November 2, 2019 4:31 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has named Chad Wolf to be the next acting head of Homeland Security, the fifth person in the job for this administration. Trump made the announcement Friday outside the White House, ending weeks of speculation over who would head up the department after Kevin McAleenan resigned in October. Wolf was chief of staff to former DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. He has been involved with the 240,000-person department, which also manages disaster relief and election security, off and on since its creation following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. It’s not clear whether Wolf will be nominated for the job permanently. Trump and others pushed for a fervent supporter of his policies to lead the department, but nomination rules made it difficult.
November 2, 2019 4:29 am
ORINDA, Calif. (AP) – A fifth person has died as a result of a Halloween night shooting at an Airbnb rental in Northern California. The Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office announced late Friday night that 19-year-old Oshiana Tompkins of Vallejo and Hercules died at a local hospital. The statement posted on social media did not specify when Tompkins was pronounced dead. Tompkins’ death brings the total fatalities in the Thursday night shooting to five. Authorities have identified the other victims as 22-year-old Tiyon Farley of Antioch, 24-year-old Omar Taylor of Pittsburg, 23-year-old Ramon Hill Jr., and 29-year-old Javin County. No arrests have been made and there’s no word on motive. Authorities say they found two guns at the Orinda scene.
November 2, 2019 4:28 am
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – One of the Iranian student leaders of the 1979 U.S. Embassy takeover says he regrets seizing the diplomatic post and the 444-day hostage crisis that followed. In an interview with The Associated Press, Ebrahim Asgharzadeh now acknowledges that the repercussions of the takeover still reverberate 40 years later, as tensions soar between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran’s collapsing nuclear deal with world powers. Asgharzadeh cautions others against following in his footsteps, despite the takeover becoming enshrined in hard-line mythology. He also disputes a revisionist history offered by supporters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard that they directed the attack. He insists that all the blame rests with the Islamist students who let the crisis spin out of control. Asgharzadeh says: “Like Jesus Christ, I bear all the sins on my shoulders.”
November 2, 2019 4:27 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Democrat Beto O’Rourke has announced he’s dropping his 2020 presidential bid. O’Rourke tweeted Friday that his campaign “has always been about seeing clearly, speaking honestly, and acting decisively.” He writes, “In that spirit: I am announcing that my service to the country will not be as a candidate or as the nominee.” O’Rourke had been struggling to break through a crowded Democratic field. He entered the race in March with buzz from his narrow 2018 Senate loss to Republican incumbent Ted Cruz in Texas. But as the excitement over his candidacy began to fade, O’Rourke was forced to stage a “reintroduction” of his campaign to reinvigorate it. After a mass shooting in his hometown of El Paso, Texas, he began to center his campaign on gun violence prevention.
November 2, 2019 4:26 am
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – President Donald Trump is citing the House impeachment inquiry as a reason that voters in Mississippi should vote for a Republican candidate for governor. Trump is in Mississippi trying to shore up Republican support for Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves. Trump says of the impeachment inquiry that “it always helps when you didn’t do anything wrong.” But he adds, “We’re going to send a signal by sending a terrific new Republican governor to Jackson.” Democratic candidate Jim Hood is wrapping up his fourth term as attorney general and making it a competitive race in a conservative Deep South state where Trump is popular.
November 2, 2019 4:18 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WPXI) – The wife of Pittsburgh Pirates legend Roberto Clemente is reportedly hospitalized and is in poor health. According to the Roberto Clemente Foundation, Vera Clemente is Chairwoman of the organization and is a Goodwill Ambassador for Major League Baseball. She has hosted a telethon on behalf of MLB in Puerto Rico to raise money for the Ciudad Roberto Clemente in that country.
November 2, 2019 4:16 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WPXI) – “I’m waking up and it’s like a piece of me is really missing.” The mother of Nalani Johnson shared her pain with our news partners at Channel 11, speaking publicly for the first time. Police said Nalani was kidnapped on August 31, triggering an AMBER Alert. Three days later, her body was found in an Indiana County park. Homicide charges were filed in the case last week. Gladys Duarte has since moved out of Pittsburgh because of her daughter’s tragic death, but she smiled when talking about Nalani — her first and only child. “She was such a happy baby,” Duarte said. “She was literally like this ball of energy. I just love her so much and I just want her to know that.” Duarte told Channel 11 some days she forgets about the tragedy, thinking her daughter is still there. “I’ll look at the time and it’s like, ‘Oh my God it’s 5 o’clock. I have to go pick Nalani up from daycare.’ And then… I check my surroundings and I’m like OK no,” she said. Duarte said she last saw Nalani on Aug. 30 when her father picked her up. The next day, the search for Nalani began. Police said Sharena Nancy drove off with Nalani after getting into an argument with Nalani’s father that day. Investigators said the two were romantically involved. “I didn’t know this woman at all,” said Duarte. “I didn’t even know she was in his life.” Nancy was spotted in Penn Hills hours after Nalani was last seen, but Duarte’s daughter was nowhere to be found. After days of searching, investigators found Nalani in a wooded area in Pine Ridge Park. There was a split-second of hope for Duarte, but those emotions quickly turned to grief. Duarte said she lost it when detectives told her they found Nalani lifeless, still strapped in a car seat. On Oct. 25, Nancy was charged with homicide. She is awaiting trial, and Duarte had a message for her.
November 2, 2019 4:09 am
WASHINGTON, Pa. — A Washington County Court Judge has revoked the bond of a South Strabane Township man accused of child luring. After three weeks of court appearances, Judge Gary Gilman ordered 66-year-old Jan Ondra to be jailed until his trial on charges of attempting to lure a ten-year-old into his van in Clarksville in June. He posted bail and remained free until prosecutors went to court asking that his bond be revoked after three children claimed that Ondra approached them and offered them candy at North Strabane Town Center on September 28th. A condition of Ondra’s bail was that he was not permitted to have contact with children. Gilman ruled that Ondra violated the terms of his bond and ordered him to jail. Ondra’s attorney says they plan to appeal that ruling.
