February 17, 2022 4:17 am
NEW YORK (AP) – A judge will hear arguments Thursday in a legal fight over whether former President Donald Trump must answer questions under oath in a New York investigation into his business practices. New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking to enforce subpoenas her office issued in December to Trump and his two eldest children, Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr. Both of them have been executives in their family’s Trump Organization. The dispute is now before state Judge Arthur Engoron. He previously sided with James on other matters relating to the probe, including making Eric Trump testify after his lawyers abruptly canceled a scheduled deposition.
February 17, 2022 4:16 am
PETROPOLIS, Brazil (AP) – Rio de Janeiro state’s government has confirmed that at least 94 people died in landslides that ravaged the city of Petropolis, but it is still unclear how many bodies remain trapped in the mud. Mayor Rubens Bomtempo didn’t provide an estimate for the number of disappeared people, with recovery efforts still ongoing. More than 24 hours after the deadly deluge, survivors were digging to find lost loved ones and an Instagram account set up for desperate relatives posted photos of dozens of missing people. Rio de Janeiro’s public prosecutors’ office said Wednesday night that it has compiled a list with 35 people yet to be located.
February 17, 2022 4:14 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) – A U.N. official says 80% of Tonga’s 105,000 people were affected by the undersea volcanic eruption and ensuring tsunami that lashed the Pacific island nation on Jan. 15. Sanaka Samarasinha is the U.N. resident coordinator for Tonga and he said Wednesday that the country needs over $90 million to repair damage and restore the farming and fishing that are its economic mainstays. Samarasinha says that “the anxiety hasn’t gone away with the receding waters of the tsunami.” He says cyclone season is still in full swing, and there are almost weekly earthquakes in the region, the latest a magnitude 5.0 quake a few hours before his comments.
February 17, 2022 4:13 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – The United States says that Russia has added as many as 7,000 troops to its forces stationed along the tense border with Ukraine. The warning contradicted Kremlin declarations that military units were being pulled back. A Russian invasion of Ukraine did not materialize, as originally feared Wednesday. But Western allies maintained that the threat was still strong, with an estimated 150,000-plus Russian troops surrounding the country on three sides. A senior U.S. administration official also said there has been a marked increase in false claims by Russians that the Kremlin might use as pretext for an invasion.
February 17, 2022 4:11 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A statewide court that declared that Pennsylvania’s expansive 2-year-old mail-in voting law violates the state constitution is following that up by saying its ruling can take effect in mid-March. That’s a week after the state Supreme Court hears arguments on the appeal. Commonwealth Court Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt, in siding again with Republican officeholders who challenged the law, said Wednesday they are likely to prevail at the state Supreme Court. The case is throwing Pennsylvania’s voting laws into doubt as the presidential battleground state’s voters prepare to elect a new governor and a new U.S. senator in 2022. The state Supreme Court scheduled the case for oral arguments on March 8.
February 17, 2022 4:06 am
Wednesday evening found nearly 100 Washington County citizens inside the Washington American Legion to listen to Pennsylvania Senate Candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz make his case for their vote. Oz appeared with U.S. Representative for the 14th district Guy Reschenthaler. In both of their opening remarks, they stated that they are forming an early alliance that will allow them to cooperatively represent the citizens of Pennsylvania on the federal level even though they would be in separate chambers of congress. Reschenthaler endorsed Oz’s candidacy for the seat being vacated by Senator Pat Toomey’s retirement. Topics discussed included Oz stating that election integrity especially with voter ID is important. He indicated that Medicare monies need to be spent more effectively to deliver better results for senior citizens. Oz blamed Washington DC politics for a lot of the reason that the economy is in its current shape. He joked that it took him two and a half months to find an employer that is not in need of employees. He said it was a chocolate manufacturer. Oz stated that the reason he believes he is the best candidate is that he fought his whole life for the values that are dear to all throughout his career and he is the sane voice that can articulate why Washington DC is not getting things straight.
February 17, 2022 4:05 am
A Washington County man who pleaded guilty to several drug possession and delivery charges received his sentence on Wednesday. Brian Kelly, 39 of Washington will receive a state prison sentence of 13-26 years on four felony counts for the possession and delivery of cocaine. Washington County Drug Task Force agents raided Kelly’s home and found a large amount of cocaine, marijuana and $13,000 in cash that he admitted were profits from sales of the drugs. Kelly has been in jail awaiting the outcome of his case for 567 days. He will be given credit for those days as time served. Kelly will be transferred to a state correctional facility in the near future.
February 17, 2022 4:04 am
The Peters Township School Board held a special voting meeting on Wednesday night to make amendments to their health and safety plan. In a unanimous roll call vote directors voted to make the wearing of masks in school district buildings “strongly recommended” beginning February 22, 2022. Superintendent Dr. Jeannine French indicated that that date was selected to give staff the time needed to make accommodations for students who were apprehensive about going mask optional and having a student holiday on Friday and Monday give staff time to make those accommodations. French also indicated that the decision to make the amendment followed what they agreed to last month, tying a mask decision to Department of Health numbers regarding community spread of the virus. French does not anticipate masks returning as other mitigation methods can be used in case an outbreak was to occur.
February 17, 2022 2:36 am
(WPXI) – One firefighter was injured in a fire at an auto salvage yard in Dawson, Fayette County on Thursday. According to dispatch, the firefighter was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Fire crews and EMS are still on scene at Marsh’s Auto Salvage in the 800 block of Banning Road. A worker at the salvage yard says it was a building with about six garage bays that was on fire.
February 16, 2022 5:28 pm
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – A judge in Florida has agreed with a request from the family of comedian Bob Saget and temporarily prohibited the release of any photos, video or other records related to the investigation into his death. The judge said Wednesday that refusing to issue the temporary injunction would have caused the family irreparable harm. Saget’s wife, Kelly Rizzo, and his three daughters, filed a lawsuit the previous day in Orlando, Florida, asking the state judge for a ruling that would prohibit the release of the records. The judge has not yet ruled on whether the family’s privacy concerns outweigh any claims for the records to be released. (Photo: AP)
