Top Stories category, Page 1346
Could the Pa. GOP bypass the popular vote regardless of who wins? Here’s what we know.
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan 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 weekly newsletter. HARRISBURG — It is the nightmare scenario Pennsylvania election officials have fretted over for months: a knock-down, drag-out fight over...
Westmoreland jail warden resigns, cites ‘harassment’ by Commissioner Cerilli
Westmoreland County Prison Warden John Walton submitted his resignation and retirement Monday to the prison board as a result of what he described as a “public character assassination and campaign of harassment” by Commissioner Gina Cerilli. Walton, 61, of Mt. Pleasant Township will work until Nov. 6. The board approved...
Romanian villagers re-elect mayor despite his covid-19 death
BUCHAREST, Romania — After handing Ion Aliman victory in the election for their local mayor, residents of a small village in southern Romania went to his grave to light candles for him. Aliman was reelected in a landslide for an unprecedented third term as mayor of the village of Deveselu...
Police: Burglar left shoes behind as he ran from Brackenridge home
A Brackenridge woman came face-to-face with a burglar at her kitchen door who ran off, leaving his shoes behind, according to borough police. Brackenridge police charged Eric Randall Thompson, 41, of New Kensington with two felonies, burglary and criminal trespass, and misdemeanor counts of theft and receiving stolen property. According...
Pennsylvania adds more than 1,500 new covid cases in past 2 days
Pennsylvania’s coronavirus cases increased by 1,594 over the past two days, according to a report Monday from the state’s Department of Health. The department said 918 cases were added Sunday and 676 were announced Monday. The state has seen 156,826 covid-19 cases since the pandemic began in March. From Sept....
Pittsburgh Public Schools extends remote work 5 weeks for teachers, 2 days for students
Teachers at Pittsburgh Public Schools will work remotely an additional five weeks, the district and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers announced Friday night in a joint statement. The school board voted in late July to maintain remote learning for the first nine weeks of the school year, but teachers were...
Barstool’s Dave Portnoy takes a Pittsburgh bite out of Primanti’sVideo
Did Dave Portnoy just get tired of eating pizza? The Boston-based pizza reviewer and Barstool Sports founder has been bouncing between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia promoting his new sports betting app — and sampling as much pizza as he can stomach. Maybe Portnoy, who calls himself El Presidente, just needed a...
New laws will affect Pennsylvania archery hunters as season opens Saturday
Archery hunters across the state will be in their deer stands Saturday for the first day of Pennsylvania’s statewide archery deer season. The first part of the season will run through Nov. 20. It will be closed on Sundays, except for Nov. 15. For the first time, the season will...
Western Pennsylvania dry spell to end as cold front approaches
A 14-day dry spell in Western Pennsylvania is expected to end Monday night when a cold front moves through the region. The front will bring an end to warmer weather and make it feel more like autumn, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Pat Herald. “Obviously, it’s dry,” Herald said....
Meet the Strip District Produce Terminal’s new tenants in Pittsburgh
The Strip District Terminal’s storied past is about to reach future generations with a new chapter. Earlier this month, the building’s developer, Chicago-based McCaffery Interests, announced agreements with three more retailers as the $50 million redevelopment nears its end. In keeping with McCaffery’s commitment to lease 25% of the Terminal...
Clairton closes schools, cancels classes after water main break floods building
Clairton City School District is closed and all classes, including online, are canceled Monday and Tuesday after parts of the education center were flooded by a water main break, the district announced. According to the district, a water main failed on the Large Avenue side of the building on Saturday,...
Debates 2020: Trump to woo suburban voters while Biden shows he’s more than ‘not Donald Trump’
President Donald Trump told thousands of cheering supporters outside Pittsburgh International Airport that he’s looking forward to facing off with “Hidin’ Biden” on Tuesday. Speaking to a mostly unmasked, tightly packed crowd outside a hangar in Moon Township, Trump mocked Democratic challenger Joe Biden for rarely being seen on the...
