Top Stories category, Page 600
What would recreational marijuana legalization do for Pennsylvania tax revenue?
Seven years after Pennsylvania legalized marijuana for medical use, lawmakers are debating whether to allow recreational use — and what that would look like. It has created quite a buzz in the evolving industry. “Pennsylvania has a lot of market potential,” said Brendan Mitchel- Chesebro, a marketing content manager for...
Election Day races to watch across the region on Tuesday
From the Westmoreland County commissioners to the Allegheny County executive and district attorney, numerous high-profile races will greet voters on Election Day. Arguably, no race has been more contentious than for state Supreme Court, where Republican Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas Judge Carolyn Carluccio and Democratic Superior Court Judge...
Call to help find missing man draws robust response from communities that know him well
The turnout Sunday on short- notice caught even the organizers by surprise. More than 200 volunteers, some clinging as tightly to their optimism as their walking sticks, chose to forgo a cloudless autumn day ripe for relaxation to join what arguably was a long shot search and rescue effort for...
‘You don’t have to let it go in the river:’ Breeders, owners defend exotic pets, push responsible care
Of the 600 to 700 reptiles Jessie Freeman brought to the Westmoreland Reptile Expo on Sunday, the crocodiles are his favorite. “They’re cool. They can hide and thrash out on you so fast, yet … if you understand their behavior, you can interact with them,” said Freeman of Asheboro, N.C....
Ligonier, Laurel Mountain residents asked to boil, conserve water following main break
Residents in Ligonier and Laurel Mountain boroughs and portions of Ligonier and Fairfield townships will have to boil their water before use following a water main break Sunday near Waterford. The main break occurred along the transmission line from the Greater Johnstown Water Authority, said Matt Junker, spokesperson for the...
Burrell football coach says playoff opponent used racial slurs, his protest led to ejection
Burrell football coach Shawn Liotta said his players were targeted with racial slurs in a game Friday against Mohawk and that he was ejected after confronting game officials about it. “Their kids were repeatedly using racist remarks toward our kids,” said Liotta, a sixth-year coach at Burrell. “Our coaches and...
Trump’s decades of testimony provide some clues about how he’ll fight for his real estate empire
NEW YORK — Donald Trump has testified in court as a football owner, casino builder and airline buyer. He bragged in a deposition that he saved “millions of lives” by deterring nuclear war as president. Another time, he fretted about the dangers of flung fruit. Conditioned by decades of trials...
Building the Valley: Upper Burrell’s Union Barn event venue brings people together
As a former police officer, Mike Seefeld often saw people at their worst. Now, he’s seeing them at their best at his family’s new business, the Union Barn in Upper Burrell. “I wanted to do something totally different from what I’ve been doing,” he said. Seefield and his wife, Susie,...
Gaza has lost telecom contact again, while Israel’s military announces it has surrounded Gaza City
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza came under the third total communications outage since the start of the war, while Israel’s military announced late Sunday that it had encircled Gaza City and divided the besieged coastal strip into two. “Today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” Rear Adm. Daniel...
Drop in Jeannette’s Democratic voters reflected in city council shift
In the past 20 years, the number of Democrats registered to vote in Jeannette has decreased by about 2,000 while the number of Republican voters has risen by 400, according to West moreland County statistics. Now, that shift will be reflected in city council. After Tuesday’s election and once a new...
Spending of covid relief to be focus of new commissioners’ board
Westmoreland commissioners voted last week to allocate $270,000 from the county’s pool of American Rescue Plan funds, and, as a result, about half of the $105 million pool of covid-relief cash received from the federal government in 2021 has been spent. Commissioners will have nearly $53 million to allocate by...
School board meetings attract crowds as races become next political frontier
From book bans to gender-neutral bathrooms, culture wars have found a battlefield in Western Pennsylvania schools. National politics increasingly are influencing school boards, as party lines are splitting members over hot button issues such as sex education, trans rights and the appropriateness of classroom materials. School boards’ once-marginally attended monthly...
Protest marches from U.S. to Berlin call for halt to Israeli bombing of Gaza
WASHINGTON — From Washington to Milan to Paris, tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched Saturday, calling for a halt to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza. The marches reflected growing disquiet about the mounting civilian casualty toll and suffering from the Israel-Hamas war. Protesters, particularly in countries with large Muslim populations,...
