Top Stories category, Page 751
Doctor: Lesion removed from Biden’s chest was cancerous
WASHINGTON — A skin lesion removed from President Joe Biden’s chest last month was a basal cell carcinoma — a common form of skin cancer — his doctor said Friday, adding that no further treatment was required. Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the White House doctor who has served as Biden’s longtime...
High wind warning in effect for 3 southwestern PA counties
High winds that hit Westmoreland, Fayette, and Indiana counties Friday evening are expected to continue until 1 p.m. Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Slightly less powerful gusts were hitting neighboring counties, including those in the Alle-Kiski Valley. Westmoreland emergency services responded to numerous calls Friday night reporting downed...
In race for technology, China has a ‘sometimes stunning lead’ over the U.S.
American higher education is touted as the world’s envy, but a new report says the United States and other Western countries have fallen dangerously behind China in research that results in leading-edge technology. The world’s most populous country has amassed a “sometimes stunning lead,” says the Australian Strategic Policy Institute,...
Feds announce 57 arrests in Operation Lake Effect bust of fentanyl, meth ring
An investigation that stretched over four years and across the country resulted in the arrests of 57 people, the seizure of more than 673 pounds of fentanyl-laced faked prescription pills and more than 400 pounds of methamphetamine, the acting U.S. Attorney in Pittsburgh announced Friday. “Nearly every family in Western...
Report on Allegheny County Jail deaths finds no ‘trends or common factors’ that led to them
A report commissioned by Allegheny County Jail found “no significant trends or common factors that would show a particular weakness or gap in operations” that led to 27 inmate deaths at the jail over five years. A redacted copy of the 50-page report from the nonprofit National Commission on Correctional...
Franco Harris statue moves to landside terminal at Pittsburgh airport
The life-size figure of Pittsburgh Steelers legend Franco Harris — with the iconic pose of him catching the football just above his shoes for the Immaculate Reception on Dec. 23, 1972 — has a new home at the Pittsburgh International Airport. And the best part: You no longer need to...
Shapiro aims tax break at police officers, teachers, nurses
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Saying Pennsylvania is in the midst of a workforce crisis, Gov. Josh Shapiro said he will propose a three-year incentive of up to $2,500 a year for newly certified teachers, police officers and nurses when the Democrat unveils his budget plan on Tuesday. The incentive is a...
Morning Roundup: Teen found shot in Clairton
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, March 3, 2023: Teenager shot in Clairton A 16-year-old boy was found shot in Clairton early Friday, Allegheny County Police said. The victim was shot in the leg in the 1100 block of North Sixth Street at about...
Police find $140K of suspected heroin, fentanyl after turnpike traffic stop in New Stanton
Two men are being held without bail after state police said they found $140,000 worth of drugs hidden in an SUV on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in New Stanton. Mario A. Caba, 37, of Philadelphia, and Elvis L. Holguin Ventura, 26, of Newark, N.J., are charged with drug offenses. Troopers on...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: March 3-5
It’s the first weekend of March. Here are some things to do this weekend. History Uncorked The Senator John Heinz History Center in the Strip District will host the 25th “History Uncorked: A Beautiful Night in the Neighborhood” from 7:30 to 11 p.m. Friday. The annual fundraiser for young professionals...
Nearly 1,200 charges filed after dead, dying reptiles found in Murrysville home
A Murrysville woman is facing animal cruelty charges after 101 dead reptiles and 76 more that were barely alive were seized from her home in December, according to court papers. Nearly 1,200 charges were filed Wednesday against Susan McHale, 60, by humane agents from All But Furgotten rescue. They were...
Arnold fire department accuses former chief of misusing funds
The former chief of Arnold’s No. 1 fire department is facing a civil claim against him by the department and is the subject of a criminal investigation. In a civil complaint filed with New Kensington District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr., the department says Brian Gouza owes $1,525 for advance...
