July 30, 2020 2:10 am
(WPXI) – A woman is suing a local police department because she says she was sexually assaulted by an officer. She said a Monongahela police officer attacked her while he was on duty in a police car. According to the lawsuit, the woman met officer Dustin Devault during a traffic stop in 2018. The state attorney general charged Devault last November. The victim said she told him she wanted to become an officer one day, and he said he could help. She said she met up with him a week later because he promised to help her relative with their drug addiction, but that’s when she says he sexually assaulted her. She said he told her not to tell anyone and that he was best friends with the police chief. Channel 11 does not normally identify victims of sexual assault, but on Wednesday the woman told us she is speaking out publicly to help others. “The reason why I’m standing up today is to allow females to feel like they can stand up for themselves and come forward from sexual assault,” said Jesse Cimino. She said she’s now afraid of men and was asked to leave the military because of the impact the assault had on her. She also said she no longer wants to be a police officer because of this. Her attorneys are seeking damages.
July 29, 2020 10:34 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Defense officials say the U.S. will pull roughly 12,000 troops out of Germany, bringing about 6,400 forces home and shifting 5,600 to other countries in Europe, including Italy and Belgium. The plan will cost billions of dollars and take years to complete. It’s been spurred on by President Donald Trump’s demand to withdraw troops from Germany, at least in part due to its failure to spend enough on defense. Defense Secretary Mark Esper says some moves will begin in months. He says the moves promote larger strategic goals to deter Russia, reassure European allies and shift forces further east into the Black Sea and Baltic region. The plan leaves 24,000 troops in Germany.
July 29, 2020 7:17 am
A McDonald woman was killed in a one-vehicle, rollover crash Wednesday morning in Cecil Township. The Washington County Coroner’s office says it appears that 39-year-old Megan Blair Hookey lost control of her vehicle while traveling south on State Route 980 near Laurel Hill Road just before 3:30 a.m. Authorities say she was not wearing a seatbelt. A cause and manner of death are pending. Cecil Township Police continue to investigate.
July 29, 2020 4:22 am
State officials across the U.S. say Senate Republicans’ proposed slashing of a federally funded boost in unemployment benefits could delay payments for weeks or even months. Democrats are pushing back, arguing that cutting the extra payments to $200 from $600 is bad policy – and that it’s hard to implement. It took some states a month earlier this year to program aging computer systems to handle the initial increase. Under the GOP plan, there would be a second and maybe more challenging step of boosting benefits – so they equal no more than 70% of a person’s previous income.
July 29, 2020 4:21 am
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Oregon Gov. Kate Brown says federal agents who have been guarding the U.S. courthouse during violent protests in downtown Portland, Oregon, will begin withdrawing in the next 24 hours. But Trump administration officials said some would remain in the building and the entire contingent would stay in the city on standby. It was not clear if the complex agreement announced Wednesday would reduce tensions on the streets of Portland, where protests have been staged nightly for more than two months. The deal also seemed likely to further muddle the situation by adding yet another law enforcement agency to the mix – the Oregon State Police.
July 29, 2020 4:20 am
APEX, N.C. (AP) – Vice President Mike Pence said schools around the country will have the resources they need to reopen for in-person learning during a visit to a classroom of masked fourth graders at a North Carolina private school. Pence visited a Raleigh-area campus of Thales Academy on Wednesday as part of a push to encourage more K-12 schools to reopen with in-person instruction. He was accompanied by U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Pence took several questions from students in a classroom and then participated in a round-table discussion. (Photo: AP)
July 29, 2020 4:18 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – A new $1 trillion COVID-19 response package by Senate Republicans is supposed to give the government all the weapons it needs to battle the surging coronavirus pandemic. But Republicans have more than just the “invisible enemy” in mind. They’re proposing billions for F-35 fighters, Apache helicopters and infantry carriers sought by Washington’s powerful defense lobby. Overall, the proposal stuffs $8 billion into Pentagon weapons systems built by defense contractors like Boeing, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics. The bill was drafted by Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Richard Shelby, an Alabama Republican.
July 29, 2020 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Facebook internal company documents are being deployed against CEO Mark Zuckerberg by lawmakers asserting that the company has gobbled up rivals to squelch competition. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the Democrat who heads the House Judiciary Committee, told Zuckerberg at a hearing Wednesday that documents obtained from the company “tell a very disturbing story” of Facebook’s acquisition of the Instagram messaging service. He says the documents show Zuckerberg called Instagram a threat that could “meaningfully hurt” Facebook. The questioning came at a congressional hearing that also featured Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
July 29, 2020 4:16 am
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – Heavy rains are hitting the eastern Caribbean due to a weather system headed to Puerto Rico and other islands that’s expected to develop into a tropical storm and unleash flooding and landslides.The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Wednesday the storm is expected to move over or near Puerto Rico on Wednesday night, then brush the northern shores of Hispaniola the following day while on a path that could take it to the U.S. mainland by the weekend.
July 29, 2020 4:13 am
North Strabane Township Supervisors have authorized the purchase of a second canine police unit. Pending finalization of donations, the township will begin the process of acquiring the dog and training it. Outfitting a vehicle and acquiring protective gear for the dog is also needed. The final number needed to proceed is $75,000 and no action will be taken until that number is reached. No taxpayer dollars will be used for the establishment of the unit. All funds have been privately raised. Supervisors passed an ordinance establishing stricter guidelines for road and sidewalk restoration for utility companies once they have made repairs to their lines. The township will also apply for a PennDot Multi Modal grant to fund improvements along McDowell Lane. The improvements would run in conjunction with the replacement of a bridge that crosses Canonsburg Lake. Bike lanes and expanded pedestrian walkways are envisioned. Monies from developer impact fees will also be used to make up any difference that the grant money would not cover.
