September 13, 2019 3:14 am
Republicans held a small protest on the steps of the Washington County Courthouse Thursday morning. Nick Sherman, a Republican candidate for Washington County Commissioner and Republican nominee for Clerk of Courts Brenda Davis are calling for answers in connection with the disappearance of more than $96,000 from the Clerk of Courts office. Back in July, County Commissioners announced that an audit by the Controller discovered the missing money. A State Police investigation was immediately launched. There has been no update on the status of that investigation. Clerk of Courts Frank Scandale has denied any wrongdoing in the matter and said he welcomed the investigation. Scandale told WJPA News that he would not be commenting on the news conference, saying it was merely a “political stunt”.
September 12, 2019 5:27 pm
A Fayette County man was killed in an early morning accident in Westmoreland County. The coroner’s office says a car driven by 32-year-old Donald Schultz of Washington Township collided with the rear of a garbage truck on Route 51 north, near Gallatin Road in Rostraver Township. Schultz was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities say the garbage truck was exiting a business on the east side of the roadway and pulled onto Route 51 and that’s when Schultz’s vehicle collided with it.
September 12, 2019 4:16 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Walmart is rolling out an unlimited grocery delivery subscription service this fall as it races to gain an advantage in the competitive fresh food business. The service will charge an annual membership fee of $98 for subscribers to access unlimited same-day delivery, which will be offered in 1,400 stores in 200 markets. By year-end, it will extend to a total of 1,600 stores – or more than 50% of the country. The move allows the nation’s largest grocer to further tap into time-starved shoppers looking for convenience at a time when Walmart is locked in an arms race with Amazon and others to expand fresh-food delivery. About two years ago, Amazon purchased Whole Food Market Inc. and is now is offering same-day grocery delivery in various cities.
September 12, 2019 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump says his administration will propose banning thousands of flavors used in e-cigarettes amid an outbreak of breathing problems tied to vaping.
State and federal health authorities are investigating hundreds of breathing illnesses reported in people who have used e-cigarettes and other vaping devices. No single device, ingredient or additive has been identified. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says the Food and Drug Administration will develop guidelines to remove all e-cigarette flavors from the market, especially those favored by children. The FDA regulates e-cigarettes and has authority to ban vaping flavors, but has resisted calls to take that step. Instead, the agency has said it is studying the role of flavors in vaping products, including whether they help adult smokers quit traditional cigarettes.
September 12, 2019 4:12 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The House Judiciary Committee is approaching its first impeachment-related vote, set to define procedures for upcoming hearings on President Donald Trump. Some moderates in the caucus are urging the panel to slow down. The vote Thursday is an escalation as the Judiciary panel has said it is examining whether to recommend articles of impeachment. It would allow the committee to designate certain hearings as impeachment hearings, empower staff to question witnesses, allow some evidence to remain private and permit the president’s counsel to officially respond to testimony. As the committee moves forward, some moderate House Democrats are concerned about the committee’s drumbeat on impeachment. Several freshmen Democrats met with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler on Wednesday and expressed concerns about the path ahead.
September 12, 2019 4:11 am
CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) – The U.S. Supreme Court’s clearing of the way for the Trump administration to deny nearly all asylum claims from Central Americans is being denounced by immigration advocates as a “death sentence” for migrants trying to escape poverty and violence in their homelands. The new policy would disallow asylum for anyone who passes through another country on the way to the U.S. without first seeking asylum there. Late Wednesday, the Supreme Court gave the go-ahead to enforce the rule while legal challenges to it continue. Migrants who make their way to the U.S. overland from places like Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador would be largely ineligible under the new rule, along with asylum seekers from Africa, Asia and South America who arrive at the U.S.-Mexican border. The Trump administration is calling it a “big victory” in its effort to stem the surge of migrants.
September 12, 2019 4:08 am
DENVER (AP) – Several Democratic presidential candidates are running on a promise to ban fracking and stepping on unstable political ground as they do so. Must-win Pennsylvania has gotten an economic boost from fracking, the technique used by the energy industry to extract oil and gas from rock. The procedure is also vital in swing state Colorado and in the Democrats’ dream state of Texas, the headquarters of the energy industry. Fracking has become steadily less popular as worries about the side effects of the energy extraction technique have increased. It’s been linked to water contamination, air pollution and even earthquakes. But it’s also helped bring down the cost of natural gas and the use of dirtier-burning coal. Even most environmentalists have proposed regulating it rather than banning it.
September 12, 2019 4:07 am
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – A third family has come forward in an investigation of multiple suspicious patient deaths at a Veterans Affairs hospital in West Virginia. Attorney Tony O’Dell says Thursday he’s representing the family of Navy veteran John Hallman after the 87-year-old died at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg last year. Federal prosecutors are probing the deaths of up to 11 patients at the facility. Attorneys representing the families of men who died say at least two of the deaths have been ruled homicides, with both veterans dying from wrongful insulin injections. O’Dell says Hallman died suddenly after his blood sugar spiked, indicting another wrongful insulin injection. Separately, the VA inspector general this week confirmed an investigation of multiple sexual assaults at another VA facility in West Virginia.
September 12, 2019 4:06 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Animal welfare officers and emergency responders have removed over 100 dogs, ranging from puppies to elderly animals, from a filthy home near Pittsburgh where the owner had been hoarding them. Ross Township Police Chief Brain Kohlhepp says officers had to enter the home in hazmat suits and use breathing apparatuses, since the ammonia levels were dangerously high. He says the dogs, mostly Australian shepherd mixes, were never allowed outside. Animal Friends of Pittsburgh have taken them in, and say in a Facebook post that many were emaciated and in need of immediate medical attention. They say the final count was 117 dogs inside the home. The owner of the house had been charged in 2008 for hoarding animals, including chickens and goats. Officials say she’ll likely be charged again.
September 11, 2019 5:29 pm
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Nearly half the states and some 2,000 local governments have agreed to a tentative settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma over the toll of the nation’s opioid crisis. Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said the agreement reached Wednesday included more money from the family that owns Purdue than had been offered previously. He told The Associated Press the tentative settlement deal was the quickest way to get relief for communities devastated by the opioid epidemic. Sources with direct knowledge of the talks say that Stamford, Connecticut-based Purdue will pay up to $12 billion over time and that the Sackler family will give up control of the company. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Paul Farrell is an attorney for several local governments. He said in a text message that they have agreed to a deal that has been on the table for several weeks. Even with Wednesday’s development, roughly half the states had not signed on. Several state attorneys general vowed to continue their legal battles against the company and the Sacklers.
