Top Stories category, Page 1371

The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office on Wednesday charged two drilling companies with environmental crimes for their alleged pollution of a stream in Washington County. The charges stem from a grand jury report released last month that alleged unconventional drilling companies allowed pollutants to fill the water and air around drilling...

Pennsylvania’s Department of Health will not permit the Toronto Blue Jays to play at PNC Park in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic, officials announced Wednesday afternoon. The Blue Jays were seeking a major-league venue to play their home games after the Canadian government declared the Rogers Centre in Toronto...

A series of police reforms shepherded by Pittsburgh City Councilman Ricky Burgess are set to be considered for final approval next week before council enters its summer recess. Council also will consider approving a pilot program to divert low-level offenders from the criminal justice system to receive social services help...

Terrance Andrews, a drug-addicted psychiatric patient, repeatedly told his caregivers at UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside that he was going to kill one of his neighbors. Then, he did it. In May 2008 he slashed 18-year-old Lisa Maas, a Pennsylvania Culinary Institute student, to death with a pair of scissors. Maas’ mother...

FirstEnergy Corp. would not be able to raise electric rates on its 720,000 West Penn Power Co. customers in an attempt to recoup what federal prosecutors say was $60 million in bribes allegedly paid to Ohio power brokers. Prosecutors allege the bribes were paid in an effort to secure a...

Hot and dry weather during most of July has dimmed the light spectacle of fireflies in some urban and other parched landscapes, according to some local experts. Naturalists from the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy report less of a good showing this year of the beetle of summer — the firefly —...

Greater Latrobe is tops in Westmoreland County and among the best school districts across the state, according to the latest rankings in several categories on Niche.com. The Pittsburgh-based site calculates its rankings based on reviews by students and parents and data from the U.S. Department of Education, along with factors...

A Pennsylvania county sued Wednesday to compel Gov. Tom Wolf to release $12.8 million in federal coronavirus relief funding that he withheld after county leaders defied his shutdown orders and sought to reopen on their own. Wolf yanked the funding from Lebanon County, where local Republican leaders voted in mid-May...

State health officials are looking to hire more contact tracers and nurses to better control the spread of coronavirus and prepare for any potential surges in covid-19 cases. Contact tracing is the process of identifying, notifying and monitoring anyone who came in close contact with an individual who tested positive...

Ross Township police are searching for suspects wanted for breaking into a gas station and stealing an ATM. Police say the BP station in the 500 block of Lowries Run Road was broken into around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday and the ATM was taken. The suspects were driving a car that...

A Jeannette native was killed during an attempted robbery this month in Charleston, S.C. Thomas DiLorenzo, 63, was fatally shot Friday by two teenagers, ages 15 and 16, who demanded money as he and his wife walked downtown, the Post and Courier reported. Police called the shooting an “anomaly” that...

Officials with the University of Pittsburgh, Penn State and Temple University said they are supportive of mask wearing and other mitigation efforts put into place by state officials to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. All three universities plan to offer in-person classes this fall. “Penn State is finalizing...

Allegheny County dropped below 100 new covid-19 cases for the first time in nine days but saw a rise in both deaths and hospitalizations. The county reported 96 new cases, eight deaths and 16 hospitalizations on Wednesday, with the eight deaths the highest recorded since mid-May. The new cases bring...

Although the hot dog doesn’t always get a lot of respect, Americans eat an estimated 20 billion of them every year. That’s roughly 70 per person. That’s enough to get the lowly tube steak some formal recognition — July 22 is National Hot Dog Day. If you find yourself passing...

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Trump administration is facing growing pushback — in the courts and on the streets — to sending federal agents to Portland, Oregon, where protests have spiraled into violence, and vowing to do the same in other Democratic-led cities. Far from tamping down the unrest that followed...

MLB has informed the Toronto Blue Jays that they will share PNC Park with the Pittsburgh Pirates as their home field this season, according to reports out of Canada. Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae first reported the news late Tuesday night, and the Toronto Sun confirmed that the majority of the Blue...

A man was killed Wednesday in a shooting in Pittsburgh’s Knoxville neighborhood, according to the city Department of Public Safety. The unidentified man was taken to a hospital in critical condition early Wednesday. His death was reported just before 9 a.m. The city’s Shotspotter detection system registered multiple shots fired...

This summer’s heat has pushed the mercury to 90 degrees and higher for 11 days, prompting people to keep the air conditioners humming day and night. It has also strained the electricity lines carrying power to homes and businesses, area utility companies said. But while the system may be stressed...

A 26-year-old Leechburg man died Tuesday night after crashing the vehicle he was driving into a tree in Gilpin, according to the Armstrong County Coroner’s Office. Christian Joshua Cuffia lost control of his car on Ice Pond Road, near Shearer Road, around 7:20 p.m. The car traveled about 80 feet...

Pittsburgh police are seeking help to identify five people they said threw objects at officers during a Downtown protest on May 30. Some also are suspected of burglarizing and damaging businesses during the event at Fifth Avenue and Smithfield Street. Police provided the following descriptions of the individuals and their...

Pittsburgh first responders were able to rescue an elderly man who fell down a Mt. Washington hillside Tuesday. Authorities said police, fire and EMS were dispatched to the 600 block of Olympia Road around 5:45 p.m. for a man who had fallen about 20 feet down the hillside. They found...

A mother’s determination can go a long way. Dannielle Brown has been searching for answers since her son, Marquis Jaylen Brown, fell to his death from the 16th floor of Duquesne University’s Brottier Hall on Oct. 4, 2018. She began a hunger strike on Freedom Corner in Pittsburgh’s Hill District...