July 24, 2019 4:21 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Like Europe before it, the U.S. government looks ready to try reining in its technology giants. But doing so may be more difficult than it seems. On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Justice opened a sweeping antitrust investigation of major technology companies and whether their online platforms have hurt competition, suppressed innovation or otherwise harmed consumers. It said the probe will take into account “widespread concerns” about social media, search engines and online retail services. Europe has investigated and fined a number of major U.S. tech companies over the past several years.
July 24, 2019 4:16 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Scores of police officers, officials and members of the community gathered to pay their respects to an off-duty Pittsburgh police officer shot to death in a street confrontation more than a week ago. Relatives of 35-year-old Officer Calvin Hall were among those speaking during Tuesday’s service at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. Hall’s sister remembered her brother as “the rock of our family.” His father performed a song he wrote and dedicated to his son. Hall died Wednesday, three days after he was shot three times in the back during a street dispute in the Homewood neighborhood as a party was going on. Charges were announced against a suspect Monday afternoon as a viewing for the slain officer was being held.
July 24, 2019 4:15 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. – (WPXI) – Police said a Greene County man is accused of trying to lure an 11-year-old girl into his pickup truck. Marvin Murin, 53, faces a felony child luring charge after police said he rolled up to a woman who was walking with the girl near the intersection of N. Franklin and W. Beau Streets . Police said Murin allegedly opened the door of his truck, yelled out “come here,” and whistled at the young girl. Murin then drove away as the mother called 911, police said. The mother was able to provide a detailed description of the man, as well as the truck and license plate number. Police then reportedly used surveillance video captured by a camera at the Washington County Courthouse identify the vehicle and Murin. Police have issued a summons for him to appear in court.
July 24, 2019 4:12 am
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – West Virginia’s new Roman Catholic bishop vowed Tuesday to work toward restoring faith in the diocese after a scandal over the former bishop’s sexual harassment of adults and lavish spending of church money. Pope Francis named Baltimore Auxiliary Bishop Mark Brennan to lead the state’s Catholics. The 72-year-old Brennan replaces Bishop Michael Bransfield, who resigned in September after a preliminary investigation into allegations of sexual and financial misconduct. “I want you to know how acutely aware I am of the deep disappointment and pain that you have experienced as a result of your former bishop’s misdeeds,” Brennan said at a news conference in Wheeling. “I’m not a magician. I’m not a wonder worker. I’m your brother in Christ. And I’m willing to work hard with you to make this corner of the Lord’s vineyard a place of faith as steadfast as the mountains, of hope as invigorating as fast-flowing streams, and of love as welcoming as the sun.” Last week, Francis barred Bransfield from public ministry and prohibited him from living in the diocese, while warning that he will be forced to make amends “for some of the harm he caused.” Brennan will now help decide the extent of those reparations as he seeks to restore trust among the Catholic faithful.
July 24, 2019 4:08 am
ROSS TOWNSHIP, Pa. – (WPXI) – One person was killed Tuesday after a shootout with police in the parking lot of a McKnight Road shopping center. Police at the scene told our news partners at Channel 11 there was a shootout between the suspect and police in the area outside of Big Lots in Ross Township. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said the name of the shooting victim is Omari Ali Thompson, 31. Allegheny County Police said at about 1 p.m. Tuesday, an undercover drug operation was in progress in the parking lot with a narcotics agent from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office narcotics task force. Police said at 1:07, the first calls went out to 911 for shots fired in the area. At 1:15, police said the subject of the undercover operation, Thompson, was pronounced dead. The narcotics officer involved was taken to a regional trauma center in stable condition. Police said he was conscious, alert, and with his family. “The OAG officer involved in today’s shooting was shot twice and is in stable condition with no life-threatening injuries. This incident occurred during an operation by our Bureau of Narcotics Investigations. The Attorney General plans to travel to Allegheny County to visit with the officer and his family,” a statement from the Attorney General said. Police said the Homicide Unit would be conducting an investigation into the shooting and Thompson’s death. Following that, the findings would be turned over to the District Attorney for review on the use-of-force.
July 23, 2019 5:45 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate has given final legislative approval to a bill ensuring that a victims’ compensation fund related to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks never runs out of money. The 97-2 vote sends the bill to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it. The vote came after Democratic senators agreed to allow votes on amendments sponsored by two Republican senators who had been blocking the widely popular bill. The Senate easily defeated the amendments proposed by GOP Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Rand Paul of Kentucky. Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York said 9/11 first responders and their families have had “enough of political games.” The bill would extend through 2092 a fund created after the 2001 terrorist attacks, essentially making it permanent.
July 23, 2019 3:26 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate has confirmed Army veteran and former defense industry lobbyist Mark Esper as secretary of defense. Esper’s confirmation ends a stretch of seven months the Pentagon didn’t have a permanent leader. Esper won Senate confirmation on Tuesday by a vote of 90-8 and is to be sworn in by day’s end. The Pentagon had been without a permanent boss since Jim Mattis stepped down last New Year’s Eve. Deputy Secretary Patrick Shanahan became the acting secretary, but after six months as the fill-in the former Boeing executive abruptly quit. Esper then became the acting secretary, but once he was nominated last week he had to step aside until a Senate vote. For the past week the Pentagon has been run by yet another fill-in, Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer. (Photo: CNN)
July 23, 2019 3:22 pm
NEW YORK (AP) – President Donald Trump is suing the House Ways and Means Committee and New York state officials to prevent his state tax returns from being turned over to the congressional committee. The lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in Washington, seeks an injection to block a new state law. The law, which went into effect earlier this month, would allow the Democratic-controlled House and Ways Means Committee to obtain the returns. This is the latest legal front on which Trump is battling House Democrats. The committee sued the Treasury Department and IRS officials this month in an attempt to enforce a law that allows its chairman to obtain any taxpayer’s returns. The administration and the president’s business have repeatedly tried to stall Democrats’ investigations by filing lawsuits and by not cooperating.
July 23, 2019 3:14 pm
ROSS TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WPXI) – One person was killed Tuesday after a shootout with police in the parking lot of a McKnight Road shopping center. Police at the scene told Channel 11’s Rick Earle there was a shootout between the suspect and police in the area outside of Big Lots in Ross Township. Law enforcement sources told Earle this was a multi-jurisdiction drug investigation that involved an undercover drug operation in the parking lot. The police officer involved was with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office “The OAG officer involved in today’s shooting was shot twice and is in stable condition with no life-threatening injuries. This incident occurred during an operation by our Bureau of Narcotics Investigations. The Attorney General plans to travel to Allegheny County to visit with the officer and his family,” a statement from the Attorney General said. The suspect was killed at the scene. The police officer was shot twice and taken to the hospital. Investigators at the scene said he is expected to be OK. Earle spoke to a woman who was in the store at the time. She said she heard the shooting and barricaded herself in a room in the store and moved a refrigerator to block the door. The shooting happened while dozens of police officers were at the funeral for Pittsburgh police officer Calvin Hall, who was shot and killed last week.
July 23, 2019 1:48 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) – David Hedison, who starred in the original sci-fi classic “The Fly” and appeared in two James Bond films, has died. He was 92. A representative from Hedison’s family says in an email Monday that he died peacefully Thursday in Los Angeles with his daughters at his side. He is also known for his role as Capt. Lee Crane in the long-running sci-fi television series “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” and as Spencer Harrison on the series “Another World.” Hedison played scientist Andre Delambre who turned into an insect in the 1958 film “The Fly.” He played CIA agent Felix Leiter in Bond films “To Live and Let Die” and “License to Kill.”
