Top Stories category, Page 353
Second trial opens for man charged in Wilkinsburg ‘execution’
As the rest of his family watched a Thursday night Steelers game in November 2019, Raymond Jackson was upstairs, caring for his 11-month-old granddaughter. Suddenly, around 10:20 p.m., two gunmen burst into the Wilkinsburg home. One of them kicked down the bedroom door upstairs and found Jackson inside, holding the...
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro says Donald Trump is ‘obsessed’ with him after his ‘antisemitic’ Truth Social rantVideo
CHICAGO — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro on Thursday said former President Donald Trump was “obsessed” with him and accused him of promoting “antisemitic tropes,” following the former president’s late-night social media attack on Shapiro. After Shapiro’s speech Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention, Trump called him a “highly overrated...
Complaints mount against proposed North Huntingdon $30 million complex that would host Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Some North Huntingdon residents are concerned a proposed $30 million sports complex that would be built on township property would bring more traffic, noise and visitors to their neighborhood without guarantees the community will get what the developers are promising. Multipurpose fields would be constructed that would also be used...
11-year-old killed in Natrona crash ‘brought people together’
Tony Cszimadia takes it a little bit at a time when he visits the growing makeshift memorial for his daughter, Roxanne Alexis Bonnoni, on North Canal Street in Harrison. “She went through life a very caring person,” Cszimadia said of 11-year-old Roxanne, who died Tuesday evening when she was struck...
Go-between pleads guilty to conspiring with Mexican drug ring in Western Pa.
Ten years after being charged, a former Crafton resident admitted on Wednesday to flooding Western Pennsylvania with cocaine and heroin transported overland from Mexico in hidden car compartments. Andrew Beatty, 40, pleaded guilty in federal court in Pittsburgh to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He...
Supreme Court rejects GOP push to block 41K Arizona voters, but partly OKs proof of citizenship law
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a Republican push that could have blocked more than 41,000 Arizona voters from casting ballots for president in the state that Democratic President Joe Biden won by less than 11,000 votes four years ago. But in a 5-4 order, the high court...
Lawsuit claims Westmoreland failed to pay for cost overruns of courthouse parking garage
The construction company hired to rebuild an underground garage at the Westmoreland County Courthouse claims it still is owed nearly $1 million. Carl Walker Construction of Robinson filed a lawsuit this week seeking payment for its work on the project plagued by cost overruns and delays. The company was hired...
Pittsburgh police sergeant resigns amid charges of phantom work while moonlighting at Target
A Pittsburgh police sergeant facing criminal charges related to his moonlighting resigned this week, a day before his first scheduled appearance in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. Brian M. Marckisotto, 36, of Peters, is facing trial on charges that he misused a city computer program that schedules police officers for...
FDA approves updated covid-19 vaccines; shots should be available in days
U.S. regulators approved updated covid-19 vaccines Thursday, shots designed to more closely target recent virus strains — and hopefully whatever variants cause trouble this winter, too. With the Food and Drug Administration’s clearance, Pfizer and Moderna are set to begin shipping millions of doses. A third U.S. manufacturer, Novavax, expects...
‘Pommel horse guy’ Stephen Nedoroscik will compete on ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Penn State University grad Stephen Nedoroscik, now known as the “pommel horse guy” following his performance at the Paris Olympic Games, is headed for a new stage — “Dancing with the Stars.” Nedoroscik, 25, from Massachusetts, was the first celebrity announced for Season 33 of the reality competition show, NBC...
Shapiro takes DNC stage to rally party faithful for Harris: ‘America, let’s get to work’
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro took to the Democratic National Convention stage late Wednesday with a freedom-themed, primetime speech and warnings about a second Trump administration. In a nearly 6-minute address in front of a cheering crowd in Chicago and millions more on TV, Shapiro echoed many of the same points...
Medical examiner identifies Penn Hills man found fatally stabbed in his home
A man was fatally stabbed Thursday inside his Penn Hills home, Allegheny County Police said. The county’s 911 center was notified at 4:20 a.m. of a stabbing in the 100 block of Pennoak Drive. First responders said they found the victim, who had been stabbed multiple times. The man was...
