Top Stories category, Page 898
Valley High School music teacher pleads guilty to sexting students
A former music teacher at Valley High School in New Kensington was ordered to serve nine months on house arrest and five years on probation for sending sexually-themed text messages to two students. Sean Timothy O’Neil, 35, of North Apollo, pleaded guilty in two related cases on Thursday in which...
Alex Jones ordered to pay Sandy Hook parents more than $4M
AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas jury on Thursday ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to pay more than $4 million in compensatory damages to the parents of a 6-year-old boy who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, marking the first time the Infowars host has been held financially...
4th county adds to ballot dispute as candidate sues to quit
HARRISBURG — A judge deciding if three Pennsylvania counties have to certify May primary vote counts including ballots lacking dates on their return envelopes learned this week that a fourth county is in the same situation — and there may be more. The legal dispute has held up certification of...
U.S. declares public health emergency over monkeypox outbreak
WASHINGTON — The federal government declared a public health emergency Thursday to bolster the response to the monkeypox outbreak that has infected more than 6,600 Americans. The announcement will free up money and other resources to fight the virus, which may cause fever, body aches, chills, fatigue and pimple-like bumps...
Penn State did not prove its legal standing to have public court filing sealed, experts say
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for our regional newsletter, Talk of the Town. STATE COLLEGE — Penn State did not prove it had legal standing to request the...
Bloomfield man charged in connection with deadly drug overdoses
A Bloomfield man faces charges after police said he sold fentanyl-laced cocaine to three people who died of overdoses last summer. James Hamlett, 43, was taken to Allegheny County Jail after being denied bail Thursday, with District Judge Eileen Conroy calling him a “threat to the community” in court records....
Pa. congressional members lobby Secretary of State to help Oakmont teacher in Russian prison
Eleven members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation on Wednesday sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging him to include an Oakmont teacher being detained in Russia for possessing medical marijuana in any possible prisoner exchange. “Although he may not carry the notoriety of a celebrity WNBA athlete,...
Winning $207M Powerball ticket sold at New Stanton Sheetz store
A winning Powerball ticket worth $206.9 million was sold in New Stanton, lottery officials said, marking the first time since 2018 a jackpot was won in Pennsylvania. The ticket was sold at the Sheetz on North Center Avenue. The store will receive a $100,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket....
North Huntingdon’s Aubrey Burchell moves on to ‘America’s Got Talent’ live showsVideo
North Huntingdon singer Aubrey Burchell is among the 54 acts that are moving on to the live shows on “America’s Got Talent” on NBC. Burchell, 21, will compete in the next round. Next week the show will begin to air twice a week, from 8 to 10 p.m. Tuesday and...
New officer, police secretary hired in Kiski Township
Kiski Township continued rebuilding its police department by hiring a new part-time officer and a police secretary. Supervisors approved hiring Anthony Mangee as a part-time officer at a starting rate of $21.25 per hour. Also hired was Bethany Allera to serve as a police clerk two days per week. The...
Employee shortage shutters Prantl’s Bakery stores in North Huntingdon, Squirrel Hill
Prantl’s Bakery is temporarily closing its North Huntingdon and Squirrel Hill stores starting next week because of a lack of employees, owner Joe Cugliari said. He said a store needs about 10 employees to function properly. “We were operating with four,” he said. It’s a problem many businesses have been...
State police confiscate 48 explosives, weapons from Hempfield home
State police said they confiscated 48 homemade explosive devices Wednesday from a Hempfield home just outside Penn Borough, according to court papers. The devices reportedly were found during a search of the Penn Manor Road home of Roger N. Williams, 61. Police said they seized three handguns, a shotgun, a...
How common are Paxlovid rebound cases? Experts weigh in
President Joe Biden’s covid-19 “rebound” case has created concern for people around the world who are wondering if such cases are becoming more common. Dr. Donald Yealy, UPMC’s chair of emergency medicine, defines a rebound case as having covid and then redeveloping some symptoms after fighting off the infection and...
