Top Stories category, Page 1147
Pittsburgh police: 6-year-old girl shot in abdomen in Homewood
A 6-year-old girl was in critical condition after being shot in the abdomen Thursday evening in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood. Police learned of the wounded girl, who was a passenger in an SUV in the 7100 block of Frankstown Avenue, after officers responded to a ShotSpotter alert about 6:20 p.m. in...
Greensburg man guilty of 1st-degree murder in Vandergrift woman’s deathVideo
The Greensburg man prosecutors said beat a Vandergrift woman with a hammer, choked her to death and burned her body in a remote area near Keystone State Park in early 2017 was convicted Thursday of first-degree murder. After 13 hours of deliberations over two days, a Westmoreland County jury returned...
Paul Kengor: Highway robbery on the Pa. Turnpike
In a column around this time last year, I wrote about the toll that covid was taking on tollbooth workers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I had been prompted by an eerie ride to Latrobe from my home in Grove City. Like many Pennsylvanians under lockdown, I hadn’t been on a...
Pa. Sen. Jim Brewster urges officials to pause vote on state university consolidations
A spokesman for the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education says there are no plans to delay or postpone next month’s scheduled vote that could be one of the final steps in consolidating six state-owned universities into two institutions. System spokesman Cody Jones said Thursday that officials remain on target...
ATI, Steelworkers unable to find agreement on health care as strike drags on
Allegheny Technologies Inc. and the United Steelworkers continue to levy accusations at each other as they remain unable to agree on the key issue of health benefits and a strike drags on. Negotiators for ATI and the USW met Wednesday with the help of a federal mediator. No further talks...
Pa. legislature ends coronavirus disaster declaration, keeps waivers
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 Pennsylvania legislature has voted to immediately end Gov. Tom Wolf’s coronavirus disaster declaration using a new power granted...
Pittsburgh animal control officer charged with felony animal cruelty
A Pittsburgh animal control officer dragged a dog through a parking garage on a control pole so violently that one witness said it looked like he was “mopping the floor” with the dog, according to charges filed Thursday. James Genco III, 46, is charged with one felony count of aggravated...
Pa. GOP proposes major election overhaul, including stricter voter ID and in-person early voting
This article is made possible through Votebeat, a nonpartisan reporting project covering local election integrity and voting access. This article is available for reprint under the terms of Votebeat’s republishing policy. Pennsylvania Republicans unveiled their first proposal for overhauling the state’s election system Thursday, with lawmakers in the state House...
Former Butler Health System COO, husband sentenced for embezzling $1.3 million
The former chief operating officer for Butler Health System, and her husband, a former detective, are going to federal prison on charges that they embezzled more than $1.3 million from her employer over a period of six years. The money taken by Stephanie J. Roskovski, 51, and her husband, Scott...
Coxcomb Hill Road reopens in Plum
Drivers in the Alle-Kiski Valley area have one less detour to deal with. Coxcomb Hill Road in Plum reopened Thursday afternoon, PennDOT spokesman Steve Cowan said. That is a day earlier than had been expected earlier in the week. Coxcomb Hill had been closed to traffic between Logans Ferry and...
Cheswick Generating Station, Allegheny County’s only coal-fired power plant, to close
Allegheny County’s only coal-fired power plant is set to permanently close in September. Houston-based GenOn Holdings LLC said Thursday it plans to close Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale by Sept. 15. The company said it also plans to close coal-fired power plants in Avon Lake, Ohio, and Newburg, Md. In...
171-year-old Edgeworth home available for $1.55M
Willa Cather wrote about this historic home in Edgeworth. The celebrated novelist used the elegant home — known as “Braeface,” Gaelic for “the brow of the hill” — as a setting for her 1925 story “Uncle Valentine.” She was a frequent guest there of the Slack family when she lived...
Attorney Milton Raiford apologizes for leaving client’s case during Zappala dispute; seeks to be restored
A day after Milton Raiford, who is embroiled in a public dispute with Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., refused to represent his client in court, the defense attorney changed his mind. On Thursday, Raiford asked the court if he could return to Vanessa Williams’ case — telling...
