Top Stories category, Page 1553
Central Catholic, Pittsburgh Diocese announce random drug testing
Central Catholic High School and the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh on Friday announced a wellness initiative that will include periodic random drug testing of students. The initiative will begin at Central Catholic at the start of next school year with other diocesan high schools likely following suit. Each school has...
Official says U.S., Taliban reach Afghanistan truce agreement
MUNICH — The United States and the Taliban have reached agreement on a temporary truce that will take effect in the coming days and, if successfully completed, will lead to a formal cease-fire, the start of peace negotiations between all Afghan sides next month and the ultimate withdrawal of American...
Car-lovers can get up close to high-end rides at the Pittsburgh International Auto ShowVideo
They call them the exotics. They cost $300,000 and higher. They are loaded in horsepower. High-end vehicles are on display at the Pittsburgh International Auto Show, which runs through Monday at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. In an area called Galleria Exotica, there are three Ferraris, a...
Officials planning $7.4 million renovation of historic Pittsburgh YMCA buildingVideo
Pittsburgh’s Centre Avenue YMCA served as the center of the city’s African-American community when black people were barred from establishments open exclusively to whites. Baseball players like Jackie Robinson and Satchel Paige roomed there. World Champion Boxer Joe Louis trained in its gym. Singers including Ella Fitzgerald and Lena Horne...
West Deer police officer sues utility after witnessing electrocution
A West Deer police officer who witnessed a man being electrocuted by a live wire is suing West Penn Power and Asplundh Tree Experts LLC, contending their negligence left him traumatized. Edward Newman, a K-9 officer and volunteer with the West Deer Fire Department, watched as Terry Colton was electrocuted...
Police: $3,300 in heroin, more than $7,000 in cash found inside Hazelwood house
Allegheny County narcotics detectives arrested a Hazelwood man early Friday morning after finding heroin, a stolen gun and pot when they executed a search warrant at his home. Detectives from the Allegheny County Police Narcotics Unit searched a home in the 4700 block of Monongahela Street after obtaining the warrant...
Kindergartner caught with gun at Pittsburgh Allegheny school
A kindergarten student brought a gun to Pittsburgh Allegheny K-5 School on Friday, Pittsburgh Public Schools officials said. The gun was discovered when a staff member searched a student’s backpack at the North Side school after the student went through the school’s metal detector. Police were notified, and the incident...
Experts wonder if proposed scholarship requirements are realistic for recent grads
Gov. Tom Wolf has said his proposed Nellie Bly Scholarship could rescue schools in the State System and build the state’s workforce, but some experts doubt it is realistic — or even fair to students. For students to be eligible for a slice of the proposed $204 million scholarship fund...
Pennsylvania to repair ‘hazardous’ dams on 10 lakes across state
Three dams in Southwestern Pennsylvania are on a list of “hazardous” dams that qualify for special funds from the state. Gov. Tom Wolf announced Friday the release of $23.8 million in funding for a multi-year, $43.5 million plan to repair 10 hazardous dams managed by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat...
Jury acquits accused gunman nearly 4 years after Wilkinsburg backyard massacreVideo
As a man wept to his attorneys that he’d get to see his kids again, a woman left the Allegheny County Courthouse believing the person who killed hers was walking free. A jury on Friday acquitted Cheron Shelton of the 2016 mass shooting in Wilkinsburg that killed five adults and...
Tom Wolf’s scholarship proposal targets low- and middle-income students at Pa. state schools
It’s a far cry from “free college for all” — or even “tuition-free public college” — but Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed Nellie Bly Scholarship echoes facets of those proposals. The idea for the new scholarship is included in Wolf’s state budget proposal. He said it would help low- and middle-income...
Man forced woman to be getaway driver after he robbed a bank on their 1st date
A Massachusetts woman will have to wait five years on the off chance she wants a second date. Christopher Castillo, 33, was sentenced this week to three years in state prison and two years in county corrections after pleading guilty to robbery and tangling with police during a 2016 first...
Big Burrito details new Lower Lawrenceville pizza restaurant concept
The new Big Burrito Group restaurant coming to Lower Lawrenceville will be a sister to the group’s Italian restaurant concept, Alta Via, with a focus on pizza. The details of the restaurant, tentatively named Alta Via Pizza, were announced by Big Burrito’s president and chef, Bill Fuller, at a Lawrenceville...
