Top Stories category, Page 512
Get Healthy Pittsburgh gets folks curious about a plant-based diet
It can be quite difficult to make a lifestyle change, but at least 70 people did just that with Get Healthy Pittsburgh when they embarked on a seven-day challenge of plant-based eating. It was a challenge created by Humane Action Pittsburgh. They had their celebration and reveal night this week...
Bob Casey acknowledges ‘long, tough race,’ ahead of him in match-up with McCormick
PHILADELPHIA — This race will be different for Bob Casey. The three-term senator has faced challengers before but never one as well-funded and with as much early GOP support as Dave McCormick. And the Pennsylvania Democrat made the stakes known at the first rally of his campaign in Philadelphia on...
Pa. Senate leaders back Texas governor’s immigration fight, blast Biden
Pennsylvania Republican state Senate leaders have joined a growing chorus of conservatives across the country who are publicly backing Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s controversial efforts to thwart illegal immigration into his state. In a joint statement, Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward, Majority Leader Joe Pittman and Appropriations Committee Chairman...
Appellate court says state attorney general, and not local DAs, had authority to settle opioid claims
A Pennsylvania appellate court on Friday said that the state Attorney General’s Office had the authority to settle claims against opioid manufacturers over the harms caused by the abuse of the medication. The Commonwealth Court ruling, against the district attorneys of Allegheny County and Philadelphia, wrote in their opinion that...
Westmoreland Register of Wills faces contempt of court allegations
Westmoreland County Register of Wills Sherry Magretti Hamilton has been ordered to appear before a judge in early March to respond to contempt of court allegations. Common Pleas Judge Jim Silvis said Hamilton violated requirements that her office promptly file adoption records. Hamilton, a Republican from Hempfield, was unopposed when...
NRA chief Wayne LaPierre takes the stand in his civil trial, defends luxury vacations
NEW YORK — Longtime National Rifle Association chief Wayne LaPierre took the stand in his New York civil trial Friday, defending himself against allegations that he violated the trust of the group’s 5 million members by spending tens of millions of dollars to enrich himself and close associates. Under questioning...
U.S. Steel settles lawsuit over 2018 fire, power outages in 2019, 2022
U.S. Steel officials have entered into a consent decree with the Allegheny County Health Department and two environmental groups to address a 2018 fire at its Clairton facility that crippled the plant’s pollution controls and caused power outages at the plant in 2019 and 2022. The agreement will include nearly...
PIAA officials acknowledge competitive balance formula has ‘room for conversation’ in future
A football team that reaches the state finals or semifinals two years in a row “is the cream of the crop in that class,” said PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi, explaining why health and safety concerns are excluded as grounds for appeal under the competitive-balance rule. “It’s tough to make...
Justice Department finds Cuomo sexually harassed employees, settles with New York state
ALBANY, N.Y. — The U.S. Justice Department reached a settlement with the state of New York on Friday to resolve a sexual harassment investigation of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, confirming allegations from the damaging misconduct probe that led to the Democrat’s resignation. The agreement details a series of reforms made...
Bill decriminalizing drug test strips in opioid-devastated West Virginia heads to governor
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A bill that would decriminalize all strips used to test drugs for deadly substances in West Virginia, the state with the nation’s highest overdose rate, is headed to the desk of Republican Gov. Jim Justice. Justice hasn’t said publicly if he supports the bill, which has received...
Jury: Trump must pay additional $83.3M to E. Jean Carroll in defamation case
NEW YORK — A jury has awarded an additional $83.3 million to former advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who says former President Donald Trump damaged her reputation by calling her a liar after she accused him of sexual assault. Friday’s verdict was the second time in nine months a jury...
Driver to stand trial in fatal ‘drag-racing’ crash that killed Serra Catholic student
It took just two minutes and 18 seconds. A crowded Pittsburgh courtroom fell silent Friday as dash cam footage — time-stamped two seconds after 7:22 a.m. Sept. 20 — showed school van driver Richard Alan Maleski waiting at a stop sign and preparing to enter the intersection at Third Street...