Pennsylvania reports 17% drop in DUI arrests amid pandemic year
Pennsylvania State Police reported a 17% drop in DUI arrests in 2020, a year that saw weeks of stay-at-home orders and months of business shutdowns. According to a report released Thursday, state troopers made 18,412 arrests for driving under the influence in 2020. That’s down from 22,139 in 2019. Those...
Independent Marlin Woods to announce bid for Pittsburgh mayor
A 48-year-old East Liberty man who works as a benefits consultant will be announcing an independent run for Pittsburgh mayor Thursday evening. “Leadership is my product and I believe in it,” Marlin Woods said in an interview before his campaign kickoff, which is set for 6 p.m. at Highland Park...
For the first time, Idlewild park to offer beer during summer season
Idlewild & SoakZone will sell beer during its regular summer season for the first time, beginning this weekend. Beer will be available for patrons to purchase in one location initially 一 Mineshaft Kitchen in Hootin’ Holler 一 where it will “pair nicely” with Idlewild’s famous Potato Patch fries, said Jeff...
Penn State ex-president reports to jail in Sandusky scandal
BELLEFONTE, Pa. — Former Penn State president Graham Spanier has reported to jail early to begin serving his sentence for child endangerment in a case stemming from the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal. Spanier reported to Centre County Correctional Facility, several miles from the Penn State campus, on Monday...
Brackenridge man charged with abusing, neglecting dog that died in his care
A Brackenridge man has been charged with abusing and neglecting a dog that died in his care earlier this year. Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh charged Nicholas A. Rose, 19, on Tuesday with a felony count of aggravated cruelty to animals as well as misdemeanor and summary counts of cruelty...
Bethel Park woman charged with endangering the welfare of children, DUI
A Bethel Park woman faces multiple charges for allegedly trying to run over juveniles in a middle school parking lot. Haley Jankowski, 18, is charged with endangering the welfare of children, ethnic intimidation, driving under the influence, criminal mischief, reckless driving, corruption of minors, drivers required to be licensed and...
Paint is source of high lead levels in Wilkinsburg homes, report finds
Concerned Wilkinsburg residents and community leaders met Wednesday to sift through a report on the high level of lead exposure in the borough and what to do about it. The report, “Get the Lead Out, Wilkinsburg” was compiled by Get the Lead Out, Pittsburgh and Women for a Healthy Environment....
Man who died after falling into Allegheny River in Downtown Pittsburgh identified
A man who died after falling into the Allegheny River near the Seventh Street Bridge on Tuesday afternoon has been identified. According to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office, Lewis Mills, 37, was found unresponsive in the river and was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Pittsburgh...
Fire chief: 1 person died, 7 others homeless in New Kensington apartment fire
One person died and seven others were left homeless in a fire Wednesday evening at an apartment house in New Kensington. Firefighters from New Kensington, Arnold, Lower Burrell, Upper Burrell and Plum responded to 1350 Kenneth Ave. shortly after 7:10 p.m. for reports of a fire at the three-story converted...
Own an Echo? Amazon may be helping itself to your bandwidth
Do you own an Amazon smart device? If so, odds are good that the company is already sharing your internet connection with your neighbors unless you’ve specifically told it not to. On Tuesday, the company launched a program that forces users of many Echo smart speakers and Ring security cameras...
Keystone XL pipeline nixed after Biden stands firm on permit
The sponsor of the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline pulled the plug on the contentious project Wednesday after Canadian officials failed to persuade President Joe Biden to reverse his cancellation of its permit on the day he took office. Calgary-based TC Energy said it would work with government agencies “to...
Jury deliberations to continue in Greensburg man’s murder trial
A jury will resume deliberations Thursday morning in the trial of a Greensburg man charged with the murder of a Vandergrift woman whose charred remains were found at a secluded Derry Township campsite four years ago. Jurors deliberated about four hours Wednesday and did not reach a verdict in the...
