Top Stories category, Page 717
1 dead, 1 injured in Homewood shooting
One man was killed and another wounded in a shooting early Monday morning in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, police said. Pittsburgh police, fire and EMS responded to reports of a shooting just before 4 a.m. Monday at the intersection of Hamilton Avenue and Homewood Avenue. Responders found two men with gunshot...
1st-place Pirates are hottest team, biggest story in baseball
The Pittsburgh Pirates are riding an MLB-best seven-game winning streak, have swept back-to-back series for the first time in almost five years and are off to their best start in three decades. The Pirates (16-7) are the hottest team and the biggest story in baseball, a reversal of fortunes in...
Valley Dairy Restaurant’s opening date set in Allegheny Township
Calling all ice cream lovers. Promising the “best banana split of your life,” Valley Dairy Restaurant training manager Joe Wyant took a few minutes out of his increasingly busy schedule Thursday to provide details on the upcoming May 1 grand opening in Allegheny Township. “It’s original strawberry and vanilla hand-dipped...
Calling all volunteers: Leechburg Recycling Center needs help to meet demand
A dedicated group of senior citizens is doing more with less in Leechburg. The volunteers at the Leechburg Recycling Center have experienced a 20% increase in recyclables compared with last year — and fewer helpers to collect, sort and process the trash. “I was the only one here the other...
Tree of Life trial: Key players for prosecution, defense in Robert Bowers case
Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday for the trial of Robert Bowers, the man accused of killing 11 people Oct. 27, 2018, at the Tree of Life synagogue on Wilkins Avenue in Squirrel Hill. Two additional congregants were shot and wounded during worship services that day, and five police...
Probe ordered after Florida shooter fires at delivery driver
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A Florida prosecutor has ordered an investigation in a confrontation in which a homeowner fired shots into a couple’s car when they mistakenly turned onto his property while making a late-night grocery delivery. Police closed the case without consulting the state attorney’s office. No one was...
3 shot, 1 killed in fight between neighbors in Jefferson Hills
A man was shot to death and two other people were critically injured by gunfire during an altercation between neighbors on Sunday afternoon in Jefferson Hills, according to authorities. Jefferson Hills police and medics were dispatched to the 3000 block of Siler Drive at 4:10 p.m. for a 911 call...
Until we meet again: Ceremony marks start of new chapter at Tree of Life synagogue
In the garden outside the Tree of Life synagogue, surrounded by budding plants and green bushes, congregation members and neighbors gathered to say “until we see each other again” to the Squirrel Hill building that once served as a center of worship for many in the Jewish community. The synagogue...
NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell ousted over ‘inappropriate conduct’
NEW YORK — Jeff Shell, the chief executive of NBCUniversal, is departing the company after an investigation into inappropriate conduct, Comcast announced Sunday. In a brief statement, Shell said Sunday would be his last day after what he called “an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company.” “I’m truly...
1 dead, 1 wounded in shootout near New Kensington playgroundVideo
A gun battle between two males left one dead and another wounded Sunday afternoon near a playground in New Kensington, according to authorities. The shooting was reported at 12:01 p.m. about a half-block away from the city’s police department in the courtyard of an apartment complex, authorities said. Crime-scene tape...
New Hempfield book challenge, acquisition rules up for vote
After more than a year of debate, Hempfield Area School Board is set to vote on new book selection and challenge regulations for the district’s libraries. The draft regulations, which were discussed by board members in January, would set guidelines for preventing sexually explicit content from entering or staying in...
Faces of the Valley: Emergency disaster volunteer from Parks Township logs more than 30 Salvation Army deployments
The long, faded scar across Joel Brown’s forehead and scalp is a reminder of one of the most harrowing volunteer days of his life. Brown, 57, of Parks Township was driving home from a fire call with the Parks Township Volunteer Fire Department in 2020 when he swerved while driving...
Spokesperson: Teenagers facing criminal charges, ban after sneaking into Kennywood
Four teenagers who attempted to sneak into Kennywood by climbing over a fence on Saturday will face criminal charges, according to a spokesperson for the park. Communications manager Tasha Pokrzywa said the teenagers were spotted by the park’s new camera system “with AI technology” around 2 p.m. yesterday. Police and...
