May 26, 2021 4:20 am
NEW YORK (AP) – New York prosecutors have convened a special grand jury to consider evidence in a criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump’s business dealings. That’s according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday. The person wasn’t authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity. The development signals that the Manhattan district attorney’s office was moving toward seeking charges as a result of its two-year investigation, which included a lengthy legal battle to obtain Trump’s tax records. In a statement, Trump called the investigation a “witch hunt,” saying it’s “purely political” and “driven by highly partisan Democrat prosecutors.” The district attorney’s office declined to comment.
May 26, 2021 4:19 am
NEW DELHI (AP) – Heavy winds and a high tide are lashing parts of India’s eastern coast as a cyclone moves ashore where more than 1.1 million people have evacuated. Sustained winds up to 87 miles per hour were blowing, but the storm was forecast to weaken through the day. Television images showed knee-deep water in a beach resort town and wind whipping palm trees. Cyclone Yaas caused two deaths and damage to homes on Tuesday before it began making landfall around midday Wednesday. The cyclone comes amid a coronavirus surge, with both complicating the disaster response efforts.
May 26, 2021 4:16 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – StarKist Co. has announced plans to move its corporate headquarters from Pittsburgh to Virginia next year. StarKist, known for cartoon mascot Charlie the Tuna, said in a statement that the headquarters on Pittsburgh’s North Shore will close at the end of March 2022 “but the company will maintain a presence in the region.” The new headquarters will be in the Washington D.C. area. StarKist, originally the French Sardine Co., was founded in California in 1917 and became StarKist Foods in 1953. The connection with landlocked Pittsburgh came in a 1963 sale to H.J. Heinz Co. Its current parent company is Dongwon Industries of South Korea.
May 26, 2021 4:13 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Republicans who control Pennsylvania’s Legislature are advancing hot-button bills to restrict abortion rights and expand gun rights, although the bills faced opposition by Democratic lawmakers and certain veto by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf. In the House Health Committee on Tuesday, Republicans passed two bills to further restrict abortion rights. One would restrict abortion after the detection of a fetal heartbeat. The other bill would prohibit an abortion on the basis of a Down syndrome diagnosis. In the House Judiciary Committee, Republicans passed a bill to allow people to carry a loaded firearm openly or concealed, without a permit, and revived legislation to make it easier to sue municipalities over gun ordinances that are stricter than state law.
May 26, 2021 4:12 am
PITTSBURGH — Giant Eagle is recalling Chicken Street Taco Kits due to the possibility there is an undeclared egg allergen. The company said the impacted products have “sell by” dates through 05/28/21 and can be identified by PLU 56598 located in the upper right corner of the item’s scale tag. The recalled items were sold in the prepared foods departments at Giant Eagle and Market District locations in PA, OH, MD, and IN. There has been no reported illness associated with this recall. Customers who have purchased the affected product should dispose of it and return a qualifying receipt to their local Giant Eagle or Market District store for a refund. Customers with questions may call Giant Eagle Customer Care at 1-800-553-2324 Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. EST.
May 26, 2021 3:03 am
McDONALD, Pa. — State Police continue to investigate a double-murder and suicide inside a home in McDonald that left two women and a man dead. “I’ve never witnessed anything like that. Never have I ever,” said neighbor Carol Gates. State Police say James Garove, 27, his girlfriend, Christina Carr, 27, and Carr’s mother, Susan Faingnaert, 57, were all found shot to death Monday night just after 8 p.m. Police say Garove was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Gates has lived on Valley Street for about a year and said the shootings happened just feet from her front door. “This was awful, awful. And, like I said, the neighbors, they’re so quiet. They’d do anything for you, and then to have something like that happen. She was so nice. Really, a nice girl,” Gates said.
May 25, 2021 1:31 pm
Several grants from the Commonwealth Financing Authority are on their way to the area. State Representative Pam Snyder (D-50) announced four grants that will be used in Fayette and Greene counties for blight remediation. Rices Landing will receive $100,000 to demolish an old bank building that has been vacant for many years. The Redevelopment Authority of the County of Greene will receive $100,000 to demolish six units and refurbish five homes. Redstone Township in Fayette County will receive $25,000 to create a comprehensive blight plan and the Redevelopment Authority of the County of Fayette will receive $225,000 to complete demolition of the former Northside Hospital and nurses house in Brownsville.
May 25, 2021 9:49 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. home prices jumped by the most in more than seven years in March, as an increasing number of would-be buyers compete for a dwindling supply of houses. The March S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index, released Tuesday, rose 13.3% from a year earlier, the biggest gain since December 2013. That increase followed a surge of 12% in February. The large gains suggest that the pandemic has spurred more Americans to seek out the extra room provided by a single-family home. Yet at the same time, COVID has discouraged many homeowners from selling and opening up their homes to would-be buyers.
May 25, 2021 8:45 am
UNDATED (AP) – Moderna says its COVID-19 vaccine strongly protects kids as young as 12. The company released the preliminary findings Tuesday based on testing on more than 3,700 12- to 17-year-olds in the United States. Earlier this month, the U.S. and Canada authorized another vaccine by Pfizer and BioNTech to be used starting at age 12. Moderna intends to submit its teen data to the Food and Drug Administration and other global regulators early next month. Moderna says its vaccine triggered the same signs of immune protection in kids as it does in adults, and the same mild, temporary side effects.
May 25, 2021 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Biden administration says it will appeal a judge’s order directing it to release a legal memo on whether President Donald Trump had obstructed justice during the Russia investigation. Earlier this month U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordered the Justice Department to release the March 2019 memo as part of a public records lawsuit from an advocacy organization. She said the department, then under Attorney General William Barr, had misstated the purpose of the document in arguing that it was entitled to withhold it from the group. In a motion filed late Monday, the Justice Department said that it continued to believe even in the new administration that the full document was exempt from disclosure.
