stars join Biden to promote closing pay gap
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is making the case Wednesday that the pay disparity between men and women has hurt the economy, bringing members of the U.S. women’s national soccer team to the White House to help set new goals for equality. Wednesday marked “Equal Pay Day” — which is...
Suez Canal blocked by grounded mega-ship, causing huge traffic jam in the seaVideo
On any given day, more than 50 ships traverse the 120-mile Suez Canal, bearing millions of tons of cargo that make up some 12% of the world’s trade volume. But not since Tuesday, after a mammoth vessel ran aground in the vital waterway. In the more than 24 hours since,...
Ex-U.S. vaccine chief fired over sexual harassment allegations
The former chief science adviser for the U.S. effort to rapidly develop covid-19 vaccines has been fired from the board of directors of a medical research company over sexual harassment allegations, drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said Wednesday. The company said it is firing Moncef Slaoui from his position as board chair at...
Highway construction firms oppose PennDOT’s bridge toll plan
HARRISBURG — A prominent highway construction trade association on Wednesday came out against a state plan to toll up to nine major bridges around Pennsylvania in need of repairs as lawmakers move to block the plan, although Gov. Tom Wolf’s top transportation official disputed the trade association’s criticisms. The Associated...
Mother of man fatally shot by Mesa police files $15M claim
MESA, Ariz. — The mother of a man fatally shot last September by Mesa police has filed a $15 million claim against the city, alleging officers killed her unarmed her son without reason and failed to provide him medical assistance after he was fatally wounded. The Police Department did not...
Virginia abolishes death penalty after executing almost 1,400 people over 400 yearsVideo
NORFOLK, Va. — After more than 400 years and nearly 1,400 lives, the death penalty is dead in Virginia. Gov. Ralph Northam signed legislation Wednesday abolishing it in a state that has executed more people than any other. The ceremony was at Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt, where lethal injections...
West Virginia to target young people for vaccinations
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s coronavirus vaccination campaign will turn to young people to stem transmission rates after giving shots to most senior citizens. The new strategy to focus on shots for residents aged 16 to 29 comes after officials said they are seeing an increase in doses. “When you...
Kenya wants United Nations agency to shut down refugee camps
NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya says it has given the United Nations 14 days to come up with a plan to close refugee camps in the country that host hundreds of thousands from war-torn neighboring nations. Internal Security Minister Fred Matiangi said there is no room for further negotiations, in a...
