Penn Township grant will help absorb costs of stormwater improvements
A new state grant will help Penn Township in its ongoing struggle to overcome the effects of stormwater on the storm sewers of the Harrison Park neighborhood. The Growing Greener grant of $70,000, awarded by the state Department of Environmental Protection, will go toward the design, permitting, surveying and management...
Kentucky lawmaker hopes state’s action leads to demise of Roe v. Wade
FRANKFORT — With Kentucky embroiled in three abortion-related court cases and lawmakers considering tougher restrictions almost certain to draw a legal challenge, a leading Republican senator said Thursday that he hopes the state’s actions lead to a Supreme Court review of the Roe v. Wade ruling. Anti-abortion lawmakers hope to...
Tree of Life suspect is California lawyer’s latest notorious clientVideo
Some have called Judy Clarke the “attorney for the damned.” Among her clients: Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber; Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon bomber; and 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui. Now, she’s representing Robert Bowers, accused Tree of Life gunman. Clarke, a federal public defender, has defended many of the most notorious...
New lawsuit filed against Glade Run Lutheran claims another boy was sexually assaulted
The parent organization that ran a since-closed Zelienople youth home and recently settled a lawsuit filed on behalf of a teenage sexual assault victim faces a new lawsuit of a similar nature. Attorney Michael Pisanchyn Jr. of the Pittsburgh-based Pisanchyn Law Firm filed the suit this month against Glade Run...
Allderdice High stunned by fatal shooting of classmate, 16, a ‘smart, funny’ AP student
Classmates and friends of Jonathan Freeman remembered the 16-year-old Allderdice High School honors student Thursday as a smart, funny boy with what seemed like a bright future while expressing shock and disbelief that he was shot and killed in the city’s Homewood South neighborhood the night before. “The whole school...
Report: Ex-Nazi camp guard deported by U.S. dies in Germany
BERLIN — Jakiw Palij, a former Nazi concentration camp guard who lived an unassuming life in New York City for decades until his past was revealed and he was deported to Germany last year, has died, German media reported Thursday. He was 95. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Westfaelische Nachrichten...
Bernie Sanders apologizes again to female staffers on his 2016 presidential campaign
WASHINGTON — For the second time this month, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., has apologized to female staff members from his 2016 presidential campaign who have said they were sexually harassed by co-workers — including one who was expected to play a role in a potential 2020 bid. On Thursday morning,...
Jury finds Latrobe man guilty of second-degree murder in 2016 fatal robbery
It took a Westmoreland County jury just one hour Thursday afternoon to convict a Latrobe man of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of his friend. The jury of eight men and four women found Zachary McGrath guilty in the Jan. 20, 2016, shooting death of Daniel McNerny in front...
Hempfield man, formerly state director of UFO group, enters Westmoreland commissioner race
A Hempfield man accused in a national magazine article of making racially insensitive statements on social media announced Thursday he will seek a position on the Westmoreland County board of commissioners. John Ventre, 61, a Republican, said his candidacy will focus on improving the county’s finances and criticized the current...
Penguins players’ wives, girlfriends release cookbook
The wives and girlfriends of Pittsburgh Penguins players have released a cookbook. The 152-page, hardcover “Welcome to our Table” book provides more than 70 recipes ranging from Russian pancakes and Beef Rydberg to healthy peanut butter cups and chocolate chip cookies. Proceeds from sales will go to nonprofits in Pittsburgh...
Man charged over fatal punch in dog walker dispute
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia police have charged a 24-year-old man with throwing a punch to the head that led to the death of another dog walker. Matthew Oropeza surrendered to police Thursday. He’s charged with involuntary manslaughter, simple assault and reckless endangerment of another person. Police say 38-year-old Drew Justice and...
New Kensington moving to hire more police officers
New Kensington council will be hiring three new police officers to fill vacancies created by retirements, city Clerk Dennis Scarpiniti said. Council is scheduled to vote on the hires at a special meeting at 4 p.m. Monday, once members receive an approved list from the city’s Civil Service Commission. That...
