Arizona lifts capacity limits; 19% vaccinated
PHOENIX — One day after Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey lifted capacity restrictions at restaurants, gyms and other businesses, the state reported 1,735 confirmed coronavirus cases. Arizona doesn’t have a statewide mask mandate. With 54 more confirmed deaths on Saturday, the totals rose to 825,119 cases and 16,323 deaths. The number...
1 year after covid hit Pa: nearly 1 million cases, more than 24,000 deaths
Pennsylvania health officials on Saturday reported 2,789 new coronavirus cases, exactly one year after the virus was first discovered in the Keystone State. Two people were reported quarantined on March 6, 2020 in the eastern part of the state after they were presumed positive to have contracted covid-19. Saturday’s data...
Pope, top Iraq Shiite cleric deliver message of coexistence
PLAINS OF UR, Iraq — Pope Francis walked through a narrow alley in Iraq’s holy city of Najaf for a historic meeting with the country’s top Shiite cleric Saturday, and together they delivered a powerful message of peaceful coexistence in a country still reeling from back-to-back conflicts over the past...
Poet Amanda Gorman says she was racially profiled near her home
NEW YORK — Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who captured hearts at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, posted to social media that she was followed home by a security guard who demanded to know where she lived because she “looked suspicious.” “I showed my keys & buzzed myself into...
Biden, Dems prevail as Senate OKs $1.9T virus relief bill
WASHINGTON — An exhausted Senate narrowly approved a $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief bill Saturday as President Joe Biden and his Democratic allies notched a victory they called crucial for hoisting the country out of the pandemic and economic doldrums. After laboring all night on a mountain of amendments — nearly...
Highlights: What’s changed in the Senate’s virus relief bill
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats came out with their version of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill. A look at some of the major changes in the bill now being considered by the Senate versus what passed the House last week. Who gets a check? President Joe Biden and Senate Democrats...
Senate Dems strike jobless aid deal, relief bill OK in sight
WASHINGTON — Senate leaders and moderate Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin struck a deal late Friday over emergency jobless benefits, breaking a nine-hour logjam that had stalled the party’s showpiece $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief bill. The compromise, announced by the West Virginia lawmaker and a Democratic aide, seemed to clear the...
Trump offers early endorsement for loyal S.C. governor
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Former President Donald Trump on Friday endorsed South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s bid for a second full term in 2022, continuing their yearslong alliance in a move to strengthen ties with the early-voting state that Trump won twice. In a statement through his Save America PAC, Trump...
California to let Major League Baseball, Disneyland reopen
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California on Friday lifted some coronavirus restrictions on outdoor sports and entertainment venues, clearing the way for fans to attend games on Major League Baseball’s opening day and for theme parks like Disneyland to reopen for the first time in more than a year. The rules take...
NASA’s new Mars rover hits dusty red road, 1st trip 21 feet
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA’s newest Mars rover hit the dusty red road this week, putting 21 feet on the odometer in its first test drive. The Perseverance rover ventured from its landing position Thursday, two weeks after setting down on the red planet to seek signs of past life....
Idaho House passes opt in requirement for sex education
BOISE, Idaho — Lawmakers in the Idaho House have passed legislation that would require parents to opt in two weeks in advance before their kids can receive some sex education lessons in school. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, passed 56-12 on a party-line vote Friday, and...
Biden White House: Message discipline, no news conference
WASHINGTON — No news conference. No Oval Office address. No primetime speech to a joint session of Congress. President Joe Biden is the first executive in four decades to reach this point in his term without holding a formal question and answer session. It reflects a White House media strategy...
Americans vaccinated against covid-19 still wait for advice
More than 27 million Americans fully vaccinated against the coronavirus will have to keep waiting for guidance from federal health officials for what they should and shouldn’t do. The Biden administration said Friday it’s focused on getting the guidance right and accommodating emerging science, but the delays add to the...
Spacewalkers finish solar panel prep for station power boost
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Spacewalking astronauts completed the first round of prep work Friday for new solar panels, part of a major power upgrade at the International Space Station. NASA’s Kate Rubins and Japan’s Soichi Noguchi installed mounting brackets and struts for the improved solar wings due to arrive in...
Nashville eyes $2.3M settlement in fatal shooting by officer
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Nashville officials are seeking a $2.25 million settlement with the family of a Black man who was fatally shot by a white Nashville police officer from behind during a 2018 foot chase, Mayor John Cooper’s administration said in a news release Friday. The city says its metro...
Iowa reporter faces trial in case seen as attack on press rights
IOWA CITY, Iowa — An Iowa journalist faces trial Monday on charges stemming from her coverage of a protest against racial injustice, a case that prosecutors have pursued despite international condemnation from free press advocates who say she was just doing her job. The case of Des Moines Register reporter...
License plate honors, supports services for Pennsylvania’s women veterans
The Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs is encouraging motorists to show support for women who served in the armed forces by purchasing an “Honoring Our Women Veterans” license plate during March, which is Women’s History Month. Of the $36 cost for the special plate, $15 goes to the...
Minimum wage hike falls short as Senate debates virus bill
WASHINGTON — The Senate seemingly killed progressives’ last-ditch effort to include a minimum wage hike in the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief bill Friday, as the chamber began climactic votes on the huge package embodying President Joe Biden’s top legislative priority. Senators voted 58-42 against the increase, though the vote...
3rd-degree murder count could be reinstated against Derek Chauvin in George Floyd’s death
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Court of Appeals on Friday ordered a judge to reconsider adding a third-degree murder charge against a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s death, handing a potential victory to prosecutors. A three-judge panel said Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill erred last fall when...
Gov. Wolf: ‘Light at the end of the tunnel’ in virus fight
HARRISBURG — One year after the discovery of the first coronavirus case in Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf said Friday that it has been a tough and trying year, but there is hope and a light at the end of the tunnel with the growing availability of vaccines. Wolf, speaking at...
Pennsylvania continues downward trend in covid deaths
Pennsylvania continues to report fewer deaths attributed to the coronavirus. The state on Friday reported 43 additional covid-related deaths, for a total of 325 in a seven-day period. That’s the lowest seven-day total since mid-November. That number was over 1,000 for most of December and January but has been steadily...
Mask policies are here to stay — for now, Pa. officials sayVideo
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made headlines this week by lifting his state’s mask mandate and declaring Texas “100% open” against advice of federal health agencies. Pennsylvania should not expect any such declarations any time soon. “At this time, mask-wearing is abundantly important,” said acting state Secretary of Health Alison Beam....
Canada clears Johnson & Johnson vaccine, first to approve 4
TORONTO — Canada is getting a fourth vaccine to prevent covid-19 as the country’s health regulator has cleared a Johnson & Johnson shot that works with just one dose instead of two, officials said Friday. Health experts are eager for a one-and-done option to help speed vaccination. Canada has also...
Allegheny County Commercial Property Owners Hit by Pandemic Can Seek Tax Reductions
Over the years, the law firm of Robert Peirce & Associates, PC, has successfully handled over 10,000 tax assessment cases. Its founder, Bob Peirce, leads the Assessment Appeal team. In this unprecedented year, covid-19 is having a significant economic impact on businesses in Allegheny County. Commercial property owners that have...
Philadelphia man charged with attempted homicide after pursuit on Pa. Turnpike
A Philadelphia man faces multiple charges after leading State Police on a high-speed pursuit Thursday morning. State Police said troopers tried to pull over Mark Anthony Davenport, 31, who was driving a white 2020 Honda sedan 90 mph in a 70 mph zone near mile marker 210.1 in Upper Mifflin...