Shapiro’s higher education overhaul plan and $1,000 tuition proposal draws intrigue, skepticism
Already there are questions about the cost to cap tuition and fees for many state university students at $1,000 a semester and who would pay — not to mention bringing state universities and community colleges under one umbrella. There are regulatory, legal and logistical hurdles, all in a state whose...
TV Talk: WPXI-TV hires weekend morning anchor, faces retransmission spat with DirecTV
WPXI-TV hired New Kensington native Jatara McGee to be the station’s new weekend morning anchor beginning in mid-February. Current weekend morning anchor Alyssa Raymond will move to anchor the weekday noon newscast on Channel 11 after Katherine Amenta and Gordon Loesch took on an additional 7 a.m. weekday newscast on...
Buttigieg pushes for rail safety, touts infrastructure bill in Pittsburgh visit
U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visited Pittsburgh on Friday to tout funding for improvement projects along the Parkway East corridor, part of the Biden Administration’s signature infrastructure funding effort. He also called for enhanced regulations ahead of the first anniversary on Feb. 3 of the East Palestine train...
Commonwealth Court rules Quaker Valley High School project can move forward
A Pennsylvania appellate court on Jan. 26 said that Quaker Valley School District can move forward with its planned construction of a new, $95 million high school. The 19-page Commonwealth Court ruling affirms a decision by the lower court that said that the Leet Township Zoning Hearing Board did not...
Mysterious notes reported in food items, state parks, trails across Pennsylvania
Cryptic notes have been popping up all around Pennsylvania in various cereal boxes and state parks — and it looks like they’re moving west. Originally dubbed the “Schuylkill Notes” by Reddit users investigating, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, some of the messages are said to have a sinister quality...
Springdale woman pleads guilty in connection to daughter’s death
A Springdale woman pleaded guilty Thursday in connection with the death of her 5-year-old daughter in June. Samantha Allison McMunn, 34, of the 40 block of Duquesne Court pleaded guilty to a felony count of involuntary manslaughter in the death of her daughter, Diem McMunn-Gereshenski, according to court records. Springdale...
Before and after: Robinson basement gets award-winning renovation
Regis McQuaide remembers ledger paper, adding machines and drawing construction plans by hand. His business has evolved over the past 35 years but one thing remains, he said. “Nothing is mass-produced,” said McQuaide, who owns Master Remodelers, Inc. in Castle Shannon. “Every day is different. Everything we do is customized.”...
Suspects still at large after police chase that locked down Kiski Area East Primary in Vandergrift
Kiski Area East Primary School in Vandergrift was locked down Friday while police conduct a manhunt in the area. The school went into lockdown early Friday before the school day began as police searched the nearby area for a driver who crashed and fled from a stolen vehicle. What started...
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to visit Pittsburgh to announce federal infrastructure funds
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is scheduled to visit Pittsburgh on Friday to announce a $142 million federal funds for the city’s infrastructure. He’s expected to join federal, local and state leaders, including U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and U.S. Reps. Chris Deluzio and Summer Lee to celebrate the investment, which...
Allegheny County judge accused of improper conduct with teens in judicial board complaint
An Allegheny County judge is accused of engaging in improper conduct with teenage boys in a judicial board complaint filed this week. Magistrate Judge Anthony Saveikis, who has served as a judge since January 2002, was notified by the state judicial conduct board that he is facing formal charges before...
Morning Roundup: 3 escape massive house fire in Fayette; teen injured in Clairton shooting
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, Jan. 26: 3 escape massive house fire in Fayette County A huge fire broke out Friday morning at a Dunbar Township home in Fayette County. The fire was reported around 3:20 a.m. at the 200 block of Locust...
1 killed in Peters Township house fire
A woman was killed in a fire in a Peters Township house Thursday, according to Peters Township Fire Department. Firefighters were dispatched to Spruce Drive for a house fire at 2:25 p.m., officials said. When they arrived, a woman in the front yard told responders that there was a fire...
ATI retirees balk at pension changes
Some ATI retirees fear they’ve lost a pension guarantee after recent changes by the specialty metals company. ATI purchased group annuity contracts from New York-based Athene Annuity and Life Co. and Athene Annuity & Life Assurance Co., transferring about 85% of its U.S.-qualified defined-benefit pension plan obligations, ATI spokeswoman Natalie...
