Top Stories category, Page 724
Norfolk Southern offers up-close view of cleanup work at East Palestine derailment site
Chris Hunsicker has done environmental cleanup work for 30 years, but he said he’s never been involved in a project as extensive as the one that began after the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine in early February. “This is a very unique event and a very significant event,”...
Penguins give part of Lower Hill development site to Bethel AME Church decades after it was displaced by arena project
More than six decades after its church was displaced to clear the way for construction of the former Civic Arena, Bethel AME Church will once again get land in Pittsburgh’s Lower Hill District. The church is set to develop a 1.5-acre site at the corner of Crawford and Bedford avenues,...
PennWest says move to consolidate academic colleges will save $2M
PennWest University will consolidate its six academic colleges into three and rename them as the year-old university — itself created through a merger — seeks to cut costs while reversing enrollment losses. The university’s Council of Trustees approved the measure Thursday. Officials gave few details afterward about the reorganization, but...
Police seek owner of valuables found in Sheetz restroom in Indiana County
Pennsylvania State Police are seeking the owner of several valuable items found Monday at an Indiana County Sheetz. Several antique coins, including U.S. Indian Head pennies, and pieces of jewelry, including a diamond ring, were among contents of a camera case found in the men’s restroom of a Sheetz gas...
Penguins fire general manager Ron Hextall and president Brian Burke
At the beginning, it was almost absurd. Comical, even. One of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ greatest villains became their general manager. In the end, he became vilified for completely different reasons few could laugh at (outside Philadelphia). On Friday, Ron Hextall’s tenure as the 11th general manager in the history of...
Suspect in Ross Dress for Less store theft ring pleads guilty
A Florida man pleaded guilty this week to his role in a multi-state theft ring from a local clothing retailer. Yan Roynell Duquesne Martinez, 31, was charged in December with theft of clothing and other items from multiple Ross Dress for Less stores in Westmoreland, Allegheny, Blair and Cambria counties....
DeSantis signs 6-week abortion ban for Florida in closed-door ceremony
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bill to ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, giving the Republican a major conservative policy victory as he prepares to launch an expected presidential candidacy. DeSantis signed the measure late Thursday night in a private ceremony without fanfare, hours...
U.S.: Billing records helped ID suspect in military docs leak
BOSTON — Billing records of an internet social media platform helped the FBI identify a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman in the leak of highly classified military documents, according to court records unsealed Friday. The new details came as Jack Teixeira appeared in court to face charges of unauthorized removal and...
Supreme Court temporarily blocks restrictions on abortion pill
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said Friday it was temporarily keeping in place federal rules for use of an abortion drug, while it takes time to more fully consider the issues raised in a court challenge. In an order signed by Justice Samuel Alito, the court asked both sides to...
U.S. retail sales fall 1% amid high inflation, rising rates
WASHINGTON — Americans cut their spending at retail stores in March for the second straight month, a sign consumers are becoming more cautious after a burst of spending in January. Retail sales dropped 1% in March from February, a sharper decline than the 0.2% fall in the previous month. Sales...
In private, Gov. Shapiro’s working group on climate change meets
HARRISBURG — The group tasked by Gov. Josh Shapiro with developing a state-level plan to fight climate change met for the first time this week, a step the Democrat promised to take when he questioned his predecessor’s strategy to make Pennsylvania the first major fossil fuel state to adopt carbon...
Morning roundup: Washington Pike bridge to close for construction
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, April 14, 2023: Washington Pike Bridge to temporarily close The Washington Pike bridge over Chartiers Creek in Bridgeville and South Fayette Township will be closed through 5 a.m. Monday morning, according to PennDOT. Crews will be demolishing and...
Supreme Court Justice Thomas, relatives sold family properties to wealthy GOP donorVideo
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and relatives sold three Georgia properties that include Thomas’s boyhood home to GOP mega-donor Harlan Crow in 2014, according to a report, marking the first known instance where money flowed to the Supreme Court justice from the same Texas real estate magnate who...
