Top Stories category, Page 811
Jewish Americans confront antisemitism with resolve, worry
NEW YORK — Jewish Americans are closely following the recent upsurge in antisemitic rhetoric and actions with a mix of anxiety and resolve — along with a yearning that a broader swath of Americans, including leaders across the political spectrum, speak out against anti-Jewish hatred. New Yorker Rizy Horowitz, who...
New Kensington man faces up to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal child porn charges
A New Kensington man could spend decades in prison after pleading guilty in federal court to distributing child pornography, authorities announced. Robert Pacek, 51, pleaded guilty Tuesday, Dec. 6, to seven counts of distributing images of children being sexually abused using a website on the Tor network, according to a...
Vandergrift man accused of slapping 3-year-old in face so hard it left a hand-shaped welt
Vandergrift police accused a man of repeatedly slapping a toddler in the face so hard that it left a handprint and a bruised and swollen welt. Timothy John Turner, 47, of Franklin Avenue in Vandergrift, was charged with a felony count of aggravated assault of a child under the age...
Brittney Griner back home in U.S. after Russian prisoner swap
WASHINGTON — American basketball star Brittney Griner returned to the United States early Friday after being freed in a high-profile prisoner exchange following nearly 10 months in detention in Russia. The deal, which saw her swapped for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, secured the release of the most prominent American...
Wiz Khalifa to make W.Pa. stops to push his medical marijuana products
Rapper Wiz Khalifa is making another mark on the Pittsburgh area — his medical marijuana products will be available at Trulieve locations statewide starting Monday. Khalifa, a graduate of Allderdice High School in Squirrel Hill, will be back in his old neighborhood at the Trulieve location there, as well as...
Meet Charlie: Highlands School District’s first-ever therapy dog
Trotting through the halls at Highlands Middle School in Harrison, an 8-month-old Labrador retriever is the district’s newest tool to help improve student success. The puppy, Charlie, will be tasked with more than looking cute. “He will increase the overall well-being for students,” said the dog’s owner, Principal Becky Bragan....
New Kensington-Arnold fires security guard accused of assaulting 5-year-old student
The New Kensington-Arnold School Board fired a security guard who had been accused of assaulting a 5-year-old elementary school student last year. Lori Ann Waltonbaugh, 59, of Greensburg entered a negotiated guilty plea Sept. 29 to a charge of recklessly endangering another person, according to court records. She was sentenced...
Over-the-counter medications tough to find this cold, flu season
Demand for over-the-counter medications to ease suffering related to a spike in colds, flu and covid has left shelves empty and shop owners frustrated in recent weeks. “It’s the trifecta,” said Ed Christofano, owner of Hayden’s Pharmacy stores in Youngwood, Mt. Pleasant and Donegal. The Centers for Disease Control and...
Police say Greensburg man starved dog to death
A Greensburg man is accused by police of letting a dog die in the basement of an apartment where he had been living, according to court papers. Timothy J. Steinman Jr., 43, was charged Wednesday with two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals and a single charge of animal cruelty....
Police: 2 firefighters die in house fire; body found outside
TAMAQUA, Pa. — Two firefighters died responding to a house fire Wednesday in rural eastern Pennsylvania where a man’s body was found outside, state police said. The New Tripoli Fire Company members who lost their lives were identified as Assistant Fire Chief Zachary Paris, 36, and Marvin Gruber, 59, Pennsylvania...
TSA finds 2 guns at Pittsburgh airport security checkpoint
Transportation Security Administration officers caught two guns Wednesday at the Pittsburgh International Airport security checkpoint. The first gun, confiscated from a carry-on bag belonging to a West Newton man, was a loaded 9mm handgun. The second firearm was a loaded, antique .22-caliber handgun that belonged to a man from Clarksburg,...
Elizabeth Holmes’ former partner gets nearly 13 years in Theranos caseVideo
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A judge on Wednesday sentenced former Theranos executive Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani to nearly 13 years in prison for his role in the company’s blood-testing hoax — a sentence slightly longer than that given to the CEO, who was his lover and accomplice in one of Silicon...
