Top Stories category, Page 671
Jurors deliberating whether Pittsburgh synagogue shooter is sentenced to death or life in prison
Eleven times, the prosecutor repeated the same sentence, changing only the subject. “Her loss, alone, is sufficient to justify a sentence of death.” “His loss, alone, is sufficient to justify a sentence of death.” Eleven times, one for each person killed in the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue nearly...
Gas prices soar amid heat-related refinery outages, analyst says
The Pittsburgh area’s brief stint of hot weather may be over, but drivers are still feeling the heat at the gas pump. Gas prices in the region and across the nation have soared over the past week because of heat-related outages impacting some of the country’s largest refineries, said Patrick...
Bushy Run prepares for 260th anniversary of Penn Township battle
About 90 reenactors are registered for this year’s Bushy Run Battlefield reenactment, which was in jeopardy earlier this year after a change in state policy. The reenactment traditionally held the first weekend in August portrays a 1763 clash between the British and Native Americans during Pontiac’s War. It will take...
Mark Madden: Pirates would be wrong to delay turning point further at trade deadline
As the Pittsburgh Pirates stumble through the latest phase of their never-ending rebuild, it’s easy to doubt the franchise’s implied (if not outright declared) optimism that 2024 is going to be a turning point. This season’s 47-58 record (27-50 after a 20-8 start) says otherwise. What the Pirates do before Tuesday’s...
Passenger fatally stabbed on Greyhound Bus traveling from Pittsburgh to D.C.
An 18-year-old Detroit man charged with fatally stabbing a fellow passenger Sunday night aboard a Greyhound bus just outside Pittsburgh told first responders it was the first time he had killed anyone and referred to a “demon” who “took many souls,” according to a criminal complaint. Police said Javon Garrett...
Police, firefighters searching for alligator in Kiski River
Local police and firefighters are actively searching the Kiski River between Avonmore and Apollo for a wayward alligator spotted by kayakers over the weekend. A state humane officer is putting out baited traps for the animal, assumed to be a pet that escaped or was released when its owner no...
Morning Roundup: Man shot in foot in Beltzhoover
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Monday, July 31: Man shot in foot in Beltzhoover Pittsburgh police are investigating a shooting Sunday night in the city Beltzhoover’s neighborhood. Officers responded around 11:15 p.m. to reports of 24 rounds fired in the 200 block of Industry...
Teen killed in Mt. Oliver shooting
Pittsburgh police are investigating the death of a 17-year-old boy Sunday night in Mt. Oliver. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Andrew Lavaughn Smith of Pittsburgh. Police responded to a report of shots being fired in the 400 block of Brownsville Road around 9:15 p.m. Pittsburgh...
Indiana County fan preserves Steelers history, 1 news clipping at a time
Ed Griffith’s wife, Joyce, rarely has to wonder where he is. The Indiana County man’s daily routine includes hanging out in his basement man cave, adding to the more than four decades of news clippings he has saved to document the Steelers and other favorite regional sports teams and figures....
Thousands turn out for iconic-themed Vandergrift Artfest
Tommy Scanga got serious with his spuds Sunday in anticipation of feeding hundreds of hungry festivalgoers in Vandergift. Scanga, owner of Del Vecchio’s Sausage & Fries, had 1,000 pounds of potatoes at the ready in his food truck to make his specialty fresh-cut fries for the 16th annual Vandergrift Artfest,...
Steelers tasked with fitting 3 inside linebackers on field with addition of Kwon AlexanderVideo
Forget about a two dogs-one bone scenario — Mike Tomlin’s terminology for two players competing for one job — taking place at inside linebacker this summer for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Where that ever-expanding position group is concerned, it’s more like three dogs competing for two bones. The signing of Kwon...
Pittsburgh woman charged in Friday shooting outside Texas Roadhouse in Collier Township
Police have charged a 22-year-old woman in relation to a shooting Friday in the parking lot of a Collier Township shopping plaza, according to Tribune-Review news partner WTAE. August Lashea Poole, 22, of Pittsburgh’s Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood, is charged with aggravated assault and possession of a criminal weapon, WTAE reported. Police...
