Top Stories category, Page 810
Brighton Heights man with schizophrenia gets prison term for killing neighbor
In November 2019, Laron Smith was forbidden by airline officials from taking his connecting flight from Chicago to Arizona because of his erratic behavior. Airline employees called Smith’s father in Arizona, as well as his mother in Pittsburgh, and said he’d been acting strangely. Smith, now 26, believed then that...
Will a surprise speaker pick make the Pennsylvania House less partisan?
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 — A surprising pick for speaker of the Pennsylvania House has some lawmakers and good-government groups hopeful the chamber might...
2 injured, 5 cars struck after shooting along McKnight Road in Ross
One motorist was hospitalized and another injured after a shooting Thursday afternoon caused a two-hour closure of McKnight Road in Ross. Ross Detective Sgt. Brian Kohlhepp initially said there was an exchange of gunfire just after 2 p.m. along the busy North Hills corridor McKnight Road, near the intersection with...
Sarver VFC treasurer faces felony charges after $150K is stolen from fire company
Editor’s note: This story was update Saturday, Jan. 7 to include a statement from the fire company. State police accused the treasurer of the Sarver Volunteer Fire Company in Buffalo Township of stealing nearly $150,000 over a seven-year period by making unauthorized cash withdrawals from ATMs. William Richard George, 66,...
NFL announces Bills-Bengals game won’t be resumed
The NFL said Thursday it will not resume the Bills-Bengals game that was suspended Monday night after Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin collapsed and went into cardiac arrest on the field. The league said some of the factors in coming to its decision included that “not playing the Buffalo-Cincinnati game to...
As covid surges in China, U.S. begins testing more travelers
NEWARK, N.J. — Shubham Chandra knows how dangerous the coronavirus can be: He lost his dad during the pandemic. So when he cleared customs at Newark Liberty International Airport and saw people offering anonymous covid-19 testing, he was happy to volunteer. “It’s a minimum amount of effort to help a...
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey to undergo prostate cancer surgery
HARRISBURG — Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania said Thursday that he will undergo surgery for prostate cancer but is expected to make a full recovery. Casey, 62, said in a statement that he was diagnosed last month. “While this news came as a shock, I can report that I...
McCarthy fails for 3rd long day in GOP House speaker fight
WASHINGTON — For a long and frustrating third day, divided Republicans kept the speaker’s chair of the U.S. House sitting empty Thursday, as party leader Kevin McCarthy failed again and again in an excruciating string of ballots to win enough GOP votes to seize the chamber’s gavel. Pressure was building...
Damar Hamlin’s toy drive prompts donations topping $7 million
A toy drone. A Hot Wheels track. A Mickey Mouse car. To Sierra Giesy’s three sons, these are fun items. To their mom, they represent so much more. The McKees Rocks mother of Alec, 12; Liam, 6; and Nolan, 4, watched her children choose the items with the help of...
Police: Idaho slaying suspect’s DNA found at crime scene
BOISE, Idaho — The DNA of the man accused of killing four University of Idaho students was found on a knife sheath recovered at the crime scene, and cellphone data shows he was in the area of the victims’ home around the time of the November attack and on a...
Faithful mourn Benedict XVI at funeral presided over by pope
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis joined tens of thousands of faithful in bidding farewell to Benedict XVI at a rare requiem Mass Thursday for a dead pope presided over by a living one, ending an unprecedented decade for the Catholic Church that was sparked by the German theologian’s decision to...
Woman escapes house fire in village of Claridge in Penn Township
A historic home in Claridge was destroyed Thursday morning in a fire and a woman who lived there escaped with minor injuries, according to first responders. Claridge Fire Chief Ron Supancic Jr. said he believed the blaze started on the first floor. Part of the second floor collapsed. “When we...
Coop costs jump: Chicken feed 1 culprit behind rise in price of eggs
When Adam Mason, owner of HEAL Farms in Apollo thinks about buying his next order of chicken feed, he gets a pit in his stomach. “I’m a little worried because we have to get feed soon, and I don’t know the feed price, but every time I’ve gotten feed, it...