Belle Vernon musical scrambles to replace costumes lost in fire
A second high school in the region has seen its performing arts program impacted by a devastating fire. In early February, the auditorium and its contents at Elizabeth Forward High School were destroyed in a blaze. Wednesday morning, a devastating fire at DC Theatricks in Buffalo, N.Y., that cost a...
Lower Burrell man accused of intentionally crashing into vehicle during road rage incident
Lower Burrell police arrested a man after a motorist accused him of purposely crashing into his vehicle during a road rage incident and then fleeing, according to authorities. Gregory Thomas Costanzo, 60, of the 100 block of Caribou Circle in Lower Burrell was charged with a felony count of aggravated...
Rebranding of North Hills School District moves forward
The rebranding of North Hills School District — complete with a new advertising design — took another step forward on March 2 as the school board got their first look. The next step is voting to approve the branding. High school seniors from the A.W. Beattie Career Center, which draws...
Angry East Palestine residents confront Norfolk Southern over health fears
Residents who say they’re still suffering from illnesses nearly a month after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in Ohio confronted the railroad’s operator Thursday at a town forum, demanding to know whether they’d be relocated from homes they’re afraid to live in. “It’s not safe here,” said one man,...
Jury quickly finds Murdaugh guilty of murder of wife, son
WALTERBORO, S.C. — Disgraced South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh was convicted of murder Thursday in the shooting deaths of his wife and son in a case that chronicled the unraveling of a powerful Southern family with tales of privilege, greed and addiction. The jury deliberated for less than three hours...
Police seek McKees Rocks man in connection with shooting
Allegheny County Police are seeking a man known to frequent the McKees Rocks and Stowe areas in connection with a shooting early Thursday morning in McKees Rocks. McKees Rocks police and paramedics were called to the 100 block of Irwin Street just after 6 a.m. Thursday for a woman who...
Hundreds of Pa. residents turn to Beaver County resource center near train derailment site for help
Pennsylvania’s Department of Health opened a resource center in Beaver County for state residents concerned about the impact of last month’s train derailment in nearby East Palestine, Ohio. In the two days after it opened Tuesday, officials said about 200 residents of Beaver County and neighboring Lawrence County went to...
Baldwin man gets 18 to 36 years in drug overdose death of infant son
Allegheny County Police Detective Greg Renko remains haunted by the scene he found inside a home on Baldwin’s Oakleaf Road 2-1/2 years ago. Renko went to the red-brick Cape Cod home on Sept. 13, 2020, to investigate the death of a 12-month-old boy. The boy, as it turned out, had...
Did dioxins spread after the Ohio train derailment?
After a catastrophic 38-train car derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, some officials are raising concerns about a type of toxic substance that tends to stay in the environment. Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance, the U.S. senators from Ohio, sent a letter to the state’s environmental protection agency expressing concern that...
Ross woman missing for 3 decades found in Puerto Rico, police confirm
Robert Kopta waited three decades for the news that was revealed Thursday at Ross police headquarters. His wife, Patricia, who went missing from the area in 1992, was alive in Puerto Rico. “What would you do when somebody’s gone for 30 years?” Robert Kopta asked a room full of reporters...
As Tennessee, others target drag shows, many wonder: Why?
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — “If I hadn’t been a girl, I’d have been a drag queen.” Dolly Parton has uttered those words famously and often. But if she really were a drag queen, one of Tennessee’s most famous daughters would likely be out of a job under legislation signed into law...
New Pa. House rules expand who can file a sexual harassment complaint against lawmakers
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 — Two months into an impasse-riddled session, the members of Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives have passed the rules that will...
NTSB: Key tank car part melted after Ohio train derailment
OMAHA, Neb. — The fire that erupted after last month’s train derailment in Ohio melted a key part of the tank cars filled with toxic chemicals, so federal officials warned railcar owners Thursday to check their fleets for similar flaws. The National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday that investigators determined...
