July 6, 2019 4:12 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania will allow school districts to turn school cancellations into school days by delivering lesson plans to students at home. The bill signed Tuesday by Gov. Tom Wolf writes a three-year pilot program into law to let all school districts participate in the flexible instruction day program. Under the law, students do not physically attend school. Rather, they must get and complete lessons at home so that a flexible instruction day counts toward the 180 days of instruction currently required annually. The law caps a school’s flexible instructional days at five a year. A district that wants to participate must show the state Department of Education how it will record attendance, institute the program and accommodate students who lack the right technology at home, such as internet access.
July 5, 2019 3:56 pm
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – Utah police say the body of a slain college student has been recovered. The disclosure came at a news conference Friday in the case involving 23-year-old Mackenzie Lueck.
Authorities previously said some of her remains were found in a suspect’s backyard in Salt Lake City. The body was discovered in a canyon 85 miles north of the city. Lueck disappeared June 17, after she returned from a trip to her hometown of El Segundo, California, and took a Lyft from the airport to a park where she met someone. Police say the last person she communicated with was 31-year-old Ayoola A. Ajayi, who was also in the park. He’s being held on suspicion of aggravated murder, kidnapping and other crimes. No attorney has been listed for him.
July 5, 2019 3:41 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania’s governor is vetoing legislation that carried $90 million to help counties buy new voting machines before 2020’s elections, but ordered changes to election laws that the Democrat says don’t help improve voting security or access.
Gov. Tom Wolf issued the veto Friday. It passed the Republican-controlled Legislature last week. Just seven Democrats voted for it.
Wolf began pressing counties last year to replace their voting machines after federal authorities warned Pennsylvania and other states that Russian hackers targeted them during 2016’s presidential election.
One provision eliminates the straight-party ticket voting option on ballots. Wolf says that could lead to voter confusion and longer lines at polls.
Wolf says he’s still committed to helping counties pay for voting machines and that more should be done to make it easier to vote.
July 5, 2019 2:15 pm
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WPXI) – Police in Donora are searching for a 14 year old boy missing since Wednesday. According to our news partner WPXI TV, Jaime Watkins was seen leaving his home at 3:30 PM on July 3. He was seen entering a white Pontiac Sunfire driven by a woman in her 20s or 30s. There were two younger children in the car at the time. Watkins is 5 feet 8 and about 106 pounds. Donora Police are asking for help. If you have any information please call Donora Police at 724-379-6600.
July 5, 2019 4:19 am
NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) – Police in the Bahamas say a helicopter flying from Big Grand Cay island to Fort Lauderdale has crashed, killing seven Americans on board. A statement from the Royal Bahamas Police Force said the cause of Thursday’s crash two miles off Grand Cay was under investigation. It identified the people killed as four women and three men. Reports from West Virginia Governor Jim Justice confirms two of the people dead came from his state. West Virginia coal billionaire and philanthropist Chris Cline was one individual on the flight, along with his daughter. It said police and civil aviation authorities were probing the crash.
July 5, 2019 4:17 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The strongest earthquake in 20 years shook a large swath of Southern California and parts of Nevada on the July 4th holiday, rattling nerves and causing injuries and damage in a town near the epicenter, followed by a swarm of ongoing aftershocks. The 6.4 magnitude quake struck at 10:33 a.m. Thursday in the Mojave Desert, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) northeast of Los Angeles, near the town of Ridgecrest, California. Kern County Fire Chief David Witt says multiple injuries and two house fires were reported in the town of 28,000. Emergency crews were also dealing with small vegetation fires, gas leaks and reports of cracked roads. Witt says 15 patients were evacuated from the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital as a precaution and out of concern for aftershocks.
July 5, 2019 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump celebrated the Fourth of July on the National Mall with a salute to the military and American heroes of all types. Sticking closely to his script, Trump celebrated the story of America as “the greatest political journey in human history.” Supporters welcomed his tribute to the U.S. military while protesters assailed him for putting himself center stage on a holiday devoted to unity. As rain fell on him, Trump called on Americans to “stay true to our cause” during a program that adhered to patriotic themes and hailed an eclectic mix of history’s heroes, from the armed forces, space, civil rights and other endeavors of American life. A late afternoon downpour drenched the capital’s Independence Day crowds and Trump’s speech unfolded in occasional rain.
July 5, 2019 4:11 am
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – Fireworks sales in West Virginia continue to bring in less revenue than predicted. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the fireworks safety fee brought in just under $644,000 in 2018. When the 6 percent sales tax is added, total tax revenue from fireworks sales comes to just under $966,000. That’s about one-third of the $2.8 million in annual revenue the Tax Department projected when the Legislature legalized fireworks sales in 2016. The 2019 Fireworks Safety Fee Report says the 12 percent fireworks safety fee could be contributing to low sales. It notes that neighboring states of Ohio and Kentucky collect only sales taxes on fireworks purchases. The report also notes that fireworks retailers in nearby states have permanent, year round locations.
July 5, 2019 4:09 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Police say 33 people protesting the treatment of migrants and asylum seekers were cited after briefly interrupting a Fourth of July parade in Philadelphia. About 300 people had marched to the Independence Mall area Thursday within sight of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell after demonstrating outside the building housing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices. Police said some members of the group briefly interrupted the Salute to America parade, and 33 were detained and cited. Police said there were no injuries or property damage. The protesters, assembled by a group called “Never Again is Now,” were demanding the closure of border detention centers and the abolition of the immigration agency. Organizer Sarah Giskin said they want “safe and ethical solutions” allowing people to stay here and remain with their families.
July 5, 2019 4:06 am
OHIO TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WPXI) – One person is dead after a motorcycle crash on I-279 south in Ohio Township on Thursday. State police said Samuel Lopez, 25, from McKeesport, was killed when his motorcycle veered off the road and went down an embankment around 5 p.m. Police are asking anyone who saw what happened to give them a call because right now, it’s not clear why Lopez lost control.
