Pfizer booster spurs immune response to new omicron subtypes
Pfizer said Friday that its updated covid-19 booster may offer some protection against newly emerging omicron mutants even though it’s not an exact match. Americans have been reluctant to get the updated boosters rolled out by Pfizer and rival Moderna, doses tweaked to target the BA.5 omicron strain that until...
Kherson’s newly liberated residents wonder: Who collaborated with the Russians?
KHERSON, Ukraine — First came rejoicing. Now comes the reckoning. The southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, the only provincial capital captured by Russia since it invaded in February, is back in Ukrainian hands, though Moscow’s forces are still close enough to remain a menace. The outburst of joy over the...
Pa. report shows a drop in sales at state liquor stores
The pandemic period of unprecedented home booze consumption in Pennsylvania appears to be over, but that doesn’t mean overall alcohol consumption is down. After record spirit and wine sales at state stores in the 2020-21 fiscal year, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board reported the 2021-22 fiscal year saw retail dollar...
Finland to start building fence on Russian border next year
HELSINKI — Construction of a planned barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia will start early next year, Finnish border guard officials said Friday, amid concerns in the Nordic country over the changing security environment in Europe. The initial three kilometer (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence will be...
The Democratic takeover of the Pa. House will be a little messy to start. Here’s why.
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 Democrats have won control of the Pennsylvania House, but the party will need to rely on Republican support...
North Korea fires suspected ICBM after warning U.S. on exercises
North Korea test-fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile with an estimated range long enough to carry a warhead to the American mainland, prompting the U.S. to condemn what it said was an unlawful action. The North Korean missile was launched Friday, a day after Pyongyang warned the U.S. to halt...
Pa. Attorney General Josh Shapiro taking complaints over Taylor Swift Ticketmaster problems
Pennsylvania’s top law enforcement official thinks Ticketmaster might be in some “trouble, trouble, trouble” after a fiasco over canceled sales for pop star Taylor Swift’s latest concert tour. On Thursday, Ticketmaster canceled the planned public sale of tickets for Swift’s Eras Tour that were set to drop Friday, and Pennsylvania...
Republican Lauren Boebert’s tight race likely headed to recount
DENVER — Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert, a renowned conservative firebrand whose combative style helped define the new right, is likely headed to an automatic recount in her bid to fend off a surprisingly difficult challenge from a Democratic businessman from the ritzy ski town of Aspen. The Associated Press has...
Judge blocks Florida Gov. DeSantis law on barring ‘woke’ education
TALLAHASSEE — A federal judge in Florida on Thursday blocked a law pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that restricts certain race-based conversations and analysis in colleges. Tallahassee U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued a temporary injunction against the so-called “Stop Woke” act in a ruling that called the legislation “positively...
Biden administration to ask high court to take up student debt plan
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration plans to ask the Supreme Court to reinstate the president’s student debt cancellation plan, according to a Thursday legal filing warning that Americans will face financial strain if the plan remains stalled in court when loan payments are scheduled to restart in January. The Justice...
Democrats get nominal control of Pa. House with win in Montgomery County
State Rep. Todd Stephens, R-Montgomery County, has conceded in his race for a seventh term representing the 151st District, giving Democrats at least a nominal majority in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the first time since 2010. Democratic challenger Melissa Cerrato holds a 16,800 to 16,741 lead according to...
Driver arrested in crash into Los Angeles County sheriff’s recruits
LOS ANGELES — Authorities have arrested a 22-year-old driver on suspicion of attempted murder for allegedly plowing his vehicle into Los Angeles County sheriff’s academy recruits on a training run, injuring more than two dozen people. Nicholas Joseph Gutierrez was arrested Wednesday for investigation of attempted murder on a peace...
Ohio GOP aims to change voting laws during lameduck session
COLUMBUS — Ohio’s elections chief on Thursday championed a lameduck push to require a supermajority of voters in order to pass certain constitutional amendments, a move that came the same day further voter restrictions were added to a significant rewrite of Ohio’s election laws. Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose...
