Top Stories category, Page 1452
Vandergrift braced for unrest, but protest remained peacefulVideo
Police, residents and business owners in Vandergrift braced for unrest that never materialized. A Black Lives Matter protest scheduled for Thursday had some in the borough of about 5,200 people on edge — despite the fact that the protest had formally been canceled after one of the organizers became the...
Greensburg man guilty of assaulting Westmoreland prison guards
A Greensburg man will serve up to three years in prison for assaulting three guards and threatening another at the Westmoreland County Prison in 2018. Esteban Sosa, 38, pleaded guilty Thursday to three counts each of aggravated assault and simple assault as well as one charge of making terroristic threats...
White House designates Westmoreland County as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area
Westmoreland County now is officially designated a “High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area” by the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy. The label makes the county eligible for increased federal funding, sharing of intelligence, analytical support and enhanced training opportunities. Westmoreland joins Allegheny, Beaver and Washington counties in the...
Protesters take to Pittsburgh streets for 6th straight day in 4-hourlong peaceful marchVideo
Heavy rains and strong winds did not keep hundreds of protesters out of Pittsburgh streets for an hourslong, peaceful march that took them from Downtown to the South Side to the Hill District and back. It marked the sixth straight day of protesting on city streets in response to racial...
Sheraden man sentenced for 2018 East Hills murder
A man from Pittsburgh’s Sheraden neighborhood was sentenced Thursday to 10 to 20 years in prison for a 2018 East Hills shooting that left a Virginia man dead. Leonard Bernard Hilton, 26, also was ordered to serve 10 years of probation following his release. Allegheny County Judge David Cashman agreed...
Doctors say covid-19 at UPMC is declining in virulence, infection levels
Covid-19 is declining in both virulence and infection levels among patients at the state’s largest health care system, UPMC officials said Thursday. Dr. Donald Yealy, who heads emergency medicine at the system that has hospitals across the state, said both the ratio of patients testing positive for the virus and...
`Get your knee off our necks!’: Floyd mourned in MinneapolisVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — Hollywood celebrities, musicians and political leaders gathered in front of the golden casket of George Floyd at a fiery memorial Thursday for the man whose death at the hands of police sparked global protests, with a civil rights leader declaring it is time for black people to demand,...
Vote counting drags into 3rd day after Pennsylvania primary
HARRISBURG — Counting an avalanche of 1.4 million mail-in votes dragged into a third day in Pennsylvania on Thursday as some races from Tuesday’s primary remained too close to call. The Associated Press has not yet called a number of races where the contest was close or had a large...
Pennsylvania reports 75 new coronavirus deaths, 537 new cases
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 75 new covid-19 deaths and 537 new cases in the state Thursday. That brings the state’s total case count to 73,942, with 5,817 deaths. The state considers 618 patients as probable cases, but they are not confirmed. Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday renewed the...
Allegheny County reports 13 more coronavirus cases, 13 more deaths
As Allegheny County prepares to enter the least restrictive phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan, county health department officials reported 13 additional covid-19 cases and 13 new deaths Thursday. The county enters the green phase of the state’s reopening plan Friday. That leaves the total number of deaths countywide...
Pittsburgh leaders call for police reform after East Liberty protest melee
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto during a call for police reform Thursday morning said there are indications that police commanders did not give the go-ahead for using tear gas to disperse protesters during a Monday night protest in East Liberty. The hourslong march for racial justice began to break up around...
Protests eclipse pandemic, but White House fears resurgence
WASHINGTON — For weeks, President Donald Trump has been eager to publicly turn the page on the coronavirus pandemic. Now fears are growing within the White House that the very thing that finally shoved the virus from center stage — mass protests over the death of George Floyd — may...
ATI removes ‘priceless’ stainless steel cars from Harrison plant, plans to auction them
Stainless steel may be resistant to rust and the ravages of time, but the tangible history of Allegheny Ludlum may not be as resilient. That’s the fear of longtime employee Todd Barbiaux. He worries the company’s legacy, and a source of community pride, will fade with the loss of four...
