Top Stories category, Page 916
Police: Texas trucker jailed after breaking into South Huntingdon horse barn, fighting with troopers
A state trooper was accidentally tased Saturday evening while attempting to arrest a Texas truck driver accused of trying to break into a South Huntingdon garage, according to court papers. Police said Simran P. Virk, 31, of San Antonio, was foaming at the mouth and had used synthetic marijuana and...
Penn Hills store sells jackpot-winning Cash 5 ticket
A jackpot-winning Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 ticket was sold in Penn Hills, the lottery announced Monday. The winning Cash 5 with Quick Cash ticket for Sunday’s drawing was sold at Stop N Shop on Frankstown Road. It matched all five balls drawn — 5, 8, 27, 35 and 42 —...
Pa. lawmakers agreed to a big election funding deal — with strings attached
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 — Pennsylvania lawmakers have agreed to give counties $45 million in new election funding as part of the state budget,...
2 medical helicopters dispatched to crash in Unity, firefighters say
Two patients were flown by medical helicopters to trauma centers in Pittsburgh after a head-on collision Monday on Route 982 in Unity, according to firefighters. The collision occurred at 5:58 a.m. at the highway’s intersection at Coventry Lane in the vicinity of Glengarry Golf Course, said Pleasant Unity fire Chief...
Pittsburgh gas prices falling but remain higher than state, national averages
Gasoline prices are continuing to fall across the state and nation but remain stubbornly higher in the Pittsburgh region, according to AAA and GasBuddy. AAA was reporting the national average at $4.68 per gallon Monday, down about 13 cents in one week and about 32 cents from a month ago....
Trump associates’ ties to extremists probed by Jan. 6 panel
After members of the far-right Oath Keepers extremist group stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan 6, 2021, their leader called someone on the phone with an urgent message for then-President Donald Trump, another extremist told investigators. While gathered in a private suite at the Phoenix Park Hotel, an Oath Keeper...
Over-the-counter birth control? Drugmaker seeks FDA approval
WASHINGTON — For the first time, a pharmaceutical company has asked for permission to sell a birth control pill over the counter in the U.S. HRA Pharma’s application on Monday sets up a high-stakes decision for health regulators amid legal and political battles over women’s reproductive health. The company says...
Steelers’ T.J. Watt weds longtime girlfriend, soccer standout in Mexico ceremony
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt married longtime girlfriend and soccer star Dani Rhodes over the weekend in a private ceremony at a resort in Mexico, according to news and social media reports. Watt, 27, and Rhodes, 24, have been together since they were both students at the University of Wisconsin....
Infant found dead in Beaver County swimming pool
An infant was found dead in a Beaver County swimming pool Sunday evening, according to police. First responders in Chippewa responded to a home on Braun Road about 7:40 p.m., according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. Officials told the TV station they performed CPR on the child to no avail,...
Hartwood Acres Sculpture Garden officially opens after years of work on the project
A formal ribbon-cutting was held Sunday afternoon to officially open the Hartwood Acres Sculpture Garden. The yearslong Allegheny County project involved refurbishing and relocating sculptures around the landscape to provide a centralized experience for parkgoers. There were 12 sculptures acquired in the mid-1980s that were sandblasted, repainted and rewelded. New...
Firefighters respond to Jefferson Hills house fire
Flames overtook a Jefferson Hills house Sunday afternoon. A fire at a Roberts Drive home began around 12:30 p.m. All residents safely exited the home, according to a Facebook post from the Jefferson Hills Police Department. Emergency crews blocked the entrances to and from the residential plan in order to...
Trump ally Bannon now willing to testify before Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — Steve Bannon, a former White House strategist and ally of Donald Trump who faces criminal charges after months of defying a congressional subpoena over the Capitol riot, has told the House committee investigating the attack that he is now willing to testify. Bannon’s turnabout was conveyed in a...
Biden says he’s mulling health emergency for abortion access
REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. — President Joe Biden said Sunday he is considering declaring a public health emergency to free up federal resources to promote abortion access even though the White House has said it doesn’t seem like “a great option.” He also offered a message to people enraged by the...