Greensburg Salem parent calls for change after teacher caught reading racial slur aloud in classroom
A Greensburg Salem High School parent is calling for change after a substitute teacher voiced a racial slur while reading aloud to her classroom from the 1937 John Steinbeck novella “Of Mice and Men.” The incident happened March 24 in a 10th-grade language arts class. According to parents, the moment...
Deb Docherty, founder of Docherty Agency in Pittsburgh, dead at 63
It plays like the lore from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Deb Docherty began a career in the entertainment industry when she was discovered in the early 1980s while standing at a phone booth in Downtown Pittsburgh. An agent saw her from the street asked her if she was interested...
New Kensington contractor accused of fleecing residents in Penn Hills, O’Hara
The owner of a New Kensington brick pointing company who is awaiting trial on charges that he ripped off a family in O’Hara by taking money for work that wasn’t done was arrested on the same charges by Penn Hills police. Dennis M. Eror, 41, of the 300 block of...
Florida GOP passes 6-week abortion ban, DeSantis supports
TALLAHASSEE — The Republican-dominated Florida Legislature on Thursday approved a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, a proposal supported by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis as he prepares for an expected presidential run. DeSantis is expected to sign the bill into law. Florida currently prohibits abortions after 15 weeks....
Urban Redevelopment Authority to sell Hill District plaza to Salem’s Market and Grill
A local grocery store is set to buy a shopping plaza in Pittsburgh’s Hill District from the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority. The URA board on Thursday approved plans to sell the plaza on Centre Avenue that previously housed a Shop ‘n Save to Salem’s Market and Grill, which is expected...
Jury finds man guilty of 1st-degree murder in killing of off-duty Pittsburgh police officer
An Allegheny County jury on Thursday found a Wilkinsburg man guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of an off-duty Pittsburgh police officer in Homewood nearly four years ago. The trial of Christian Bey, 34, began on March 21. The jury of six men and six women deliberated less than...
AG: Guardsman to be charged with removing classified infoVideo
WASHINGTON — A Massachusetts Air National Guard member who has emerged as a main person of interest in the disclosure of highly classified military documents was taken into custody Thursday by federal agents, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced. Investigators believe that the guardsman, who specializes in intelligence, led the online...
Aurora opens terminal for driverless trucks in Texas
Self-driving vehicle startup Aurora Innovation, Inc. opened its first commercial-ready terminal for autonomous trucks that will serve as a “blueprint” for the Pittsburgh-based company’s future network of 24/7 driverless operations. The terminal in Palmer, Texas, near Dallas, deploys autonomous trucks for Aurora’s pilot customers, including FedEx, Schneider, and Uber Freight,...
Pitt official says more faculty need active killer training sessions
Not enough of the University of Pittsburgh’s 5,800 faculty have opted to take a campus police course that could save their lives if someone with a gun, knife or other weapon invades campus, a top official said. Fallout from Monday night’s active shooter hoaxes and a nearly 90-minute delay by...
VisitPittsburgh disputes Allegheny County audit questioning its fiscal practices
An audit released Thursday by Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor says the Pittsburgh region’s tourism agency has failed to follow proper financial management practices and should improve its transparency and reporting standards. VisitPittsburgh receives more than 90% of its funding from public tax dollars, O’Connor said in a release. The...
Haven’t filed taxes yet? Don’t panic. Here’s what to know
NEW YORK — The deadline to file your taxes is Tuesday, which is just around the corner. Filing U.S. tax returns — especially for the first time — can seem like a daunting task, but there are steps you can take to make it less stressful. Whether you do your...
Amera Gilchrist nominated to be Pittsburgh’s next EMS chief
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is nominating Amera Gilchrist to be the city’s next EMS chief. Pending approval from City Council, Gilchrist would become the first Black woman to serve in the role. “I may be the first, but since that barrier (is poised to be) broken, I most certainly won’t...
