Amtrak cancels area trains ahead of weekend storm
Anyone traveling by rail this weekend is encouraged to check Amtrak’s schedule as officials make some of the first cancellations ahead of the expected winter storm. The storm has caused cancellation of several Pittsburgh-area trains on Sunday. The Pennsylvanian Service, from New York to Philadelphia to Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, has...
If Patriots lose, Goodwill customers will win
Don’t be sad, Pittsburgh, that the Steelers never made the playoffs this season. Now you have another reason to root against the hated New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game. If the Patriots lose this Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Goodwill will offer a 30 percent discount...
North Huntingdon woman loved to sing
Helen Medic loved to sing, whether it was classical music, operas or church hymns. Her voice was so good that she was selected as the soloist at Duquesne High School for her graduating class of 1941, said her daughter, Joyce Yovetich of North Huntingdon. “She was always singing. She would...
Tom Marino resigning from Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation for private-sector job
HARRISBURG — Tom Marino, a five-term Republican congressman who helped steer Donald Trump’s successful presidential campaign in Pennsylvania, said Thursday that he is resigning just days into a new term. In a statement, Marino said his last day will be Jan. 23 and that he is taking a job in...
Michael Cohen hired tech firm to rig polls in Trump’s favor
Michael Cohen paid a tech firm with ties to Jerry Falwell’s evangelical college to rig online polls in President Trump’s favor. Trump’s former fixer paid John Gauger, the IT tech at Liberty University and the head of RedFinch Solutions, with a bag of cash and a boxing glove — and...
Highmark Health’s IT business eliminates 40 positions, including 25 in Pittsburgh
Highmark Health’s information technology division axed 40 positions on Thursday, including 25 in Pittsburgh, officials said. HM Health Solutions, which supports 13 Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans and nearly 10 million members in multiple states, eliminated the positions as part of staffing adjustments aimed at “the best long-term interest of our...
Saint Vincent library expansion topic of public meeting
The public is invited to Saint Vincent College at 9 a.m. Wednesday to learn about and provide comment on the library renovation and expansion that is under construction. The meeting will be held in Room 2AB on the upper floor of the Fred M. Rogers Center, Unity. Parking will be...
Man gets 15 to 30 years in prison for rape of Lower Burrell girl
A Pittsburgh man was sentenced Thursday to serve up to 30 years in prison from the repeated rape of a 7-year-old girl who he claimed initiated the sex acts. Jeremy Alan Miller, 29, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and other offenses in connection with...
House floor erupts when lawmaker shouts ‘Go back to Puerto Rico’
WASHINGTON — The House floor erupted Thursday after Congress adjourned for the week when an unidentified Republican congressman yelled a controversial and potentially racially charged remark across the aisle as Democratic Rep. Tony Cardenas was at the podium. “Go back to Puerto Rico!” the lawmaker shouted, punctuating a stream of...
Model who claimed U.S.-Russian collusion held in Moscow on prostitution charges
MOSCOW — A model from Belarus who claimed to have recordings shedding light on the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia was detained Thursday at a Moscow airport on prostitution allegations, the police said. The model, Anastasia Vashukevich, had been deported from Thailand earlier in the day after spending nine months...
More, deeper wells planned for existing Marcellus site in Washington Township
CNX has applied to the state Department of Environmental Protection for a permit to drill four new wells to tap natural gas from Utica shale at an existing Marcellus shale well pad in Washington Township. The site is known as the Mamont South 1 Pad. It’s located near Evans Road,...
Government contractors to lose out on shutdown pay, dragging down economy
Like others caught up in the government shutdown, Brent Langdon has been cutting back on spending and is worried about his next mortgage payment. Yet unlike the hundreds of thousands of federal workers affected by the funding impasse, Langdon can’t look forward to eventually getting back pay because he is...
New evidence triggers mistrial in Monessen attempted homicide case
A Westmoreland County judge on Thursday cut short the attempted murder and conspiracy trial of two Monessen men, saying damaging evidence against the defense was turned over too late by prosecutors. Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani said the mistrial in the combined case against Joseph “Jo Jo” Heath III...