Buffalo mass shooter to plead guilty, victims’ lawyers say
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The man who killed 10 people in a racist mass shooting at a Buffalo supermarket plans to plead guilty to all of the state charges against him, according to lawyers representing families of the victims. Payton Gendron, 19, is scheduled to appear in court Monday, according to...
Safety tips to avoid accidental holiday cooking firesVideo
Pennsylvania Acting Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys, Department of Health Acting Secretary and Pennsylvania Physician General Dr. Denise Johnson, and Pennsylvania Acting State Fire Commissioner Charles McGarvey joined Harrisburg Fire Bureau officials to offer safety advice for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. “This holiday, as we gather to celebrate with loved ones,...
Buffalo, western N.Y. brace for potentially dangerous stormVideo
BUFFALO, N.Y. — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency Thursday for parts of western New York ahead of a dangerous storm that had the potential to dump several feet of snow on some communities on the eastern ends of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The worst...
Pelosi won’t seek leadership role, plans to stay in Congress
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that she will not seek a leadership position in the new Congress, making way for a new generation to steer the party after Democrats lost control of the House to Republicans in the midterm elections. Pelosi announced in a spirited speech on...
Gabby Petito family settles $3M suit in killing by fiance
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The families of Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie have reached a $3 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed after authorities concluded he strangled her during a cross-country trip in August 2021. The settlement was signed Thursday by Sarasota County Circuit Judge Hunter W. Carroll....
Rising homicides, kidnappings in Haiti show crisis is not over even as fuel flow resumes
A rise in gang violence and kidnappings in Haiti continues to worry the United Nations, whose top humanitarian official in Port-au-Prince has appealed to the international community to provide support for the country and its people. Ulrika Richardson, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator in Haiti, said the global organization...
Police: Man fatally stabbed father in Mt. Washington because he ‘wanted a cigarette’
A man is accused of fatally stabbing his wheelchair-bound father and injuring his brother in a Mt. Washington home because “he was frustrated, cold, and wanted a cigarette,” Pittsburgh police said. Police have arrested Javon Taylor, 31, and charged him with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, and...
‘I thought I was going to die’: Abuses widespread in Ukraine
KYSELIVKA, Ukraine — For 10 days, Alesha Babenko was locked in a basement and regularly beaten by Russian soldiers. Bound, blindfolded and threatened with electric shocks, the 27-year-old pleaded for them to stop. “I thought I was going to die,” he told The Associated Press. In September, Babenko and his...
Idaho police: No suspect in slaying of 4 college students
BOISE — Police in the college town of Moscow said Wednesday they have not identified a suspect or found a weapon in the weekend slayings of four University of Idaho students in a rental house near campus. Authorities continue to believe the attack was targeted but walked back a previous...
Wisconsin man who killed 6 in Christmas parade gets life, no releaseVideo
A judge sentenced a man who killed six people and injured many others when he drove his SUV through a Christmas parade in suburban Milwaukee to life in prison with no chance of release Wednesday, rejecting arguments from him and his family that mental illness drove him to do it....
Prosecutors: Mechanicsburg woman directed Jan. 6 rioters, Pelosi laptop thievesVideo
In a video, the 22-year-old woman can be heard shouting at police as rioters surge through the U.S. Capitol rotunda: “You’re a traitor,” she yells. “You’re a traitor to this country.” Riley Williams, now 23, of Mechanicsburg, is on trial this week on eight charges related to her actions in...
Los Angeles elects U.S. Rep Karen Bass mayor, first Black woman in post
LOS ANGELES — U.S. Rep. Karen Bass defeated developer Rick Caruso to become the next mayor of Los Angeles on Wednesday, making her the first Black woman to hold the post as City Hall contends with an out-of-control homeless crisis, rising crime rates and multiple scandals that have shaken trust...
