Top Stories category, Page 430
Josh Shapiro, other governors seek return of residents held on popular vacation island
Gov. Josh Shapiro and the governors of Virginia and Oklahoma are calling on the leader of Turks and Caicos Islands to reconsider ammunition charges filed against a Pennsylvania man and two others being detained in the Caribbean territory. In a letter to the islands’ Gov. Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam, the governors ask...
U.S. proposes ending new federal leases in nation’s biggest coal region
BILLINGS, Mont. — The Biden administration on Thursday proposed an end to new coal leasing from federal reserves in the most productive coal mining region in the U.S. as officials seek to limit climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions from burning the fuel. The Bureau of Land Management proposal would affect millions...
Burrell School District now considering 5.8% increase for property owners
Burrell School District is now thinking of a 5.8% tax increase in its proposed budget for the upcoming school year. The district released a proposed budget that includes an increase of 6.5 mills, which would account for future bond payments for capital improvements and construction, said Finance Director Jennifer Callahan....
Former Valley High School music teacher to remain in jail pending new sentence
A former Valley High School music teacher who pleaded guilty in 2022 to sending sexually themed text messages to two teenage students will remain in jail while he awaits a new sentencing hearing. Westmoreland County prosecutors said Sean Timothy O’Neil, 37, of North Apollo could face a potential state prison...
Justice Department formally moves to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug in historic shift
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department on Thursday formally moved to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a historic shift in generations of U.S. drug policy. A proposed rule sent to the federal register recognizes the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledges it has less potential for abuse than some...
Register of wills yet to turn over $500K in revenue to Westmoreland County
As much as $500,000 in revenue generated through fees and other payments made to Westmoreland’s Register of Wills Office during the first four months of 2024 has yet to be turned over to the county treasury, officials said Thursday. Controller Jeffrey Balzer said the register of wills and other county...
Teen’s journey from Cameroon to Pittsburgh reflects city’s refugee influx
When Reol Audhasse and his family fled Cameroon for Pittsburgh last year, surging ethnic violence had displaced more than 1 million residents of the central African nation. Boko Haram, the Islamic terrorist group, had slaughtered thousands of civilians near the country’s northern border with Nigeria. Conditions were dangerous, and so...
Texas governor pardons ex-Army sergeant convicted of killing Black Lives Matter protester
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a full pardon Thursday for a former U.S. Army sergeant convicted of murder for fatally shooting an armed demonstrator in 2020 during nationwide protests against police violence and racial injustice. Abbott announced the pardon shortly after the Texas Board of Pardons and...
Memorial service honors police in Westmoreland who’ve died in the line of duty
They never knew him, but Ernest C. Johnson’s sacrifice weighed heavily on the minds of four of his granddaughters Thursday. The women grew up hearing stories about the Arnold police sergeant and the scar his April 2, 1953, line-of-duty death left on their family. All four were born after his...
Lower Burrell school property won’t revert to original owners if school closes
Historians and officials say if Stewart Elementary School in Lower Burrell closes and goes up for sale, the land would not revert back to the Stewart family, despite rumors to the contrary. Lower Burrell historian Ray Rieser said, despite popular belief, the Burrell School District purchased the land from the...
Pittsburgh Riverhounds, developers plan $30M sports complex in North Huntingdon
The Pittsburgh Riverhounds soccer club is working with two North Huntingdon business partners in planning a $30 million sports complex on township-owned property off Route 30, they announced Thursday. Five outdoor fields and a multi-purpose indoor facility will be built over the next six years at the 42-acre parcel. The...
Stuntpig parks food truck for permanent shop in Squirrel Hill
Stuntpig has announced it is trading in its food truck wheels for a more permanent location — a sandwich shop in Squirrel Hill. The announcement came this week on the food truck’s social media pages, eliciting many reactions from excited Pittsburghers. The shop will be located at the former Bull...