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee among Democrats who could face challenges over stance on Israel
ST. LOUIS — Most members of Congress have stood firmly behind Israel since the Hamas attack last month, but not Cori Bush. The Missouri Democrat called Israel’s response a “war crime” and an “ethnic cleansing campaign” and was among the few House members who opposed a resolution supporting Israel. Her...
Trump calls DeSantis ‘wounded, falling baby bird’ at Florida GOP summit
KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis made his case for the presidential nomination at the Florida Republican Party’s annual summit Saturday, only for Donald Trump to compare him to a “wounded, falling baby bird” in casually dismissing the governor’s chances. “He asked me for the endorsement,” Trump said of DeSantis...
WPIAL announces sites, times for Friday’s football playoff games
WPIAL football playoffs All games at 7 p.m. Friday Class 6A Semifinals No. 4 Mt. Lebanon (5-5) vs. No. 1 Central Catholic (9-1) at Fox Chapel No. 3 Canon-McMillan (6-4) at No. 2 North Allegheny (9-1) Class 5A Semifinals No. 1 Peters Township (11-0) vs. No. 5 Moon (6-5) at...
Loyalhanna convenience store sustains damage in fire
A convenience store in Loyalhanna Township sustained significant damage in a fire Friday night. Saltsburg, Bell Township and New Alexandria volunteer fire departments responded to a fire at Marshall’s Market, located along Route 981, around 10:15 p.m. Friday, according to a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher. None of the fire departments...
Arab envoys reject Blinken’s call for limited war pause in Gaza
Secretary of State Antony Blinken took U.S. calls for “humanitarian pauses” in the Israel-Hamas war to key Arab allies, who publicly insisted on an immediate cease-fire instead. The rift played out on Blinken’s tour of the Middle East against the backdrop of a growing backlash against the death toll in...
Man fatally shot after domestic dispute in Pittsburgh
A man died Saturday morning after being shot by a woman in what Pittsburgh police say started as a domestic dispute. Officers were dispatched to the Maple Ridge Apartment complex on the 2100 block of Park Hill Drive in East Hills around 11:30 a.m. Saturday to investigate reports of a...
Right turn on red? With pedestrian deaths rising, U.S. cities are considering bans
CHICAGO — Sophee Langerman was on her way to a bicycle safety rally in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood in June when a car turning right rolled through a red light and slammed into her bike, which she was walking off the curb and into the crosswalk. The car was moving slowly...
Manor church’s free clothing store expands hours, options to meet community need
Grandparents trying to clothe their grandchildren. A woman looking for clothes to bring with her to rehab. A nursing student in search of affordable scrubs for school. Refuge Boutique, a free clothing store run by Refuge Church in Manor, has helped people in each of these scenarios. In the spring,...
Homicide accusations against nurse Heather Pressdee raise scrutiny of state, nursing home vetting processes
Administrators and staff at five nursing homes where Harrison nurse Heather Pressdee worked either were suspicious or knew outright that she was harming patients, according to charges filed Thursday by the state Attorney General’s Office. Pressdee, 41, was charged in connection with 17 total deaths at five nursing homes in...
Missing Ford City teen found unharmed
A Ford City girl who went missing Friday night was found and returned to her parents by Southern Armstrong Police. Gabriella Dunmore, 14, went missing sometime after 5:15 p.m. Friday, possibly heading to Pittsburgh, police Chief Chris Fabec said. The police department sent an update on the case via Facebook...
Volunteer search party being formed Sunday to find missing Springdale man
A search party is being formed to help locate a Springdale man who has been missing since Monday. Volunteers are wanted at 10 a.m. Sunday at Pittsburgh Syria Shrine Center at 1877 Shriners Way in Harmar. The goal is to locate Sean Dugan, who was reported missing by Springdale police...
Milk carton shortage could hit school lunchrooms in Pa., other states
The tiny, half-pint cartons of milk served with millions of school lunches nationwide might soon be scarce in some cafeterias, with districts across the country scrambling to find alternatives. The problem is not a shortage of milk but the cardboard cartons used to package and serve it, according to dairy...
