July 17, 2024 5:40 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — California Rep. Adam Schiff has become the highest-profile Democrat to call for President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid, as the party pushes ahead with plans to hold a virtual vote to formally make Biden its nominee in the first week of August. That’s before the party’s convention opens in person two weeks later. The move to schedule the roll call vote comes after nearly 20 Democratic members of Congress have called on Biden to withdraw from the presidential race in the wake of his halting debate performance against Republican former President Donald Trump last month. Among Democrats nationwide, nearly two-thirds say Biden should step aside and let his party nominate a different candidate, according to an AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released Wednesday
July 17, 2024 4:44 am
The trial lasted five days but it took jurors just over one hour to decide the fate of Scott Edmonds, the North Strabane Township physical therapist who was accused of killing his 49 year old wife Louise Weis-Edmonds in March of 2014. The jury returned a guilty verdict of first degree murder to Edmonds along with a guilty verdict on a tampering with evidence charge. Edmonds had his bond immediately revoked and he was led from the courtroom in handcuffs. After a presentencing investigation is completed, Edmonds will be sentenced in 90 days. District Attorney Jason Walsh was pleased with the verdict. Edmonds and his attorney vowed to appeal the verdict. Louise Weis-Edmonds’ brother Martin and sister in law Elizabeth both thanked law enforcement and the jury for their efforts to bring closure to the more than 10 year old case.
July 17, 2024 4:44 am
North Strabane Township Supervisors will entertain a rather procedural agenda at their Legislative Meeting next week. On tap will be updates to the fee schedule. Fees across the board, construction, inspection and recreation fees will see some sort of an adjustment with some new fees to be introduced. Supervisors will also look to hire a new Director of Community Development. One item still under consideration is the rezoning of a lot at the corner of Curry and Morganza Roads from commercial to industrial to accommodate the construction of a personal warehouse. Planning and zoning officials are still struggling with the definition of a personal warehouse and which zone fits the development best. Supervisors will hold their Legislative Meeting on Tuesday July 23.
July 17, 2024 10:52 am
BUTLER, Pa. (AP) — A common refrain on the streets of Butler, Pennsylvania, in the wake of Saturday’s assassination attempt on Donald Trump was: “Of all the places.” The town is rural and neighborly. And it’s in Trump country. Residents expressed shock that an attempt would be made on his life in such a Trump stronghold. Butler County sits on the western edge of a presidential swing state. The Republican won there twice with about 66% of the vote, and about 57% of the county’s 139,000 registered voters are Republican. A local attorney likened it to the pope being shot in Vatican City.
July 16, 2024 2:56 am
A Greene County woman was killed in an early morning accident Tuesday in Jefferson. Greene County Coroner Gene Rush says 55-year-old Linda Morris of Jefferson died after being involved in a two car crash on Route 188 in the borough of Jefferson just before six o’clock. No further details are being released pending the results of an autopsy.
July 17, 2024 4:55 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – Police are looking for the person who pulled the trigger after a man was shot in Downtown Pittsburgh Tuesday afternoon. According to police, he was hit twice in the arm and taken to the hospital in stable condition. The victim stopped his car near the corner of 4th Avenue and Smithfield Street just after 4 p.m. Police say the shooting likely happened about a block away on 3rd Avenue and Cherry Street but the whole ordeal began in the South Side as a road rage incident. “The victim vehicle was driving erratically from the Smithfield Street Bridge into town,” Police Chief Larry Scirotto said. “His aggressive driving may have prompted this gunfire exchange.” Police are still looking for the shooter and a silver Dodge Charger. If you have any information that can help, you are asked to call them. The victim may also face charges for his role in the road rage incident that led to the shooting.
July 16, 2024 5:06 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) — President Joe Biden has returned to the campaign trail for the first time since the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, continuing his call to calm the divisive rhetoric on both sides. But Biden also argued Tuesday that doing so “doesn’t mean we should stop telling the truth” as he tore into his Republican rival. Biden spoke at the NAACP convention in Las Vegas, aiming to showcase his administration’s support for Black voters who are a tentpole of the Democratic coalition. He’ll also participate in an interview with BET. It’s all counterprogramming to Trump and the Republican National Convention under way in Milwaukee.
July 16, 2024 5:08 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — After almost 30 months of war with Russia, Ukraine’s difficulties on the battlefield are mounting even as its vital support from the United States is increasingly at the mercy of changing political winds. A six-month delay in military assistance from the U.S., the biggest single contributor to Ukraine, opened the door for a push on the front line by the Kremlin’s forces. Ukrainian troops are now laboring to check the gains by Russia’s bigger and better-equipped army. The next two or three months will likely be the hardest this year for Ukraine, says Michael Kofman of the Carnegie Endowment. Lurking in the background is another nagging worry: How long will the Western political and military support critical for Ukraine’s fight endure?
July 17, 2024 12:52 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) — “The Bear” has gone on a tear at Wednesday morning’s Emmy nominations with a comedy-series record 23, and “Shogun” led all nominees with 25 in a dominant year across categories for FX. “The Bear,” the FX show about a struggling chef and his ramshackle crew, could easily top the 13 nominations it got last year. Another FX show, “Shogun,” could be the favorite in the drama category, but Emmy veteran “The Crown” could also loom large. The nominations come just six months after the last Emmys, which were delayed by last year’s Hollywood strikes. The Emmys will air on ABC on Sept. 15.
July 16, 2024 5:36 pm
On the final day of testimony in the Scott Edmonds murder trial, the defense called one additional expert witness and presented Scott Edmonds as a witness in his own defense. Arthur W. Yung of Abington, PA was presented as an expert to testify regarding blood stain pattern analysis and other photographic evidence presented. The bulk of the day’s testimony came from Edmonds himself. He described for the jury his version of the events that transpired when Edmonds’ wife Louise Weis-Edmonds was found by police being cradled by Edmonds in a pool of her own blood. He detailed his displeasure of his wife constantly tending to her elderly mother. He spoke of her heavy drinking. He explained his version of how male voices from his personal phone number called a patient of his and confessed to the killing of his wife. That same number also reported the shooting to county 9-1-1. He said that he testified in his own defense to tell the actual story and as an effort to bring closure to his wife’s family. He stated as for him, “he could not give a s—“. Closing arguments for the defense pointed to expert witness findings opposite of prosecution findings. Prosecutor arguments asked jurors to use common sense based on all of their expert testimony and the lack of logic in Edmonds’ testimony. The jury is currently deliberating.
