May 30, 2021 7:44 am
ROSS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Police from nearly half a dozen different agencies rushed to Ross Park Mall Saturday afternoon after a fight broke out in gunfire, sending shoppers running in all directions. According to Lt. Brian Kohlhepp with Ross Township police, shortly after 4:30 p.m. there was a fight inside the mall that involved as many as six people. Guns were pulled during the fight and officers said witnesses reported hearing one to three gunshots. The fight happened on the second floor of the mall near Guest Services. Officers said two juvenile males were in custody Saturday evening in connection with the shooting. Both teens are 17 years old. They have not yet been charged. Investigators said three guns were recovered from inside the mall There were no injuries in connection with the shooting or the evacuation of the mall. Kohlhepp slammed the mall’s parent company, Simon Properties, saying officers were at a disadvantage because there are no cameras inside common areas. Anchor stores and some interior shops have their own cameras. Officials said they are going to have to rely heavily on social media and cellphone videos for their investigation.
May 29, 2021 10:41 am
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – Falsehoods about the election helped bring insurrectionists to the Capitol on Jan. 6, and now some who are facing criminal charges for their actions during the riot hope their gullibility might save them in court or at least produce some sympathy. Lawyers for at least three defendants charged in connection with the violent siege tell The Associated Press that they’ll blame election misinformation and conspiracy theories, including those pushed by then-President Donald Trump, for misleading their clients. The attorneys say those who spread that misinformation bear as much responsibility for the violence as do those who participated in the actual breach of the Capitol.
May 29, 2021 10:34 am
CEDAR HILL, Mo. (AP) – A St. Louis-area man has been shot to death and an officer has been wounded in what authorities said was an hours long standoff between the man and a sheriff’s department tactical team investigating a potential homicide. Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak said deputies were serving a search warrant Friday evening at a home outside of Cedar Hill, a town of about 1,700 residents 20 miles southwest of St. Louis. He said the man immediately began firing at officers, and they exchanged gunfire for several hours before the suspect was shot by officers. He said the wounded officer was taken to a local hospital for surgery and was expected to survive.
May 29, 2021 4:33 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. government has blocked imports of seafood from the fleet of a Chinese company that authorities say forced crew members to work in slave-like conditions. Customs and Border Protection said Friday that it will place an immediate hold on any imports linked to the more than 30 vessels operated by Dalian Ocean Fishing, under a U.S. law that bars goods suspected to have been produced with forced labor. It’s the first time the U.S. has sought to block imports from a company’s entire fishing fleet. And it’s a sign that the CBP’s investigation found evidence of widespread abuse on Dalian vessels around the world. The company had no immediate comment.
May 29, 2021 4:32 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The White House says it believes U.S. government agencies largely fended off the latest cyberespionage onslaught blamed on Russia intelligence operatives, saying the spear-phishing campaign should not further damage relations with Moscow ahead of next month’s planned presidential summit. Officials downplayed the cyber assault as “basic phishing.” Microsoft, which disclosed the effort, said it believed most of the hacking attempts had been blocked by automated systems that marked them as spam. Even so, the revelation of a new spy campaign so close to the planned June 16 summit likely adds to the urgency of White House efforts to confront the Kremlin over aggressive cyber activity that criminal indictments and diplomatic sanctions have done little to deter.
May 29, 2021 4:31 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Authorities say a gunman who killed nine of his co-workers at a California rail yard had stockpiled weapons and 25,000 rounds of ammunition at his house before setting it on fire. Officials said Friday that Samuel James Cassidy had coordinated the fire to coincide with the violence Wednesday at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority in San Jose. The Santa Clara County sheriff’s office says investigators found 12 guns, multiple cans of gasoline and suspected Molotov cocktails at Cassidy’s house. Officials say he also rigged a time-delay method to set his home on fire by putting ammunition in a cooking pot on the stove near an accelerant.
May 29, 2021 4:30 am
NEW YORK (AP) – The man accused of shooting and injuring three people in Times Square earlier this the month has been charged after arriving in New York from Florida where he was arrested. The New York Police Department said on Friday that Farrakhan Muhammad is charged with attempted murder and multiple counts of assault, reckless endangerment and criminal use of a firearm. Two women and a 4-year-old girl were struck and wounded by stray bullets in the shooting on May 8. U.S. Marshals arrested Muhammad near Jacksonville, Florida, four days later. He has said he was not in New York at the time of the shooting. It was not immediately clear whether Muhammad has an attorney.
May 29, 2021 4:29 am
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) – President Joe Biden started the Memorial Day weekend by visiting a rock climbing gym in northern Virginia as the state lifted all COVID-19 distancing and capacity restrictions at private businesses and much of the nation pushes toward a greater sense of normalcy. Biden sought to use the stop on Friday at Sportrock Climbing Centers to celebrate progress made as the country looks to turn the corner on the coronavirus pandemic. Biden later traveled to Joint Base Langley Eustis to thank troops for their service. After beginning with an emotional remembrance of his late son Beau, a veteran, Biden acknowledged the unheralded sacrifices that the service members and their families make.
May 29, 2021 4:20 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – State health officials say the just-concluded flu season was one of the mildest on record in Pennsylvania. Department of Health officials said Friday that COVID-19 precautions like masking and social distancing helped prevent the spread of the influenza virus as well as the novel coronavirus. Through last week reported, Pennsylvania reported more than 3,600 confirmed cases during the 2020-21 flu season. That’s down 97% from nearly 131,000 cases the previous season. There were 45 hospitalizations and 21 flu-related deaths. Flu cases were unusually low throughout the U.S. this flu season despite a big increase in testing.
May 29, 2021 4:16 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — After a year of restrictions, shutdowns and worry over the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium is holding their first Opening Season Parade. The Monday event will feature princesses, superheroes, dancers from the Shovlin Academy of Irish Dance, mascots and other surprises. It will kick off at the Forest Passage and travel throughout the park before ending in the Kids Kingdom. The parade steps off at 11 a.m.