House fire in Mount Washington kills 3 pets
First responders arrived at the scene of a fire on Wednesday afternoon at a home in Pittsburgh’s Mount Washington neighborhood. Pittsburgh firefighters discovered three pets — two cats in one home and a dog in another home — during the incident. None of the pets survived the blaze. The fire...
2 charged in attempted robbery of Uber driver in the West End
Police charged two teenagers Wednesday in connection with the attempted armed robbery of an Uber driver in the West End a day after a ride-share driver was carjacked at gunpoint in the same block, authorities said. Cara Cruz, a police spokeswoman, said investigators believe the incidents are connected. The first...
Scare tactics: Vandergrift man key figure in Kennywood’s Phantom Fall Fest
Nick Kardos of Vandergrift gets paid to be creepy. Kardos, 31, was inspired by horror classics including “Night of the Living Dead” and experienced a creative drive as a youngster growing up in Oklahoma Borough. He has worked seasonally for 13 years as a special effects supervisor and as a...
‘It’s going to be a huge night’: Latrobe gears up for Steelers’ Friday Night Lights practice
Preparations for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2022 Friday Night Lights practice feel like “learning how to ride a bicycle again” after a two-year hiatus, according to Greater Latrobe School District Athletic Director Zac Heide. On Friday, the Steelers will hold a special evening practice at Latrobe Memorial Stadium. The ticketed practice...
Pittsburgh police search for missing girl, 13, last seen by her family July 30
A 13-year-old girl from Pittsburgh has been reported missing, city police said. Detectives with the special victims unit are searching for Ashlynn Southerland. She is 5 feet, 1 inch tall and weighs about 115 pounds. She has black hair and blue eyes, with a scar under her right eye. She...
Motorcyclist killed in Pleasant Hills identified
A motorcyclist was killed in a crash on Wednesday evening in Pleasant Hills, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI. According to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner, the victim is Michele Biancaniello, a 60-year-old man and Pittsburgh resident. The fatal crash occurred at 8:38 p.m. in the 100 block of Route...
Pennsylvania continues to fund antiabortion organization in new budget
As it’s done for years, the state of Pennsylvania approved funding in the budget it passed last month to support the antiabortion movement, some of it with money diverted from cash assistance for people in poverty. The allotments — $6.2 million from the state and $1 million from federal TANF,...
Senate backs Finland, Sweden for NATO 95-1, rebuking RussiaVideo
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators delivered overwhelming bipartisan approval to NATO membership for Finland and Sweden Wednesday, calling expansion of the Western defensive bloc a “slam-dunk” for U.S. national security and a day of reckoning for Russian President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine. Wednesday’s 95-1 vote — for the...
Connellsville used car dealer, salesman, indicted in jobless benefits scam
The former owner of a Connellsville used car dealership and his car salesman are wanted by federal agents for allegedly defrauding the unemployment benefits system. Authorities say they falsified applications for jobless benefits for themselves and others, while also taking a cut of the funds others received during the covid...
Pennsylvania aims to fight robocalls by joining task force that would sue scammers
Tired of annoying robocalls? Pennsylvania is joining a new task force that aims to help reduce the number that you receive. State attorney general Josh Shapiro announced this week that Pennsylvania has joined an Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force. The task force, made up of 50 attorneys general, aims to investigate...
EPA: Chemical in medical-device cleanser poses cancer risk
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency is warning residents who live near medical sterilizing plants in 13 states and Puerto Rico about potential health risks from emissions of ethylene oxide, a chemical widely used in their operations. Laredo, Texas; Ardmore, Okla.; and Lakewood, Colo., are among the communities facing the...
Indiana Rep. Walorski, 2 staffers killed in head-on crashVideo
WASHINGTON — Republican U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski was killed Wednesday in a car crash in her northern Indiana district along with two members of her congressional staff and another person, police said. The crash happened about 12:30 p.m. when a car crossed the center line on state highway and collided...