Michael Cohen to testify publicly before House panel in early February
President Trump’s former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen has agreed to testify in a public hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in early February, panel Democrats announced Thursday. Cohen agreed to the Feb. 7 hearing voluntarily, panel chairman Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., said. “I want to make...
4 women testify Greensburg chiropractor assaulted, harassed them
When a teenage girl started going to a Greensburg gym in 2015, she looked up to the chiropractor who was training her in power lifting. But as the weeks and months went on, Moses Jevicky, 36, of Greensburg, started to get progressively inappropriate, making comments about her body parts and...
Police seek public’s help in solving Penn Hills homicide
Pittsburgh Crime Stoppers is looking for the public’s help in solving an open homicide case. Police are looking for information on a Nov. 6 shooting that left 21-year-old Calvin Anderson dead. Police initially responded to a call of shots fired in the 6800 block of Alcoma Drive in Penn Hills....
Oregon begins killing sea lions after relocation fails
PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon wildlife officials have started killing sea lions that threaten a fragile run of winter steelhead in the Willamette River. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife obtained a federal permit in November to kill up to 93 California sea lions annually below Willamette Falls south of...
Expanded facilities are recipe for success at Leechburg Area High SchoolVideo
There’s no such thing as too many cooks in the kitchen at Leechburg Area High School now. A new, expansive Family and Consumer Science Room renovation project was completed last year, providing five state-of-the-art kitchen areas for students in grades 7-12 enrolled in various cooking classes, culinary arts, finance, sports...
Mt. Pleasant Twp. store owner to fight corruption chargesVideo
A Mt. Pleasant Township grocery store owner, accused of racking up millions of dollars in illegal profits by selling stolen items, waived his preliminary hearing Thursday and opted to proceed to trial. But don’t read too much into the decision, his lawyer warned. “There is no plea agreement,” said Francis...
Florida man not hurt after rolling over flatbed tractor-trailer on Route 28 in Harrison
A truck driver from Florida was not hurt after rolling over his flatbed tractor-trailer on Route 28 in Harrison early Thursday afternoon. The crash was reported shortly after 12:30 p.m. It happened on the southbound side of the highway just past the curved bridge over Saxonburg Road past Exit 16...
Freeway closed after human waste spills from truck
ERIE TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A freeway in southeastern Michigan just north of the state line with Ohio has been closed after a truck hauling human waste rolled over and spilled its contents along the roadway. The crash happened about 9:40 a.m. Thursday on northbound Interstate 75 near Monroe County’s Erie...
Second North Side resident to challenge Darlene Harris for Pittsburgh City Council seat
A second North Side resident announced plans Thursday to challenge Pittsburgh City Councilwoman Darlene Harris in the Democratic primary on May 21. It would be Bobby Wilson’s third attempt to unseat Harris, 66, of Spring Hill, who has said she would seek a fourth term. Wilson, 36, also of Spring...
Trump threatens emergency declaration ahead of border visit
MCALLEN, Texas — President Trump threatened on Thursday to declare a national emergency to circumvent Congress if he can’t reach a deal with Democrats to fund his promised border wall. He spent most of the day in Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border to draw further attention to his case after...
Louisiana police officer fatally shot while leaving for work
SHREVEPORT, La. — A recently graduated Louisiana police officer has been fatally shot as she was leaving for work on the night shift. Shreveport Police Chief Ben Raymond says Officer Chateri Payne had graduated from the police academy Nov. 16, and was shot outside a home Wednesday night. He couldn’t...
3 school employees charged with abuse of autistic student
STANFORD, Ky. — Court documents show that three Kentucky school employees have been charged with criminal abuse involving a special-needs student. News outlets report the incident occurred Jan. 3 at Lincoln County High School in a special education class. A criminal summons for teacher Rebecca Spurlock said teacher’s aide Janie...
Officials visit Hempfield to announce grant to promote school-business ties
As state and local officials toured Hempfield Area High School on Thursday, they saw students working with high-tech manufacturing machinery and discussing detailed business plans they’d designed and enacted themselves. State Labor and Industry Secretary W. Gerard Oleksiak said he was impressed, and that he hopes a $126,050 grant to...
