Top Stories category, Page 1005
Court won’t force Pittsburgh to turn over taser death report to DA’s office
An Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge has denied a motion by the district attorney’s office to force the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police to turn over an internal report examining the October death of Jim Rogers. The DA’s office initially asked the city to produce the 15-page executive summary of...
Kentucky firm to dismantle Cheswick Generating Station for potential redevelopment
The Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale Borough, slated to close on April 1 after more than 50 years of operation, has been purchased by a Kentucky firm that specializes in remediation of coal-fired power stations. Charah Solutions, based in Louisville, said Thursday it will dismantle the plant and potentially use...
Student hospitalized after fight at Pittsburgh’s Brashear High School
A fight Friday at Brashear High School sent one student to the hospital, according to a school spokeswoman. The student’s condition was not immediately available. Brashear High School is on Crane Avenue in the city’s Beechview neighborhood, and it serves just under 1,100 students. Video of the incident appears to...
Pennsylvania casinos shatter record, generate $4.7 billion in revenues in 2021
Pennsylvania casinos in 2021 shattered year-over-year records, generating $4.7 billion in combined revenues, state regulators said. Casinos saw $2 billion more last year compared to 2020 when $2.6 billion was collected from slot machines, table games, sports betting, iGaming, video gaming terminals and fantasy contests, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming...
Churchill residents challenge Amazon distribution facility in court
A group in Churchill has filed a court challenge to block the approval of a new Amazon warehouse approved by borough council last month. Churchill Future, which lobbied against the proposal, said in an appeal filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court that the project fails to meet a number...
Louie Anderson, Emmy-winning comedian, dies at 68Video
LOS ANGELES — Louie Anderson, whose four-decade career as a comedian and actor included his unlikely, Emmy-winning performance as mom to twin adult sons in the TV series “Baskets,” died Friday. He was 68. Anderson died at a hospital in Las Vegas of complications from cancer, said Glenn Schwartz, his...
Police: Woman had protection order against ex accused of killing her with her own gun in Bellevue
Rachel Dowden did all the things she was supposed to do to protect herself from an ex with a history of abuse. She received a protection from abuse order (PFA) that was in place for three years, police said. She carried a legally purchased handgun. On Wednesday, she was shot...
Meat Loaf, ‘Bat Out of Hell’ rock superstar, dies at 74
NEW YORK — Meat Loaf, the heavyweight rock superstar loved by millions for his “Bat Out of Hell” album and for such theatrical, dark-hearted anthems as “Paradise By the Dashboard Light,” “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” and “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That),” has died....
Westmoreland group holds prayer vigil for covid victims
A prayer vigil held in frigid temperatures Friday night to remember the 1,183 Westmoreland County residents who have died from covid served an additional purpose: to encourage the Westmoreland County commissioners they should allocate the $105.3 million in federal funds to help those in need and provide recovery and relief....
Avella man dies in Washington County crash
An Avella man has died after crashing into a home in Cross Creek Township on Thursday afternoon. Washington County Coroner’s Office officials said Zachary James Noga, 28, was not wearing a seat belt when he lost control of his vehicle along the 200 block of Cross Creek Road around 2:20...
Judge denies motion to suppress statements made by defendant in Tree of Life case
Antisemitic statements made by the man accused of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue three years ago can be used against him at trial. In a 32-page opinion issued Thursday, Senior U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose denied a motion by Robert Bowers to suppress statements that he made...
Ivanka Trump is asked to interview in Capitol riot inquiryVideo
WASHINGTON — The House panel investigating the Capitol riot is asking Ivanka Trump to voluntarily appear for an interview in February. Ivanka, the daughter of former President Donald Trump, served as an adviser in the White House and spoke to her father during crucial moments on Jan. 6, 2021, according...
Wolf joins Pittsburgh leaders to tout Pennsylvania’s fiscal improvementsVideo
Gov. Tom Wolf joined Pittsburgh leaders Thursday at an event to promote fiscal improvements the state has seen during his tenure. Wolf joined Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald at the Energy Innovation Center in the Hill District — a site that Fitzgerald hailed as a...