The front door, threshold of welcome — and perilous border
NEW YORK — The American front door is a place where the welcome mat offers friendly greetings, where affable neighbors knock or ring, where boxes brimming with possibility are delivered. It is where home meets a world full of potentially good things. The American front door is a place where...
Unprepared for long war, U.S. Army under gun to make more ammo
SCRANTON, Pa. — One of the most important munitions of the Ukraine war comes from a historic factory in this city built by coal barons, where tons of steel rods are brought in by train to be forged into the artillery shells Kyiv can’t get enough of — and that...
Trump defends push to restrict abortion rights after rebuke
CLIVE, Iowa — Donald Trump, stinging from a rebuke by the nation’s leading anti-abortion group, used a speech Saturday before influential evangelicals in Iowa to spotlight his actions as president to try to restrict abortion rights. Chief among the accomplishments Trump listed were his nominations of three conservative judges to...
Struggling Bed Bath & Beyond files for bankruptcy protectionVideo
NEW YORK — Bed Bath & Beyond — one of the original big box retailers known for its seemingly endless offerings of sheets, towels and kitchen gadgets — filed for bankruptcy protection, following years of dismal sales and losses and numerous failed turnaround plans. The beleaguered home goods chain made...
Public can weigh in on Tarentum-East Deer trail; 5-mile stretch would make riverfront accessible to all
A $4.4 million trail project in Tarentum and East Deer is expected to create public access to the shoreline, promote recreation and spur economic development. The 5-mile path would meander through Dreshar Stadium and past Pittsburgh Brewing Co., providing shared-lane markings, known as sharrows, for bikers and off-road sections for...
In mass shooting cases, stakes and emotions are high for prosecution and defense
William Difenderfer still remembers the day. It was a Friday. April 28, 2000. A Mt. Lebanon man went on a killing spree, fatally shooting five people from Western Pennsylvania because of their race and religion. Difenderfer, a well-known criminal defense attorney, lived in Mt. Lebanon. His children attended schools there....
No ‘au revoir’ just yet: Penn-Trafford to keep French program, for now
French language courses at Penn-Trafford School District won’t be going away anytime soon. After previously announcing the program would be phased out because of a lack of enrollment and the retirement of the district’s longtime high school French teacher, the Penn-Trafford School Board decided last week to continue the program,...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Why isn’t Bucco Fever spreading faster?
The Pittsburgh Pirates returned from a 5-2 road trip that ended with a three-game sweep at Denver to play in front of a mere 14,051 at PNC Park this past Thursday. Bucco Fever isn’t spreading that quick. Perhaps people still are wearing masks. Or maybe the inevitable reality of 162...
Home destroyed by fire, 3 injured in Hempfield
A house in Hempfield burned down and three people living there were burned early Saturday morning, according to a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher. Three residents of the single-family home were taken to UPMC Mercy hospital in Pittsburgh with burns suffered in the fire, which started at 12:45 a.m., the dispatcher...
Outbound Fort Pitt Bridge and Tunnel closures still on for Saturday, Sunday nights
PennDOT has confirmed that overnight closures of the outbound (westbound) Fort Pitt Bridge are taking place as scheduled Saturday and Sunday night in Pittsburgh, weather permitting. Work scheduled for Friday night was postponed to the weekend . PennDOT says road crews will be working to remove pavement markings and installing...
Wilkinsburg man wanted on parole violation taken into custody
A Wilkinsburg man accused of violence against women has been taken into custody. Laron Robinson, 33, was wanted on a probation violation involving a 2022 case where he pleaded guilty to strangulation and making terroristic threats, Sheriff Kevin M. Kraus said Saturday. Robinson also is facing an active warrant from...
‘Living history’ unfolds during reenactors’ training session on the Kiski RiverVideo
Nine years ago, IT consultant John Stevenson brought some antique firearms into a Pittsburgh-area gun shop, where a man invited him to a Civil War reenactment. The rest, as they say, is history. Stevenson — who’s been taking part ever since in historically accurate reenactments that organizers call “living history”...
