May 27, 2021 4:16 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Pennsylvania Department of Health has dropped its legal action against more than 40 restaurants accused of defying state orders to close indoor dining and maintain social-distancing protocols. The Health Department had filed two separate complaints alleging that restaurants were violating Gov. Tom Wolf’s pandemic restrictions. Wolf had imposed the indoor dining ban in December in response to a winter surge in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Health Department officials say the pandemic has since eased, with nearly all restrictions to be lifted on Memorial Day.
May 27, 2021 4:14 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – A Pittsburgh woman is free on non-monetary bond after she was arraigned on charges of vehicular homicide, DUI, reckless driving and speeding charges earlier today. Allison Matthew is charged in connection with the deadly crash on Feb. 6 on Route 51. The crash claimed the life of her 26-year-old cousin, Katherine Barvilchak, who police say was a passenger in Matthew’s car. According to the criminal complaint, Matthew was driving 101.9 miles per hour when she failed to negotiate a left-hand curve, lost control of the car, hit some landscape rocks, went airborne, took out a utility pole and flipped over. She and her cousin were both thrown from the vehicle. Barvilchak was pronounced dead at the scene. Matthew was taken to the hospital in critical condition. She survived the crash. Police say Matthew’s blood-alcohol level was also more than two times the legal limit, listed in the court papers at 0.184%. On the night of Feb. 6, after playing beer pong with friends in Brentwood, Barvilchak got into a car with her cousin.
May 27, 2021 4:10 am
LEECHBURG, Pa. — (WPXI) – The body of a man missing from a campground near Leechburg has been found in the Allegheny River. According to our partners at Channel 11, the Armstrong County Coroner confirmed the body of Nathan Lauer was found near the area where he was reported missing. Lauer, 38, of Punxsutawney was last seen about 7:30 a.m. at a campsite along Johnetta Road. That witness told investigators that he, Lauer and others were drinking through the night. Lauer decided to go into the water the next morning. Several agencies searched nearby parts of the river in over the last week. An autopsy will be conducted. The incident is still under investigation by the Pennsylvania State Police, Kittanning and the Armstrong Co. Coroner’s Office.
May 26, 2021 12:46 pm
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) – Former Sen. John W. Warner of Virginia has died. He was a former Navy secretary who was married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor when he first ran for the Senate in 1978, and held onto the seat for 30 years. His longtime chief of staff said he died Tuesday of heart failure at home in Alexandria, Virginia, with his wife and daughter at his side. Warner was a centrist Republican and powerful chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee who supported the war in Iraq. He also had an independent streak and drew support from moderates on both sides of America’s political divide. He was 94.
May 26, 2021 12:43 pm
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – An employee opened fire at a California rail yard serving Silicon Valley, killing eight people before ending his own life. Authorities say the shooting took place Wednesday in San Jose at a transit control center that stores trains and has a maintenance yard. Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said the suspect was an employee of the Valley Transportation Authority, which provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest county in the Bay Area. He said the attack also resulted in “multiple major injuries.” The attacker was identified as 57-year-old Sam Cassidy, according to two law enforcement officials.
May 26, 2021 12:39 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A judge has upheld the jail sentence of the former Penn State president who was forced out as the school’s top administrator after Jerry Sandusky was arrested nearly a decade ago. The judge says Graham Spanier must report to jail on July 9 to begin serving at least two months for endangering the welfare of children, followed by two months of house arrest. Spanier had stayed out of jail during appeals. A Penn State spokesperson says Spanier remains a tenured faculty member on administrative leave who is not teaching classes.
May 26, 2021 4:57 am
A Carmichaels man was pronounced dead at Washington Health System-Greene Tuesday afternoon following a standoff with police. The Greene County Coroner says a cause and manner of death for 59 year old Jeffry Christopher are pending. No other details are being released. State Police say they were initially called to do a welfare check on the man late Monday night. He refused to come out and when officers returned with a mental health warrant they say he fired two shots at police from inside his home in a mobile home park along Route 88 in Cumberland Township. Police say they made entry into the home just after 9 a.m. Tuesday and Christopher was transported by ambulance to the hospital. State Police continue to investigate.
May 26, 2021 4:23 am
ROME (AP) – Police in northern Italy have made three arrests in the cable car disaster that killed 14 people. Police made the arrests after an investigation showed a clamp was placed on the brake as a patchwork repair effort and prevented the brake from engaging after the lead cable snapped. Carabinieri Lt. Col. Alberto Cicognani told Sky TG24 on Wednesday that the three people admitted to their involvement during questioning overnight. áHe said the fork-shaped clamp was placed on the brake as a temporary solution to prevent further interruptions in the funicular service.After the lead cable snapped Sunday, the cabin reeled back down the line until it pulled off, crashed to the ground and rolled over.
May 26, 2021 4:21 am
LEESBURG, Fla. (AP) – Officials say a firefighting helicopter with four people on board has crashed near an airport in central Florida, killing at least one person. The Federal Aviation Administration says the helicopter crashed into a marsh near Leesburg International Airport during a training exercise around 4 p.m. Tuesday. Leesburg Fire Rescue said in a Facebook post that one body was recovered and that the crash appears to be a “total loss.” No survivors have been found. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. Officials did not immediately release additional information.
May 26, 2021 4:21 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Senate Republicans are reviving negotiations over President Joe Biden’s sweeping investment plan. On Tuesday, they prepared a $1 trillion infrastructure proposal that would be funded with COVID-19 relief money as a counteroffer to the White House ahead of a Memorial Day deadline toward a bipartisan deal. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said a week of progress was expected. Talks over the infrastructure investment are at a crossroads as Biden reaches for a top legislative priority. The White House is assessing whether Biden can strike a deal with Republicans or whether he will go it alone with Democrats.
