Top Stories category, Page 191
Key security questions remain unanswered in arson at Governor’s Residence
It remained unclear how a man evaded security to firebomb the Pennsylvania Governor’s Residence in an attack that has been decried by elected officials and religious leaders. But the attack is merely the latest in what appears to be a rising tide of violence against elected officials. Recent incidents include...
Attorney suspended after embezzling $270K from Fort Pitt Block House fund
An attorney was suspended Monday after embezzling more than $270,000 from the historic Fort Pitt Block House, the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania announced. The suspension is for a period of three years — retroactive to May 5, 2024 — on consent from the Pennsylvania Bar. Investigators...
Investigators identify person of interest in death of Rostraver womanVideo
Investigators said Monday they have identified a person of interest in the slaying of a woman last week in her Rostraver home. Police said the body of Jennah M. Seibert, 24, was found Friday afternoon, the victim of a shooting. On Monday, the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office said investigators...
Former WPIAL executive director Larry Hanley dies
Larry Hanley, who served a nine-year stint as executive director of the WPIAL, died Saturday. He was 83. Hanley was the league’s top administrator from 1997-2006 and was inducted into the WPIAL Hall of Fame in 2008. He was the league’s second full-time executive director and brought a more diplomatic...
Video/photo gallery: Act of arson at Gov. Josh Shapiro’s residenceVideo
Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania State Police give an update on the act of arson at the Pennsylvania governor’s residence early Sunday morning, April 13, 2025. The fire left a significant amount of damage. The man, who was arrested later in the day, faces charges including attempted homicide,...
Judge denies bail for man accused of setting fire at Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s residence
HARRISBURG — A man who allegedly scaled an iron security fence in the middle of the night, eluded police and set fire to the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion was denied bail Monday as he faced charges including attempted homicide, terrorism and arson. Cody Balmer spoke with a public defender at...
What to know about Gov. Josh Shapiro and the alleged arson at his official residence
sHARRISBURG — A man is facing charges after authorities say he broke into the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion in the middle of the night Sunday morning, set a fire that left significant damage and forced Gov. Josh Shapiro, his family and guests to evacuate the building during the Jewish holiday of...
Charges filed in Parkway East wrong-way crash that killed 2
Police have charged the driver they say caused a wrong-way, head-on collision that killed two people Sunday evening on the Parkway East near Downtown Pittsburgh. Pedro Olan Morales, 56, from Charlotte, N.C., has been charged with aggravated assault by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, recklessly endangering another person, accidents involving injury or...
Morning Roundup: Pittsburgh police investigate 2 separate shootings
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Monday, April 14: Teen found shot along Wood Street Pittsburgh police are investigating after a teen was found shot late Sunday along Wood Street, just near Downtown’s public safety center. Officers responded at about 11 p.m. to the 400...
Bond market upheaval could impact borrowing costs for Western Pa. schools, municipalities
It’s all about timing. School districts and municipal authorities that already floated bonds for major construction projects are counting their blessings for not being caught up in the bond market’s current chaos. But those with pending projects not yet supported by money from bonds are watching the market closely, eyeing...
Delay in ‘silica rule’ leaves some miners’ advocates worried
After the announcement by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration of a four-month delay in enforcement of the “silica rule,” some in the region are worried about what that delay signals for miners’ safety. The rule, issued last April, gave mine operators a year to upgrade respiratory protection programs...
Kitten season: Vet offices, animal rescue sites brace for deluge of cats
Animal rescue groups are bracing for thousands in costs to care for a deluge of cute, but expensive, charges. Greensburg-based Wayward Whiskers Animal Rescue expects to spend between $50,000 and $70,000 solely for what is known as kitten season. The expense is about 40% of its annual budget, president and...
Trump administration still won’t say whether it will return mistakenly deported man, despite Supreme Court decision
The Trump administration is doubling down on its decision not to tell a federal court whether it has any plans to repatriate a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported last month and remains confined in a notorious prison in El Salvador, despite a Supreme Court ruling and lower court order...
