Top Stories category, Page 1058
Men get federal prison for helping destroy Pittsburgh police car during George Floyd protestsVideo
Two men accused of conspiring to light a Pittsburgh police car on fire during protests last year over the death of George Floyd are going to federal prison. Da’Jon Lengyel, 24, of McKees Rocks, was ordered to serve 27 months, while Christopher West, 36, will serve four years. They both...
Somerset County DA’s accuser agrees PFA not needed given bond conditions on him
The attorney for a woman seeking a protection from abuse order against embattled Somerset County District Attorney Jeffery Lynn Thomas on Friday agreed to withdraw her petition. Somerset lawyer Matt Zatko said his client filed the petition seeking the protection of the court the day after Thomas was arrested and...
How to choose your candidate for Allegheny County Common Pleas Court
The primary field of 39 candidates for Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge has been cut by more than half as 18 people are running for 10 seats on the bench in Tuesday’s election. With that many candidates, trying to figure out who to vote for can be as much...
North Park eagles could rebuild after nest tree collapses, game commission says
When an old dead oak holding a bald eagle nest crashed to the ground in North Park last week, a legion of photographers and watchers collectively gasped. The tree supported not just the park’s only eagles’ nest, but the only such nest in any Allegheny County park. The two bald...
FDA paves way for Pfizer covid-19 vaccinations in young kids
WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration on Friday paved the way for children ages 5 to 11 to get Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine. The FDA cleared kid-size doses — just one-third of the amount given to teens and adults — for emergency use, and up to 28 million more American...
6 local districts partner in Consortium for Public Education program for student career readiness
A local collaborative that helps students prepare for future success has launched an initiative with six area school districts to create a pathway to that goal. The nonprofit Consortium for Public Education is partnering with the Burrell and Deer Lakes school districts in the Allegheny Valley, the Greensburg Salem and...
Tickets nearly sold out for dinner, comedy show benefiting New Kensington’s Knead Cafe
Tickets for a dinner and comedy show in downtown New Kensington are nearly sold out — and that’s no joke. The Nov. 12 event, with musical comedian Mark Eddie headlining, will benefit Knead Community Cafe and will be held in its banquet room. Only about 25 of 250 tickets were...
Hofbrauhaus Pittsburgh reinstates manager after racism allegations during Barrel and Flow Fest
Hofbrauhaus Pittsburgh has decided to provisionally reinstate a general manager who had been accused of racism during a Black craft beer festival. The employee was previously suspended after organizers of Barrel and Flow Fest, a September event celebrating Black brewers and artists, accused the general manager of harassment and racism....
‘The Pumpkin Guy’: Aspinwall man carves oversized gourds for charity
A giant gourd is helping one man give back. Joel Keefer, 70, of Aspinwall began decorating oversized pumpkins for the public’s enjoyment 25 years ago. “I’m known as The Pumpkin Guy,” Keefer said. Keefer initially began his Halloween tradition of carving gourds weighing more than 1,000 pounds in an effort...
Bus driver fired after Pittsburgh student slept through stop, was found at bus garage
A bus driver with W.L. Roenigk Inc. was fired Thursday after a Pittsburgh Public Schools student was found at the company’s bus garage in McKees Rocks after sleeping through her stop. Parents of the child, a student at Pittsburgh Beechwood PreK-5, reported her missing when she didn’t get off the...
Biden at Vatican to talk climate, poverty with Pope Francis
VATICAN CITY — Declaring it’s “good to be back,” President Joe Biden on Friday opened a five-day European trip at the Vatican, where he and Pope Francis — the world’s two most prominent Roman Catholics — planned to discuss the covid-19 pandemic, climate change and poverty. A dozen Swiss Guards...
Ed Gainey, Tony Moreno lay out platforms ahead of Pittsburgh mayoral race
State Rep. Ed Gainey and retired police officer Tony Moreno say they’re running for Pittsburgh’s highest office to tackle a range of problems in need of solutions right away. If elected, Gainey, a Democrat, would become the city’s first Black mayor. Moreno, running as a Republican after finishing a distant...