Greensburg Salem preliminary budget contains nearly $2.4M shortfall
Greensburg Salem School District is facing a nearly $2.4 million shortfall in its preliminary budget for next school year. The school board has until the end of June to pass a balanced budget for 2024-2025. That can be achieved by cutting expenses, increasing revenue through a tax hike or other...
Find out which Pittsburgh radio stars are behind the new Yinzer Dogs food truck
An idea in the making since the Original Hot Dog Shop closed in Oakland in April 2020, the Yinzer Dogs food truck is up and rolling. It’s easily spotted by the bright yellow bridge design with an image of a hot dog tucked inside a bun with squiggly lines of...
Former WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at 84
Retired WPXI reporter DeHaven “Dee” Thompson died May 9 at age 84. Thompson worked at Channel 11 from 1974 until his retirement in 2009. WPXI meteorologist Scott Harbaugh posted a tribute on Facebook, writing, “ ‘Dee’ was one of the kindest people you would ever want to meet. … Always...
First Call: All-Steelers schedule edition: Thoughts, concerns on odd quirks, choppy flow, brutal 2nd half
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ schedule is hard, odd, scattered, heavy on primetime games, and light on AFC North contests until almost Thanksgiving. So we’re dedicating all of Thursday’s “First Call” to a full breakdown of the quirks, trends, hot spots and pitfalls that the Steelers could face in 2024. Vengeance is...
Morning Roundup: $3M lottery ticket sold in Pittsburgh
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, May 16: $3 million lottery ticket sold in Pittsburgh A winning Mega Million lottery ticket worth $3 million was sold in Pittsburgh. Kuhn’s Market along Banksville Road will receive a $10,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket, Pennsylvania...
Greensburg to outfit its police with body cameras
Greensburg council this week approved buying body cameras for its police force. It also will be developing a policy for how they will be used. When the city receives the cameras, the police department will work with Motorola to install them and expand the computer server that holds police vehicle...
Pittsburgh man arrested in connection with Hill District homicide
Pittsburgh police have made an arrest in connection with a homicide early this month in the city’s Hill District. Anthony Young, 35, of Pittsburgh was killed May 3. Young was shot in the head in the 2500 block of Bedford Avenue, near the intersection of Bedford Avenue and Watt Lane....
Hempfield Area School Board approves district’s next superintendent
Incoming Hempfield Area School District Superintendent Mark Holtzman is keenly aware of the stalled high school renovation project. “The large construction project that’s been kind of looming over the last couple of years really needs to take shape,” he said. “I think kind of orchestrating and getting those things tied...
Lower Burrell man charged in connection with church disruptions, threatening to exorcise priests
The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh is applauding the capture of a Lower Burrell man accused of disrupting church services across the region, including at churches in New Kensington and Freeport. Wendell Hissrich, the diocese’s director of safety and security and former Pittsburgh public safety director, said that, given the climate...
Delmont-area McDonald’s sued over sex claims involving manager taking advantage of teen employee
A lawsuit filed this week alleges the owners of the Delmont-area McDonald’s failed to adequately investigate the criminal background of a manager who was charged by police with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old employee. According to a two-count lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County Court, the fast-food restaurant owners are accused of...
Supreme Court orders Louisiana to use congressional map with additional Black district in 2024 vote
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Louisiana to hold congressional elections in 2024 using a House map with a second mostly Black district, despite a lower-court ruling that called the map an illegal racial gerrymander. The order allows the use of a map that has majority Black populations...
‘Get things done right’: Top Biden aide vows to fix scars of urban renewal in Pittsburgh
More than one Pittsburgh neighborhood bears the scars of urban renewal gone wrong. The predominantly Black communities of the Hill District and Manchester are just two examples. Now, the administration of President Joe Biden wants to fix the federal government’s mistakes. Tom Perez, a senior advisor to Biden and labor...
Steelers’ schedule includes back-to-back road games to open season, Christmas game with Chiefs
For the first time in 25 years, the Pittsburgh Steelers are scheduled to open the season with back-to-back road games. They will close it with consecutive home games for the first time in almost a decade. They won’t face a divisional foe until Week 11 and then will play six...
