Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 32
8 backcountry skiers found dead and 1 still missing after California avalancheVideo
NEVADA CITY, Calif. — Crews found the bodies of eight backcountry skiers near California’s Lake Tahoe and were searching for one more after they were caught in an avalanche, the nation’s deadliest in nearly half a century, authorities said Wednesday. Authorities said the skiers had little time to react. “Someone...
Recent bitter weather has wreaked havoc on humans. What about nature?
Ice scrapers and heavy coats have been temporarily set aside for sunglasses, but the natural world is still reeling from the deep freeze that gripped the region for the past several weeks. During the final week of January, temperatures only made it as high as 17 degrees, dipping to their...
Oakmont approves resolution for non-cooperation with ICE and Customs & Border ProtectionVideo
Oakmont officials Tuesday night unanimously approved a resolution prohibiting the borough from engaging in noncriminal federal immigration law enforcement. The resolution also made clear Oakmont would not enter into a 287(g) agreement, which allows local police departments to aid U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in immigration enforcement. The partnership is...
Springdale residents divided, frustrated after recent ICE detainment
Springdale Council and residents are divided over the local police department’s cooperation with ICE. Several displeased residents took the chance to confront officials Tuesday at council’s first meeting since the detainment of Springdale resident Randy Cordova-Flores, 36, originally from Peru. But the meeting — attended by a few dozen residents...
Ex-Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger discusses personal ‘transformation,’ avoids podcast feud with Joey Porter
There was no mention of the criticism he faced from a former teammate, but Ben Roethlisberger briefly touched on his own maturation process in the latest episode of his podcast. The retired Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback steered clear of the controversy stirred up last week by ex-linebacker Joey Porter Sr., who...
FBI, St. Paul police probing ICE arrest that resulted in skull fractures
MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota and federal authorities are investigating the alleged beating of a Mexican citizen by immigration officers last month, seeking to identify what caused the eight skull fractures that landed the man in the intensive care unit of a Minneapolis hospital. Investigators from the St. Paul Police Department and...
Former Greensburg officer convicted of drug dealing must repay pension benefits
Greensburg’s police pension commission on Tuesday approved a decision that seeks the repayment of $75,400 by a retired officer who was sentenced to probation on federal drug crimes. The commission OK’d the findings of fact, conclusions of law and decision regarding the forfeiture of pension benefits paid to Regina McAtee....
Driver waives hearing, faces trial in fiery wrong-way crash on Parkway West
A man is headed to trial on charges that he was drunk in October when he drove his SUV into oncoming Parkway West traffic and struck a second vehicle before both cars burst into flames. Tristan Michael Larson, 23, of Moon on Tuesday waived his preliminary hearing on two DUI...
Oakmont family recounts husband’s ICE detainment
For a time, Jose Flores thought he would never see his family again. The morning of Jan. 29, Flores was getting ready for work and to drive his 8-year-old daughter, Lily, to school. “It started like any normal day,” Flores, 47, said through an interpreter as he and his wife,...
‘Electric personality’: Jesse Jackson left lasting impressions in Pittsburgh
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, the civil rights icon who died Tuesday, stumped in Pittsburgh during his presidential runs in 1984 and 1988, and returned a generation later to rally the city behind President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign. But one retired city police officer remembered Jackson for a far more humble...
6 backcountry skiers found alive, 10 missing after Northern California avalancheVideo
SAN FRANCISCO — Six backcountry skiers were found alive and 10 others were still missing Tuesday after an avalanche in Northern California during a powerful winter storm moving through the state. Search and rescue crews were dispatched to the Castle Peak area, northwest of Lake Tahoe, after someone called 911...
Former baseball coach threatens Kiski Area with lawsuit
Attorneys representing a former Kiski Area middle school assistant baseball coach say they plan to file a lawsuit against the school district after the former coach was not rehired for the job over what they say is political retaliation. Attorney Amanda Shields said Tuesday her firm plans to file a...