‘They’re not going to leave him’: Brackenridge officers keep watch over fallen chief
Police officers from across Western Pennsylvania are keeping watch over Brackenridge, as the borough’s own officers stand guard over their fallen chief. At least one officer from Brackenridge has remained alongside Chief Justin McIntire’s body since he was killed in the line of duty Monday. “There has been at least...
8 dead in Utah murder-suicide after wife sought divorce
ENOCH, Utah — A Utah man fatally shot his five children, his mother-in-law and his wife, then killed himself two weeks after the woman had filed for divorce, according to authorities and public records. Enoch Police Chief Jackson Ames said during a Thursday press conference that officers had been involved...
Wexford woman gets probation and house arrest for failure to pay taxes
The owner of a now-defunct Fox Chapel business will serve three years probation, including six months on house arrest, after she was sentenced on Wednesday for failing to pay both personal and business taxes. Shelley L. Fant, 52, of Wexford was sentenced before U.S. District Judge W. Scott Hardy. In...
Pa. Turnpike toll hike to take effect
It will cost a bit more to drive on the Pennsylvania Turnpike beginning next week. On Jan. 8, tolls will increase by 5% for both E-ZPass and Toll-By-Plate drivers. This is the 15th consecutive year that tolls have increased. The most common passenger car toll will increase from $1.70 to...
Tarentum officer injured in shootout released from hospital, healing at home
Tarentum police Officer Jordan Schrecengost got to eat breakfast in his own home Wednesday after being shot in the leg during a frenzied and fatal manhunt in Brackenridge earlier this week. “He’s doing well,” Tarentum Mayor Bob Lang said. “He’s in some pain, but he’s out of the hospital.” Lang...
Vigil for Brackenridge chief set for Thursday; yard signs also available
The late Brackenridge police Chief Justin McIntire will be honored with a community vigil Thursday at the same community park where he played as a child. People are invited to attend the candlelight event at 7 p.m. in Brackenridge Memorial Park along First Avenue. “It’s really just a time for...
GoFundMe page claiming to raise funds for family of slain Brackenridge police chief has been suspended
The owner of a GoFundMe page claiming to raise funds for slain Brackenridge police Chief Justin McIntire has no connection to his family and has been banned by the company, according to the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office. County sheriff’s office spokesperson Mike Manko issued an initial alert about the page...
Biggest boost in a decade brings maximum Pell Grant award to nearly $7,400 for college students
Millions of college students who receive the federal need-based Pell Grant will see the yearly maximum award increase by $500 to $7,395 this fall, the largest boost in a decade and the second increase in two years. The boost is tucked into the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill to operate...
Damar Hamlin jersey sales soaring, raising money for his charity
A message on the Petersen Events Center video board during Tuesday night’s Pitt-Virginia basketball game summed up the way Damar Hamlin’s alma mater feels about him. “Damar, we love you. We are praying for you. Pittsburgh’s always had your back. And now it’s obvious the entire country has your back,...
Here’s what you need to know about new Pa. House Speaker Mark Rozzi
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 — The Pennsylvania House picked state Rep. Mark Rozzi to be the chamber’s new speaker Tuesday in a surprise vote....
Post-Gazette owner to buy City Paper from Butler Eagle
A subsidiary of Block Communications, Inc., which owns the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, is buying the Pittsburgh City Paper from the publisher of the Butler Eagle. The Butler Eagle’s publisher, Eagle Media, acquired the alternative weekly paper in March 2016 from Steel City Media. All employees of the City Paper will be...
Pittsburgh City Council president calls for more oversight of Stop the Violence grants
Pittsburgh City Council President Theresa Kail-Smith introduced legislation Wednesday that would require recipients of the city’s Stop the Violence grants to report to council on how they use the funds. The city announced in November that it had distributed nearly $1 million in Stop the Violence grants to more than...