Large hail, damaging wind possible with severe storms Monday, weather service says
Much of southwestern Pennsylvania is at a slight risk for severe thunderstorms on Monday, according to the National Weather Service. The highest overall severe risk will be near and south of Latrobe, Pittsburgh and New Philadelphia. The risk decreases for counties north and east of Allegheny County, according to an...
Trump’s commerce secretary says new electronics tariff exemptions are temporary, chip tariffs comingVideo
NASHVILLE — Tariff exemptions announced Friday on electronics such as smartphones and laptops are only a temporary reprieve until the Trump administration develops a new tariff approach specific to the semiconductor industry, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday. “They’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs but they’re included in the...
No arrests in Rostraver fatal shooting
No arrests have been reported as of Sunday afternoon in connection with the fatal shooting of a Rostraver woman, whose body was found Friday at a house in an isolated area of the township. Jennah Seibert, 24, was found dead around noon Friday in a house at 400 Lenity School...
Pennsylvania school shooting was planned for Columbine anniversary
STATE COLLEGE — A Pennsylvania man remained jailed on Sunday after being accused by authorities of planning a mass school shooting for later this month that would have coincided with the anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre. Police allege Braeden Phillips, 20, had planned to commit a mass shooting...
3-year-old killed in Elizabeth Township lawn mowing accident
A 3-year-old child was killed in a riding lawn mower accident Sunday morning in Elizabeth Township, Allegheny County Police said. The child was hit by the riding lawn mower around 11:10 a.m. in the 3000 block of Skillet Hill Road and was pronounced dead at the scene, county police said....
Jerry DiPaola: 5 decades covering Pittsburgh sports has provided memories to last a lifetime
I guess my love for the written word began on the living room floor at 326 Elizabeth Ave. I was nuts for the Pirates and Pirates box scores, and I used to spread out the Pittsburgh Press newspaper on the floor and devour every detail from the previous day’s game....
Suspect arrested in arson at Pennsylvania governor’s residenceVideo
HARRISBURG — A man was arrested on felony charges of setting an early morning fire Sunday that badly damaged the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion in Harrisburg and forced Gov. Josh Shapiro, his family and guests to flee. Cody Balmer, 38, of Harrisburg faces felony charges of criminal attempted homicide, aggravated arson,...
Editorial: Term limits return power to people
American government is representative. We pull from our neighbors to find the people who should lead us. But we don’t put those people in place forever. Or at least, we don’t plan on it. Frequently, however, it seems to play out that way. U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is 91....
Crack into Easter egg treats that aren’t hard-boiled
Some traditions demand observation. At Easter, that means colorful eggs. It means a rainbow of decorations. It means gathering the kids around the table to make a glorious mess. But no one said those eggs have to be real. Plastic eggs have been taking the place of the hard-boiled variety...
Covid pandemic exposed vulnerabilities but brought lessons in preparedness
Ordinary shopping trips became a scavenger hunt five years ago. Shoppers who felt fortunate enough to find toilet paper quickly filled their carts. Demand soared for items such as masks, lumber, liquor and computer chips. As covid-19 swept across the United States, empty store shelves spurred anxiety, heightened tensions and...
Black voters in Pittsburgh split over support for Gainey
Ed Gainey swept into office vowing to improve life for Black Pittsburghers. The new mayor of Pennsylvania’s second-largest city formed a diverse cabinet, expanded affordable housing and bettered the lot of minority contractors as he sought to reverse generations of disinvestment and neglect for Pittsburgh’s Black community. But three years...
Faced with a perfect storm, small local colleges try to navigate the future
“If you build it, they will come” was not the way to go about higher education in Pennsylvania, experts say. Declining birth rates and rising tuition costs are combining with other economic factors to make it harder — especially for smaller campuses — to fight enrollment declines and survive. “It’s...
