Top Stories category, Page 222
No big new revelations in Justice Department’s release of Jeffrey Epstein files
WASHINGTON — Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday released government documents related to wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein, but the first wave of files posted on the Justice Department website have largely been circulating in the public domain for years and didn’t include any new bombshells about the sex trafficking case...
After slow start, Pittsburgh Land Bank finds affordable housing success in Hazelwood
Standing outside a blue house built on a once-blighted site in Hazelwood, Pittsburgh officials on Thursday trumpeted an all-too-rare success story for the city’s land bank — one they hope becomes more frequent. Mayor Ed Gainey and others were showing off a newly constructed home on Flowers Avenue, one of...
Court records reveal identity of man targeted, shot in East Vandergrift police raid
Court documents obtained this week by TribLive shed light on details of a police-involved shooting in East Vandergrift that state troopers have thus far declined to reveal. Lyle Cessna, 52, of East Vandergrift was shot by law enforcement on Feb. 14 outside his McKinley Avenue residence. Cessna remains hospitalized in...
Dozens at Pitt-Greensburg rally to support LGBTQ+, Latino communities in Trump era
University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg sophomore Debany Renovato stood before a small group of protesters Thursday afternoon, recounting her experience moving from Mexico to the United States when she was in fifth grade. Two dozen students — many from the college’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance club — and handful of...
FDA cancels key meeting to discuss flu vaccine, leaving some experts baffled
The flu vaccine’s future is murky after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration abruptly canceled its committee meeting to recommend the makeup of seasonal flu shots for the 2025-26 influenza season. Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease physician and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security,...
Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership unveils plans for newest city festival, The Thaw
The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership on Wednesday unveiled plans for the newest addition to its festival lineup, a celebration called The Thaw to mark the transition from winter to spring. It will be held in Market Square on eight days over three weekends next month. The Thaw will include family-friendly activities...
Monroeville woman stole $21K from 7-Eleven at Turnpike plaza in Plum, police say
A Monroeville woman is accused of stealing nearly $21,000 from a 7-Eleven convenience store on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Plum. State police charged Leigh Ann Wentzel, 49, on Wednesday with a single count of second-degree felony theft. There was an active warrant for her arrest on Thursday, according to Plum...
Antique shop owner killed in Route 30 crash near Kingston Dam in Unity
A woman died after a one-vehicle crash on Route 30 Thursday morning and a man was hurt, according to state police. Barbara Kravits, 83, of Ligonier, died at a hospital, according to Trooper Steve Limani. The eastbound highway was closed in Unity and Ligonier Townships for several hours after the...
Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus strikes pedestrian in Oakland
A woman was hospitalized after being hit Wednesday by a Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. The incident occurred around 11:30 a.m. on Fifth Avenue at McKee Place, according to Andrew Carr, a transit agency spokesperson. Carr said a route 75 Ellsworth bus hit the pedestrian, who suffered...
FDA flu shot meeting is abruptly canceled
A planned meeting of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration committee to recommend the makeup of seasonal flu shots for the 2025-26 influenza season was abruptly canceled Wednesday. That’s according to Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a member of the Vaccines and...
Trump plans tariffs on Mexico and Canada for Tuesday, while doubling existing 10% tariffs on China
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Tuesday, in addition to doubling the 10% universal tariff charged on imports from China. In a Truth Social post Thursday, Trump said illicit drugs such as fentanyl are being smuggled into the United States at “unacceptable...
Sabrina Carpenter bringing Short N’ Sweet tour to Pittsburgh for 2 nightsVideo
Fresh off a pair of wins at the Grammys, pop singer Sabrina Carpenter will be giving Pittsburgh two chances to see her. The “Espresso” and “Please Please Please” singer announced a pair of shows, Oct. 23 and 24, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, kicking off the new leg of...
Nurses’ stories recount terror of armed man’s attack at York County hospital
HARRISBURG — A nurse who survived an armed man’s attack on an intensive care unit in a York County hospital said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that she was held against him as a shield at gunpoint, arms zip-tied behind her back, as they walked through a doorway and...
