Top Stories category, Page 217
Trump’s erratic trade policies are baffling businesses, threatening investment and economic growth
WASHINGTON — Marc Rosenberg, founder and CEO of The Edge Desk in Deerfield, Illinois is getting ready to introduce a fancy ergonomic chair designed to reduce customers’ back pain and boost their productivity. He figures the most expensive one will sell for more than $1,000. But he can’t settle on...
Pittsburgh Regional Transit driver and passenger face assault charges in Sharpsburg incident
A Pittsburgh Regional Transit driver is on paid leave while he faces criminal charges for allegedly dragging a passenger stuck to the moving bus and then nearly running her over in Sharpsburg. Port Authority police have charged driver Jesse White, 55, of Pittsburgh with aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another...
PIAA faces criticism from all sides after changing transgender athlete policy
The PIAA is drawing criticism from all sides for changes made to its transgender athlete policy. The changes didn’t go far enough, says one Western Pennsylvania superintendent, who wanted to see the state high school athletic association adopt the NCAA’s stricter policy. Yet LGBTQ+ advocacy groups say the PIAA and...
1st national analysis finds America’s butterflies disappearing at ‘catastrophic’ rateVideo
WASHINGTON — America’s butterflies are disappearing because of insecticides, climate change and habitat loss, with the number of the winged beauties down 22% since 2000, a new study finds. The first countrywide systematic analysis of butterfly abundance found that the number of butterflies in the Lower 48 states has been...
Veterans weigh in on the Trump administration’s plan to cut 80K jobs at VA
Jill Smallwood predicted Thursday that the Trump administration’s plan to cut more than 80,000 employees from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs will result in diminished health care and other services for those who served in the military. “It is shameful,” said Smallwood, 62, an Army Reserve veteran from Pittsburgh’s...
New Mexico adult dies with measles, though cause of death isn’t yet confirmed
An adult who was infected with measles has died in New Mexico, state health officials announced Thursday, though the virus has not been confirmed as the cause. The person who died was unvaccinated and did not seek medical care, a state health department spokesperson said in a statement. The person’s...
Jury finds Greensburg man guilty of child rape
A Westmoreland County jury on Thursday convicted a Greensburg man of the sexual assault of a young child. James A. Swanson, 48, was found guilty of two felony offenses, rape and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, in connection with allegations of improper conduct with a 3-year-old boy in 2019 and 2020....
Elon Musk tells Republican lawmakers he’s not to blame for federal firingsVideo
WASHINGTON — It’s not his fault. Billionaire Elon Musk is telling Republican lawmakers that he is not to blame for the firings of thousands of federal workers, including veterans, as pushes to downsize the government. Instead, he said in private talks this week that those decisions are left to the...
Ross tabbed as new Westmoreland County Election Bureau director
The Westmoreland County commissioners on Thursday tabbed the county’s head of information technology to serve as the new election bureau director. Scott Ross of Youngwood was formally appointed to run the courthouse office that oversees elections as part of a newly created position that combines election functions with the job...
‘This is to keep all of us safe’: Officials urge travelers to get Real ID before deadline
The countdown is on: In just two months, U.S. travelers will need a gold star on their driver’s license to fly domestically — the symbol of a Real ID. Starting on May 7, anyone 18 years of age or older will need a Real ID or another acceptable form of...
Disciplinary board tosses complaint against Allegheny County District Judge Xander Orenstein
The Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board has dismissed a complaint by a state legislator against controversial Allegheny County District Judge Xander Orenstein about how they handled bail for defendants. In a letter dated Feb. 14, Melissa Norton, chief counsel for the board, said its review, requested by state Rep. Valerie S....
Dump truck flies over hill in Parkway East crash that sends 3 to hospital
Three motorists were taken to the hospital Thursday after a three-vehicle crash on the Parkway East in Pittsburgh shot one car into oncoming traffic and flipped a dump truck over a hill, authorities said. The crash occurred when an eastbound dump truck and sedan collided on Interstate 376 about 11:25...
