Top Stories category, Page 950
Police: Missing Mt. Oliver man charged after parents found badly beaten
Police are searching for a Mt. Oliver man they allege beat his parents after they came to visit from Florida and then took off in their SUV. Joshua Roth, 41, is charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and theft in connection with the assaults earlier this month. Allegheny...
Penn Hills lawmaker seeking to ban cellphone use in schools statewide
A new cellphone policy at Penn Hills School District has inspired a Pennsylvania lawmaker to seek to implement legislation for Pennsylvania’s public schools. Starting in the 2022-23 school year, Penn Hills students will have their phones and other communication devices stored away during the school day. The district made the...
More than 200 undated ballots in Allegheny County to be counted but kept separate, state says
The more than 200 mail-in ballots returned in Allegheny County that do not have a date on the outer declaration envelope should be tallied but kept separate from the overall vote totals, the Department of State has decided. What began as 218 votes was whittled down to 206 as the...
GOP to intervene in lawsuit over Pa. Senate race vote-count
HARRISBURG — The national Republican Party is stepping in on the neck-and-neck GOP primary contest for U.S. Senate and opposing a lawsuit that could help former hedge fund CEO David McCormick close the vote gap between him and celebrity heart surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania’s votes. McCormick’s lawsuit was...
‘Possible medical situation’ diverts American Airlines flight to Pittsburgh
A “possible medical situation” caused an American Airlines flight to make an unscheduled landing Tuesday morning at Pittsburgh International Airport, according to an Allegheny County Airport Authority spokesman. The plane, which had been headed from Phoenix to New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, landed in Pittsburgh shortly before...
Stolen pickup crashes into Mt. Washington restaurant; driver not found
A stolen pickup truck crashed into the Altius restaurant on Mt. Washington on Tuesday morning, causing significant damage, Pittsburgh police said. When emergency crews arrived just before 4:30 a.m. at the scene in the 1200 block of Grandview Avenue, the vehicle’s occupants had fled, police said. There was no one...
Proposal would require greater public access to records from Pitt, Penn State, others
Greater transparency requirements could be in store for Pennsylvania’s four state-related universities. State Rep. Ryan Warner, a Republican from the 52nd District — which includes parts of Westmoreland and Fayette counties — has introduced legislation that would increase public access to the records of the University of Pittsburgh and Penn...
Police investigating after human remains found in Turtle Creek woods
Human remains were found Monday afternoon in a wooded area in Turtle Creek, according to Allegheny County Police. Officers were notified shortly after 3:30 p.m. that remains were located near the 1200 block of Lynn Avenue. Allegheny County Homicide detectives are working with the Medical Examiner’s office on a cause...
David McCormick sues over counting mail ballots in Pa. Senate race
HARRISBURG — The campaign of David McCormick, who is in a neck-and-neck Republican primary contest for the U.S. Senate against celebrity heart surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz, sued in a Pennsylvania court Monday to try to ensure counties obey a brand-new federal appeals court decision that could help him make up...
Police investigating after shots fired near WCCC in New Kensington
New Kensington police were investigating a report of shots fired Monday afternoon near the entrance to the Westmoreland County Community College campus in New Kensington. New Kensington police Detective Sgt. Matt Saxman said no one appeared to be hit or injured in the incident that happened about 4:30 p.m. in...
Pa. trooper already facing child pornography charges indicted in federal court
A suspended state trooper already facing charges in Fayette County Common Pleas Court of possessing child pornography has now been indicted in federal court. The federal indictment against Sean Ryan McKenzie, 37, of Perryopolis, was unsealed on Monday. He has been suspended without pay since March 1 after state police...
2 men accused of using credit card skimmer at Sam’s Club in Frazer, possibly other locations
Two men from Romania were accused by Frazer police of stealing credit card information by installing a skimming device in a self-checkout lane at the Sam’s Club store at Pittsburgh Mills. They may be responsible for doing the same thing at Sam’s Club stores in Monroeville, West Mifflin and Butler...
