June 7, 2024 4:55 am
KENT, Wash. (AP) — A cluster of tarp-covered tents in a grassy lot south of Seattle highlights the strain facing many communities. President Joe Biden is attempting to restrict asylum and neutralize immigration as a political liability ahead of this fall’s election. About 240 asylum-seekers are camping in the lot next to a busy highway and a vacant motel owned by King County. The county purchased the 85-room motel as an emergency quarantine shelter during the pandemic. It says it doesn’t have the resources to open it for the migrants. The asylum-seekers are hoping police don’t follow through on threats to arrest them for trespassing.
June 7, 2024 4:56 am
RENO, Nev. (AP) — The first heat wave of the year is expected to maintain its grip on the Southwest United States for at least another day as record-setting temperatures continue to soar past 110 degrees Fahrenheit from southeast California to Arizona. The official start of summer is still two weeks away. But roughly half of Arizona and Nevada remain under an excessive heat alert into Friday evening. The alert continues through Saturday in Las Vegas, where its never been hotter this early in the year. New record highs Thursday included 113 in Phoenix, 111 in Las Vegas and 122 in Death Valley National Park.
June 7, 2024 4:59 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A judge has dismissed several criminal charges against Paul Pelosi’s attacker in state court. The judge ruled on Thursday following the defense’s argument of double jeopardy. David DePape was federally convicted in the 2022 attack inside the couple’s San Francisco home. He now no longer faces counts of attempted murder, elder abuse and assault with a deadly weapon. DePape still faces charges of of false imprisonment, residential burglary, threatening a family member of a public official, attempting to sway a witness and aggravated kidnapping. He has pleaded not guilty. DePape was convicted last month and sentenced to 30 years in prison.
June 7, 2024 5:58 am
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — At least nine Yemeni employees of United Nations agencies have been detained by Yemen’s Houthi rebels under unclear circumstances. That’s according to regional officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Friday as they weren’t authorized to brief journalists. A human rights group said people working for aid groups also likely have been detained. The detentions come as the Houthis have been targeting shipping throughout the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war. The group has been cracking down on dissent, though it’s unclear what sparked the detentions. The rebels have faced increasing casualties from U.S.-led airstrikes and economic strains from a civil war that has killed 150,000 people and caused a humanitarian disaster.
June 7, 2024 4:58 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ahead of Pat Sajak’s final episode as the host of “Wheel of Fortune,” Vanna White paid an emotional tribute to her co-host of four decades. On Thursday’s episode of the game show, White honored Sajak’s work and their friendship with a video segment that featured clips and photos tracing their collaboration from the 1980s to the present. She called him “like a brother” and a “true lifelong friend,” adding that their personal friendship has meant even more than their professional collaboration. Sajak’s final episode will air Friday. White is staying on as co-host, with Ryan Seacrest taking over from Sajak.
June 6, 2024 1:43 pm
(WPXI) – A man is dead after being shot multiple times by a Brentwood Police Officer after a brief car chase, according to Allegheny County Police. Police say they were trying to stop a suspected car thief. According to Allegheny County Police, their officers first spotted a car reported stolen from Carnegie around 5 p.m. Wednesday and tried to stop the driver in South Park. The driver initially stopped, then allegedly sped off. County officers did not follow, but Brentwood Police spotted the car on Route 51 a few minutes later. A chase ensued and then the suspect’s car stopped along Check Way, near Dauphin Street, due to a flat tire. He allegedly got out and began running. “The officer had a physical fight with the suspect. During this fight, he found that the suspect was armed with a handgun. The physical fight continued, and during this confrontation, the officer fired multiple rounds, striking the suspect,” County Police Superintendent Chris Kearns said. Investigators say he was rushed to the hospital where he died. He was later identified as Craig W. McGrath, 37.
June 6, 2024 4:58 am
Another standing room only crowd greeted Cecil Township Supervisors as they reconvened a public hearing on Wednesday to gather more testimony and to present to residents the current version of an ordinance that would govern oil and gas development. The township is trying to strike a balance between the safety and comfort of its residents while still allowing oil and gas drilling to continue. They are patterning their ordinance after Murrysville, PA that has an ordinance that has stood up to court challenges. The map provided shows areas that would comply with distance measures from residential structures. It was developed using increasingly restrictive criteria to determine the best areas for drilling. Only two additional areas were identified after the criteria was applied. One section would be a 5 acre parcel near the town of Lawrence roughly 1700 feet away from any well that could be developed. Another 25 acre parcel was identified on the Valleybrook Country Club property. During public comment, testimony from residents of the Traditions of America housing development applauded supervisors for keeping any wells roughly 4000 feet from their development. On the other hand, residents from Georgetown Estates decried the plan for a pad in Lawrence because the two wells possible would only be 1700 feet from their development. Their homeowner’s association engaged an attorney to hopefully keep any well development a minimum of 2500 feet away from their homes. A representative from the Valleybrook Country Club said that the club would not consider a well pad on their property. In the minority were supporters of the drilling industry. Several leaseholders spoke favorably of the industry that allowed them to maintain their farms and do upgrades to their houses and other structures on their property. Supervisor Chairman Tom Casciola made it clear that the proposed ordinance would only apply to future well development. Currently permitted wells would fall under the current ordinance. He did say that stricter noise and vibration criteria are in the new ordinance. The ordinance would prohibit any type of work on well pads between 10 pm and 6 am. After more than three hours the meeting was adjourned until the next public hearing on July 1.
June 5, 2024 2:36 am
The criminal trial for Washington County’s Controller has been delayed until September. April Sloane is accused of animal neglect by causing the starvation death of her dog last year. Sloane’s attorney had requested the continuance last month. Washington County Judge John DiSalle set the new trial date for September 10th. Jury selection had been expected to begin on Monday. Sloane is facing two felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty and one misdemeanor charge of animal neglect for the death of her dog, Thor. North Strabane Township Police found Thor’s body in a trash bag in her garage. Sloane, who continues to work as the county controller, is free on one-hundred-fifty-thousand-dollars bond.
June 6, 2024 5:17 am
(AP) – World War II veterans are joining heads of state and others on the beaches of Normandy to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day. The Allied invasion, which began on June 6, 1944, led to the defeat of the Nazis and the end of the war. The assault began with Allied aircraft bombing German defenses in Normandy, followed by around 1,200 aircraft that carried airborne troops. As dawn broke, Allied forces started bombing German coastal defenses and shortly after that vessels began putting troops ashore on five codenamed beaches: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword. By the end of the day, nearly 160,000 Allied troops had landed in Normandy. There were thousands of casualties. Few witnesses to history’s biggest amphibious invasion remain alive today.
June 6, 2024 5:19 am
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian health officials say an Israeli strike on a school sheltering displaced families in central Gaza killed at least 33 people including 23 women and children. The Israeli military claims the school was being used as a Hamas compound. The strike early Thursday came after the military announced a new ground and air assault in several refugee camps in central Gaza, pursuing Hamas militants it says have regrouped there. Witnesses and hospital officials said the predawn strike hit the al-Sardi School run by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees known by the acronym UNRWA. They said the school was filled with Palestinians who had fled Israeli offensives and bombardment in northern Gaza.
