December 4, 2024 4:58 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hearing a high-profile culture-war clash, the Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed likely to uphold Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors. The justices’ decision, not expected for several months, could affect similar laws enacted by another 25 states and a range of other efforts to regulate the lives of transgender people, including which sports competitions they can join and which bathrooms they can use. The case is being weighed by a conservative-dominated court after a presidential election in which Donald Trump and his allies promised to roll back protections for transgender people. The Biden administration’s top Supreme Court lawyer warned a decision favorable to Tennessee also could be used to justify nationwide restrictions on transgender healthcare for minors.
December 4, 2024 5:00 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s opposition parties have submitted a motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is facing pressure to leave office hours after he ended a short-lived martial law that prompted troops to encircle parliament before lawmakers voted to lift it. Impeaching Yoon would require the support of two-thirds of parliament for the motion and then the backing of at least six Constitutional Court justices. The motion, submitted jointly by the main opposition Democratic Party and five smaller opposition parties, could be put to a vote as early as Friday. Yoon’s senior advisers and secretaries have offered to resign collectively and his Cabinet members, including the defense minister, also are facing calls to step down.
December 4, 2024 5:05 am
BONNE TERRE, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri man has been executed for sexually assaulting and killing a 9-year-old girl, then dumping her body in a sinkhole outside of town. Christopher Collings was a friend of the family of the victim, fourth-grader Rowan Ford — so much so that he lived with the family for several months prior to Rowan’s death in November 2007. He sometimes helped Rowan with her homework. She knew him as “Uncle Chris.” Collings was executed with an injection of pentobarbital Tuesday evening at the state prison in Bonne Terre. It was the 23rd execution in the U.S. this year and the fourth in Missouri. Only Alabama with six and Texas with five have performed more executions in 2024.
December 4, 2024 1:16 pm
(AP) – The U.S. government has closed its investigation into an E. coli outbreak tied to McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers after determining there is no longer a safety risk. The outbreak, which was first reported Oct. 22, sickened at least 104 people in 14 states, including 34 who were hospitalized, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. One person in Colorado died and four people developed a potentially life-threatening kidney disease complication. The FDA, which conducted the investigation along with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health departments, linked the outbreak to yellow onions distributed by California-based Taylor Farms and served raw on Quarter Pounders at McDonald’s restaurants in Colorado, Kansas, Wyoming and other states.
December 3, 2024 2:11 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump is underscoring his intention to block the purchase of U.S. Steel by Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel Corp., and he’s pledging to use tax incentives and tariffs to strengthen the iconic American steelmaker. Trump said during the campaign that he would “instantaneously” block the deal, and he reiterated that sentiment in a Monday night statement. President Joe Biden also opposes Nippon Steel’s purchase of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel. A secretive U.S. committee is reviewing the transaction for national security concerns, and federal law gives the president the power to block the transaction. Nippon Steel is pledging to invest in U.S. Steel’s factories and strengthen the American steel industry. (Photo: AP)
December 3, 2024 12:28 pm
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s government has lifted the martial law he imposed during a tense night of political drama in which troops surrounded parliament and lawmakers voted to reject military rule. Yoon said early Wednesday that his government withdrew military personnel following a bipartisan parliamentary vote rejecting martial law, and the measure was formally lifted during a Cabinet meeting around 4:30 a.m. Yoon declared martial law late Tuesday, vowing to eliminate “anti-state” forces as he struggles against an opposition that controls the country’s parliament and that he accuses of sympathizing with communist North Korea. Less than three hours later, parliament voted to lift the declaration. (Photo: AP)
December 3, 2024 12:20 pm
(WPXI) – An active search is underway for a 64-year-old woman who may have fallen into a sinkhole while looking for her missing cat in Unity Township in Westmoreland County. Emergency crews are searching along Marguerite Road near Monday’s Union Restaurant. Troopers say they received a call around 1 a.m. regarding a family concerned about their grandmother Elizabeth Pollard’s whereabouts. At around 2:50 a.m., troopers found her vehicle parked behind Monday’s Union Restaurant, where they found Pollard’s 5-year-old granddaughter inside. She was unharmed. Near Pollard’s vehicle, troopers noticed a sinkhole. State police said they are performing search and rescue efforts with the assumption she fell down the hole. State police said she could have gone missing as early as five o’clock Monday afternoon when people at Monday’s restaurant saw her looking for her cat, Pepper. Authorities say that area is potentially an old coal mine and crews are bringing in tools to remove water, dirt and debris from the hole so they can better investigate. At this point, there has been no communication with Pollard.
December 2, 2024 9:35 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has declared an “emergency martial law,” accusing the country’s opposition of controlling the parliament and paralyzing the government with anti-state activities. Yoon made the announcement in a televised briefing Tuesday, vowing to “eradicate pro-North Korean forces and protect the constitutional democratic order.” The move drew immediate opposition from politicians, including the leader of his own conservative party, Han Dong-hoon, who called the decision “wrong” and vowed to “stop it with the people.” Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, called Yoon’s announcement “illegal and unconstitutional.”
December 3, 2024 2:56 am
Washington City Council is set to approve a 1.5 mill tax increase. During the agenda meeting Mayor JoJo Burgess voiced his displeasure with having to raise taxes. He thanked City Clerk Michele Sperl for her efforts this year on collecting fees on vacant properties. According to Burgess, more than $37,000 has been collected this year. Last year only $10,000 was collected and in 2022, Burgess stated that a mere $2000 was collected on those vacant property fees. Burgess also went after business owners. He said that if businesses are not up to date on taxes, their business privilege licenses will not be renewed. He said he is working on other actions so that people who are delinquent in taxes will pay their fair share so that tax increases on residents will be held at a minimum. Council will vote on the measure at their next meeting.
December 3, 2024 4:57 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – After more than a year of negotiations, the union that represents paramedics and emergency medical technicians in the City of Pittsburgh has reached a tentative contract agreement with the city. The details of the agreement have not been released but some of the sticking points have been compensation and time off. The union had been working without a contract for more than year. A couple months ago, medics and EMTs voted down a contract offer, but sources say they have now agreed to the city’s latest offer.