Woman admits role in sham marriage with Nigerian man living in Pittsburgh
A New Jersey woman admitted in federal court Thursday to entering a sham marriage with a Nigerian man who was living in Pittsburgh so he could become a permanent resident, according to prosecutors. Ajia Strauss, 28, of Newark, pleaded guilty in Pittsburgh federal court to conspiracy to defraud the United...
Penguins’ Jason Zucker shares cute video of son learning to cheer for dad’s new teamVideo
Jason Zucker has played only one game as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. So you’ll have to forgive his son for not being up to date. On Monday, the Penguins acquired Zucker in a trade from the Minnesota Wild. But as of Thursday night, his son Hendrix was still...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Feb. 14-16Video
Happy Valentine’s Day. Maybe you’re wearing red, enjoying a bouquet of roses or a box of chocolates, or just looking forward to celebrating with your loved one (s). Here are 5 suggestions to make the weekend even sweeter. All things love The Westmoreland Museum of American Art, 221 N. Main...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Feb. 14-16
Valentine’s Day is Friday so make it a weekend to remember with the person you love. Some people might have three days off because Presidents Day is Monday. Here are some things to do in Pittsburgh. Sparkle and shine The Frick Pittsburgh in Point Breeze will present “Maker & Muse:...
Married in secret during WWII, this New Ken couple will celebrate 75th wedding anniversary on Valentine’s DayVideo
This Valentine’s Day, take a bit of advice from a New Kensington couple who will celebrate their 75th year together as husband and wife. Rich and Shirley Rosenberger met in high school and married in secret at their church while Rich was on leave during WWII. Their love story endures....
Primanti Bros. appeals to singles on Valentine’s Day with ‘Shred Your Ex’ special
Primanti Bros. is appealing to the singles crowd with lovers to scorn on Valentine’s Day, or at least those eager to move on with help from a french fry-slathered sandwich — and industrial-grade shredder. Dubbed the “Shred Your Ex” special, the regional chain’s timely marketing ploy will offer customers a...
The final cut: Brett Keisel’s Shear Da Beard shaves for charity one last timeVideo
It’s the end of a sh-era. For the 10th and final time, former Pittsburgh Steelers lineman Brett Keisel sheared off his famous beard in support of cancer programs at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in Lawrenceville. On Thursday, the former defensive end again endured the clippers, ending what he has...
Trump Fed nominee Judy Shelton faces skepticism at Senate hearingVideo
WASHINGTON — One of President Donald Trump’s nominees for the Federal Reserve came under sharp questioning Thursday from senators over her unorthodox economic views, including from two Republicans whose doubts about her nomination could imperil it. The nominee, Judy Shelton, sought to make her unconventional views an asset by promising...
Gisele Fetterman dressed in Carnival costume creates testy debate
A bit of a storm brewed across the Keystone State earlier this week — courtesy of Twitter — after Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman tweeted a photo of his wife, Gisele, suited-and-booted (not really) in a Carnival costume. “Waiting on confirmation from our PA Historian, gonna go out on a...
Let the nesting season begin: Pittsburgh Hays bald eagles lay first eggVideo
Such a power couple. The Pittsburgh Hays bald eagle couple — the first pair of the formerly endangered eagles to nest within the city limits in more than 150 years — have entered their eighth nesting season on the same bluff above the Monongahela River. A live webcam captured the...
Lower Burrell mayor names permanent police chief
Lower Burrell’s mayor has named acting chief John Marhefka the city’s police chief. “John brings a wealth of knowledge and experience,” Mayor John Andrejcik said Thursday. “He was everyone’s best choice that I talked to including city police, employees and others.” Marhefka is Andrejcik’s brother-in-law. The State Ethics Commission has...
Republican commissioners nix labor pact for Westmoreland County projects
Nonunion firms no longer can say they are being frozen out of securing high-dollar construction contracts with Westmoreland County. Republican county Commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew on Thursday terminated a controversial agreement with local trade unions. They said the Project Labor Agreement with the Pittsburgh Regional Building and Construction...
