September 28, 2019 4:09 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A man accused of providing a white powdery substance tainted with fentanyl at an after-party in Pittsburgh last weekend, leading to the death of three men, has pleaded not guilty to numerous charges. Peter Rene Sanchez Montalvo entered his plea Thursday during a brief hearing, one day a federal grand jury returned a seven-count indictment against him. The 25-year-old California man faces a single count of possessing drugs with the intent to distribute and six counts related to the three deaths as well as injuries suffered by four other men who used the drugs. Authorities have said all of the people who overdosed had been at the same bar Saturday night. They later attended a party at an apartment where Montalvo allegedly passed around what they thought was cocaine.
September 28, 2019 4:07 am
There will be some differences and some constants over the coming days as a Jewish congregation in Pittsburgh observes Rosh Hashana for the first time since three members were among 11 people killed by a gunman nearly a year ago. The man who last year blew the New Light congregation’s shofar for the Jewish New Year was among those killed. In the place of Richard Gottfried will be Rabbi Jonathan Perlman. Perlman’s wife says the congregation plans no changes in the substance of its services over the two-day holiday that starts Sunday evening. Leaders of the Tree of Life synagogue’s three congregations have been planning for commemorations Oct. 27 to mark the year since the massacre. The leaders say they plan to return eventually to the Tree of Life synagogue to worship there regularly. No date has been set.
September 27, 2019 5:26 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania’s top law enforcement officer is joining several other top state Democratic officials in backing the legalization of marijuana for recreational use by adults. Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a Friday statement on Twitter that he changed his mind after months of internal research and discussions with law enforcement colleagues. Shapiro’s announcement comes two days after Gov. Tom Wolf made a similar announcement that he supports it. Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, both Democrats, have long supported the idea, too. However, leaders of the Republican-controlled Legislature have pushed back forcefully and said they oppose it. Only two state legislatures, in Vermont and Illinois, have passed bills to legalize marijuana. Voters in nine other states legalized marijuana through referendum, an avenue that Pennsylvania law doesn’t allow.
September 27, 2019 1:54 pm
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Mylan has agreed to pay $30 million in a settlement tied to its failure to tell investors about a Justice Department investigation into whether the company overcharged Medicaid for the EpiPen. The Securities and Exchange Commission said today that Mylan NV classified the EpiPen as a “generic” drug under the Medicaid drug rebate program. This led to the pharmaceutical company paying much lower rebates to the government than if the EpiPen had been classified as a “branded” drug. Mylan disclosed in July that it had reached an agreement-in-principle with the SEC on the matter. The company said in their statement today that it neither admits nor denies the SEC’s allegations.
September 27, 2019 4:19 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Dogged by the threat of impeachment, President Donald Trump turned a meeting with U.S. sheriffs into a mini-pep rally. Sheriffs standing on staircases at the rear of the White House broke into cheers and applause when they saw Trump leave the Oval Office and walk up the driveway toward them. They shouted “We’ve got your back, Mr. President” and “Amen” and chanted “U-S-A, U-S-A.” The sheriffs met privately with Trump before presenting him with an award in front of the news media. They were in Washington to lobby Congress to act on border security and immigration policy. Trump is facing possible impeachment by the House after a whistleblower alleged he used his office to “solicit interference from a foreign country” in next year’s U.S. presidential election.
September 27, 2019 4:16 am
TORONTO (AP) – A newly released video shows a man who allegedly used a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto telling police that he’s part of an online group of sexually frustrated men who plot attacks against people who have sex. Alek Minassian faces 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder in connection with the April 23, 2018 attack. The deadly van rampage trained attention on an online world of sexual loneliness, rage and misogyny after the suspect invoked an uprising by “involuntary celibates” and gave a shoutout on social media to a California killer who seethed at women for rejecting him.
September 27, 2019 4:14 am
DETROIT (AP) – General Motors now says striking workers will get company-paid health insurance, nine days after saying coverage would be cut off. The company says in an email to the United Auto Workers union that it will keep benefits in place due to significant confusion among members. The letter says employee health and well-being are GM’s top priorities. Workers howled and politicians criticized GM after the company said it would end benefits the day after the strike began Sept. 16. It’s standard procedure for health care costs to shift to the union in a strike. The United Auto Workers’ website says the union would pick up the cost of premiums. The strike by about 49,000 factory workers has shut down production at more than 30 GM factories. Talks continued Thursday.
September 27, 2019 4:13 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Users of Amazon’s Alexa digital assistant can now request that recordings of their voice commands delete automatically. Amazon says it saves such commands to improve the service. But the practice has raised concerns with privacy experts who say the recordings could get into the wrong hands, especially as Amazon and other companies use human reviewers rather than just machines. Tech companies have been reviewing their practices in light of those concerns. Previously, users had to go into Alexa’s settings and delete recordings manually. Users can now ask Amazon to automatically delete recordings after three months or 18 months. But users need to specify that in the settings, as recordings are kept indefinitely by default. And there’s no automatic option for immediate deletion. Users would still need to do that manually.
September 27, 2019 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – House Democrats are condemning President Donald Trump’s attack on an intelligence community whistleblower, calling it “witness intimidation” in their ongoing impeachment probe. The chairmen of the foreign affairs, intelligence and oversight committees say, “The President’s comments today constitute reprehensible witness intimidation and an attempt to obstruct Congress’ impeachment inquiry.” Trump said at a Thursday breakfast that he wanted to identify the whistleblower and his or her sources, alleging they are “close to a spy” and alluding to the death penalty. Reps. Eliot Engel, Adam Schiff and Elijah Cummings suggest Trump’s efforts to interfere with the potential witness could be unlawful. They add, “Threats of violence from the leader of our country have a chilling effect on the entire whistleblower process, with grave consequences for our democracy and national security.”
September 27, 2019 4:08 am
WASHINGTON CO., Pa. – (WPXI) – The FBI has joined the search with West Mifflin Police who are looking for two children who are believed to be in danger in Washington County. According to investigators, 7-week-old Ambrose Klingensmith and A 3-year-old boy are inside a 2001 Buick Century with two adults – Jeannette Funnen and Daemon Klingensmith. West Mifflin police say they believe the 7-week-old is “at risk of harm or injury.” Police say the baby had been at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh for abdominal bruising consistent with child abuse, however, his parents took off with him from the emergency room before he was examined. Police said the car they were in had a Pennsylvania license plate number of LBD-6681 and was last seen traveling on Washington Road in Peters Township. Also, West Mifflin police say they had been given information that they may be traveling to Florida. Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts is asked to call the West Mifflin Police Department at 412-461-3125. (Photo: West Mifflin Police)