Dad delivers baby in 7-Eleven parking lot in New KensingtonVideo
A child arrived just the other day. He came to the world in an unusual way. In a gas station parking lot. Bobby and Lindsay Elliott of Allegheny Township had been doing what expectant parents do: driving to the hospital to give birth to their son. But Beau Elliott decided...
Judge acquits 3 Chicago officers of Laquan McDonald cover-up
CHICAGO — A judge on Thursday acquitted three Chicago police officers of trying to cover up the 2014 police shooting of Laquan McDonald to protect the white officer seen pulling the trigger on dashcam video that showed the black teen getting hit with 16 bullets. In rejecting the prosecution’s entire...
Franklin Regional’s Piraino recognized as Pa. superintendent of the yearVideo
It was only fitting for Gennaro Piraino to be sitting at Saint Vincent College as he received recognition as the Pennsylvania School Administrator Association’s 2019 Superintendent of the Year. Originally slated for Harrisburg, poor weather moved the recognition luncheon to the Unity school, just a few miles from Piraino’s hometown...
Total lunar eclipse meets supermoon Sunday night
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Here comes a total lunar eclipse and supermoon, all wrapped into one. The moon, Earth and sun will line up this weekend for the only total lunar eclipse this year and next. At the same time, the moon will be ever so closer to Earth and...
Local school districts snag $105,000 in STEM education grants
The PAsmart program, targeted to schools with limited or no computer science offerings, awarded grants totaling $105,000 to several local school districts, which were announced Thursday by State Rep. Joe Petrarca, D-Washington Township. The following districts were among those awarded $35,000 each from PAsmart program:Apollo-Ridge School District for the Apollo-Ridge...
Watchdog: Thousands more children taken from their families than previously disclosed
WASHINGTON — It seems likely that thousands more migrant children were split from their families than the Trump administration has acknowledged, in part because officials were stepping up family separations long before the border policy that prompted international outrage last spring, a government watchdog said Thursday. It’s unclear just how...
State: Rostraver Volunteer Firefighters’ Relief Association needs to increase bond
A recent state audit found the Rostraver Township Volunteer Firefighters’ Relief Association needs to increase its bond to cover cash assets. Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said the association was in compliance with all other applicable state laws, contracts, bylaws and administrative procedures as they relate to the receipt of...
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful accepting registrations for 2019 Great American Cleanup of PA
Registration is now open for the 2019 Great American Cleanup of PA, according to Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. The three-month initiative, from March 1 to May 31, is a way for clubs, schools, businesses and organizations to clean up local areas. Registered events can get free trash bags, gloves and safety...
North Huntingdon police response team trains at Norwin schools
The North Huntingdon Police Department emergency response team is conducting training and walk-through drills at all seven of Norwin School District’s buildings. Police issued an alert at about 3 p.m. Thursday to inform residents of the training and that there is not a need for alarm when seeing police at...
Trump denies Pelosi aircraft for planned trip abroad
WASHINGTON — It took President Donald Trump one day to flex his executive power back at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, denying her an aircraft for a planned trip abroad in apparent response to her attempt to delay his State of Union address amid their government shutdown clash. The nation’s two...
Greensburg Diocese launches recruitment effort for Catholic schools
The Greensburg Catholic Diocese is launching a marketing and recruitment drive for its 13 Catholic schools at church Masses next week. The kickoff, scheduled to begin in advance of enrollment open houses at schools in Armstrong, Fayette, Indiana and Westmoreland counties, will feature students, parents, teachers and staff members at...
‘Star Trek’ star George Takei supports Pittsburgh anti-gun effort
A Squirrel Hill man’s Facebook fundraiser for anti-gun groups received some star-studded recognition Wednesday from one of social media’s most prolific users. George Takei, best known for his role as Hikaru Sulu on the original “Star Trek” TV show, on Wednesday posted a Tribune-Review story about Ron Gaydos on his...
