August 5, 2019 8:40 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Prosecutors are calling for a life prison sentence for a Florida amateur body builder who sent pipe bombs to prominent Democrats and CNN. His lawyers say a decade in prison is enough. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff is scheduled Monday to decide how long Cesar Sayoc will spend behind bars. The one-time stripper and pizza delivery man from Aventura, Florida, faces a mandatory decade in prison after pleading guilty to explosives charges for mailing 16 inoperative pipe bombs days before the midterm elections last fall. Sayoc says he never intended for the explosives to work when he mailed them to Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Joe Biden, former President Barack Obama, actor Robert De Niro and several members of Congress. Prosecutors say a life sentence is “necessary and appropriate.”
August 5, 2019 4:31 am
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. (AP) – Police say an Amtrak passenger train was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Oregon after a man threatened to harm himself and others. The Klamath County Sheriff’s Office says 25-year-old Mason Lira of Fresno, California, was charged with disorderly conduct and interfering with public transportation Sunday. Police say Lira was arrested after the Coast Starlight train from Los Angeles to Seattle stopped west of Highway 58. Authorities say train personnel contacted police around 11 a.m. after Lira made unusual gestures, statements about weapons and threats to passengers and the conductor. First responders were dispatched to the scene at Odell Lake near Shelter Cove. Authorities say no weapons were found, and there were no injuries reported. The train with 272 passengers and 15 crew members was delayed for nearly five hours.
August 5, 2019 4:29 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Seoul’s military says South Korea and the United States are preparing to hold their annual joint military exercises despite warnings from North Korea that the drills could derail the fragile nuclear diplomacy. South Korea’s Defense Ministry said the exercises will be focused on verifying Seoul’s capabilities for its planned retaking of wartime operational control of its troops from Washington. It did not confirm reports that the drills began on Monday. North Korea has been ramping up its weapons tests in recent weeks while expressing frustration over the planned drills it sees as an invasion rehearsal and also the slow pace of nuclear negotiations with the United States. The North suggested last month it might call off its unilateral suspension of nuclear and long-range missile tests if the drills take place.
August 5, 2019 4:26 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump is calling the recent mass shootings “evil attacks” that are crimes “against all humanity” and says unity must replace hatred in society. Trump gave a speech from the White House on Monday following weekend shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, that left 29 people dead and dozens wounded. He called the shootings “barbaric slaughters.” Trump says “in one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy.” He urges Democrats and Republicans to set aside partisanship and find solutions to violence.
August 5, 2019 4:21 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A former Pittsburgh homicide detective accused of filing false police reports and evidence-tampering has been fined $200 after pleading no contest to two counts. Fifty-three-year-old Margaret Sherwood entered the no contest plea Friday to hindering prosecution or apprehension by providing false information to law enforcement. In such a plea, a defendant doesn’t acknowledge guilt but concedes that prosecutors have enough evidence for a conviction. State prosecutors accused her of providing false information in two 2014 slayings and trying to scuttle a domestic violence prosecution of a jailhouse informant. Sherwood was hired as a police officer in 1989 and retired in June 2018 after 27 years. Defense attorney Patrick Thomassey suggested that his client was a “scapegoat” and said she wanted to get on with her life.
August 5, 2019 4:20 am
MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (AP) – Authorities say a car flipped over the infield fence at a central Pennsylvania speedway and struck a track volunteer, killing him. The Cumberland County coroner’s office said two Sprint car drivers crashed into each other while rounding a turn at Williams Grove Speedway just before 9:30 p.m. Friday. Coroner Charles Hall said one of the cars went out of control, hit the inside wall and then flipped up and over the infield fence. The car struck a man sitting in the back of a pickup truck parked along the fence. Hall said 67-year-old Richard Speck Jr., of Mechanicsburg, a volunteer at the track, was pronounced dead at the scene. The speedway said the rest of Friday night’s racing program was canceled. State police, the coroner’s office and speedway officials are investigating. (Photo: PennLive)
August 5, 2019 4:19 am
DAYTON, Ohio – A Washington man was among those killed in Sunday morning’s mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio. Nicholas Cumer was a student at St. Francis University and graduated from Washington High School in 2012. Cumer was a graduate student in the Master of Cancer Care program. He was in Dayton as part of his internship program with the Maple Tree Cancer Alliance. The Maple Tree Cancer Alliance said on Facebook that just last week, they offered Cumer a full-time position to run one of their new offices. The family has released the following statement: “We are heartbroken by the loss of our Nicholas in this senseless act on August 4. As our family grieves, we ask for privacy at this time. Thank you.” St. Francis University President Fr. Malachi Van Tassell also released a statement: “Nicholas was dedicated to caring for others. He was recognized at the 2019 Community Engagement Awards among students who had completed 100+ hours of service. In addition, he was a graduate assistant with the university marching band. “We join the nation in mourning Nicholas, alongside all of the victims of this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends during this most difficult time.” University officials said a Mass would be celebrated in Cumer’s memory later in the week.
August 4, 2019 8:30 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) – If pinball machines or video games are your idea of fun, they’re filling the David L. Lawrence Convention Center this weekend. The Replay FX Arcade and Video Game Festival has turned the facility into one of the largest arcades anywhere. There are more than 1,000 games to play, including pinball, console games like Xbox and PS4, virtual reality systems, PC games and tabletop games. Pittsburgh’s official esports team, the Pittsburgh Knights, will also be hosting competitions at the event.
August 4, 2019 8:24 am
BALTIMORE (AP) – Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings is inviting President Donald Trump and other Americans to Baltimore, taking the high road after a barrage of presidential tweets disparaging the black-majority city and its long-serving Democratic congressman. Cummings made his first public remarks after days of Trump’s name-calling and criticism during the opening of a neighborhood park on Saturday. He called Baltimore “a great community.” At 68, and using a walker, the congressman said he doesn’t have time for those who criticize the city where he grew up. He wants to hear from people willing to help make the community better. The park was built on a formerly vacant lot often filled with trash. Cummings said, “Come to Baltimore, and you will be welcome.” Trump in a tweet called the city a “rat and rodent infested mess.”
August 4, 2019 8:22 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) – St. Raphael School in Morningside will not reopen this upcoming school year. The Board of Pittsburgh Regional Catholic Elementary Schools met in June and July to talk about this. They found that only 39 students registered for next school year.