‘Everything is at stake’ as world gathers for climate talks
More than one world leader says humanity’s future, even survival, hangs in the balance when international officials meet in Scotland to try to accelerate efforts to curb climate change. Temperatures, tempers and hyperbole have all ratcheted up ahead of the United Nations summit. And the risk of failure looms large...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Oct. 29-31
It’s Halloween weekend in Pittsburgh. Here are some ways to spend it. Simone Biles Olympic gymnast Simone Biles will visit PPG Paints Arena, Uptown. Biles, who is the most decorated American gymnast in history, will headline the Gold Over America Tour when it stops in Pittsburgh at 7:30 p.m. Friday....
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Oct. 29-31
Faux Fieris Hey, dudes with the spiky silver hair, goatee, mirror sunglasses and flame shirts — now is your chance to be named the local mayor of Flavortown. Guy’s Kitchen & Bar Westmoreland at Live! Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield is hosting a Guy Fieri look-alike contest from 9 a.m. to...
Despite transparency vows, much of Pa.’s redistricting still takes place behind closed doors
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — This year’s monumental redrawing of Pennsylvania’s political maps was preceded...
Man faces charges after shooting at vehicle in Sharpsburg
A man turned himself into police Thursday after Sharpsburg surveillance video showed him firing two gunshots along Main Street, one hitting a passing car. Justin Craig faces charges of aggravated assault and reckless endangerment stemming from the Oct. 17 incident, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. Police said Craig left...
Crossing history: First covered bridge on a public walking trail in region built in Kiski Township
It looks like something out of a fairy tale: A new rustic covered bridge nestled in the woods of Kiski Township on a walking trail. It crosses the rollicking Roaring Run stream near its confluence with the Kiski River. It’s about 1.5 miles up the Roaring Run Trail from Canal...
Parents, health experts weigh pros, cons of giving children ages 5-11 covid-19 vaccine
On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave emergency approval for kid-size doses — just one-third of the amount given to teens and adults — of Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine for ages 5-11. As more detailed recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will come Tuesday, some parents...
5 things to watch in Week 9: Winner-takes-all matchups in 2 WPIAL conferences
Serra Catholic hasn’t celebrated a conference title since 2007, and the 14 seasons since included some lean years for the Eagles. The team went winless in 2012 and endured one-win seasons in 2013 and ’14. Yet, with the program turned around in coach Jose Regus’ fifth season, Serra Catholic is...
Homer City man arrested for possession of suspected opioids, crystal meth
A Homer City man is charged with drug- and gun-related violations after he was found in possession of suspected opioids and methamphetamine Tuesday in Indiana County. State police at the Indiana County station charged Brian Scott Davenport, 31, with felony counts of possession with intent to deliver controlled substances and...
Westmoreland commissioners told to ‘do the right thing’ with covid relief money
Westmoreland County residents have a big shopping list for federal coronavirus relief funds but one unified message: “Do the right thing.” That was the common refrain from the dozens who testified Thursday during two public hearings held at Westmoreland County Community College about how county leaders should spend $105 million...
Pittsburgh police’s graffiti squad seeks suspect in Bloomfield, East End vandalism
An Upper Saint Clair man wanted on a felony criminal mischief charge is accused of vandalizing Pittsburgh sites with graffiti. Pittsburgh police graffiti squad detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating Michael Coliane, 23, for whom a warrant has been issued. Coliane is accused of vandalizing Bloomfield’s Exercise...
U.S. cites ‘crisis’ as road deaths rise 18% in first-half 2021
DETROIT — The number of U.S. traffic deaths in the first six months of 2021 hit 20,160, the highest first-half total since 2006, the government reported Thursday, a sign of growing reckless driving during the coronavirus pandemic. The estimated number was 18.4% higher than the first half of last year,...
Officials identify truck driver killed in crash with train in Jefferson Hills
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the man killed in a Jefferson Hills truck-train crash Monday as a West Virginia resident. Michael Peters, 64, of Rock Cave, was dead at the scene along Route 51, after his dump truck collided with a Wheeling and Lake Erie train. The...