Former Rivertowne tavern to be razed in North Huntingdon
The former Rivertowne Pub & Grille building in North Huntingdon — which was condemned as unsafe and uninhabitable by the township in October 2021 — is going to be demolished after an almost three-year court battle with its owners. Township commissioners this week approved advertising for bids to raze the...
2024 fall foliage forecast impacted by record heat in Western Pennsylvania
Fall foliage enthusiasts can expect a less vibrant leaf-peeping season this year in Western Pennsylvania, according to experts. Certified arborist Eric Countryman of Swissvale has studied trees for 15 years. He said this year’s record-breaking heat and lack of rain across Western Pennsylvania will likely result in trees turning colors...
Morning Roundup: Pittsburgh light-rail stops set to close this weekend
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, Aug. 22: Pittsburgh light-rail stops set to close this weekend Multiple light-rail stations on the Blue Line will be closed over the next several weekends for maintenance, Pittsburgh Regional Transit announced Wednesday. The closures will allow crews to...
West Penn Hospital Nurses vote to authorize strike
On Wednesday, nurses at West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood voted to authorize a strike. The union nurses, represented by SEIU Healthcare PA, voted 99.3% in favor of authorizing their negotiating committee to send a strike notice if necessary. The union in a news release said it rejected contract...
Saxonburg motorcyclist killed in crash with school bus in Jefferson Township
A motorcyclist was killed after a crash with a school bus Wednesday in Jefferson Township, Butler County. Knoch School District said a bus of elementary school students, who were being driven home, collided with a motorcycle near the intersection of Victory and Dinnerbell roads. The motorcyclist, a 79-year-old man from...
Turnpike commission cracks down on toll evaders, winning thousands in judgments
Ashley Emeigh of Salem recently was caught in the crosshairs of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission’s crackdown on people who don’t pay tolls. She owed $9,763 in tolls and fees when she appeared at an Aug. 12 court hearing and explained to a district judge how she plans to pay her...
Harris’ running mate Tim Walz introduces himself to the nation after Bill Clinton tears into TrumpVideo
CHICAGO — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz accepted his party’s nomination for vice president Wednesday night, using his Democratic National Convention address to thank the packed arena for “bringing the joy” to an election transformed by the elevation of his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris. “We’re all here tonight for...
Hunter Biden’s lawyer accuses prosecutors of trying to smear him with salacious details at tax trial
LOS ANGELES — An attorney for Hunter Biden accused prosecutors Wednesday of wanting to introduce salacious details about partying and spending by President Joe Biden’s son to smear his character in front of jurors at his upcoming trial on federal tax charges. During a lengthy hearing in Los Angeles federal...
Report: Pa. State police pull over drivers at similar rates regardless of a driver’s race
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 — Pennsylvania State Police pulled drivers over at about the same rate regardless of the motorists’ race or...
Superior Court: Trial judge cannot block DA’s pursuit of death penalty in Bellevue homicide
The state Superior Court on Wednesday said that a now-retired Allegheny County Common Pleas judge did not have the authority to prohibit prosecutors from seeking the death penalty. The appellate court returned the criminal case against Deangelo Zieglar back to the trial court to proceed as a capital case, finding...
Woman sues Uber, claims driver took her on terrifying ride
A Washington County woman is claiming in a lawsuit that she had to jump from a moving Uber because she feared for her life after the driver crashed on a highway and then fled in a smoking, speeding car. A police report stemming from the Dec. 2 crash, however, does...
Community rallies around elderly Allegheny Township woman when fire hits at her house
When fire hit Janet Feil’s Allegheny Township house Wednesday evening, first responders, family and neighbors rallied around the 84-year-old woman. But it was a motorist driving down Garvers Ferry Road and Feil’s daughter living in Florida who set that response in motion. Feil said she was getting dinner ready about...
Parents, community remember Natrona girl, 11, killed by vehicle
The Natrona neighborhood’s grief over the death of a hearing-impaired, 11-year-old girl was tinged with anger over the reckless driving they say caused it. Roxanne Alexis Bonnoni died on North Canal Street, just steps from her home, after she was hit by a Jeep Patriot while walking across the road...
