Top Stories category, Page 1646
Energy Secretary Rick Perry tells Trump he plans to leave post soon
WASHINGTON — Energy Secretary Rick Perry notified President Donald Trump Thursday that he will soon be leaving the post, according to two people familiar with the matter. Perry, one of the administration’s original Cabinet secretaries, enjoyed good rapport with Trump. The former Texas governor has recently come under scrutiny in...
Demolition of Belvedere Hotel in Oklahoma Borough cost 40% less than expected
The demolition of the Belvedere Hotel in Oklahoma Borough came in $36,000 under budget. The demolition was completed Friday and took a little more than a week. The final cost was $48,700, or about 40% less than expected. Originally, Westmoreland County came up with $75,000 and Oklahoma Borough pledged $10,000...
Mick Mulvaney confirms Trump withheld aid in part to pressure Ukraine to investigate DemocratsVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump withheld roughly $400 million in aid to Ukraine earlier this year in part to push its new government to investigate Democrats, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Thursday, a stunning confirmation that hits directly at the center of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry....
Daily Download: Police heart defibrillators, Katharine Hepburn and Brandon TanevVideo
Each day, TribLIVE reporters and editors will break down the biggest news of the day, with video highlights of the people and places making headlines. Today, reporter Paul Guggenheimer discusses portable heart defibrillators in Pittsburgh police cruisers, Katharine Hepburn at The Frick Pittsburgh and Penguins forward Brandon Tanev’s improbable goal...
Point Park honors slain Pittsburgh Officer Calvin Hall
The Point Park University Police Department’s training center has been renamed after slain Pittsburgh police Officer Calvin Hall, who formerly worked as a Point Park police officer, the university said Thursday. Point Park renamed the center in a private ceremony Wednesday attended by Hall’s family. Hall spent two years as...
The 1955 murder story behind ‘Pittsburgh’ the poem, published in The New Yorker
Walter Henry was an unemployed steelworker when he was shot and killed at a Pittsburgh hotel in 1955. He attempted to intervene in a neighbor’s dispute but died in the arms of another tenant while his assailant — a jilted lover who kidnapped an ex-girlfriend, a resident of Henry’s building...
Greensburg Diocese paid $4.35 million in sexual abuse claims
The Greensburg Catholic Diocese paid $4.35 million to settle claims with 57 adults who suffered child sexual abuse at the hands of clergy, church officials announced Thursday. Greensburg was among five Pennsylvania dioceses and one archdiocese that established compensation funds for survivors of clergy child sexual abuse following last year’s...
Events around Western Pa. will honor Tree of Life victims 1 year after attack
Grief defies borders. As the world focuses on commemorating the one-year mark of the country’s most violent anti-Semitic attack, synagogues across Western Pennsylvania will hold special services of their own. Rabbi Amy Bardack of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh is coordinating events marking one year after Oct. 27, 2018,...
Actress Katharine Hepburn’s fashions showcased at The Frick PittsburghVideo
Adjectives used to describe the late, great actress Katharine Hepburn include independent, spirited, confident and quick-witted. She received 12 Best Actress nominations from the Motion Picture Academy, taking four awards home for performances in “Morning Glory” (1933), “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” (1967), “The Lion in Winter” (1968) and “On...
Family finds 5 inches of blood in their basementVideo
An Iowa family discovered a bloody mess in their basement. Five inches of animal blood, fat and tissue, to be specific. Nick Lestina, a father of five, stopped home on Oct. 3 and found his sump pump spewing red liquid, reports the Des Moines Register. The blood and guts had...
Cops: Argument over beer in Southwest Greensburg results in stabbing, arrest
A 42-year-old South Huntingdon man is in the Westmoreland County Prison after police say he slashed his younger brother’s leg with a knife during an argument over drinking beer. Francis John Hermanson Jr. is charged by police with aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment and harassment in connection with the...
Officials: Homestead man killed in shooting at McKeesport Family DollarVideo
A man shot and killed Thursday morning inside the Family Dollar on Versailles Avenue in McKeesport has been identified. Dwayne Fuller, 24, of Homestead was pronounced dead shortly after noon, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. Allegheny County Police Sgt. Venerando Costa said police are trying to identify...
