Top Stories category, Page 717
Do not call: States sue telecom company over billions of robocalls
PHOENIX — Attorneys general across the U.S. joined in a lawsuit against a telecommunications company accused of making more than 7.5 billion robocalls to people on the national Do Not Call Registry. The 141-page lawsuit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Phoenix against Avid Telecom, its owner Michael...
Police identify victim, suspect in Oliver Citywide Academy shooting
An Oliver Citywide Academy student was shot and killed by another student Wednesday morning outside the school, police said. Police identified the victim as Derrick Harris, 15. The suspect, Jamier Perry, also 15, is charged with homicide, possession of firearm by a minor and carrying a firearm without a license...
Just in case: Anxious retirees, social service groups among those making default contingency plans
WASHINGTON — Phoenix retiree Saundra Cole has been watching the news about the debt limit negotiations in Washington with dismay — and limiting her air conditioning use to save money just in case her monthly Social Security check is delayed due to a default. For her, air conditioning is no...
Pa. is sitting on billions in unclaimed property, but a bill would get some back to its owners
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 — Pennsylvania’s treasurer wants the state to start sending unclaimed money directly to the people it belongs to, a proactive...
Feeling lonely: An epidemic of isolation has expanded area mental health needs
Editor’s note: This is the first of two stories on loneliness and its impact on mental health. Part 2: The negative impacts of too much screen time. Greensburg resident John Herrmann has a suppertime appointment each Thursday at the city’s Otterbein United Methodist Church. Helping to hand out meals to...
Morning Roundup: Police investigate alleged kidnapping in Overbrook
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, May 24: Police investigate alleged kidnapping in Overbrook Pittsburgh police said a man was assaulted and dragged into a vehicle in the city’s Overbrook neighborhood Tuesday evening. Police responded to a call at the intersection of Saw Mill...
Norwin cuts 5 teaching positions, balks at layoffs, favors no tax increase
In a move aimed paring a projected deficit, the Norwin School Board cut five teaching positions and one administrative job for the 2023-24 school year, despite warnings about the impact it will have on the district’s education program. The positions the board eliminated Monday for the upcoming school year were:...
Pittsburgh’s public safety, public works vehicle fleets in ‘dire straits’
Pittsburgh’s public safety and public works vehicle fleets are in “dire straits,” officials said during a meeting Tuesday. “We’re duct-taping and bubble-gumming things together,” Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt said. “We’re not providing the level of services we normally should be providing.” Officials said the city’s aging vehicle fleets often...
Former Johnstown man was attempting suicide when he attacked cop, lawyer says
A man who tried to disarm a police officer as he was being discharged from a Greensburg hospital did so in an attempt to end his own life, his lawyer said. “My client grabbed the pistol to have the officer shoot him. He wanted to commit suicide by officer because...
AP: DeSantis to announce 2024 presidential bid Wednesday on Twitter with Elon Musk
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will announce his 2024 presidential campaign in a Twitter Spaces event with Elon Musk on Wednesday, according to two people with knowledge of his plans. DeSantis, who has long been seen as Donald Trump’s leading rival for the Republican nomination, will reveal his plans in an...
Zappala gets enough Republican write-in votes to become eligible for GOP nomination
Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. lost his Democratic primary race last week, but the county’s Election Return Board said he received nearly 9,700 write-in votes from Republicans — making him eligible for the GOP nomination if he wants it. Zappala, a longtime Democrat, was defeated in the...
Apartment complex proposed at former Irish Centre site in Squirrel Hill
The former Irish Centre complex in Pittsburgh’s East End could see a new apartment development. The former community center was put up for sale a few years ago, and has long been out of use, and housing developments have been proposed for the site before. It is located on 6886...
Larry Scirotto confirmed as new Pittsburgh police chief
Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved Larry Scirotto as the city’s new police chief. Mayor Ed Gainey nominated the veteran Pittsburgh police officer early this month. Scirotto, 49, retired from the Pittsburgh police in 2018 as an assistant chief after serving in various roles, from being an officer in...
