Top Stories category, Page 258
Former Derry Area Aqua Club president accused of stealing $24K from organization
The former president of the Derry Area Aqua Club was jailed Wednesday on police accusations that she used money from the organization to pay for gambling and sports betting, according to court papers. Josie Faye Ruffner, 35, of Latrobe, is charged by Westmoreland County detectives with dealing in proceeds of...
Attorney for Jeannette officer seeks probationary program in case of false traffic stop reports
The attorney representing a Jeannette police officer accused of falsifying reports related to traffic stops said he hopes to get his client into a probationary program. Matthew S. Painter, 40, of Penn Township, waived his right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday on 18 misdemeanor counts. There was no agreement struck...
TV Talk: WPXI names new weekday evening anchor
As expected, WPXI announced morning anchor Gordon Loesch will succeed longtime Channel 11 anchor David Johnson, who retired last month. Loesch will anchor alongside Lisa Sylvester during the 5, 6 and 11 p.m. WPXI newscasts beginning Jan. 20. He’ll also co-anchor at 6:30 p.m. with Liz Kilmer and at 10...
‘He seems genuine’: Potential Allegheny County jail warden draws praise from skeptics
Trevor Wingard was serving as the superintendent at SCI Somerset in January 2017 when he learned his prison had been chosen by the state secretary for a two-day meeting of corrections leaders from across Pennsylvania. Although the training schedule was aggressive, Wingard was given a one-hour window to show off...
Justice Department says it plans to release only part of special counsel’s Trump report for now
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department said Wednesday that it will release special counsel Jack Smith’s findings on Donald Trump’s efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election but will keep under wraps for now the rest of the report focused on the president-elect’s hoarding of classified documents at...
Sam DeMarco leaving Allegheny County Council for role in Sen. Dave McCormick’s office
Sam DeMarco is leaving his posts as an at-large Allegheny County councilman and chair of the Republican Committee of Allegheny County for a position in newly elected U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick’s office. DeMarco told TribLive he will serve as Southwest Regional director for McCormick’s office. In that position, DeMarco will...
Trump wants to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico. Can he do that?
President-elect Donald Trump said Tuesday that he would move to try to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America,” a name he said has a “beautiful ring to it.” It’s his latest suggestion to redraw the map of the Western Hemisphere. Trump has repeatedly referred to Canada...
Trump asks Supreme Court to block sentencing in his hush money case in New York
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to call off Friday’s sentencing in his hush money case in New York. Trump’s lawyers turned to the nation’s highest court Wednesday after New York courts refused to postpone the sentencing by Judge Juan M. Merchan, who presided over Trump’s...
Hollywood Hills fire breaks out as deadly wildfires burn out of control across Los Angeles areaVideo
LOS ANGELES — A fast-moving fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday night, threatening one of Los Angeles’ most iconic spots as firefighters battled to get under control three other major blazes that killed five people, put 100,000 people under evacuation orders and ravaged the city from the...
2 people killed in Aliquippa fire
Two people have died following an RV fire in Aliquippa on Tuesday morning. Authorities responded to 622 Sohn St. at 5:57 a.m. Tuesday for an active fire, according to a report from Pennsylvania State Police. Police identified the two victims as David Bosh, 54, of Aliquippa, and Jenny Bosh, 28,...
Morning Roundup: Garbage truck crashes into Butler credit union; boy injured when sled hits car
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Jan. 8: Garbage truck crashes into Butler credit union One person was taken to the hospital after a garbage truck crashed into a building in Butler on Tuesday morning, according to TribLive news partner WTAE. The crash happened...
Valley High School set to reopen after broken boiler fixed
Students are expected to return to classes at Valley High School on Wednesday after the New Kensington school was closed for the past two days. While the New Kensington-Arnold School District was among many across the Pittsburgh region that closed Monday because of the threat of significant snow, its high...
Solar power company wins zoning approval in North Huntingdon
A clean energy company was given the green light Tuesday to proceed with plans for a solar power system it wants to build on a North Huntingdon farm, a first step in a long approval process that could take three years before producing electricity, a company official said. The five-member...