Trapper plays with alligator until it tires, pulls it from pool
PARKLAND, Fla. — A Florida animal trapper says he corralled a large alligator by playing with it until it got tired after it hopped into a residential swimming pool. Celebrity trapper Paul Bedard, who is contracted with the state’s nuisance alligator program, said Thursday that he was dispatched to a...
Prantl’s Bakery and Platform Beer collaborate for a 2nd tasty brew
For a second time, 500 pounds of burnt almonds made their way from Pittsburgh to Cleveland — all in the name of beer. Platform Beer Co. and Prantl’s Bakery in Shadyside have collaborated on a second brew: a Chocolate Almond Torte Stout. It’s a twist on the first beer —...
Pennsylvania fir selected as White House Christmas tree
A 23-foot Douglas fir from Pennsylvania will be decorated and displayed in the Blue Room of The White House this Christmas season. The tree was planted about 16 years ago at Mahantango Valley Farms in Upper Mahanoy Township in Northumberland County, reports WNEP. White House officials selected the tree Tuesday...
Game Commission shares video of black bear release in Fayette CountyVideo
Did you ever wonder what it would be like to have a 200-pound black bear charge at you? A video by the Pennsylvania Game Commission of a bear being released from a trap on state game lands in Lower Tyrone Township in Fayette County gives viewers that up close, in-person...
Lottery jackpot worth $650K sold at Hempfield store
A Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 ticket worth $650,000 was sold Wednesday at a Westmoreland County convenience store, according to state lottery officials. The winning ticket matched all five balls drawn, 07-10-12-35-40, to win the jackpot, less withholding. The BP convenience store, Par Mar 66 at 4613 Route 136 in Hempfield,...
Rep. Elijah Cummings dies from health complications at 68Video
BALTIMORE — Maryland Rep. Elijah E. Cummings died early Thursday at Johns Hopkins Hospital due to complications from longstanding health challenges, his congressional office said. He was 68. A sharecropper’s son, Cummings became the powerful chairman of a U.S. House committee that investigated President Donald Trump, and was a formidable...
Spirit announces nonstop flight to Cancun from Pittsburgh
A new flight at Pittsburgh International Airport will make it easier to get to the sunny beaches of Cancun, Mexico. Spirit Airlines on Wednesday announced a nonstop flight to Cancun International Airport. The flight is scheduled to start Feb. 13 and will be available Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Direct flights...
Guillermo Rodriguez of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ stops at Pittsburgh’s Primanti Bros.Video
There was a special guest behind the bar on Wednesday at Primanti Bros. in the Strip District. Wearing a red Primanti Bros. T-shirt with the words “Bite Me” on the back, comedian Guillermo Rodriguez stopped by to film a segment for ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” He posed for photos with...
Remembering the ‘We Are Family’ 1979 Pirates
Now that the Washington Nationals have clinched the pennant, the Pirates are the National League team with the longest wait since their last World Series appearance. But if Pirates fans are forced to live off a memory of the team’s last appearance, Pittsburgh’s thrilling come-from-behind-victory over the Baltimore Orioles in...
Chicago teachers to strike amid no contract deal
CHICAGO — Chicago teachers are set to go on strike after failing to reach a contract deal with the nation’s third-largest school district. Both sides have been negotiating for months over issues including pay and benefits, class size and teacher preparation time. The Chicago Teachers Union said Wednesday night that...
Woman in critical condition after being hit by vehicle in Point Breeze
A woman was hospitalized in critical condition after being struck by a vehicle Wednesday night in Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze neighborhood. Authorities said city police responded to the area of Penn Avenue and Linden Street shortly after 8:30 p.m. for a report of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle. Officers found...
South Park man admits to stealing more than $1 million from Upper St. Clair church
A South Park man admitted to stealing $1.2 million from an Upper St. Clair church that he and his wife used on vacations, Pittsburgh Pirates tickets and other expenses, Allegheny County authorities say. David Reiter, 50, a former administrator at Westminster Presbyterian Church, pleaded guilty Wednesday before Allegheny County Judge...
911 recording: Boy found hanging in home with sister was bullied, ‘didn’t want to go alone’
ALLENTOWN — Minutes after finding her two children hanging from a support beam in the basement of their Albany Township home, Lisa R. Snyder told a 911 dispatcher that her 8-year-old son was bullied and had “made threats of doing this, but didn’t want to go alone,” a recording of...