Gatling gun fires off interest at Historic Hanna’s Town Civil War event
As a young boy, Keith Takacs knew he wanted a Gatling gun. The rapid-fire weapon, a precursor to modern machine guns patented in 1862, looked cool in old cowboy movies. Fast-forward a few decades, and Takacs dropped about $12,000 on one in 2019. “Saw it, wanted it, made it a...
Person freed from ticket booth at Idlewild amusement park after vehicle crash
Firefighters freed a person from a ticket booth Sunday afternoon at Idlewild & SoakZone amusement park after a vehicle crashed into it. A Westmoreland 911 dispatch supervisor said a person in the vehicle had a medical emergency around 2 p.m. at the park in Ligonier Township off Route 30. The...
Rookie Steelers fullback Monte Pottebaum abruptly placed on reserve/retired listVideo
No more “Monte the Mullet” at Pittsburgh Steelers training camp. Rookie fullback Monte Pottebaum — given a nickname to represent the style of his long blonde hair — was placed on the reserve/retired list, the Steelers announced Sunday afternoon. Signed soon after the draft ended out of Iowa, Pottebaum was...
Building the Valley: Ash Taphouse fires up service at former Beermuda in New Kensington
Jenn Toney takes pizza seriously. The New Kensington businesswoman attended a three-day “boot camp” in Chicago to learn how to make dough for wood-fired pizzas. She went to Las Vegas for a class on her rectangular, thick-cut “grandma” style, similar to Sicilian. And she bought a large, Italian wood-fired oven...
Joe Biden, America’s oldest sitting president, needs young voters to win again. Will his age matter?
At 24, Alberto Rodriguez has grandparents younger than Joe Biden. But he’s more interested in the 80-year-old president’s accomplishments than his age. “People as young as me, we’re all focusing on our day-to-day lives and he has done things to help us through that,” Rodriguez, a cook at Mandalay Bay...
Facing legal peril, Trump calls on GOP to rally around him as he threatens primary challenges
NEW YORK — At a moment of growing legal peril, Donald Trump ramped up his calls for his GOP rivals to drop out of the 2024 presidential race as he threatened to primary Republican members of Congress who fail to focus on investigating Democratic President Joe Biden and urged them...
Portion of Route 28 reopens after crash
Part of Route 28 in Pittsburgh reopened Sunday after being shut down for several hours following a crash. The inbound lanes of the highway were affected during the closure between the exits for the 31st Street Bridge and I-579, according to PennDOT. Video of the scene from Tribune-Review news partner...
Power up: Solar-power installations jump to more than 40,000 across the state
Patricia Finley Perfetti and her husband, Tom, put solar panels outside their Rostraver home four years ago. They have been reaping the benefits of homegrown electric power and lower utility bills ever since. “It’s sure nice to get a zero charge on the electric bill,” Patricia Perfetti said. The Perfettis...
Leechburg man uncovers rare find in attic
Chasing a pesky bat inside a residence Thursday led a Leechburg homeowner to discover a piece of American history. “I was in ‘dad mode,’ trying to get a bat out of the house — up in the attic,” said Shawn McGonagle, a father of four. “I realized there was an...
Editorial: Cutting support to Daily Collegian shows Penn State doesn’t value information
Every day, Penn State students hoping to go pro step onto the field of play, pick up the ball and run with it. They score big, and more than a few have gone on to win major awards as a member of amazing teams. But the university’s board of trustees...
Week 7 recap: Defense offers two dozen witnesses in effort to save synagogue shooters’ life
Over the past two months, 130 people have testified as part of the trial for the man convicted of killing 11 people at a Squirrel Hill synagogue. They have described the terror inside the Tree of Life building on Oct. 27, 2018. They have spoken lovingly of those killed. They...
Squirrel Hill holds complicated feelings about death penalty for synagogue shooter
Many in Squirrel Hill hate Pittsburgh synagogue shooter Robert Bowers. But their feelings about how to punish him as his federal trial nears a conclusion are as unique as the individuals themselves. Lori Kline grew up in this tree-shaded East End neighborhood, where roughly half the residents are Jewish and...
Unity company holds First Responders Appreciation Day to benefit local volunteers
The blue skies arrived just in time for Saturday’s annual First Responders Appreciation Day. The event outside Nickos Chimney Co. on Route 30 in Unity was started four years ago by employee Lisa Tatsch. It’s a way for workers and volunteers to give back to local first responders. All proceeds...
