WJPA News

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” That’s the unofficial motto of the United States Postal Service. They made need to make a few adjustments thanks to Winter Storm Fern. The U.S. Postal Service says the snow and the cold are affecting delivery services – particularly to residential customers. Mail delivery, we have been told, is on hold for now, although the post office is accepting mail for delivery. At the main post office in Washington on Jefferson Avenue, customers on Wednesday braved a long line to use a courtesy phone to request their mail. Many in line told us that they have not received any mail since Saturday and they only learned there was a problem with deliveries through social media posts.

Winter Storm Fern also left its mark on the Wilfred R. Cameron Wellness Center in South Strabane Township.  Officials there tell us that a massive water main break on Saturday caused significant damages to the fitness floor, pool area, and both the family and ladies locker rooms.  They say repair work is underway and membership dues will be adjusted accordingly.  Some services are still available though – including Spa Harmony, yoga and Pilates studios, the membership office, nutrition services and outpatient rehab are still open.

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.

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.

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.

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.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — If there’s been a soundtrack to life in Minneapolis in recent weeks, it’s the shrieking whistles and honking horns of thousands of people following immigration agents across the city. They are the ever-moving shadow of Operation Metro Surge. They are teachers, scientists and stay-at-home parents. They own small businesses and wait tables. And when the White House shifted to a more conciliatory tone after the weekend killing of Alex Pretti, holding talks with local and state that President Donald Trump had long disdained and pushing aside Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol senior official who had become public face of the immigration crackdown, it was quickly clear no one was giving up.

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.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are poised to block legislation that would fund the Department of Homeland Security and several other agencies on Thursday. That would bring the government a step closer to a partial shutdown if Republicans and the White House do not agree to new restrictions on President Donald Trump’s surge of immigration enforcement. As the country reels from the deaths of two protesters at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis, irate Senate Democrats laid out a list of demands Wednesday, including that officers take off their masks and identify themselves and obtain warrants for arrest.