Uniontown man convicted for role in Capitol riot
A Uniontown man could face decades in prison after a jury convicted him for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. The Department of Justice said Peter Schwartz, 49, threw a folding chair at police officers and sprayed them with pepper spray that he took from them. He...
Elon Musk’s ‘Twitter Files’ stir controversy on social media
Drama surrounding billionaire Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter continues to escalate as a series of tweets deemed “The Twitter Files” showcases the social media giant’s internal struggle over the 2020 story about the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop. Hunter Biden is the son of President Joe Biden, who was a...
Pittsburgh City Council won’t decide on proposed Oakland zoning changes until next year
Proposed zoning changes for Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood won’t be decided until next year. Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday postponed a vote on the proposed changes for at least six weeks to take additional time to discuss the measure. Council members could make additional amendments ahead of a preliminary vote, now...
Medical examiner IDs missing Frazer woman
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner on Wednesday identified the remains of a woman found in a wooded area in Armstrong County as those of Darlene Harbison of Frazer. The identification comes after Allegheny County Police on Monday reported that a license plate number on a motorcycle that was found and...
Report: Classified items found at Trump storage unit in FloridaVideo
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump found at least two items marked as classified during a recent search of a storage unit in West Palm Beach, Fla., and have provided them to the FBI, according to a published report Wednesday. The Washington Post, citing anonymous sources, reported that...
Democrats move to take power with narrow Pa. House majority
HARRISBURG — Democrats who barely won back a majority of seats in the Pennsylvania House in November moved to take control of the chamber Wednesday and replace one of their incumbents who died and two others who won higher office. Shortly after Democratic Leader Joanna McClinton of Philadelphia was quietly...
Pitt faculty members protest slow contract talks
About 75 University of Pittsburgh faculty members, frustrated by the slow pace of trying to secure their first union contract, protested Wednesday outside the provost’s office in the Cathedral of Learning. They did not manage to get a face-to-face meeting with Provost Ann Cudd, Pitt’s chief academic officer. Instead, the...
Pittsburgh International Airport to get new flight to Southern California
Pittsburghers who love Disneyland, beaches, and sunshine can rejoice. Pittsburgh International Airport is getting a new flight to Orange County in Southern California. The low-cost carrier Breeze Airways announced Tuesday it will be flying nonstop between Pittsburgh and John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, Calif., starting on March 31. Breeze...
‘City of Steel’ lets former workers chronicle the rise and fall of Pittsburgh steel industry
When Bruce Spiegel was a child, he would look out his Greenfield window at the heart of American industry: the U.S. Steel Homestead Works. “I would look out into the night and watch the Homestead furnaces blowing blue flames,” Spiegel said. “I thought steel-making was never going to end.” In...
Database spotlights those who died at Pearl Harbor
JOHNSTOWN — The stories of the more than 2,300 American service members who died at Pearl Harbor, including Cambria County Military Hall of Fame member Navy Petty Officer 1st Class John Lipple, from Ashville, have been chronicled by Stories Behind the Stars. The nonprofit is working to compile brief bios...
USS Arizona survivor: Honor those killed at Pearl Harbor
HONOLULU — USS Arizona sailor Lou Conter lived through the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor even though his battleship exploded and sank after being pierced by aerial bombs. That makes the 101-year-old somewhat of a celebrity, especially on the anniversary of the Dec. 7, 1941, assault. Many call him and...
Police say Penn Hills man’s Facebook car ads were a setup to steal buyers’ cash
Pittsburgh police said a man used Facebook marketplace to set up four purported vehicle sales around Homewood and then robbed potential buyers of the cash they brought, according to court papers. Alan Green, 29, of Penn Hills is facing nine charges of robbery and three counts of conspiracy that were...
East Hills mother dies of injuries from shooting that killed her 4-year-old daughter
An East Hills woman died late Tuesday at a hospital, five days after being wounded in a Lincoln-Lemington shooting that killed her 4-year-old daughter. Temani Lewis, 21, had been scheduled to stand trial next month in connection with a separate shooting over the summer. The 4-year-old girl, Kaari Thompson, and...
