Top Stories category, Page 1550
Number of Pennsylvania chronic wasting disease cases grows againVideo
This isn’t good news by any means. The Pennsylvania Game Commission found more deer with chronic wasting disease in 2019 than the year before. And that’s with some counting still left to do. Hunters will know soon how the agency plans to deal with that. The commission unveiled a draft...
140 bricks of heroin seized in drug bust on North Side, police say
A North Side man accused of dealing heroin looked shocked when Pittsburgh police pulled up next to his parked Chevrolet Camaro on Tuesday evening and asked him to show his hands, according to police. Police waited for Terrence Adams, 22, to leave the house in the 200 block of Carrington...
Roundabout being considered along Route 356 in Buffalo Township
PennDOT is considering addressing congestion and safety concerns along busy Route 356 in Buffalo Township in a roundabout way. “We’ve found that roundabouts are effective at reducing congestion as well as the number of crashes and the severity of them,” PennDOT spokesman Timothy Nebgen said of the one-way, circular intersections....
‘Business as usual’: Levin’s owners consider options to sustain operations
The owners of Western Pennsylvania furniture giant Levin’s are mulling a number of financial options with “creditors, investors and landlords” in order to sustain the company’s current operations, according to a corporate official. The move is aimed at ensuring the company — Art Van LLC — “can continue serving our...
1 lane of southbound Route 28 closed near Harmar after landslide
Authorities reduced Southbound Route 28 in Harmar Township to a single-lane around 5 p.m. Tuesday because of a landslide, PennDOT said. The single-lane closure is in place between the Harmar (Exit 11) and RIDC Drive (Exit 10) interchanges after two large boulders fell from the hillside onto the shoulder of...
Sen. Casey launches campaign for sweeping child welfare reformsVideo
Pennsylvania senior Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, is making it clear he’s in it for the long run. Two years into his third term, Casey, 59, is barnstorming the Keystone State to promote an ambitious package of child welfare proposals that even he concedes may take years to bring to fruition....
NAACP, black community leaders call for Allegheny Co. judge’s ouster over alleged racist remarksVideo
Representatives from the state and local NAACP gathered Tuesday at Freedom Corner in Pittsburgh’s Hill District to denounce alleged racist remarks by Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Mark Tranquilli. Tranquilli has been on administrative duty since Feb. 6. His alleged comments, including calling a black juror “Aunt Jemima” in a...
Lesser-known presidential candidate debate slated for March in Chicago
Just because they aren’t on CNN, Fox News and MSNBC all day doesn’t mean they aren’t running for president. As the Democratic National Committee awaits delegate counts to see who will end up running against President Trump this November, 21 lesser-known presidential candidates will take a debate stage next month...
Attorney defends police, DA’s Office, saying he saw no misconduct during Wilkinsburg mass shooting probe
A former attorney for a man who alleged prosecutors paid him for information and encouraged him to lie in the Wilkinsburg mass shooting case denied he saw any misconduct from the District Attorney’s Office, according to a response filed Tuesday. Chris Eyster did not name Kendall Mikell in his nine-page...
Business as usual for local councils as Boy Scouts of America files for bankruptcy
Local Boy Scouts councils said their activities will continue as usual, despite the bankruptcy filing of their 110-year-old parent organization, the Boy Scouts of America. Each council is its own entity, financially and legally separate from the national organization. Leaders of the Laurel Highlands Council, which includes the Pittsburgh area...
Witness: Pittsburgh man played on park swings after North Side killing
An East Allegheny man accused of fatally shooting another man in Pittsburgh’s Spring Hill-City View neighborhood played on swings at a North Side park after the 2017 killing, a witness told police. Justin Parrotte, 31, is facing homicide and gun charges for the death of John Miller in a nonjury...
Pittsburgh students receive high marks for City Hall performanceVideo
Mike Nichols, a volunteer for Pittsburgh Public Schools, has escorted kids through the corridors of Pittsburgh City Hall for more than 20 years to give them a sense of how local government operates. On Tuesday, Nichols brought in a violin ensemble from Westwood elementary into council chambers for a short...
Pittsburgh poised to pay city firefighter $70,000 to settle discrimination suit
Pittsburgh would pay a city firefighter $70,000 to settle a lawsuit claiming the city violated the Americans with Disabilities Act in 2016 by restricting his duties after he suffered a head injury while responding to a fire call. City Council introduced a resolution Tuesday that would authorize a settlement of...