Crypto plunge is cautionary tale for public pension funds
MINNEAPOLIS — When the Houston Firefighters Relief and Retirement Fund bought $25 million in cryptocurrencies, with the fund’s chief investment officer touting their potential, retired fire Capt. Russell Harris was concerned. Harris, 62, has attended the funerals of 34 firefighters killed in the line of duty. He was already worried...
Shawn Mendes postpones Pittsburgh show, citing mental health concerns
Singer Shawn Mendes has postponed his upcoming Pittsburgh concert. In an Instagram post, the 23-year-old cited mental health concerns as the reason he is pushing back 12 shows from “Wonder: The World Tour” over the next three weeks. “After speaking with my team and health professionals, I need to take...
Electricity rates on rise, but there are ways to combat higher costs
Electricity bills in Pennsylvania are increasing sharply this summer, driven in large part by a tight market for natural gas, industry experts say. The boost in electric rates has come as air conditioning units are cranked up for the summer. That makes it a good time for Pennsylvania residents to...
Gun violence in America: A long list of forgotten victims
ATHENS, Ala. — Amid the stream of mass shootings that have become chillingly commonplace in America, the reality of the nation’s staggering murder rate often can be seen more clearly in the deaths that never make national news. Take last weekend in the Chicago area. On Monday, a rooftop shooter...
Monster truck enthusiasts watch Bigfoot crush cars during Export Tire event
This weekend, about 1,000 people saw Bigfoot in Murrysville Saturday — no, not that Bigfoot. Export Tire hosted the monster truck Bigfoot during a day full of festivities. Families and truck enthusiasts gathered to watch the car-crushing truck fulfill its purpose. The monster truck crushed junk cars in a field...
A hero’s funeral: More than 100 honor Oakdale police officer slain in Blawnox
More the 100 people, including police officers from across the state and Marines, paid respects to fallen Oakdale Police Officer Charles G. Stipetich on Saturday. Stipetich, 23, was fatally shot on July 3 while off duty in what police described as a road rage incident. He lived in Blawnox, and...
‘It’s a shocker.’ Kiski Township residents want local police back
When residents of Kiski Township and North Apollo awoke Friday morning, some were surprised to learn they had lost their 24-hour, seven-days-a-week police department. Four police officers and the police secretary quit Thursday and early Friday, leaving only a newly appointed police chief and the school resource officer. State police...
Passenger dies in wrong-way Parkway East crash
Updated: The Allegheny County Medical Examiner identified the victim as Thomas Linwood Ligon, 47, of Monroeville. A person died in car crash on I-376 Saturday morning after another driver was traveling on the wrong side of the road. At around 2:30 a.m., a driver was traveling westbound in an eastbound...
Pennsylvania Senate seeks to declare state constitution provides no right to an abortion
HARRISBURG — Voters could be asked as early as the spring to weigh in on five significant amendments to the Pennsylvania Constitution, including one that would require voters to show ID every time they vote and another that asserts the state’s charter does not protect abortion access. After a contentious...
It’s official: Corey O’Connor named Allegheny County controller
Former Pittsburgh City Councilman Corey O’Connor has been appointed Allegheny County controller. O’Connor took to Twitter on Friday to thank the state legislators who supported him. “My family and I are humbled by the opportunity to serve as Allegheny County Controller and the support that we’ve received,” the post read...
Musk abandons deal to buy Twitter; company says it will sue
Elon Musk announced Friday that he will abandon his tumultuous $44 billion offer to buy Twitter after the company failed to provide enough information about the number of fake accounts. Twitter immediately fired back, saying it would sue the Tesla CEO to uphold the deal. The likely unraveling of the...
What does the proposed abortion constitutional amendment mean for Pennsylvania?
The Pennsylvania Senate passed a constitutional amendment proposal Friday that, if enacted, would ensure the state constitution does not grant rights to abortions. The passage doesn’t have any immediate effect on the state’s abortion laws. The process for this amendment started late Thursday night, when Republicans proposed the change with...
