Top Stories category, Page 1142
Brentwood woman charged in connection with shooting death of North Hills High graduate
A man wanted in connection with the murder of a North Hills honors student remained on the run Friday, but his girlfriend was charged Thursday with helping him escape the scene of the February shooting, according to police. Chayla Robinson, 40, is charged with hindering apprehension in the Feb. 21...
Lawsuit filed by protester who said they were struck by car on Veterans Bridge
A Hazelwood resident who was struck by a car on the Veterans Bridge in Pittsburgh last year during a peaceful march protesting the police killing of George Floyd is suing the driver that struck them. Victoria “Vic” Costikyan, 29, filed the complaint against Dylan Dietrich, listed as being from Jefferson...
Burrell School Board passes final budget with 3.5% real estate tax increase
The Burrell School Board unanimously approved its final budget of $32.7 million for 2021-22 on Tuesday, which includes a tax increase of 3.5%. For a home assessed at $22,900, the district’s average home tax assessment, the homeowner would pay an additional $80 in real estate tax for next school year,...
Democrats waiting for Conor Lamb as Pa.’s 2022 Senate race takes shape
PHILADELPHIA — When U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan decided she wouldn’t run for Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate seat, moderate Democrats lost one of their big hopes for next year’s critical election. But they haven’t freaked out. That’s because in Democratic political circles, there’s widespread belief that U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, a Mt....
Ohio man dies in fall from roof of Neville Island pallet plant
An Ohio man died in a fall Thursday morning while making repairs to the roof of a Neville Island plant, according to police. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Chris M. Byler, 19, of Andover. He was pronounced dead at the scene just before 9:30 a.m....
West Deer Police Chief Jon Lape set to retire, supervisors name Robert Loper to replace him
After 18 years, West Deer is getting a new chief of police. Chief Jonathan Lape is retiring at the end of June, and the township supervisors have appointed Sgt. Robert Loper as the new chief. “There are few people who will have as wide an impact as Chief Lape has,”...
Tropical storm warning issued for northern Gulf CoastVideo
MIAMI — A tropical storm warning was issued Thursday for parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama as a potential tropical cyclone advanced toward the northern Gulf Coast. The warning extends from Intracoastal City, La., to the Alabama-Florida border, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Heavy rainfall and flooding...
Tarentum’s revitalization kicks into gear with Depot groundbreaking
A long-awaited business broke ground Thursday in Tarentum. The Depot, owned by Faith Community Partners, has been in the works since the building’s purchase by Executive Director Dave Rankin in 2015. Construction on the building on the 300 block of Fifth Avenue officially began Monday. Developers of The Depot plan...
‘Hole in our hearts’: Beltzhoover man sentenced for shooting death of 3-year-old girl
Chassity Clancy was just 3 years old, but she brightened every room she entered. She loved Barbies and the song, “Let It Go.” She liked to play with hair grease — but hated having her hair done. “She could make you laugh and smile just the way she looked at...
Biden signs bill making Juneteenth a federal holidayVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden signed legislation Thursday establishing a new federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery, saying he believes it will go down as one of the greatest honors he has as president. Biden signed into law a bill to make Juneteenth, or June 19, the 12th federal...
Gov. Wolf calls GOP’s election bill ‘driven by fringe conspiracy theories’ as Republican lawmakers crash eventVideo
PHILADELPHIA — The battle to shape public opinion over Pennsylvania Republicans’ proposed election overhaul intensified Thursday, as Gov. Tom Wolf called it an attack on voting rights and GOP lawmakers crashed a news conference in the Philadelphia suburbs to demand he negotiate. Democrats have blasted the proposal as the latest...
Troopers say tips from public led to arrest of Scottdale man on animal cruelty charges
State police said a Westmoreland County animal rescue’s social media posts seeking information on the abuse of a stray dog this week helped lead them to a suspect Wednesday. Devin Jacob Eli Rugg, 19, of Scottdale, was arrested on two counts each of aggravated cruelty to animals causing serious bodily...
