Top Local and National News Stories category, Page 811
Sheetz halts controversial ‘smile policy’
Sheetz said it has ended its controversial policy that people with visible dental problems should not be hired. Dubbed the “smile policy,” the convenience store chain’s employee handbook previously stated that “applicants with obvious missing, broken, or badly discolored teeth (unrelated to a disability) are not qualified for employment with...
Fed lifts rate by quarter-point and signals more hikes aheadVideo
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve extended its fight against high inflation Wednesday by raising its key interest rate by a quarter-point, its eighth hike since March. And the Fed signaled that even though inflation is easing, it remains high enough to require further rate hikes. At the same time, Chair...
Why a Pa. school district decided to arm its officers with semiautomatic rifles
This story first appeared in Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA’s State College regional bureau featuring the most important news and happenings in north-central Pennsylvania. Sign up for free here. ALTOONA — At least two school districts in Pennsylvania now allow their police officers to store...
Pa. takes over troubled mortgage relief program from contractor after complaints, backlogs
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 — In an abrupt change, Pennsylvania’s struggling mortgage relief program will no longer work with the private company originally hired...
Shapiro to become just 3rd sitting governor to attend Pa.’s Groundhog Day celebration
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will attend the annual Groundhog Day ceremony in Punxsutawney on Thursday, becoming just the third sitting governor to ever attend the Feb. 2 event. Shapiro, a Democrat from Montgomery County, is looking forward to joining the “storied Pennsylvania tradition” and the famed Punxsutawney Phil groundhog, according...
Pittsburgh officials closing Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge because of safety concerns
Pittsburgh officials closed the city’s Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge to vehicular traffic Wednesday afternoon because of safety concerns. “I made a pledge to the residents of Pittsburgh that I will not hesitate to close a bridge for the safety of our citizens,” Mayor Ed Gainey said. “Inspection results have come...
Green comet makes closest approach to Earth in 50K years
The so-called green comet will make its closest approach to Earth in about 50,000 years late Wednesday/early Thursday, but whether you’ll see it in the skies above Western Pennsylvania is debatable. “Unfortunately, we’re going to have increasing cloudiness overnight,” said Lee Hendricks, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in...
Allegheny County opens special appeal period for 2022 property assessments
After a year of legal wrangling and court challenges, some Allegheny County property owners have been given a second chance to appeal their 2022 property assessments, and an expert says that could provide tax refunds to some of the property owners. School districts and municipalities filed several thousand property assessment...
$5M renovation planned at Pittsburgh’s Sheraden Park
A proposed $5 million project could bring a new playground, community garden and other improvements to Pittsburgh’s Sheraden Park. City officials are seeking input from residents about what exactly they would like to see in the renovations. The park in Pittsburgh’s West End serves residents from neighborhoods including Sheraden, Esplen,...
FBI searches Biden’s vacation home; no classified documents
WASHINGTON — The FBI searched President Joe Biden’s vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Wednesday without turning up any classified documents, the latest turn in an extraordinary series of searches of his and his predecessor’s properties. Agents did take some handwritten notes and other materials relating to Biden’s time...
Point Park University names interim president
Chris Brussalis, chairman of The Hill Group Inc., has been named interim president of Point Park University. School trustees named him to succeed Donald Green, 58, who resigned two weeks ago. Green, who had been in the job for 18 months, cited “private, personal and family reasons” for his departure....
Morning Roundup: Bed Bath & Beyond closing 3 Pittsburgh locations
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023: 3 Pittsburgh-area Bed Bath & Beyond stores closing Three Pittsburgh-area Bed Bath & Beyond stores are set to close, further reducing the home goods retailer’s footprint in the area, the retail chain announced this week....
Before Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney locals get hyped for the hoopla
The thousands of people expected at Gobbler’s Knob on Thursday for Groundhog Day will have a tough time matching the bedlam to be found Tuesday at the Punxsutawney Area High School gymnasium. More than 800 students in grades 7 through 12 interspersed with the Groundhog Club’s Inner Circle as Phil...