Port Authority to settle lawsuit over death of Pitt student struck by bus
The Port Authority board is expected to approve a $500,000 settlement over the death of a University of Pittsburgh student who was struck and killed by a bus two years ago in Oakland. The authority’s oversight committee recommended the settlement, and it is expected to be voted on at a...
Feds: New Kensington resident serves federal prison time for illegally receiving pandemic jobless benefits
A New Kensington man served six months in a federal prison after he was convicted of receiving pandemic unemployment compensation that he didn’t qualify for. Erick Woods, 23, of New Kensington was sentenced to time served (six months) and a two-year term of supervised released, after he was convicted of...
Seven Springs daily snow report with stumbling skier goes viral
Daily snow reports posted by ski resorts often can be boring, simply listing the amount of fresh snow, ski conditions, temperatures and the number of open slopes. A report posted Thursday by Seven Springs’ narrator Abbey Way via Twitter hit it big, garnering attention across the country with a slipping,...
Pittsburgh officials say 50 trucks still cleaning snow and ice
After a winter storm brought several inches of snow to Western Pennsylvania Sunday, Pittsburgh crews were still clearing roads and combating icy road conditions as of Thursday. City officials said Monday that they had hoped to have all city roads cleared by Tuesday’s morning commute. Though many major roads seemed...
AP-NORC poll: Biden approval hits new low at 1-year mark
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden ends his first year in the White House with a clear majority of Americans for the first time disapproving of his handling of the presidency in the face of an unrelenting pandemic and roaring inflation, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center...
Parents sue Upper St. Clair School District over lifting of mask mandate
A group of families of medically disabled children is suing Upper St. Clair School District in federal court after the board there reversed its mandatory mask mandate earlier this month. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of five medically fragile students who are unnamed in the complaint, seeks a temporary restraining...
Sports talk radio mainstay Jim Colony retiring from 93.7 The Fan
Not since legendary meteorologist Bob Kudzma left the KDKA-TV airwaves two decades ago has a New England native left such an impression on the Pittsburgh media landscape. Jim Colony, who brought a vast knowledge of sports, a self-deprecating sense of humor and a bit of a New England twang to...
Tom Hanks returning to Pittsburgh region to film ‘A Man Called Ove’
Tom Hanks is set to return to the Pittsburgh region to film another project after having portrayed the late Fred Rogers in the 2019 “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.” The U.S. adaptation of “A Man Called Ove” will film in Western Pennsylvania this year, Pittsburgh Film Office director Dawn...
Mark Cuban’s online pharmacy touting low-cost prescription drugs now open
Mark Cuban’s online pharmacy promising affordable prices on prescription medications is up and running. The Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company cuts out middlemen and negotiates directly with drug manufacturers and pharmacies for rebates and discounts on behalf of employers, health insurers and government health programs. It says it’s offering...
Highlands school board votes to make masks optional
Highlands students are not required to wear masks in class, or elsewhere on district property, after the school board on Wednesday night reversed a previous mandate. The policy extends to staff and visitors, though the new mask-optional guidelines will limit outsiders in the building. The board voted 6-3, with members...
Hempfield school officials, bus company working to lessen impacts of driver shortage
A shortage of substitute school bus drivers is impacting some routes in the Hempfield Area School District. First Student bus company “has an occasional morning in which a substitute bus driver cannot be secured,” according to Superintendent Tammy Wolicki. While efforts are made to cover impacted routes through other means...
Report cites water quality issues in hundreds of miles of Allegheny, Westmoreland waterways
Sections of Loyalhanna Creek and several of its tributaries, as well as some streams in Salem, are among bodies of water in Westmoreland County that are considered impaired for various uses, according to a new statewide integrated water quality report from the Department of Environmental Protection. In neighboring Allegheny County,...