Advocacy groups gather in Pittsburgh to call for divestment in policing, reinvestment in community needs
Advocacy groups met in Downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday to call on lawmakers and leaders to divest in police resources and invest in community concerns they say are the root cause of violent crime. “The safest communities are not the communities with the most police,” said Jasiri X, co-founder of the...
Report: Pennsylvania casino revenues top $413 million in May
Pennsylvania casinos saw a more than $9 million revenue increase in May compared to the previous month, recently released figures show. Combined gambling revenues last month exceeded $413 million compared to $404 million reported in April, according to data from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. A comparison was not provided...
CMU language technology professor a finalist for $250,000 prize
English-speaking people sometimes take certain things for granted. For example, when they ask a question or give a command to Alexa and Siri, they can expect to get a desired response because those cloud-based voice services work great in English. But what happens when someone who speaks one of the...
Westmoreland commissioners restructure election bureau; director’s job in limboVideo
Westmoreland commissioners on Thursday overhauled the county election bureau to add a layer of management, increased pay for staff and, for the first time, acknowledged a potential change in leadership of the department. The move comes a month after numerous operational and administrative issues plagued the bureau the days before...
Vice President Kamala Harris to visit Pittsburgh next week
Vice President Kamala Harris plans to travel to Pittsburgh on Monday, White House officials announced. Harris will be joined during her visit to Western Pennsylvania by U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, the former Boston mayor who became the final department secretary of President Biden’s cabinet to be confirmed on March...
High court sides with Catholic agency in same-sex foster care dispute
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously sided with a Catholic foster care agency that says its religious views prevent it from working with same-sex couples as foster parents. The justices said the city of Philadelphia wrongly limited its relationship with the group as a result of the agency’s...
‘Obamacare’ survives: Supreme Court dismisses big challengeVideo
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court, though increasingly conservative in makeup, rejected the latest major Republican-led effort to kill the national health care law known as “Obamacare” on Thursday, preserving insurance coverage for millions of Americans. The justices, by a 7-2 vote, left the entire Affordable Care Act intact in ruling...
U.S. jobless claims tick up to 412,000 from a pandemic low
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week for the first time since April despite widespread evidence that the economy and the job market are rebounding steadily from the pandemic recession. The Labor Department said Thursday that jobless claims rose 37,000 from the week before...
Fired Pa. contractor seeks to secure contact tracing data after learning personal info still online
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 company responsible for administering Pennsylvania’s contact tracing program has called on current and former employees to help it...
Pa. Senate passes bill to legalize cocktails-to-go, sends to House with modifications
Cocktails-to-go are one step closer to becoming a permanent part of Pennsylvania’s bar, restaurant and hotel scene. On Wednesday, the Senate passed legislation to make permanent the sale of mixed drinks-to-go by restaurant or hotel licensees for off-premises consumption. Originally, cocktails-to-go was a temporary measure allowed during the covid-19 disaster...
Wanted in Pittsburgh: Lifeguards willing to ‘get a free tan’ for $11-$15 per hour
The benefit of free sun rays doesn’t appear to be enough to lure experienced lifeguards into the pool of applicants for a summer job that pays as much as $15.76 per hour from the City of Pittsburgh. City Parks and Recreation Director Ross Chapman told city council members Wednesday the...
Business owner claims Pittsburgh police wrongfully detained her in parking spot dispute with magistrate’s officeVideo
Marsha Simonds just wanted the illegally parked car to be moved from the Greenfield lot that she owns. But when the business woman demanded its removal, she said, she wound up slammed on the hood of her car, handcuffed and thrown in the back of a Pittsburgh police car. Then...
Plum officials pass law discouraging the feeding, care of feral cats
Plum officials have enacted a new law in order to discourage residents from taking care of feral cats. Council voted 6-0 last Wednesday night to pass an ordinance that makes it illegal for anyone to “intentionally provide food, water, or other forms of sustenance or care to ally stray, feral,...
