Top Stories category, Page 191
Poll: Majority of Democrats want new party leadership
Nearly two out of three Democrats think their party needs new leadership, according to a poll released Thursday. The Reuters/Ipsos poll showed that 62% of Democrats surveyed agreed with the statement that “the leadership of the Democratic Party should be replaced with new people,” while 24% disagreed and 14% weren’t...
Federal judge blocks Trump effort to keep Harvard from hosting foreign students
BOSTON — A federal judge Friday blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to keep Harvard University from hosting international students. An order from U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs preserves the ability of Harvard to host foreign students while the case is decided. It marks another victory for the Ivy League school...
Burrell schools to pay $999K to settle sex abuse lawsuit
Burrell School District will pay almost $1 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a former student who alleged the district failed to protect her from sexual abuse by a former swim coach. The lawsuit claimed the district also failed to supervise former assistant swim coach Raymond Novak, whom she...
Fencing considered for Tarentum Bridge after New Kensington man jumped to his death
PennDOT officials said Friday they will assess the potential of installing fencing on the downriver side of the Tarentum Bridge following the death of a New Kensington man who apparently jumped to his death from the span Tuesday. The victim was identified as Thomas Peter Link, 68, by the Allegheny...
Trump calls for special prosecutor to investigate 2020 election, reviving longstanding grievance
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday called for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the 2020 election won by Democrat Joe Biden, repeating his baseless claim that the contest was marred by widespread fraud. “Biden was grossly incompetent, and the 2020 election was a total FRAUD!” Trump...
No fare hikes in $17.9M Westmoreland transit budget
Westmoreland County bus fares will stay the same in the next year, officials said this week. Westmoreland County Transit Authority will maintain its fees for the fiscal year that begins July 1 under a $17.9 million budget, Alan Blahovec, executive director, told the authority board Thursday. The board unanimously approved...
Forecast for Westmoreland air show: Bright skies, heavy traffic
Thousands of people are expected to travel to Arnold Palmer Regional Airport this weekend to view the air show hosted annually at the Unity site. That means motorists should expect traffic to be heavier than usual on routes 30 and 981 in the vicinity of the airport. Traffic tends to...
From pool to rock wall? Ligonier Beach plan consultant proposes ideas for site
Area residents who recall swimming at the former Ligonier Beach resort shouldn’t expect to return to take a dip in the now-shuttered Ligonier Township pool, but township consultants have suggested visitors might someday descend into the drained basin of the expansive pool to engage in activities such as climbing a...
Canadian Snowbirds jet team set to headline annual show at Arnold Palmer airport
Dave Bulebosh gets a front-row seat to the Shop ’n Save Westmoreland International Airshow just by stepping into his yard. With his home being within a mile of Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity, he has had people flock to his neighborhood in past years to get a closer look...
Delusions from supplement overdose may have caused man to stab mom, attorney said
A Mt. Pleasant Township man accused of stabbing his mother multiple times was delusional when the incident took place at their residence in 2023, his attorney said Thursday. Psychiatrists examining Kort Eckman, 47, found that Eckman’s delusions on Oct. 3, 2023, may be linked to his taking numerous over-the-counter supplements...
Crowds fill Pittsburgh’s Mellon Park to celebrate Juneteenth
Quay Simmons, a Juneteenth vendor sporting a “Strong As A Mother” T-shirt, wasn’t going to let a little rain on Thursday get her down. For the fifth year now, the Pittsburgh native has left her day job driving trucks to haul a booth’s worth of quirky bracelets and colorful purses...
Man accused of killing Jennah Seibert ordered to stand trialVideo
Moments after District Judge Wayne Vlasic on Thursday ordered Dorian Jeri-Greene to stand trial on homicide charges related to the shooting death of Jennah M. Seibert, her fiance walked to the front of the courtroom and turned to face the defendant. Bryan Murray of Rostraver stood there, apparently looking in...
Police: 2-year-old’s drowning death in East Pittsburgh appears accidental
A 2-year-old girl died Thursday afternoon after drowning in an East Pittsburgh pool, police said. Police and first responders were dispatched to a pool in the 500 block of Howard Street shortly after 1 p.m. Kehlani Russell was taken to UPMC Children’s Hospital where she later died at 2:22 p.m.,...