Report: 3 dead, 2 injured following possible gas leak in Butler County
Three people are dead and two injured after a reported carbon monoxide leak in Butler. Butler County emergency officials said Peoples Gas and emergency responders were called to the 100 block of College Street on Tuesday evening, according to TribLive news partner WTAE. Officials told WTAE that three people were...
Ligonier Township supervisor suing Ligonier Valley Police joins force oversight board
A man who is suing the Ligonier Valley Police and has approved litigation against the commission that oversees the force is now serving on that same commission. Erik Ross, who has taken over as chairman of the Ligonier Township supervisors, has replaced Stephanie Verna as a representative of the supervisors...
Pa. Sen. John Fetterman the lone Democratic co-sponsor on GOP-led Laken Riley immigration bill
Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania is the first Senate Democrat to sign onto a Republican-led bill that would require federal authorities to detain undocumented immigrants arrested for theft-related crimes. The bill, passed Tuesday in the House, is slated to come up for a Senate vote on Friday. In addition to...
2 children among 5 hurt in 5-vehicle crash involving Plum school bus
Two children were among five people taken to area hospitals after a five-vehicle crash that included a Plum school bus Tuesday afternoon, according to borough police. The crash, at Golden Mile Highway (Route 286) and South Duane Drive was reported shortly after 3 p.m. The circumstances of the crash were...
Man who exploded Tesla Cybertruck outside Trump hotel in Las Vegas used generative AI, police say
LAS VEGAS — The highly decorated soldier who exploded a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump hotel in Las Vegas used generative AI including ChatGPT to help plan the attack, Las Vegas police said Tuesday. A laptop, cellphone and watch are still under review nearly a week after 37-year-old Matthew Livelsberger...
Pittsburgh Walk of Fame nominations open for Strip District installment
Over 250 different legends with Southwestern Pennsylvania roots have been nominated to receive a bronze star in the future Pittsburgh Walk of Fame. “It’s been amazing and heartwarming to see the number of people that have been nominated and the variety of their talents and skills and areas of expertise,”...
Democrat elected speaker of tied Pennsylvania House after GOP candidate bows out
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania lawmakers on Tuesday returned Democratic Speaker Joanna McClinton to lead the chamber for the new session after the Republican floor leader bowed out to resolve a deadlock. Democrats won 102 seats in November, a single-vote majority, but one of their members was absent from swearing-in day after...
Trump won’t rule out use of military force to take control of Greenland and the Panama Canal
PALM BEACH, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would not rule out the use of military force to seize control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, as he declared U.S. control of both to be vital to American national security. Speaking to reporters less than two weeks...
Jimmy Carter is back in Washington, where he remained an outsiderVideo
WASHINGTON — Nearly 44 years after Jimmy Carter left the nation’s capital in humbling defeat, the 39th president returned to Washington for three days of state funeral rites starting Tuesday. Carter’s remains, which had been lying in repose at the Carter Presidential Center since Saturday, left the Atlanta campus Tuesday...
Three Rivers Arts Festival to be shorter this year
Downtown Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Arts Festival will be shorter this year. Pittsburgh Cultural Trust spokesman Derek Scalzott confirmed the festival will be held June 5-8 — four days. The Arts Festival is typically 10 days. “The Cultural Trust is committed to serving the community, and this free festival is a...
Many structures already destroyed in Pacific Palisades wildfire, California governor saysVideo
LOS ANGELES — Firefighters scrambled to corral a fast-moving wildfire in the Los Angeles hillsides dotted with celebrity homes as a fierce windstorm hit Southern California on Tuesday, fanning the blaze seen for miles as scores of residents abandoned their cars and fled on foot to safety with roads blocked....
Oakmont couple wins tickets to Super Bowl
Jeanine Gevaudan was born and bred a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. “Growing up, on Sundays we were at my grandma’s house watching the games, there’d be a big spread — it was always Steelers Sunday,” said Gevaudan, 52. In her adulthood, Gevaudan is a season ticket holder. Coming from a family...
