February 8, 2020 4:34 am
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa Democrats are recovering from a number of disappointments after Monday’s Iowa caucuses, though one has received less attention than the others. About 176,000 Iowans attended their precinct caucuses. That’s fewer than expected, and 62,000 less than the party’s high-water mark of 2008. The parade of candidates and marquee events that drew thousands of activists and a Democratic base seething to unseat President Donald Trump had given some party insiders the impression turnout could match or top 2008.
February 8, 2020 4:18 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — A high school student was seriously burned in the middle of school. She says a classmate set her pants on fire for no reason, and now that other student – 18-year-old Andre Allen – is facing serious charges. The victim was inside Perry Traditional Academy in Pittsburgh when the unprovoked attack happened. She was treated for second-degree burns to her knee. According to a police criminal complaint, Allen had a lighter and was walking down the hallway. The other student was actually talking to the assistant principal when police said Allen bent down and lit her pants on fire. The principal helped the victim put the fire out, but the damage had been done. School police said Allen lit the student’s frayed jeans on her right knee, and she was treated for second-degree burns. Officials could only say they are “unable to share information related to an ongoing investigation involving a student.” Investigators also said the incident was caught on the school’s security cameras, and police have entered that as evidence in the case. Allen is facing aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and arson charges. It’s unclear if he is still in school. He is awaiting a preliminary hearing on those charges.
February 8, 2020 4:14 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — The attorneys for the man on trial for the 2016 Wilkinsburg mass shooting claim a witness told them he was paid by prosecutors to provide fabricated information against suspect Cheron Shelton. During a motions hearing Friday afternoon, defense attorney Randall McKinney told the judge the witness came forward Monday, the day the trial began. McKinney claimed that witness was paid by the Allegheny County Police Department, Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to provide information on Shelton related to the March 2016 shooting during a barbecue on Franklin Avenue that killed five people and an unborn baby. McKinney asked for a mistrial or for a hearing to be held on the witness’ allegations. Judge Edward Borkowski denied both requests. The witness, who has not been identified, was allegedly in the Allegheny County Jail at the same time as Shelton. “He was told to get close to Mr. Shelton… and get Mr. Shelton to talk about the case and implicate himself,” McKinney said. Assistant District Attorney Kevin Chernosky told the judge the witness is not telling the truth and would not be called to testify. McKinney also asked the court to allow the motion and a transcript of the interview his office conducted with the witness to be made public. Borkowski ended the hearing by sealing the documents until the conclusion of the trial. The hearing happened after the jury was dismissed for the day. The trial will resume Monday morning.
February 7, 2020 4:24 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The decorated soldier and national security aide who played a central role in the Democrats’ impeachment case against President Donald Trump was escorted out of the White House complex on Friday. David Pressman is a partner at a New York legal firm that represented Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. He said Vindman was asked to leave for “telling the truth.” Pressman said in a statement that there is “no question in the mind of any American why this man’s job is over, why this country now has one less soldier serving it at the White House.” Vindman testified that he didn’t think it was “proper” for Trump to press Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.
February 7, 2020 10:15 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Federal investigators say wreckage from the helicopter that crashed last month, killing Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others did not show any evidence of outward engine failure. That’s according to a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board. The helicopter crashed into a hillside outside Los Angeles on Jan. 26. The NTSB is investigating the accident, including any role heavy fog played, and a final report isn’t expected for at least a year. A witness told the NTSB that the helicopter was flying forward and downward through the fog before it crashed into the hill.
February 7, 2020 9:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Hiring jumped at the beginning of the year as employers added 225,000 jobs, bolstering an economy that faces threats from Boeing’s shutdown and a viral outbreak in China. The Labor Department also said that a half-million people poured into the job market in January and not all of them found jobs. That lifted the unemployment rate to 3.6%, from a half-century low of 3.5% in December.
February 7, 2020 8:58 am
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) – More than 260,000 homes and businesses in the eastern United States are without power following a storm that left at least five people dead in the South. The National Weather Service said early Friday the system was expected to strengthen as it moves up the Eastern Seaboard, bringing high winds and rain through the mid-Atlantic region. Gusts up to 55 mph were predicted for the nation’s capital. Hundreds of people have been evacuated from flooding in places across the Southeast, and many school districts have canceled classes. Five storm-related deaths were confirmed in Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee.
February 7, 2020 4:47 am
Washington City Council took up two measures concerning distressed properties at its regular meeting Thursday night. The first measure was to attempt to approve joining the Washington County Land Bank. A motion was put forth but the item died due to lack of a second. The land bank is operated by the Washington County Redevelopment Authority. They purchase distressed properties that are sold at tax sale and rehabilitate those properties and sell them to the public. According to Mayor Scott Putnam, there are some requirements and language items that need to be ironed out before the city is comfortable entering into the arrangement. Putnam says council sees the benefit and they are close to an agreement. The second issue concerned the property at the corner of North Main Street and West Chestnut Street. Council approved a measure to turn the property over to the Redevelopment Authority and have them to assess the property and get estimates to demolish the building and finish any related site work. The measure passed unanimously but Councilman Ken Westcott cautions council to make sure that everything is done in the proper fashion. The city does not own the building and there is a 1 million dollar federal lien against the property. All of this work is pertinent, but he wants to make sure the city is not stuck with a cost that they did not expect.
February 7, 2020 4:36 am
Authorities say they are investigating the possibility that as many as six Ringgold Middle School students may have threatened to shoot up their school on Friday. Classes were cancelled in the district Friday after district officials said they received a tip through the district’s Safe2Say Something Program. Authorities say the juveniles have been questioned and police are still trying to determine if there was an actual plan or talk about violence. The Safe2Say Program was created by the State Attorney General’s Office to allow individuals to report concerns about safety in schools.
February 7, 2020 4:13 am
BEIJING (AP) – Japan has reported 41 new cases of a virus on a cruise ship that’s been quarantined in Yokohama harbor while the death toll in mainland China rose to 636, including a doctor who got in trouble with authorities in the communist country for sounding an early warning about the disease threat. Two docked cruise ships with thousands of passengers and crew members remained under 14-day quarantines in Hong Kong and Japan. Before Friday’s 41 confirmed cases, 20 passengers who were found infected with the virus were escorted off the Diamond Princess at Yokohama near Tokyo. About 3,700 people are confined aboard the ship. A newborn discovered infected 36 hours after birth has become the youngest known patient.
