WJPA News

Emergency responders were called out just after six o’clock Thursday evening, for reports of an explosion at a plant in Smith Township.  Washington County Dispatch said crews were called to the 10 block of Langeloth Plant Road at the Langeloth Metallurgical Plant.  One person was reportedly taken to a hospital, and there’s been no information released as to whether anyone else was hurt. Authorities said there were no casualties and no comment yet – on what may have caused the blast.

A Cold Weather Advisory continues.  Make sure to stay safe in the extreme cold. If you can’t stay indoors, limit your time outside, make sure to dress in warm layers and wear waterproof clothing. Cover exposed skin; wear a hat, mask and gloves. Keep pets indoors. Make sure to protect indoor pipes.  The City of Washington has also announced that there will be no trash pick-up this week because of snow covered roads and alley condition.  Services will resume Monday.  On the plus side, Washington Mayor JoJo Burgess says their Emergency Declaration has enabled them to hire an outside contractor to remove all of the snow that is piled up around the city and they got to work on Wednesday.  He says it will be taken and dumped in a specially cleared area of Washington Park.  For those in need, Washington County has opened nearly two dozen warming centers.  For a complete listing, Click Here.

Governor Josh Shapiro called on the Pennsylvania General Assembly on Thursday to take action and send a bill to his desk requiring schools to implement a bell-to-bell ban on cell phones and mobile devices.  In a post on X, Governor Shapiro said:  “It’s time for us to get distractions out of the classroom and create a healthier environment in our schools.  “Students need to spend time focused on learning, on socializing with their peers, and on developing the critical skills they’ll need later in life.  “I’m calling on the State Legislature to send a bill to my desk requiring our schools to implement policies that take cell phones and mobile devices out of kids’ hands from the time they start class until the time they leave for home — helping teachers and kids focus on learning.”  (Photo:  AP)

Two men, one from Washington County, have been sentenced federal prison for drug trafficking in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia.  U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey says James Thomas Howard, 37, of Washington, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 77 months for distributing methamphetamine. Howard, also known as “Jim Tom,” sold 32 grams of meth to someone in Marshall County. He has multiple prior drug convictions.  Gerald Lee Young, 58, of Wintersville, Ohio, was sentenced to 77 months in prison for possessing cocaine base. Young was stopped in his vehicle for traveling the wrong way on a one-way street in Weirton, West Virginia. Young admitted to the officer that there might be controlled substances in the car. A K9 was deployed, and the officer found 49 grams of cocaine base and $1114 in cash in Young’s vehicle. Two residences Young was associated with were later searched. Officers found nearly 2 grams of fentanyl, 1.3 grams of cocaine base and nearly 9 grams of methamphetamine, along with $1,918 in cash and a firearm. Young has prior drug convictions.  Authorities say these cases are a part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations to protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, and repel the invasion of illegal immigration.

Questions continue to go unanswered in regards to mail delivery.  The U.S. Postal Service has posted a service alert on their website about “processing, transportation and delivery of mail and packages being impacted” by the Sunday’s winter storm.  Some residents have told WJPA News that they have not received mail since Saturday.  Our attempts to reach the main office along Jefferson Avenue have been unsuccessful.  WJPA did reach someone at the U.S Postal Service who told us they could not answer any questions and directed us to the service alert on their website. As of 9 a.m. Thursday morning, there were reports that a sign had been posted at the Jefferson Avenue facility saying that mail would be delivered today.  We have not been able to confirm that with any postal service official.

A Washington man arrested for discharging a gun while suffering a PTSD incident will face trial. At his preliminary hearing, William Coles, 66 had felony charges of prohibited possession of a firearm and discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure held for court without a hearing. Because a witness failed to appear, felony aggravated assault, misdemeanor simple assault and reckless endangerment charges were dismissed. According to the criminal complaint, police were called on December 7 to North Main Street for a man suffering a PTSD episode. Shortly after dispatch they were alerted to shots being fired. Coles was located near 71 North Main Street and taken into custody. A witness described Coles firing his gun near her inside of his apartment. She said she feared for her life and fled. Early investigation found Coles to be previously convicted of a felony and not to possess a weapon. The incident is of note because Washington and Jefferson College issued a shelter in place order to its students during the incident. Coles is free on $100,000 bond, he will be formally arraigned on February 24.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats voted to block legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security and several other agencies Thursday as they continued to negotiate with Republicans and the White House on new restrictions for President Donald Trump’s surge of immigration enforcement. Thursday’s test vote came as Democrats have threatened a partial government shutdown when money runs out on Friday. But Trump said just ahead of the vote that “we don’t want a shutdown” and the two sides were discussing a possible agreement to separate Homeland Security funding from the rest of the legislation and fund it for a short time.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Justice Department has charged a man who squirted apple cider vinegar on Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar at an event in Minneapolis. The man arrested for Tuesday’s attack, Anthony Kazmierczak, faces a charge of forcibly assaulting, opposing, impeding and intimidating Omar. Authorities determined the substance was water and apple cider vinegar. Kazmierczak has a criminal history and has made online posts supportive of President Donald Trump. Kazmierczak appeared briefly in federal court Thursday afternoon. His attorney said her client was unmedicated at the time of the incident. The judge ordered him to remain in custody and told officials he needs to see a nurse when he is transferred to jail.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — A former Illinois sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for fatally shooting Sonya Massey, a Black women who dialed 911 asking for help. Sean Grayson was convicted of second-degree murder in October. He was sentenced on Thursday. The white former deputy killed Massey on July 6, 2024. The 36-year-old single mother had called the police saying she feared there was a prowler outside her Springfield home. Grayson shot her in the face. Grayson can shorten his sentence by half with good behavior. He has been incarcerated since he was charged in Massey’s killing.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Videos show Alex Pretti was forcefully taken to the ground by federal immigration agents after kicking out the tail light of their vehicle during a Minneapolis protest 11 days before he was shot and killed by Border Patrol officers. The Jan. 13 scuffle was captured in a pair of videos that emerged Wednesday evening, showing Pretti shouting an expletive at federal immigration agents and struggling with them before he either breaks free or is let go. The new videos have rekindled the national debate about the death of Pretti, an intensive care nurse. A Minneapolis-based attorney representing Pretti’s parents says the earlier incident in no way justified the officers’ use of deadly force.

(AP) – A federal appeals court says the Trump administration acted illegally when it ended legal protections that gave hundreds of thousands of people from Venezuela permission to live and work in the United States. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals late Wednesday upheld a lower court ruling that found Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem exceeded her authority when she ended temporary protected status for Venezuelans. The decision, however, will not have any immediate practical effect after the Supreme Court in October allowed Noem’s decision to take effect pending a final decision by the justices. An email late Wednesday night to the Department of Homeland Security was not immediately returned.  (Photo:  AP)

DENVER (AP) — Donald Trump lost his bid for reelection in 2020. But for more than five years, he’s been trying to convince Americans the opposite is true by falsely saying the election was marred by widespread fraud. Now that he’s president again, Trump is pushing the federal government to back up those bogus claims. On Wednesday, the FBI served a search warrant at the election headquarters of Fulton County, Georgia, which includes most of Atlanta, seeking ballots from the 2020 election. It marks an escalation of Trump’s obsession with the election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden, and some observers say his administration is using Georgia as a blueprint for challenging results this November.