Westmoreland woman wins $1M in ‘Millionaire Maker’ scratch-off game
Pennsylvania Lottery officials will recognize another $1 million winner from Westmoreland County at the Shop’n Save in Latrobe on Wednesday. Diane Babbin will be presented with a commemorative check after winning $1 million the “Millionaire Maker” scratch-off game. Western Pennsylvania has seen a number of sizable lottery winners this spring....
UPS strike looms in a world grown reliant on everything delivered everywhere all the time
WASHINGTON — Living in New York City, working full time and without a car, Jessica Ray and her husband have come to rely on deliveries of food and just about everything else for their home. It has meant more free time on weekends with their young son, rather than standing...
Harrison names Sgt. Brian Turack as new police chief
Harrison has a new police chief for the first time in nearly three decades. Sgt. Brian Turack, a member of the department for about 12 years, was hired by township commissioners during their agenda meeting May 16, Commissioner Jim Erb said. Turack starts in the new role July 1, replacing...
New Kensington officials deny motorcycle club’s request for new clubhouse
A motorcycle club that sought to use a residential-zoned New Kensington property as its new clubhouse will have to find a new hub. City council voted 3-0 Monday to deny the club’s conditional use application. Councilmen Todd Mentecki and Timothy DiMaio were absent. There was an hourlong public hearing before...
Trump makes video appearance in New York criminal case, trial date set for March primary seasonVideo
NEW YORK — Donald Trump threw up his hands in frustration Tuesday as a judge scheduled his criminal trial for March 25, putting the former president and current candidate in a Manhattan courtroom in the heat of next year’s presidential primary season. Trump, appearing by video conference at a pretrial...
Pittsburgh to get more nonstop flights to Los Angeles via Breeze Airways
Pittsburgh International Airport is getting more direct flights to Los Angeles International Airport because of a shift in service from Breeze Airways. The airport said Monday that Breeze, a low-cost carrier, is starting nonstop service between Pittsburgh and LAX starting Sept. 8. The move comes after Breeze will shift service...
Morning Roundup: Police say Cranberry woman stole thousands from dentist office
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, May 23: Police say Cranberry woman stole thousands from dentist office An employee of a dentist office in Cranberry Township has been charged with felony theft for allegedly stealing about $20,000 from Generational Dental Associates. Police said Kimberly...
Knoch school principal accused of failing to report alleged abuse of 5-year-old placed on leave
A school principal in Butler County was charged with failing to report child abuse after learning that his adult son was accused of sexually assaulting a 5-year-old, according to authorities. State police charged Knoch Primary School Principal Gregory G. Mandalas with a misdemeanor count of failing to report suspected child...
Vandergrift Pool delays opening; others ready for Memorial Day
Some area pools are making a splash in time for traditional opening day — Memorial Day weekend — but at least one has to come up for air. Vandergrift Pool, along La Belle Vue Road, will not open its gates as scheduled. The board announced on social media that unforeseen...
Pa. Sen. Doug Mastriano on GOP opposition to his U.S. Senate bid: ‘It’s irrelevant to me’
Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano on Monday shrugged off calls from inside his party to oppose his potential U.S. Senate bid, including one from a current legislative colleague. “Of any of the detractors, none have had the cojones to look me in the eye and have a conversation,” Mastriano told...
Judge dismisses Kari Lake’s final claim in election loss for Arizona governor
PHOENIX — A judge on Monday dismissed the only remaining legal claim in Republican Kari Lake’s challenge of her loss in last year’s race for Arizona governor, affirming the election of Democrat Katie Hobbs. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter A. Thompson said Lake failed to prove her claim that...
No debt ceiling agreement in White House meeting, though Biden, McCarthy call talks productiveVideo
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy both said they had a productive debt ceiling discussion late Monday at the White House, but there was no agreement as negotiators strained to raise the nation’s borrowing limit in time to avert a potentially chaotic federal default. It’s a...
