May 5, 2025 2:53 am
(WPXI) – A consultant paid to review security at the official residence of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro after it was firebombed by a late-night intruder said Friday that his team’s findings will not be made public. Retired state police Col. Jeffrey Miller said in a statement that the “sensitive nature” of the findings he has given to Shapiro and state police “precludes their release to the public for obvious reasons.” The dangerous breakdown in protection has raised questions about how the intruder was able to elude state police security as he climbed a 7-foot (2-meter) fence and smashed two windows, then crawled inside and ignited destructive fires with two gasoline-filled beer bottles. “I am confident that if fully implemented, the key recommendations that we have made will prevent an attack of this nature from succeeding in the future,” Miller said. His San Diego-based security consulting firm is being paid more than $35,000 for the work. Paula Knudsen Burke, the Pennsylvania lawyer with the nonprofit Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said portions of the report could be released even if the full report isn’t. “It seems we’re spending taxpayer dollars to review taxpayer paid employees working in a taxpayer owned building,” Burke said. “It seems taxpayers should have some visibility into what their money is used for.” A Harrisburg man, Cody Balmer, 38, has been charged with attempted homicide, arson and other offenses for the attack on the state-owned Harrisburg residence about 2 a.m. on Sunday, April 13. The fire caused an estimated millions of dollars in damage but no one was hurt.
May 4, 2025 8:15 am
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Warren Buffett shocked an arena full of his shareholders by announcing that he wants to retire at the end of the year. Buffett said he will recommend to Berkshire Hathaway’s board that Greg Abel should become CEO at the end of the year. Previously the 94-year-old investor has always said he had no plans to retire. But Abel has been his designated successor for years, and Abel has already been managing all of Berkshire’s non-insurance businesses. He will now take on the responsibility for running Berkshire’s insurance businesses and investing its cash. Able said he was “humbled and honored to be part of Berkshire as we go forward.” (Photo: AP)
May 4, 2025 8:09 am
(AP) – International students in the U.S. are reconsidering their travel plans this summer after a wave of student status terminations and visa revocations. Even before students suddenly began losing permission to study in the U.S., some colleges were encouraging international students and faculty to postpone travel, citing government efforts to deport students involved in pro-Palestinian activism and worries of potential travel bans. As the scale of the status terminations emerged in recent weeks, more have cautioned against non-essential travel abroad for international students. University of California, Berkeley has issued an advisory saying upcoming international travel was risky due to “strict vetting and enforcement.”
May 4, 2025 8:08 am
VATICAN CITY (AP) — While Pope Francis accomplished a lot in his 12-year papacy, he left much unfinished business and many challenges for his successor — from the Vatican’s disastrous finances to the wars raging on multiple continents. When the conclave’s cardinals finish casting their ballots in the Sistine Chapel, the 267th pope will have to decide whether to continue with Francis’ policies, radically change them, or abandon them altogether. He also must choose what new projects will take precedence. Among the pressing issues are the role of women in the church, the division between traditionalists and progressives, what to do about clergy sex abuse and whether to LGBTQ+ Catholics. (Photo: AP)
May 4, 2025 8:04 am
(AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said there has been no need to use nuclear weapons in the war in Ukraine and expressed hope that such a scenario will not arise. In a preview aired Sunday of a state TV interview, Putin said Russia has the strength to bring the conflict to a “logical conclusion.” His remarks come amid competing Russian and Ukrainian ceasefire proposals and continued fighting. Ukrainian officials said 11 people, including two children, were wounded in a Russian drone strike on Kyiv overnight. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 13 Ukrainian drones.
May 4, 2025 7:58 am
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump has posted an artificial intelligence-generated image of himself dressed as pope. The social media post comes as the mourning of Pope Francis continues and the papal conclave is set to begin in a few days. The image is raising eyebrows on social media, at the Vatican, from a group representing Catholic bishops in New York and from Italians. Catholics are in the period of official mourning after Francis’ death. Catholic cardinals are due to open the solemn conclave to elect his successor on Wednesday. The death of a pope and election of another is a matter of utmost solemnity for Catholics. The death of a pope and election of another is a matter of utmost solemnity for Catholics, for whom the pope is Christ’s vicar on Earth. That is all the more true in Italy, where the papacy is held in high esteem even by nonreligious Italians. The image featuring Trump in a white cassock and pointed miter, or bishop’s hat, was the topic of several questions during the Vatican’s daily conclave briefing Saturday. Italian and Spanish news reports lamented its poor taste and said it was offensive, given that the period of official mourning is still underway. (Photo: @realDonaldTrump)
May 4, 2025 7:47 am
(WPXI) – Kavan Markwood, the 20-year-old man who fell from the stands onto the field at PNC Park on Wednesday, is making “encouraging progress,” according to those close to him. Jennifer Phillips, the mother of Markwood’s girlfriend and organizer of a GoFundMe created to support him and his family, said Saturday that “Kavan is awake, alert, and able to speak” and called this progress “nothing short of a miracle.” Phillips says Markwood has a “long road ahead of him” and thanked the community for their support. Alonna Brown, Markwood’s girlfriend, also posted an update on her social media pages. “At this time, he needs rest, peace, prayers, privacy, and all the positive thoughts and energy you can send as he continues on his journey,” she said. Markwood was rushed to the hospital in critical condition after the incident Wednesday night. His condition had not changed in the most recent update from Pittsburgh Public Safety on Thursday morning. The fall is being treated as “accidental in nature.”
May 4, 2025 7:39 am
(WPXI) – Duquesne Light Company has evaluated most of the damage from severe storms and determined when 50,000 customers still without power will get service back. In an update issued Saturday afternoon, DLC said its crews and 600 crews from other utility companies and contractors continue working around the clock to restore power. After evaluating the thousands of reported hazards that led to widespread outages, DLC has determined that the estimated time of restoration for all customers is Tuesday at 11 p.m. But the power company says most customers will get power back before then. While restoration efforts are ongoing, DLC urges customers to stay safe by keeping at least 30 feet away from downed wires, broken poles and other safety hazards. The company also asks the public to give ample space to line-workers and troubleshooters. You can report downed wires or other hazards to DLC’s emergency number at 888-393-7000.
In Washington County, West Penn Power crews have been working round the clock as well and according to their latest information, as of Sunday morning, there were less than ninety customers left to bring on line, with the majority of those being in Robinson Township.
May 4, 2025 5:07 am
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump says he is directing his government to reopen and expand Alcatraz, the notorious former prison on a California island that has been closed for more than 60 years. In a message on his Truth Social site Sunday evening, Trump wrote that, “For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than Misery and Suffering.” He said, “That is why, today, I am directing the Bureau of Prisons, together with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security, to reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt ALCATRAZ, to house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders.”
May 4, 2025 5:06 am
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump is opening a new salvo in his tariff war, targeting films made outside the U.S. Trump said Sunday night that he has authorized the Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to slap a 100% tariff “on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands.” It wasn’t immediately clear how any such tariff on international productions could be implemented. It’s common for both large and smaller films to include production both in the U.S. and other countries. Big-budget movies like the upcoming “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,” for instance, are shot around the world.