Springdale preps for round 2 of boiler house demolition
What’s hopefully the last attempt at pulling down the boiler house at the former power plant in Springdale is scheduled for Saturday morning. The demolition — which was about 70% successful last weekend — is anticipated to occur between 9 and 11 a.m. Saturday, according to the Allegheny County Police....
Penguins invest $500K in Hill District recreation center, but community frustration lingers
The Pittsburgh Penguins will donate $500,000 to help modernize the Ammon Recreation Center in the Hill District as part of an agreement meant to mitigate decades of neighborhood disinvestment dating back to the development of the Civic Arena. Teddy Werner, the Penguins’ alternate governor, called the 85-year-old recreation center just...
Man struck in January by truck plowing snow in Hempfield dies
A man who was hit by a pickup truck that was clearing snow in Hempfield died Sunday in a Pittsburgh hospital. Paul Tucci, 73, of Southwest Greensburg, died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and torso, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner. State police said...
Trump changes course and delays some tariffs on Mexico, Canada
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday postponed 25% tariffs on many imports from Mexico and some imports from Canada for a month amid widespread fears of the economic fallout from a broader trade war. The White House insists its tariffs are about stopping the smuggling of fentanyl, but the...
Allegheny County touts ‘competent and compassionate’ government for job prospects
Allegheny County’s portal to entice federal employees to explore their options with the county launched Thursday. A similar portal was also created by Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. The idea is to provide a soft landing for any of the 16,000 federal employees in the Pittsburgh region who may lose their...
7 students, driver injured in Adams Township bus crash
Seven Mars Area Elementary School students and a driver were injured Thursday morning when their bus crashed in Adams Township. Butler County 911 dispatch said a bus carrying 30 to 40 students hit a tree head-on around 8:30 a.m. on the 1600 block of Three Degree Road. A UPMC spokesperson...
2.3M birds culled in Pa. this year as flu spreads in commercial, backyard flocks
Ken Pounds has a coop full of turkeys, and with justifiable concerns about bird flu, that’s all he wants in there. No flies if he can help it. Definitely no people who don’t need to be there. And certainly no other birds. “The biggest thing you can do is have...
How Trump justifies his tariffs — from budget balancing to protecting ‘the soul’ of America
WASHINGTON — To President Donald Trump, “tariff” is more than “the most beautiful word in the dictionary,” something he says often. Tariffs, in Trump’s view, are also a cure for a number of the nation’s ills and the tool to reach new heights. Most economists see taxes paid on imports...
Cracker plant in Beaver County could be sold as Shell looks to offload chemical assets
Shell is considering a sale of its chemical assets in the U.S. and Europe, including the cracker plant in Beaver County. The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, has reported one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies could offload its less-profitable chemicals division as part...
Attempted homicide suspect back in custody after accidental release from Washington County Jail
An attempted homicide suspect is back in custody after being mistakenly released from the Washington County Jail. Samuel Valle, 20, of Monessen, missed a court appearance last week, alerting the district attorney’s office he was no longer behind bars, TribLive news partner WTAE reported. District Attorney Jason Walsh told WTAE...
Murrysville mobile home park residents left without consistent water since January
Betty Pusateri has taken just one shower in her home since Jan. 20. Melanie Leggens has been able to take three. “My sister lives in Delmont, but I’m not driving out there every day to take a shower,” Leggens said. “I have a bucket of water and a bar of...
Pittsburgh Mills potholes — much frustration, few answers
Driving around Pittsburgh Mills in Frazer is like an arcade game with real world consequences. A driver must create a mental map of all the potholes. Winners get home from shopping without significant damage to their cars. It was just like that for Ashlynn Bashline on Wednesday. The Harrison resident...
Refugee resettlement agencies determined to continue work despite halt to federal funding
Local agencies are still determined to help resettle refugees despite an executive order halting federal funding. Four agencies in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are contracted through the Office of Refugee Resettlement as a partner of the national resettlement agency, U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, to provide resettlement services. This...
