Top Stories category, Page 644
Body cam footage shows Ligonier Township man was shot with handgun, stun gun nearly simultaneouslyVideo
Ligonier Valley police officers who responded to a domestic call fired a stun gun and a handgun nearly simultaneously when confronted last month by a man wielding a machete, body camera footage obtained by the Tribune-Review shows. The man, Robbie Thomas Saunders, 59, died later July 2 at Conemaugh Memorial...
Breakfast program impacts student health, participation in school, leaders say
Gov. Josh Shapiro spent his lunch hour Tuesday at Penn Hills Elementary School talking about breakfast. The recently approved state budget includes a $46.5 million increase for the Universal Free Breakfast Program, resulting in morning meals for the state’s 1.7 million public school students. Funding will level the playing field...
Citizens Bank robbed on Pittsburgh’s North Shore
A Citizens Bank branch near the Andy Warhol Museum on Pittsburgh’s North Shore was robbed Tuesday afternoon, Pittsburgh police said. A male, believed to be in his late 30s or early 40s, entered the bank at 106 Isabella St. at about 12:30 p.m. and demanded cash from the teller, police...
In Penn Hills visit, Shapiro announces Universal Free Breakfast Program for Pa. public school students
Gov. Josh Shapiro visited Penn Hills Elementary School on Tuesday to announce a new program to provide universal free breakfast to all public school students in Pennsylvania. The free-breakfast program was part of a $567 million increase in education funding for the state’s public school districts in the recently signed...
Third state probe of Westmoreland juvenile center finds potential riot averted despite inadequate staff training
A state agency Tuesday disclosed findings from a third investigation of operations at Westmoreland County’s temporarily closed juvenile detention center. The investigation resulted in an additional violation related to a physical altercation this year between a staff member and a teen that officials feared created a potential for a riot...
More than 25 dogs rescued from North Fayette home, had been neglected for months, humane officer says
When North Fayette police and Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh Officer Angela Fry entered Audrey Stevenson’s North Fayette home to check on her dogs in mid-July, “the odor was so severe that our eyes began to water and we were coughing,” Fry wrote in a criminal complaint. The Azalea Drive...
Eastern U.S. cleans up after deadly storms as New England braces for floodingVideo
SILVER SPRING, Md. — Crews across the eastern part of the nation worked Tuesday to clear downed trees and powerlines and restore electricity following severe storms that killed at least two people, cut power to more than a million customers at their peak, and forced thousands of flight delays and...
DeSantis replaces campaign manager as he resets faltering 2024 presidential bid
NEW YORK — Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis is replacing his campaign manager as the Florida governor resets his sluggish presidential campaign. DeSantis is bringing on James Uthmeier, his chief of staff from his state office, to serve as his campaign manager, replacing Generra Peck, who led DeSantis’ reelection campaign...
Lawrence County added to Pittsburgh metro area
Lawrence County, the birthplace of Donnie Iris, Chuck Tanner and Zambelli Fireworks, is now part of the Pittsburgh metro area thanks to a revised designation from the White House. The move gives the Pittsburgh metro area a population boost of nearly 85,000 people, increasing its total to 2,434,021, based on...
Father of starved Oakmont girl sentenced to 33 to 66 years in prison
An Oakmont man who was convicted in May of starving his 3-year-old daughter to death has been sentenced to 33 to 66 years in prison. Jose Salazar-Ortiz, 32, was sentenced Tuesday after being found guilty of third-degree murder in the 2020 starvation death of his daughter, Bella Seachrist. He also...
Supreme Court reinstates regulation of ghost guns
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is reinstating a regulation aimed at reining in the proliferation of ghost guns, firearms without serial numbers that have been turning up at crime scenes across the nation in increasing numbers. The court on Tuesday voted 5-4 to put on hold a ruling from a...
Biden makes Grand Canyon monument designation, citing Arizona tribal heritage, climate concernsVideo
TUSAYAN, Ariz. — Declaring it good “not only for Arizona but for the planet,” President Joe Biden on Tuesday signed a national monument designation for the greater Grand Canyon, turning the decades-long visions of Native American tribes and environmentalists into reality. Coming as Biden is on a three-state Western trip,...
