November 17, 2021 4:09 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A bill to allow people to carry concealed weapons without a permit has been passed by a divided Pennsylvania House, but faces a veto threat from the governor. The parties were split in the vote Tuesday, as occurred in the state Senate last week, with Republican mostly supporting it and Democrats mostly opposed. Supporters said getting concealed carry permits under current law can be subject to the whims of county sheriffs and that concealed carry permit holders can forget when their licenses expire and therefore unknowingly violate the law. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s office said he will veto the legislation.
November 16, 2021 5:18 pm
It’s possible that the Pens may soon have a new owner. According to the Wall Street Journal, Fenway Sports Group LLC, the company that owns the Boston Red Sox, is in advanced talks to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins. The WSJ report said a deal “could be finalized later this week, assuming the talks don’t fall apart.” The group also owns the Red Sox’s Low-A affiliate and part of the Red Sox’s Triple-A affiliate, and 80 percent of the sports television network NESN. John W. Henry is the principal owner of Fenway Sports Group, owning 40 percent. Other partners in Fenway Sports Group include billionaire brothers Ted and Bill Alfond, LeBron James, and James’ business manager Maverick Carter. They also own Roush Fenway Racing. The current ownership group of the Penguins includes Mario Lemieux, John Surma and Debra Cafaro. They bought the franchise and helped it recover from bankruptcy, turning it into one of the most successful sport franchises in the National Hockey League. Sources say Lemieux will retain a minority stake and upper management, including David Morehouse, will stay.
November 16, 2021 12:24 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says crowds will once again fill Times Square this New Year’s Eve. The mayor said Tuesday that proof of COVID-19 vaccination required for revelers who want to watch the ball drop in person. De Blasio said the celebration will come back “full strength the way we love it.” The president of the Times Square Alliance, said all spectators aged 5 and over will be asked to show proof of full vaccination. He said people who can’t be vaccinated because of a disability will have to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test.
November 16, 2021 7:57 am
Matthew Vasquez, 33 pleaded guilty to felony charges of conspiracy to commit fraud in the latest chapter for the Pagan Motorcycle Club member who was convicted of a brutal assault of a rival club member in 2019. Vasquez was heard on recorded phone calls making plans to hide two motorcycles to keep them from being repossessed while he was serving time in the Washington County Jail. Vasquez is currently serving 21 ½ to 43 years in SCI Albion for aggravated assault. Vasquez was sentenced to an additional two years of probation that will begin once he is done serving his current sentence.
November 16, 2021 7:56 am
A Hickory man who took his laptop computer to an office supply store for service and was found to have child pornography pleaded no contest to felony child pornography and criminal use of a communications device. Riley Carl, 87 also pleaded no contest to indecent assault of a minor under 13. In addition to the child pornography charge, Riley was arrested for fondling a five year old girl in his residence between 2011 and 2017. Riley was sentenced to 9-23 months in the Washington County Jail for the indecent assault of a minor charge. After that sentence, he will serve two-five year probation sentences for the child pornography and criminal use of communications charges. Those sentences will run concurrently. Carl is being held currently in the Washington County Jail.
November 16, 2021 7:24 am
LONDON (AP) – Drugmaker Pfizer Inc. has signed a deal with a U.N.-backed group to allow other manufacturers to make its experimental COVID-19 pill. The move could help make the treatment available to more than half of the world’s population. In a statement on Tuesday, Pfizer said it would grant a license for the antiviral pill to the Medicines Patent Pool. The agreement lets generic drug companies make the pill for use in 95 countries. The deal excludes some large countries with manufacturing capacity. But health officials say the fact that the deal was struck before Pfizer’s pill has been authorized anywhere could help end the pandemic more quickly.
November 16, 2021 4:16 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon has appeared before a judge to face federal contempt charges for defying a subpoena from a House committee investigating January’s insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Bannon appeared briefly before a federal magistrate judge in Washington on Monday, hours after he surrendered to FBI agents. But he did not enter a plea and is due back in court on Thursday. The 67-year-old was indicted on Friday on two counts of criminal contempt. He said combatively outside court that he would be “taking on the Biden regime” in fighting the charges His indictment came as a second expected witness, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, defied a separate subpoena from the committee on Friday.
November 16, 2021 4:15 am
AURORA, Colo. (AP) – Police say six teenagers were wounded in a drive-by shooting in a park near a suburban Denver high school, but all are expected to survive. The victims in Monday’s shooting range in age from 14 to 18. Aurora police chief Vanessa Wilson says are all students at Aurora Central High School. She says multiple rounds from different guns were found at the scene and some may have also been fired by someone on foot. Police are asking for neighbors and other bystanders to share any videos or photos from phones or house surveillance systems that might help detectives identify suspects, who still haven’t been apprehended.
November 16, 2021 4:14 am
KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) – The jury has begun deliberating at Kyle Rittenhouse’s murder trial after two weeks of testimony in which they were given starkly different portrayals of his actions the night he shot three men on the streets of Kenosha. Prosecutors say Rittenhouse was a “wannabe soldier” who provoked a confrontation, while the defense says he feared for his life and acted in self-defense after being ambushed by a “crazy person.” Eighteen jurors have been hearing the case; the 12 who will decide Rittenhouse’s fate and the six who were designated alternates were determined by a drawing from a raffle drum. Rittenhouse, then 17, shot two men to death and wounded a third during a tumultuous night of protests against racial injustice in the summer of 2020.
November 16, 2021 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden has signed his hard-fought $1 trillion infrastructure deal into law before a bipartisan, celebratory crowd on the White House lawn. Biden declared that the infusion of cash for roads, bridges, ports and more is going to make life “change for the better” for Americans. But prospects are grim for further bipartisanship ahead of the 2022 midterm elections as Biden pivots back to more difficult negotiations for his broader $1.85 trillion social spending package. The president hopes to use the infrastructure law to build back his popularity, which has taken a hit amid rising inflation and the inability to fully shake the risks of COVID-19.