Treasury officials question legality of taxpayers paying for security upgrades at Shapiro’s family home
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Late last year, Pennsylvania’s top law enforcement agency revealed taxpayers would pick up the tab for more...
Former Torrance State Hospital nurse charged with sexual assault of patient
A former nurse at Torrance State Hospital is accused by state police of having regular sexual encounters with a patient over seven months last year, according to court papers. The encounters between Dana R. Coxon, 40, and the patient, in his mid-20s, were video recorded and photographed on a cellphone...
Westmoreland Hospital, former nurses sued again for alleged mistreatment of patients
A third lawsuit has been filed against a Westmoreland County hospital and four former staffers accused of mistreating patients. According to court documents, the alleged incidents occurred over five days in late June 2024 after Shirley Stouffer of Hempfield was admitted to Independence Health’s Westmoreland Hospital with heart issues and...
Liberian refugee’s killer sent to prison for Pittsburgh slaying
When Eddie Kimber was growing up in the West African nation of Liberia, he had difficulty breathing, struggled to gain weight and would easily become exhausted from minimal activity. Doctors couldn’t find what was wrong. But when Kimber’s family fled war there and entered a refugee program, his brother said...
Pittsburgh City Council approves new solicitor, planning director
Pittsburgh officially has a new solicitor and planning director. City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved Mayor Corey O’Connor’s picks to lead the Law Department and the Department of City Planning. Lisa Zeidner Marcus is the city’s top lawyer and Ivette Mongalo-Winston oversees planning. Both had been serving in their roles...
Picklesburgh adds 4th day to Pittsburgh festival
Pickle lovers, this year’s dates for the Picklesburgh festival were just announced — including an extra festival day. Running four days long in 2026, the Downtown festival will be held from July 16 through July 19, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership announced. “Back by popular demand, Picklesburgh will kick off Thursday...
Wilkinsburg man gets double life terms for killing woman and daughter, 4
A Wilkinsburg man who shot and killed a woman and her 4-year-old daughter in an act the judge called calculated and vicious will serve the rest of his life in prison. Marquise St. Julien-Givner, 23, was sentenced Tuesday to two consecutive life terms with no chance for parole for killing...
Plan for proposed Westmoreland convention center stalls
Progress on a proposed Westmoreland convention center pitched by the county’s chamber of commerce appears to have stalled. Chamber President Dan DeBone confirmed funding remains the major sticking point, preventing forward movement on what is estimated to be an $86 million project in Hempfield. Last August, the chamber released results...
Bruce Springsteen returning to Pittsburgh on ‘Land of Hope & Dreams’ tourVideo
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are heading back out on the road, including a Pittsburgh stop this spring. Springsteen, 76, and his band are launching the American run of their “Land of Hope & Dreams” tour, with a May 19 show at PPG Paints Arena. “We are living...
Pittsburgh City Council calls on Harrisburg to legalize marijuana
Pittsburgh City Council members on Tuesday called on Gov. Josh Shapiro and lawmakers in Harrisburg to legalize cannabis. Councilwoman Barb Warwick, D-Greenfield, sponsored a will of council that urged Pennsylvania officials to pass adult-use cannabis legalization during this year’s legislative session. Warwick’s statement said such a measure is a “necessary...
Strikes on 3 more alleged drug boats kill 11 people, U.S. military says
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military said Tuesday that it carried out strikes on three boats accused of smuggling drugs in Latin American waters, killing 11 people in one of the deadliest days of the Trump administration’s monthslong campaign against alleged traffickers. The series of strikes conducted Monday brought the death...
O’Connor pitches vision of economic growth to Pittsburgh Technology Council
Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor on Tuesday outlined a vision of economic growth before a consortium of technology companies, reiterating a mantra he has focused on since his mayoral campaign. “If we want to grow Pittsburgh, we have to do it, and we have to do it fast,” O’Connor told roughly...
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, revered Civil Rights leader, has died at 84
CHICAGO — The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, a protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate who led the Civil Rights Movement for decades after the revered leader’s assassination, died Tuesday. He was 84. As a young organizer in Chicago, Jackson was called to meet with...