Police: Bugs ‘crawling on the walls’ at South Huntingdon home with 2 kids
A South Huntingdon woman who was ordered not to have contact with a baby is accused of having the child at her home last month, according to state police. Elizabeth Ann Hart, 22, is charged with child endangerment and harassment. Troopers investigating a 911 hang up call Jan. 8 on...
Pa. Superior Court hears appeal arguments in corruption case against former Westmoreland sheriff
The lawyer for former Westmoreland County Sheriff Jonathan Held argued Tuesday that not enough evidence exists to warrant the continued prosecution of the now-private citizen on public corruption offenses. Held, 45, of Hempfield is awaiting a second trial for allegations he directed on-duty staffers to participate in reelection campaign activities...
Trump commutes former Illinois Gov. Blagojevich’s sentenceVideo
CHICAGO — President Donald Trump has gone on a clemency blitz, commuting the 14-year prison sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and pardoning former NYPD commissioner Bernie Kerik. Trump also says he has granted clemency to financier Michael Milken, who pleaded guilty for violating U.S. securities laws. Kerik served...
Gordmans grand opening in East Huntingdon draws curious shoppersVideo
Several dozen shoppers braved a wet, windy morning Tuesday to be among the first to shop at the new Gordmans, formerly Peebles, department store in East Huntingdon. Officials from the township and from Mt. Pleasant borough joined employees as they officially opened the location in Countryside Plaza. Grand openings of...
Penguins to award $100K to renovate one of 3 Western Pa. ice rinks
The Penguins are staging a contest in which a local ice rink will be selected to receive $100,000 for renovations. Online voting will determine the winner. Bradys Run Park Ice Arena in Beaver Falls, the Belmont Sports Complex in Kittanning and S&T Arena in Indiana are the finalists. The team...
Trump pardons Edward DeBartolo Jr., son of ex-Penguins owner
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday pardoned Edward DeBartolo Jr., the former San Francisco 49ers owner convicted in a gambling fraud scandal who built one of the most successful NFL teams in the game’s history. DeBartolo Jr., who owned the San Francisco 49ers during their 1980s-1990s dynasty, was involved...
Man sentenced to life in prison in beating death of refugee Pittsburgh cab driver
One of four men accused of beating a Somali refugee cab driver to death nearly three years ago in Pittsburgh was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison by an Allegheny County judge. Daniel Russell, 23, was convicted of second-degree murder in November for his role in the 2017 death of...
Coming soon: More pet camping sites at Pennsylvania state parks
The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will allow pets at more state park campsites in 2021. Dogs, cats and caged animals such as birds and hamsters will be permitted in the parks. Livestock such as horses, cows, pigs, sheep, and goats are not considered pets. Pet camping started...
Police: Indiana County man killed by own tow truck during repossession in McKeesport
A tow truck driver from Indiana County making a repossession was killed early Tuesday in McKeesport when the tow truck he was operating rolled back over him, Allegheny County police said. Andrew Sester, 42, of Lucerne Mines in Center Township, was pronounced dead at 4:54 a.m., according to the Allegheny...
Hempfield man accused of hitting Irwin bar patron with his truck
Police accused a Hempfield man of hitting another man with his pickup truck during a fight outside an Irwin bar last month, according to court papers. Adam Charles Walters, 26, was arrested on charges of aggravated assault by vehicle, reckless endangerment and related offenses. He is free on a recognizance...
Pittsburgh rap artist Harvey ‘Frzy’ Daniels aims for greatnessVideo
Harvey “Frzy” Daniels did not plan to become a rapper. When he was a kid, he wasn’t even allowed to listen to rap music. Will Smith was the exception. One day in 2003, during his senior year at the since-shuttered Career Connections Charter High School in Lawrenceville, he was unknowingly...
535Media unveils AI startup MeSearch, with focus on reader-tailored experience
A Pittsburgh artificial intelligence startup built on decades of search technology launched Monday with an aim to change the way news is published, delivered and consumed online. MeSearch, founded as a joint venture with 535Media, will start the first tests of its technology with Trib Total Media to provide neighborhood...