Trump extends TikTok ban deadline for a 3rd time
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to keep TikTok running in the U.S. for another 90 days to give his administration more time to broker a deal to bring the social media platform under American ownership. Trump disclosed the executive order on the Truth Social...
Juneteenth celebrations across the U.S. commemorate the end of slavery
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Juneteenth celebrations unfolded across the U.S. on Thursday, marking the day in 1865 when Union soldiers brought the news of freedom to enslaved Black people in Texas and attracting participants who said current events strengthened their resolve. The holiday has been celebrated by Black Americans for generations,...
Attorney weighs self-defense vs. accident in Penn Twp. shooting trial
The attorney for a woman accused of shooting her then-boyfriend in 2022 in Penn Township said Thursday he has not decided whether he will argue in her trial next month that the shotgun accidentally discharged or that his client acted in self-defense. Attorney Brian Aston told Westmoreland County Judge Scott...
Sheriff’s deputies arrest parole, probation violators in Bell Acres
Sheriff’s deputies Thursday arrested a man and a woman, both wanted for violating probation, at a Bell Acres home. Eric Bosh, 43, of Ambridge, was named a fugitive a month ago after he violated his probation for a guilty plea of fleeing a police officer, a sheriff’s spokesman said. Moon...
William M. Cotter: Pushing public notices to government websites is a bad move
Legislation in the Pennsylvania Senate risks allowing local governments to operate in the shadows, leaving taxpayers unaware of decisions affecting their pocketbooks, their communities and their quality of life. State Senate Bill 194, sponsored by Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Adams/Franklin, would allow school districts and municipal and county governments the option...
3 plead guilty in 2022 fatal North Side shooting
Two men and one woman pleaded guilty Thursday in connection with a 2022 shooting on Pittsburgh’s North Side, where a barrage of dozens of gunshots killed Stephone Drayton and injured three others. Hezekiah Nixon, 19, of Pittsburgh; Andrew Johnson, 29, of Coraopolis; and Tylajae Allen, 24, of Pittsburgh, stood separately...
Rachel Carson Trail Challenge pushes hikers to the limit
While 99% of participants finish the Pittsburgh Marathon, the Rachel Carson Trail Challenge has an average finish rate of 75%. The Rachel Carson Trail will put more than 1,000 hikers’ physical and mental endurance to the test Saturday for the 28th annual challenge featuring three separate courses. The full challenge...
Here are 5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: June 20-22
If you’re scientific about it, we’re finally hitting the real beginning of summer. Enjoy the longest days of the year with a slate of great events this weekend. Prime Stage Theatre Cemetery Walk Learn about history with a theatrical tour of Allegheny Cemetery in Lawrenceville on Saturday. Prime Stage Theatre...
Iranian missiles hit a hospital and wound over 200. Israel threatens Iran’s top leader
BEERSHEBA, Israel — Israel’s defense minister threatened Iran’s supreme leader on Thursday after Iranian missiles crashed into a major hospital in southern Israel and hit residential buildings near Tel Aviv, wounding at least 240 people. As rescuers wheeled patients out of the smoldering hospital, Israeli warplanes launched their latest attack...
Erick makes landfall in southern Mexico as a Category 3 storm
ACAPULCO, Mexico — Powerful Hurricane Erick made landfall in Mexico’s southern state of Oaxaca early Thursday, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said, but there was no immediate report of injuries. The hurricane’s center was located about 20 miles east of Punta Maldonado. Its maximum sustained winds were clocked at...
Pittsburgh singer Lou Christie dies at age 82
Native Pittsburgh singer Lou Christie, who scored No. 1 Billboard hit with “Lightnin’ Strikes” in 1966, has died. He was 82 years old. His wife, Francesca, told the Hollywood Reporter that Christie died at home in Pittsburgh after an undisclosed illness. In an Instagram post on Wednesday, the Sacco family...
‘Roller coaster’: High-stakes drama marked Nippon’s winning courtship of U.S. Steel
Three Mon Valley mayors remember it well: A series of mid-December meetings with union leaders and Nippon Steel executives as Japan’s largest steelmaker aggressively courted U.S. Steel, the storied American manufacturer. Relations between the United Steelworkers union and Nippon — never friendly, exactly — had deteriorated over the course of...
