May 3, 2025 4:53 am
Pennsylvania–With real ID enforcement just days away, PennDOT, Triple AAA and others are urging Pennsylvanians to make sure they’re prepared for summer travel. These efforts also reflect Governor Josh Shapiro’s commitment to ensure residents have the information and opportunities they need to be ready for Federal Real ID enforcement. Getting a Real ID in Pennsylvania is optional; however, it or a passport or military ID will be needed to board domestic commercial flights, enter military bases or other federal facilities that require identification at the door. The Real ID deadline is May 7. Some 2.8 million Pennsylvanians have obtained their Real ID since they became available in 2019. For more information, go online at pa.gov/RealID.
May 3, 2025 4:42 am
ROME (AP) — Growing numbers of people are making bets on next week’s conclave to elect the next pope. From cash bets on websites to online games and casual wagers among friends, experts and participants say the popularity of gambling and guessing on the future of the papacy is increasing worldwide. Bookmakers cite notable interest globally, with hundreds of thousands of people from some 140 countries checking odds. They note special eagerness in the U.K., Ireland and U.S. In Italy, betting on the papal election is forbidden. But a game called Fantasy Pope has become a hit. Players choose a team of cardinals, mimicking popular fantasy football and soccer leagues. There’s no cash prize, but the co-founder says it creates fun around the curiosity of the event.
May 3, 2025 3:59 am
PITTSBURGH — A crowd funding campaign to help with the medical expenses for the man who fell from the right field stands at PNC Park is garnering funds. Kavan Markwood, 20, fell from the 21-foot high Clemente Wall earlier this week. A family member started the GoFundMe account Friday afternoon and it already has nearly $19,000 in funding. The goal is $35,000. “Please always remember that this individual may be very special to many other people,” wrote the page’s organizer. “Can you imagine what their loved ones are going through and feeling? I know this young man very well and I know that he is very strong but he is also battling for his young life.” Video of the incident shows Markwood celebrating when he fell over the 36-inch high railing and plunged onto the warning track below. He was rushed to a nearby hospital and remains in critical condition with reported facial fractures and a leg injury. Police are calling the incident an accident. The South Allegheny School District confirmed Markwood’s identity to our news partners at WPXI on Thursday. He graduated from the district in 2022 and was a standout football player. He also played football at Walsh University and Wheeling University, according to both schools. “The Wheeling University community is heartbroken to hear of the tragedy that occurred at PNC Park involving former Wheeling football player Kavan Markwood,” the university said in a statement. “Kavan is a valued member of our Cardinal family. He played for the football team for the 2023 season after transferring from Walsh University. Our thoughts and prayers are with Kavan, his family, friends and all his loved ones. The Cardinal Family is praying for a full and speedy recovery.” Walsh University also released a statement about the incident on social media. “He is a former student and football player at Walsh University,” the university wrote. “He is in our deepest thoughts and prayers. Lord, please surround him with your healing presence. Restore his body and spirit and ease his suffering.”
May 2, 2025 1:51 pm
A man has pleaded guilty to shooting and killing a man who authorities say tried to stop him from robbing a bank inside the South Strabane Giant Eagle in 2013. Keith Wilk pleaded guilty Friday to killing Vincent Kelley during the robbery. He is sentenced to 20-40 years in prison. Kelley ran after Wilk, who was fleeing the Citizens Bank inside the store. Vincent tackled the robber, which caused the bank dye to explode, before police said Wilk shot and killed him. Around 9 years later, in 2022, Washington County officials said DNA linked Wilk to the case and charges were filed.
May 2, 2025 1:48 pm
The former police chief of Greensburg was sentenced earlier this month to fifteen months in federal prison for narcotics charges, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced on Friday. United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on Shawn Denning, 44, of Delmont. Denning pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to distribute fifty grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine and a quantity of cocaine. According to information presented to the court during the time that he was the Greensburg police chief, Denning was involved in a nationwide drug conspiracy and had helped numerous individuals purchase narcotics from suppliers in California. Those narcotics included cocaine and methamphetamine disguised as counterfeit Adderall pills. One of the individuals with whom Denning conspired was former Greensburg police officer Regina McAtee, who also pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and will be sentenced later this month. Despite Denning’s argument during the sentencing hearing that he should not serve any time in prison, Judge Bissoon sentenced Denning to 15 months in federal prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release, and a $2,000 fine. Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Bissoon stated that “When law enforcement becomes the bad guys, our civil society cannot function.”
May 2, 2025 12:42 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ruth Buzzi, who rose to fame as the frumpy and bitter Gladys Ormphby on the groundbreaking sketch comedy series “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In” and made over 200 television appearances during a 45-year career, has died at age 88. Her agent Mike Eisenstadt says Buzzi died at her ranch in Texas. Buzzi won a Golden Globe and was a two-time Emmy nominee for the NBC show that ran from 1968 to 1973. She was the only regular to appear in all six seasons, including the pilot. She was first spotted by “Laugh-In” creator and producer George Schlatter playing various characters on “The Steve Allen Comedy Hour.” (Photo: AP)
May 2, 2025 9:09 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — American employers added a better-than-expected 177,000 jobs in April as the job market showed resilience in the face of President Donald Trump’s trade wars. Hiring was down slightly from a revised 185,000 in March and came in above economists’ expectations for a modest 135,000. The unemployment rate stayed at 4.2%. President Donald Trump’s aggressive and unpredictable policies – including massive import taxes – have clouded the outlook for the economy and the job market and raised fears that the American economy is headed toward recession.
May 2, 2025 5:12 am
A federal judge has barred the Trump administration from deporting any Venezuelans from South Texas under an 18th-century wartime law and says President Donald Trump’s invocation of it was “unlawful.” U.S. District Court Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. is the first judge to rule that the Alien Enemies Act cannot be used against people whom the Republican administration claims are gang members invading the United States. In March, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation claiming that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua was invading the U.S. He said he had special powers to bypass usual court proceedings and deport immigrants claimed by his administration to be gang members.
May 2, 2025 5:10 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Luigi Mangione‘s lawyers are urging a judge to throw out his state murder charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. They argued in court papers Thursday that the New York case and a parallel federal death penalty prosecution amount to double jeopardy. If that doesn’t happen, they want terrorism charges dismissed and prosecutors barred from using evidence collected during Mangione’s arrest last December, including a 9 mm handgun, ammunition and a notebook in which authorities say he described his intent to “wack” an insurance executive. The Manhattan district attorney’s office said it would respond in court papers.
May 2, 2025 5:09 am
China’s Commerce Ministry says Beijing is evaluating multiple approaches by the Trump administration for trade talks. However, in a ministry statement it said one-sided tariffs of up to 145% imposed by President Donald Trump remain an obstacle and undermine trust. The statement reiterated China’s stance that is open to talks, but also that Beijing is determined to fight if it must. The statement cited an unnamed ministry spokesperson as saying that Beijing had taken note of various statements by senior U.S. officials indicating a willingness to negotiate over tariffs. But it emphasized that China would regard overtures without a change in President Donald Trump’s sharp tariff hikes as insincere.
