July 12, 2019 4:29 am
The fight against blight continues in the City of Washington. City Council approved 6 properties in a public hearing to be demolished by the Washington County Redevelopment Authority. Following that meeting, council sent 8 properties to their Solicitor to perform title searches so that those houses may be demolished as well. Mayor Scott Putnam is quite proud of council’s accomplishments since he took office. Putnam states that there were 38 properties that needed to be torn down when he was sworn in. With council’s action on Thursday, that number has been taken down below 10. Funds for demolition come from Community Block Grants and LSA funds awarded to the city from the Local Share Accounts generated from proceeds of casino gambling.
July 12, 2019 4:11 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Pennsylvania attorney general’s office says it wants to improve the management and use of firearms-sales databases so that law enforcement can better clamp down on gun violence. Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced Thursday that he wants police departments to enter serial numbers from every crime gun into a law-enforcement database so that its original seller can be identified. His office says most crime guns aren’t being entered, as the law requires. Shapiro also says his office wants retailers to submit gun-sale records electronically to get rid of a police backlog of paper records that are waiting to be entered into a database. Shapiro’s office says that’ll allow law enforcement to more quickly trace guns used in crimes.
The effort comes amid a surge in gun violence in Philadelphia.
July 12, 2019 4:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump will visit Wisconsin on Friday, one of two Midwest stops as he warms up his re-election engine. Wisconsin has emerged as a vital testing ground for the president’s hopes to take credit for the strong economy and push for his trade policy. In 2016, Trump became the first Republican to win the state since Ronald Reagan in 1984, defeating Hillary Clinton by a slim margin. The state remains starkly divided over the president and appears a toss-up again in 2020 In a troubling sign for Trump’s chances in the state, Democrats swept every statewide office in the 2018 fall elections. Trump will make two stops in Milwaukee, one a fundraiser, and the other a visit to Derco Aerospace Inc., a subsidiary of aviation giant Lockheed Martin.
July 12, 2019 4:07 am
NEW ORLEANS (AP) – The city closest to where Tropical Storm Barry is predicted to make landfall is already seeing power outages. Some Louisiana parishes around Morgan City were reporting more than half their customers without electricity around daybreak Saturday. A long day in Morgan City started with on and off rain. People were using cellphones to see in the dark and opening doors and windows to let the warm, sticky tropical air circulate. Barry’s center is expected to slowly move onshore near Morgan City later Saturday. East of Morgan City in New Orleans, only scattered showers and a light breeze stirred up the famous French Quarter. But forecasters warned that heavy rains and possible flooding were coming within hours. In the New Orleans suburbs, the storm’s approach filled Lake Pontchartrain 3 feet (1 meter) above typical levels. Winds pushed water onto streets on the north side of the lake near Mandeville.
July 12, 2019 4:03 am
CHICAGO (AP) – Singer R. Kelly was arrested in Chicago Thursday after he was indicted on 13 federal counts including sex crimes, a U.S. Attorney’s office spokesman said. Joseph Fitzpatrick said the R&B singer was taken into custody about 7 p.m. local time and was being held by federal authorities. He was arrested after a 13-count federal indictment was handed down earlier Thursday in federal court for the Northern District of Illinois. “The counts include child porn, enticement of a minor and obstruction of justice,” Fitzpatrick said, adding that further details would be released Friday. The R&B singer already faces separate state sex-related charges in Illinois involving four women, three of whom were minors when the alleged abuse occurred. He pleaded not guilty to those charges and was released on bail.
July 12, 2019 4:02 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Just a week after insisting that he was “absolutely moving forward,” President Donald Trump has abandoned his effort to insert a citizenship question into next year’s census.
Instead, he directed federal agencies to try to compile the information using existing databases. The president said it is essential to have a clear breakdown of the number of citizens and non-citizens that make up the U.S. population. The decision was clearly a reversal, after the Supreme Court blocked his effort by disputing his administration’s rationale for demanding that census respondents declare whether or not they were citizens. Trump wanted to pursue that effort, but the administration said that census deadlines made it impossible.
July 12, 2019 3:59 am
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (AP) – A man accused of stabbing his girlfriend’s 8-year-old son to death is being extradited to Pennsylvania. Keith Burley appeared before a judge in Youngstown, Ohio, on Thursday, two days after he was arrested there. He waived his extradition hearing and will be returned to Pennsylvania to face homicide and other charges. He’s accused of stabbing the 8-year-old following an altercation with the boy’s mother inside in a car on Monday night. Police say Burley took off with the victim and the boy’s little brother after the mother went to get help. Police say he took them to a home in New Castle, Pennsylvania, and the brother and two other boys witnessed the stabbing. According to a criminal complaint, Burley yelled “Die!” as he stabbed the boy. Burley was on parole for a previous homicide. No attorney information is available.
July 12, 2019 3:57 am
O’HARA TOWNSHIP, Pa. – (WPXI) – The Township of O’Hara has declared a State of Emergency and is advising all residents to leave low-lying areas. Heavy rain has been widespread across the area, with many communities seeing flash and sustained flooding. Carla Hargenrader and her family were asleep in a tent on Seavey Drive until firefighters showed up. “A firefighter was like, ‘Is anyone in there?’ and we were like, ‘Yes, we’re in here’ and there was water all over outside the tent,” Hargenrader said. O’Hara community leaders say residents should ask for emergency aid/help from surrounding areas due to flooded homes/basements/businesses. Nearby, flooding caused southbound Route 28 to close between the Harmar exit (Exit 11) and RIDC Park (Exit 10).
July 12, 2019 3:53 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – The Pennsylvania Health Department is adding anxiety disorders and Tourette’s syndrome to the list of conditions that can qualify people to obtain legal medical marijuana. The heath secretary, Dr. Rachel Levine, announced Thursday she’ll be adding them as of July 20. Levine says her decision was based on the recommendation of the state’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Board and her own review of medical research literature. She says medical marijuana shouldn’t be the first treatments for those conditions, but physicians can recommend it to be used together with traditional therapeutic approaches. The list already includes cancer, epilepsy, intractable seizures, post-traumatic stress disorder, terminal illness and other conditions. Nearly 111,000 Pennsylvanians have been certified for participation in the state’s medical marijuana program .
July 11, 2019 1:41 pm
Today, Senator and presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand kicked off the “Trump Broken Promises Tour” with a roundtable in Pittsburgh, joined by health care workers and other activists, to discuss the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and the rising cost of prescription drugs that is harming hardworking families and their bottom line. “Time after time, President Trump has broken his promises to the American people, particularly when it comes to kitchen table issues and lowering their cost of living. Far too often, hard-working Americans across the country are forced to make the impossible decision between paying for the medication they need, or keeping food on the table,” said Senator Gillibrand. “We need to make sure the healthcare system works for everyone and we will start by actually holding drug companies accountable for their predatory practices and ensuring that people have access to safe and affordable drugs.”During the roundtable, Senator Gillibrand laid out her plan, which will hold drug companies accountable, bring down the cost of healthcare by reining in prices, prevent drug companies from gouging patients, and ensure that all patients have access to affordable medications.