Federal judge postpones Trump ban on popular app TikTok
NEW YORK — A federal judge on Sunday postponed a Trump administration order that would have banned the popular video sharing app TikTok from U.S. smartphone app stores around midnight. A more comprehensive ban remains scheduled for November, about a week after the presidential election. The judge, Carl Nichols of...
Napa County fire with ‘dangerous rate of spread’ forces evacuationsVideo
SAN FRANCISCO — A fast-moving fire in Napa County on Sunday forced evacuations north of the town of St. Helena as large swaths of Northern California faced dangerous fire weather. The Glass fire has burned 1,200 acres about four miles northwest of downtown St. Helena, according to the California Department...
Post-Gazette’s union president Fuoco out amid investigation
The president of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh, which represents newsroom workers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, has voluntarily resigned from his position amid an investigation by union officials. The Guild’s executive committee was informed of President Michael A. Fuoco’s resignation Saturday night, according to a Sunday statement from the Guild....
New York Times: Trump paid $750 in U.S. income taxes in 2016, 2017
President Donald Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes the year he ran for president and in his first year in the White House, according to a report Sunday in The New York Times. Trump, who has fiercely guarded his tax filings and is the only president in modern...
Greensburg police Det. John Swank dead at 51
Detective Sgt. John F. Swank Jr. often dealt with grim circumstances during his 19 years with the Greensburg Police Department. Yet, the 51-year-old Greensburg man, who died Saturday in the emergency room of Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital, will be remembered for his upbeat personality. “As good of a cop as...
Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge endorses Joe Biden for president
Tom Ridge, the former Pennsylvania Republican governor and first secretary of Homeland Security, plans to vote for President Donald Trump’s Democratic opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, he announced Sunday. Ridge, who served in former President George W. Bush’s administration, said it will be his first vote for a Democratic...
Pa. still 3rd in animal-car collisions; End Roadkill PA raises funds for wildlife rehab
As Pennsylvania is still ranked third in the nation for the number of deer and other animal collisions with cars, a group from Philadelphia is trying to raise money for wildlife rehabilitation centers across the state. Wildlife Works in Youngwood, Westmoreland County, and Wild Bird Recovery in Butler County are...
Steelers flip switch vs. Texans in second half, improve to 3-0
Deshaun Watson had too much time and too many open receivers for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ liking Sunday afternoon at Heinz Field. They did something about it after halftime. The Steelers bottled up Watson in the second half and used a long touchdown drive in the fourth quarter to pull out...
How Trump, Biden are preparing for first presidential debate
WASHINGTON — Ahead of the first debate-stage matchup between President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden, each campaign is promising a stark contrast in policy, personality and preparation. Trump has decided to skip any formal preparation. And while Biden’s team believes the significance of the debate may be...
Collision sends 3 to hospital, ties up eastbound traffic on Route 22 in Salem
A couple who had to be cut from their overturned Honda crossover vehicle and a male motorist in a van were taken to a local hospital after being involved in a collision Sunday morning on Route 22 in Salem. The crash was reported just before 10:30 a.m., at the intersection...
Pennsylvania officials get naked to address the importance of secrecy envelopes in mail-in ballots
Allegheny County Councilwoman Bethany Hallam wants to make sure every vote counts in the upcoming presidential election. So, she decided to get naked. Hallam and other elected officials this weekend launched a campaign featuring photos of them shirtless with graphics of mail-in ballots tastefully draped across their chests. The point...
Lockdowns are fading, but GOP outrage isn’t in campaigns
AUSTIN, Texas — When the coronavirus pandemic slammed the U.S. economy this spring, Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther became an overnight symbol of rebellion against lockdown measures, spending two days in a Texas jail for refusing to close her doors. Nearly $500,000 poured into a donation fund set up by...
Military suicides up as much as 20% in covid era
WASHINGTON (AP) — Military suicides have increased by as much as 20% this year compared to the same period in 2019, and some incidents of violent behavior have spiked as service members struggle under covid-19, war-zone deployments, national disasters and civil unrest. While the data is incomplete and causes of...
