November 18, 2021 4:10 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – North America’s leaders are reviving three-way summitry after a Trump-era break. President Joe Biden, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Andres López Obrador will resume the tradition of the North America Leaders Summit on Thursday in Washington. Such meetings were dropped during the Trump administration. The three North American allies find themselves facing deep differences on migration, climate and trade as they meet this time. The North American summit tradition started with George W. Bush hosting Mexico’s Vicente Fox and Canada’s Paul Martin in 2005 for talks at his Texas ranch.
November 18, 2021 4:07 am
NEW YORK (AP) – One of the men exonerated decades after the 1965 killing of Malcolm X says that “I am an 83-year-old man who was victimized by the criminal justice system.” The convictions of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam were dismissed Thursday by a Manhattan judge. Prosecutors and the men’s lawyers say a renewed investigation found new evidence that undermined the case against the men and determined that authorities withheld some of what they knew. The two maintained their innocence from the start in the killing at Manhattan’s Audubon Ballroom. Both were paroled in the 1980s. Islam died in 2009.
November 18, 2021 4:05 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Inflation will drive a big salary increase for Pennsylvania state lawmakers, judges and top executive branch officials in 2022. For many of the positions, it is the biggest increase in three decades. Salaries will rise 5.6%, a figure tied by state law to the year-over-year change in the consumer price index for the mid-Atlantic region. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says it’s the largest year-over-year increase since 1991. The increase applies to more than 1,000 positions, including governor, Cabinet members, three statewide elected officers, all 253 lawmakers and state and county judges. It takes effect Dec. 1 for lawmakers and Jan. 1 for judicial and executive branch officials.
November 18, 2021 4:02 am
A Chicago man learned his fate on Wednesday afternoon as he was sentenced on felony possession with the intent to deliver charges. Charles Richards, 39 was arrested in April of 2019 following a months-long investigation by the Washington County Drug Task Force. A raid of the residences of Richards and Ronald Thomas of Washington found seven ounces of crack cocaine, a brick of stamp bags of heroin and several hundred dollars. Richards was sentenced to 6-12 years on the cocaine possession charge and 2-4 years on the heroin possession charge, all to be served in state prison. Those prison sentences will be served concurrently. Richards requested that he turn himself in after the Christmas holiday but Judge Valarie Costanzo denied that request. Richards was remanded to sheriff’s deputies and taken to county jail where he will be held until he is transported to state prison.
November 18, 2021 3:37 am
State Police are investigating a possible murder/suicide in Washington County. Authorities were called out Thursday afternoon to a home on Skylark Drive in Canton Township for reports of gunshots. Officials say two people, identified as 89-year-old Samuel Mayberry and 93-year-old Dolores Mayberry, were found dead inside the home from apparent gunshot wounds. Authorities say there was no sign of anyone outside the home being involved in the incident.
November 17, 2021 1:39 pm
BALTIMORE (AP) – U.S. Catholic bishops have overwhelmingly approved a document on Communion that stops short of calling for withholding the sacrament from politicians who support abortion rights, such as President Joe Biden. The measure does offer plenty of tacit justification for individual bishops to consider withholding Communion in such cases, however. The document is not a national policy but says bishops have a responsibility to address cases where Catholics act “at variance” with church teaching and unity. It was approved by a 222-8 vote at the fall assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Baltimore.
November 17, 2021 11:13 am
Local Republican State Representative, Bud Cook, who represents the 49th Legislative District, continues his battle with Washington County’s Local Share Account Committee. Cook has now asked Washington County Commissioners to “Immediately Remove” Jeff Kotula as chairman of that committee. Cook made his request in a letter, dated Tuesday, November 16th. In his letter, Cook claims Kotula’s abysmal performance as chairman over the past 13 years has shown a lack of action to ensure accountability, transparency and fairness. Specifically, Cook alleges that Kotula, who is President of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Promotion Agency, awarded his non-profit organization ten “self-serving” state grant awards during his reign. Cook says that practice alone should not only eliminate him from the chairman’s position on the committee, but also from serving on the review committee at all. When contacted by WJPA News, Jeff Kotula responded by saying he encourages anyone who is interested, to look at the public information available on the LSA process and they will find that Washington County’s LSA process is second to none. Also responding to Cook’s accusations, Washington County Commission Chair, Diana Irey-Vaughan, who told WJPA that there is no proof behind Cook’s numerous claims and that commissioners are pleased with the process. She did, however, say that an Economic Development Advisory Board is in the process of investigating all available funding streams and admits that, they would consider changes, if recommended.
November 17, 2021 4:33 am
Former City of Washington Police Chief Paul Kosey has died. According to his obituary, he died Friday in Canonsburg Hospital from complications from COVID-19. He was 88 years old. Kosey was a 1951 graduate of Washington High School and joined the Washington Police Department in September of 1959. He eventually became Chief in 1976 and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1981. Friends are to be received Friday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Warco-Falvo Funeral home. Burial will be private. (Photo: Warco-Falvo Funeral Home)
November 17, 2021 4:20 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The District of Columbia will lift its indoor mask requirement starting next week, as local COVID infection cases continue to trend downward. Starting Monday, Nov. 22, masks will no longer be required in many indoor spaces. A statement from the city Health Department announced that masks will still be required in certain settings, including schools, libraries, public transportation, ride-share vehicles and group-living facilities like nursing homes, dorms and jails. Private businesses will still be able to require customers to wear masks. The nation’s capital originally lifted its indoor mask requirement for fully vaccinated individuals in May, but reinstated it in late July as cases began to rise again.
November 17, 2021 4:20 am
NEW YORK (AP) – An influential U.S. advisory panel will discuss expanding eligibility for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to all adults Friday, a move that could make the shots available as early as this weekend. The panel advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in setting vaccination recommendations for U.S. doctors and the general public. Some cities and states already allow all adults to get boosters of Pfizer’s vaccine, but it is not yet official U.S. policy.