Pittsburgh EMS, firefighters lift pickup truck off pinned woman
Emergency responders in Pittsburgh lifted a pickup truck off of a woman who been pinned underneath the vehicle Tuesday night on the city’s North Side, Pittsburgh police said. Firefighters from Pittsburgh Fire 32 Engine and members of EMS Rescue 2 lifted the vehicle off the woman, who was hit at...
1 guilty, 1 acquitted in roadside shooting of Butler County native
NASHVILLE — The man who shot and killed a Tennessee nurse as she was driving to work two years ago was found guilty of second-degree murder on Tuesday, while a co-defendant was acquitted. Devaunte Hill and James Cowan were both charged with first-degree murder in the death of 26-year-old Caitlyn...
Pittsburgh police staffing shortage at ‘tipping point,’ officials say
Pittsburgh police ranks could drop below 700 officers by the start of 2025, leaving the bureau depleted and with low morale, officials said during a wide-ranging, three-hour city council meeting Tuesday on the state of policing in the city. Thirty-five Pittsburgh police officers retired in 2022; another 39 resigned last...
Pittsburgh region’s unemployment rate flat at 4%
The Pittsburgh region’s unemployment rate held steady in December at 4%, as more people are both looking for work and finding it, according to data released Tuesday by the state Department of Labor & Industry. It was the second consecutive month that the jobless rate in the seven-county area was...
McKeesport man found guilty of 1st-degree murder in shooting of ex’s new boyfriend
A McKeesport man will spend the rest of his life in prison after a jury on Tuesday found him guilty of first-degree murder for the 2019 shooting death of a man who was dating his ex-girlfriend. Marcus Acie-Griffin, 30, is scheduled to be sentenced by Allegheny County Common Pleas judge...
How will life change once the covid-19 emergency ends?Video
WASHINGTON — The declaration of a covid-19 public health emergency three years ago changed the lives of millions of Americans by offering increased health care coverage, beefed-up food assistance and universal access to coronavirus vaccines and tests. Much of that is now coming to an end, with President Joe Biden’s...
Prosecutors file charges in set shooting by Alec Baldwin
SANTA FE, N.M. — Actor Alec Baldwin and a weapons specialist have been formally charged with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on a New Mexico movie set, according to court documents filed by prosecutors Tuesday. Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies filed the charging documents naming...
Man, deemed ‘evil’ career offender, gets life in federal prison in drug and weapons case
A man who was so disruptive during his federal criminal case — including attacking his own defense attorney and urinating on a courtroom floor — that he was tried in absentia was sentenced Tuesday to serve the rest of his life in prison. James Taric Byrd, 44, formerly of Pittsburgh,...
Pittsburgh nixes plan for youth curfew enforcement, focuses on creating youth resource centers
Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday unanimously voted down a proposal to ramp up enforcement of the city’s curfew, as officials are focusing instead on launching resource centers catered to youth and their families. City Council President Theresa Kail-Smith, D-West End, earlier this month introduced a measure that would order officials...
Philips plans to cut another 6,000 jobs globally; local impact unclear
Dutch health technology company Philips said it will lay off another 6,000 workers globally. The company, which has several locations Western Pennsylvania, said the move is an effort to restore profitability and improve product safety following a recall of respiratory devices, according to Reuters. Half of the job cuts will...
State game commissioners eye changes to antlerless deer license system, CWD rules
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — The days of applying for antlerless deer licenses with a pink envelope may soon be over. The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners met Saturday in Harrisburg to preliminarily approve hunting and trapping seasons and bag limits for 2023-24, with restructuring the antlerless deer allocation system being one...
2 Westmoreland Prison inmates accused of hiding cocaine in their cell
Two Westmoreland County Prison inmates are accused of having cocaine hidden in their cell, according to court papers. Antjuan D. Smith, 39, of Oklahoma Borough, and Thomas M. Moore II, 33, of Unity, are charged by Westmoreland County detectives with contraband and drug possession. Investigators said another inmate at the...