Morning Roundup: No injuries reported in Etna fire; Glassport man charged in McKeesport shooting
Here are some news items for Thursday, Feb. 27: No injuries reported in Etna fire Multiple fire companies quickly knocked down a fire reported late Wednesday night in the wall of an Etna home. Fire crews were called to the unit block of Ann Street just after 10 p.m. They...
High school counselors weigh options as Penn State branch campuses hang in the balance
Burrell High School guidance counselor Sandra Oskin thinks Penn State New Kensington is still a good option for prospective students, despite the Upper Burrell campus potentially closing in two years. “I’m hoping it remains a viable option — especially for Burrell,” she said. “It’s been a great resource. It’s convenient...
Jeannette, police dog handlers agree on $70K compensation settlement
Jeannette will pay $70,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by police dog handlers who claimed the city violated labor laws by not paying them an overtime rate for time spent caring for their canines. The settlement agreement, obtained by the Trib, also outlines that Sgt. Jim Phillips will work a...
Gene Hackman, wife and dog were dead for some time, warrant shows
SANTA FE, N.M. — Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, his wife and one of their dogs were apparently dead for some time before a maintenance worker discovered their bodies at the couple’s Santa Fe home, according to investigators. Hackman, 95, was found dead Wednesday in a mudroom and his 63-year-old wife, Betsy...
Banana Republic on Walnut Street in Shadyside to close
The Banana Republic store on Walnut Street in Shadyside is set to close after being open for more than 30 years. Two signs posted in the store’s windows say “We’re Closing: March 2025.” A specific date has not been announced. The two-story store is located at 5542 Walnut St., at...
Pope Francis shows further slight improvement as he battles pneumonia, the Vatican says
ROME — Pope Francis has shown further slight improvement as he battles double pneumonia, but doctors said Wednesday his prognosis is still guarded. A chest CT scan taken Tuesday evening showed the “normal evolution” of an infection as it is being treated, the Vatican said in its late update. The...
Private company rockets toward the moon in the latest rush of lunar landing attempts
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A private company launched another lunar lander Wednesday, aiming to get closer to the moon’s south pole this time with a drone that will hop into a jet-black crater that never sees the sun. Intuitive Machines’ lander, named Athena, caught a lift with SpaceX from NASA’s...
What you need to know about possible cuts to Medicaid
Nearly a quarter of Pennsylvanians are on Medicaid, the joint federal-state program that covers medical costs for poor people along with nursing home and personal care home expenses. If Republicans on Capitol Hill target Medicaid as they seek to slash federal spending by $2 trillion and enact $4.5 trillion in...
Pa. Republican says he’ll protect Medicaid’s ‘core mission’ while looking for budget savings
Democratic members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation railed against the budget blueprint that passed the House on Tuesday night, warning it could result in steep cuts to Medicaid. But an Altoona Republican who serves on a committee tasked with coming up with $880 billion in savings over 10 years says he...
Trump administration says it’s cutting 90% of USAID foreign aid contracts
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said Wednesday it is eliminating more than 90% of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall U.S. assistance around the world, putting numbers on its plans to eliminate the majority of U.S. development and humanitarian help abroad. The...
Snowplow woes force Pittsburgh officials to explore asking for help clearing roads
With nearly a third of Pittsburgh’s snowplow fleet out of commission, some city officials want to ask their neighbors for help. Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, D-Squirrel Hill, said neighboring municipalities often seem to treat roads more efficiently than Pittsburgh. She wants to explore paying them to treat Pittsburgh roads after they’ve...
Westmoreland County suspends new purchasing director
Westmoreland officials for the second time in less than a year suspended the director of the county’s purchasing department. Daniel Ellingsen, who has been on the job since mid-November, was placed on paid leave early last week for undisclosed reasons. His suspension was changed to unpaid starting Wednesday, Commissioner Ted...