Pitcairn man charged in Uber driver’s death shouldn’t face death penalty, public defender’s office says
The Allegheny County Public Defender’s office said in a court filing it does not have enough death-penalty qualified attorneys to represent the man accused of killing an Uber driver in February. In a motion filed earlier this month, the PD’s office said that the district attorney’s office filed notice in...
Expert: Monkeypox likely spread by sex at 2 raves in EuropeVideo
LONDON — A leading adviser to the World Health Organization described the unprecedented outbreak of monkeypox in developed countries as “a random event” that might be explained by sexual behavior at two recent raves in Europe. Dr. David Heymann, who formerly headed WHO’s emergencies department, told The Associated Press that...
Pittsburgh man arrested in connection with stabbing at Monroeville Mall
A Pittsburgh man has been arrested for allegedly stabbing another man multiple times at a store inside Monroeville Mall. John Malcolm Smith, 40, is charged with aggravated assault in connection with the incident Saturday around 5:15 p.m. at All-Star Elite. According to the criminal complaint, Smith and another man were...
How Doug Mastriano built a grassroots movement in Pa. on election denial, Christianity and Facebook
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 — Two years ago, one Republican operative responded to the thought of a Doug Mastriano gubernatorial run with: “Seriously?” Now,...
Allegheny County continues to count ballots in tight U.S. Senate race
The Allegheny County election return board reconvened Monday to start reviewing and counting about 2,000 provisional ballots that had been submitted for the May primary. While the process plays out each election, with workers slowly reviewing ballots in the Allegheny County elections warehouse in Pittsburgh’s North Side, a closely contested...
Police: Arnold cops find wanted man hiding in closet, 2 charged with hindering his arrest
Two people from Clarion were charged with a felony after Arnold police accused them of hiding a man wanted on a misdemeanor theft charge. Tyler Bennett, 30, and Amber Jane Adamiak, 31, both of Grand Avenue, each face a felony count of hindering the apprehension of a criminal. Bennett also...
Man charged in fatal North Buffalo shooting
State police charged an East Franklin man with homicide after, they say, he got into a dispute with another man on Sunday and shot him to death in North Buffalo. Police charged Nicholas Alexander Fortuna, 24, of the 100 block of Alpine Wood Drive with a felony count of criminal...
Truck driver who spilled hot dog filler on I-70 will be charged, police say
A tractor-trailer driver who crashed on Interstate 70 in Rostraver, spilling more than seven tons of hot dog filler on the highway and snarling traffic for five hours Friday, will receive multiple citations — including one for speeding, police said. Makendy Lachald, 30, of Laurel, Del., was speeding westbound near...
Pa. Turnpike reopens between New Stanton and Breezewood after crash cleared
The Pennsylvania Turnpike reopened Monday afternoon following a lengthy closure in both directions between New Stanton and Breezewood because of an overturned tractor-trailer. The crash happened around 9 a.m. between the Somerset and Bedford exits, according to PennDOT. The road reopened at 2:30 p.m. after the wreckage was cleared. Some...
Pittsburgh gas prices continue climb as $5 per gallon looms in some spots
Average gasoline prices in the Pittsburgh area rose more than 17 cents per gallon in the last week, with the most expensive just a penny shy of the $5 mark, according to price tracking service GasBuddy. GasBuddy reported Pittsburgh’s average at $4.69 per gallon on Monday, up 17.4 cents in...
Former Pa. AG Kathleen Kane sent to treatment after probation violation
NORRISTOWN — Pennsylvania’s former top law enforcement officer, who served jail time for leaking secret investigative files and lying about it, admitted Monday that she violated her probation when she was arrested for drunken driving in March. Kathleen Kane, the first woman and first Democrat to be elected attorney general...
Biden launches Indo-Pacific trade deal, warns over inflation
TOKYO — President Joe Biden launched a new trade deal with 12 Indo-Pacific nations Monday aimed at strengthening their economies as he warned Americans worried about high inflation that it is “going to be a haul” before they feel relief. The president said he does not believe an economic recession...
Pfizer says 3 covid shots protect children under 5
Three doses of Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine offer strong protection for children younger than 5, the company announced Monday. Pfizer plans to give the data to U.S. regulators later this week in a step toward letting the youngest kids get the shots. The news comes after months of anxious waiting by...