Allegheny County Jail Warden Orlando Harper announces retirement
Allegheny County Jail Warden Orlando Harper is retiring next month after 11 years as the jail’s top official, the county announced Tuesday. “I have been honored to serve in this role for over a decade and am announcing my retirement with mixed feelings,” Harper said in a statement. “When I...
Heinz Field makes comeback at ‘The Pit’ as Kraft Heinz donates $1.3M to Aliquippa School District
Members of the Aliquippa football team played more games at Heinz Field than just about anyone not wearing a Pitt or Steelers uniform over past decade-plus. Now, that tradition will continue closer to home. Kraft Heinz donated $1.3 million to Aliquippa School District and will have naming rights for Aliquippa’s...
Vehicle crashes onto Pa. home’s roof; police say it was intentional
Pennsylvania State Police said a crash on Sunday that ended with a car stuck into the roof of a house was intentional. The one-vehicle crash happened around 3:15 p.m. on Alfrata Road in Decatur Township in Mifflin County. Police have charged the driver 20-year-old driver Evan Miller with aggravated assault,...
$1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot is the 3rd largest in U.S. history
Lottery players will have another shot Tuesday night at a massive Mega Millions prize that ranks as the third-largest jackpot in U.S. history. The estimated $1.58 billion prize has been gradually building for months thanks to 31 straight drawings without a jackpot winner. The last time someone won the game’s...
Police say Pa. woman took 220-mile Lyft ride to shoot couple fostering her biological daughter in Kennedy Township
Police say a Dauphin County woman took a three-and-a-half hour Lyft ride Monday to Kennedy Township and began shooting at a family there. She is facing a half-dozen counts each of aggravated assault, simple assault and reckless endangerment. Kennedy police were called to a home along Julia Lane just after...
Roundup: Master postal key stolen from Garfield mail carrier, police say
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, Aug. 8: Master postal key stolen from Garfield mail carrier, police say A U.S. Postal Service letter carrier who was robbed Aug. 4 had one of the organization’s master keys stolen, according to Pittsburgh police. The carrier was...
Hempfield Area to review 1st round of high school renovation bids this week
Hempfield Area School Board members will discuss bids for the first phase of a $132 million high school revitalization project at a public meeting Wednesday. The special session will be at 3 p.m. in the administration board room at 4347 Route 136. In addition to identifying the lowest bidder, the...
Strong winds split massive park oak, topple other tree limbs in Greensburg
The worst of Monday’s windstorms bypassed Westmoreland County, but strong morning gusts brought down limbs and damaged trees at several locations in Greensburg. The winds sheared in half a massive pin oak toward the eastern end of the city’s St. Clair Park, temporarily blocking part of a paved walking path....
Trump asks for freedom to discuss evidence after lashing out at judge in Jan. 6 case
Former President Donald Trump asked a judge Monday to issue only a narrow order restricting what he can say about evidence and witnesses as he awaits trial on charges of trying to overturn the 2020 election. Hours after trashing U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan and special counsel Jack Smith,...
Covid cases rise slightly but remain low compared to previous years in Western Pa.
Despite a slight increase in the number of covid-19 cases across the country, rates remain low, and they are far below the past few summers, both regionally and nationally. “Overall, we’ve had a pretty flat trajectory,” LuAnn Brink, chief epidemiologist for the Allegheny County Health Department, said Monday. “The changes...
State issues violations against closed Westmoreland juvenile detention center
State investigators issued multiple violations against Westmoreland County’s juvenile detention center after two teens suffered injuries while incarcerated, officials confirmed Monday. Controller Jeffrey Balzer, who serves as chairman of the county’s Juvenile Detention Board, said the violations focused on staffing issues at the Regional Youth Services Center in Hempfield. “It’s...
An Ohio election that revolves around abortion rights is fueled by national groups, money
COLUMBUS — Supporters of a ballot question in Ohio that would make it harder to change the state constitution and could determine the fate of abortion rights there say a yes vote will provide a “defense against out-of-state meddling.” Opponents argue that a yes vote would give “special interests the...
Property tax and rent rebate program will soon serve more older Pennsylvanians
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Thousands more older and disabled Pennsylvanians will qualify for help from a landmark state property tax rebate program, after...