Police: Brentwood homeowner killed intruder during burglary
A Brentwood homeowner shot and killed a burglar Wednesday night, Allegheny County Police said. Mitch W. Verheyen, 38, of Brentwood, was shot by the owner during a burglary in the 100 block of Bellcrest Avenue, police said. Verheyen was pronounced dead at the scene as a result of the shooting,...
Saint Vincent camp cancellation a blow for local members of Steelers NationVideo
Disappointment, anger and understanding. Local Steelers fans expressed a range of emotions after learning the Steelers won’t hold training camp at Saint Vincent College this summer because of new NFL guidelines prompted by the covid-19 pandemic. Ron Monack, 25, is a 2017 alumnus of the college in Unity and a...
North Braddock shooting leaves 1 dead, 1 wounded
A 19-year-old man was shot to death Wednesday afternoon in North Braddock and another man wounded, Allegheny County Police said. Demond Terrell Scott, 19, of Duquesne was transported to Forbes Regional Hospital where he died, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner. Scott and another man, a 20-year-old who was...
Injuries reported in quad head-on collision in Mt. Pleasant Township
Fire departments and emergency medical personnel were dispatched to a collision of two quad all-terrain vehicles Wednesday night near the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Mt. Pleasant Township, the Westmoreland County Department of Public Safety said. The crash on Turnpike Road was reported at about 7:25 p.m. when one quad t-boned the...
Ex-defense chief Jim Mattis rips Trump for dividing AmericansVideo
WASHINGTON — In an extraordinary rebuke, former defense secretary Jim Mattis on Wednesday denounced President Donald Trump’s heavy-handed use of military force to quell protests near the White House and said his former boss was setting up a “false conflict” between the military and civilian society. “I have watched this...
Casey, Toomey weigh in as Trump threatens military force
Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators are weighing in on President Trump’s threat to invoke the Insurrection Act in response to protests following the death of George Floyd. On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, joined 20 other senators in sending a letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper urging him to refrain from...
West Virginia University to require coronavirus tests before return
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University will require testing of all students, faculty and staff for the coronavirus before they can return to campus for the start of fall classes. The university said Wednesday that in setting Aug. 19 as the start of fall classes students must wear masks on...
Protests not changing health department plans as Allegheny County moves to green
Allegheny County county officials want to remind residents the coronavirus is still around as the region prepares to moves into the green phase of the state’s reopening plan. “The virus has not gone away,” County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said during a press briefing Wednesday. “We have not developed a vaccine...
State covid-19 counts at nursing homes disputed by centers in Allegheny, Westmoreland
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported a large spike in coronavirus deaths at Kane Community Living’s Glen Hazel location, but Allegheny County officials say that never happened. The state’s updated report says there have been 78 resident cases, 43 resident deaths and 25 staff cases. Allegheny County, which operates the...
Protest in Vandergrift canceled after organizers say they received threats
A protest in Vandergrift to support the Black Lives Matter movement has been canceled after organizers said they received numerous threats. Cicily Bailey, 19, said she came up with the idea to organize a march in honor of George Floyd. She started a group chat with a few close friends,...
Rivers Casino, The Meadows to reopen next week
Rivers Casino is set to reopen next week. The North Shore gambling site will open its doors to patrons again at 9 a.m. June 9, according to a release. Restaurant and gaming floor capacity will be limited to 50% occupancy to comply with state guidelines and promote social distancing. Occupancy...
Wolf lifts stay-at-home order, renews disaster declarationVideo
The stay-at-home order that has governed life in Pennsylvania since early March will expire at day’s end Thursday as the entire state moves into the yellow and green reopening phases, Gov. Tom Wolf said. But Wolf said he will renew the 90-day disaster declaration that was set to expire along...
