December 15, 2023 5:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — A jury has awarded $148 million in damages to two former Georgia election workers who sued Rudy Giuliani for defamation over lies he spread about them in 2020 that upended their lives with racist threats and harassment. Friday’s damages verdict comes after Wandrea “Shaye” Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman, tearfully testified about becoming the target of a false conspiracy theory pushed by Giuliani and other Republican allies of Donald Trump that made them fear for their lives. Giuliani says he will appeal the ruling, calling the amount awarded “absurd.” The former New York mayor previously conceded in court documents that he falsely accused the women of ballot fraud in the election Trump lost.
December 15, 2023 5:08 am
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — The mother of a 6-year-old who shot his teacher in Virginia has been sentenced to two years in prison for felony child neglect. Friday’s punishment for Deja Taylor comes nearly a year after her son used her handgun to critically wound teacher Abby Zwerner. The classroom shooting shocked the nation and roiled the military shipbuilding city of Newport News. Zwerner was shot in the hand and chest. She has since undergone multiple surgeries and frequent psychological counseling. Taylor’s son told authorities he took the gun from his mother’s purse on top of a dresser.
December 15, 2023 5:07 am
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — The Israeli military says it has mistakenly killed three Israeli hostages during its ground operation in the Gaza Strip.The army’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, says Israeli troops found the hostages Friday and erroneously identified them as a threat. He said it was not clear if they had escaped their captors or been abandoned. The deaths occurred in the Gaza City area of Shijaiyah, where troops have engaged in fierce battles against Hamas militants in recent days. He said the army expressed “deep sorrow” and was investigating.
December 15, 2023 5:05 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a politically polarized nation, Americans seem to agree on one issue underlying the 2024 elections — a worry over the state of democracy and how the outcome of the presidential contest will affect its future. They just disagree over who poses the threat. A poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 62% of adults say democracy in the U.S. could be at risk depending on who wins. That view is held by 72% of Democrats and 55% of Republicans, but for different reasons. President Joe Biden has warned about former President Donald Trump’s promises to seek retribution against opponents, while Trump says the federal charges against him show Biden has weaponized the government.
December 15, 2023 5:03 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania are rejecting legislation to send more than $33.5 million to the University of Pennsylvania’s veterinary school over criticism that the Ivy League school has tolerated antisemitism. The bill’s defeat is perhaps the starkest example of how some lawmakers and governors are trying to keep universities from taking sides in the Israel-Hamas war and to toughen the schools’ responses to acts of hate and discrimination, including antisemitism. The vote late Wednesday night came four days after Penn’s president resigned amid pressure from donors. The Pennsylvania House’s Republican floor leader, Bryan Cutler (pictured), says Penn must do more to make it clear it opposes antisemitism.
December 15, 2023 2:14 am
Crown Castle Inc. has confirmed to WJPA that they no longer plan to relocate more than one-thousand employees. Interim CEO Anthony Melone said, “we’ve made the decision to cancel the planned relocation of more than 1,000 teammates announced on Oct. 18th.” The plan would have had a major impact on workers at it’s Southpointe location and may have resulted in the closure of that facility. Crown Castle, which is a massive cell tower and optics company, is believed to be the second largest employer in Washington County. No reason was given for the original planned relocation.
December 14, 2023 5:37 pm
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A loose bull in New Jersey’s largest city that found its way onto train tracks and snarled rail traffic has been captured. The ruddy brown bull with long, dark-tipped horns stood on the tracks at Newark Penn Station, prompting a police response. The incident held up train traffic between New Jersey and New York Penn Station for nearly an hour. Newark’s public safety director says city officers eventually cornered the animal in a fenced lot about 3 miles away from the station. No injuries were reported. the bull will be sent to a local animal sanctuary.
December 14, 2023 5:35 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate dropped below 7% to its lowest level since early August, another boost for prospective homebuyers who have largely been held back by sharply higher borrowing costs and heightened competition for relatively few homes for sale. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped to 6.95% from 7.03% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.31%. The latest drop in rates is the seventh in as many weeks. Mortgage rates have been easing since late October, when they reached 7.79%, the highest level since late 2000.
December 14, 2023 1:21 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Taylor Swift is adding one more accolade to her list of accomplishments this year: a resolution recognizing 2023 as the Taylor Swift era in her home state of Pennsylvania. The resolution passed the state House of Representatives on Wednesday. Lawmakers approved the resolution on Swift’s 34th birthday. Swift grew up in West Reading, and has nods to the Commonwealth in some songs. She left as a teenager to move to Nashville pursue a country music career. The resolution recognizes her musical, cultural and economic power. (Photo: AP)
December 14, 2023 12:45 pm
(WPXI) – Two men were arrested Wednesday and are facing charges in connection to the death of a high school cheerleader in a school van crash on September 20th. Fifteen-year-old Samantha Kalkbrenner was killed in the crash. Authorities say Andrew Neil Voigt and William R. Soliday are charged in connection to the crash, accused of racing, causing the deadly crash. Allegheny County police said surveillance video showed the van checked each direction before heading into the intersection to make a left-hand turn from 3rd Street onto Richland Avenue and when the van entered the intersection, it was struck by a Volkswagen Jetta GTI. Additional surveillance video showed a Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk passing through the intersection just after the crash. Witnesses said both the Volkswagen and the Jeep were traveling at a high rate of speed before the crash. Soliday was identified as the driver of the Volkswagen and Voigt was identified as the driver of the Jeep. Speeds over 100 mph were recorded inside the Volkswagen leading up to the crash. Soliday is facing multiple felony charges including third-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, and homicide by vehicle. Voigt is facing one felony count of accidents involving death or personal injury.
