July 19, 2023 5:07 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Whistleblowers claiming the Justice Department improperly interfered with a yearslong investigation into Hunter Biden will testify before Congress as House Republicans accelerate their probes into the president and his family. Leaders of the House Judiciary, Oversight and Accountability, and Ways and Means committees will lead a hearing Wednesday with two Internal Revenue Service employees — Greg Shapley and an as-yet-unnamed “whistleblower x.” The two agents have claimed there was a pattern of “slow-walking investigative steps” into Hunter Biden, including delayed enforcement actions in the months before the 2020 election won by Joe Biden. The Justice Department has vehemently denied the allegations by the whistleblowers.
July 19, 2023 5:05 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian officials say Russia has launched an intense series of nighttime air attacks using drones and missiles against targets across Ukraine. The head of Kyiv’s military administration said on Wednesday the southern port city of Odesa was targeted with especially fierce strikes for a second consecutive night. No casualties have been reported so far. Meanwhile, a fire at a military facility in Russian-annexed Crimea caused the closure of an important highway and the evacuation of over 2,200 civilians from four villages, according to Russian officials.R
July 19, 2023 4:56 am
North Strabane Township Supervisors held a public hearing prior to their agenda meeting on Tuesday. The hearing centered on proposed changes to its wireless communications facilities ordinance. Recent changes on the state and federal levels regarding zoning for those towers is what caused the proposed changes. The largest change will be how 5G antennas are governed. The current laws from the FCC and state now indicate that 5G antennas are now allowed anywhere in the public right of way. Larger wireless towers can still be zoned locally. In other township business, supervisors will consider demolition projects in the township using Community Development Block Grant funds. They will also take into consideration the K9 policy for the North Strabane Township Police Department. The voting meeting will be held on July 25.
July 19, 2023 4:55 am
Tuesday marked the day for groundbreaking on a new Metropolis Center for the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh that will be located in South Strabane Township. The new center was deemed a necessity when Metropolitan Savas took over as the Presiding Hierarch of the Greek Orthodox Church of Pittsburgh. The current center near the Shadyside section of Pittsburgh is a repurposed 125 year old mansion that was purchased 65 years ago. Growth of staff and activities made the current building obsolete so 12 years ago the idea for a new Metropolitan Center was conceived. Through contributions of $6 million over five years from the Peter Giorgi and the Giorgi Family Foundation, land donations from local parishioners Michael Kusturiss and Michael Pihakis and additional capital from Athena Sarris, the dream of the new center has become a reality. The new campus will be comprised of a 15,000 square foot building that will house a church, library/conference room, office space, multipurpose room with caterer’s kitchen and an outdoor terrace. The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh serves eastern and central Ohio, West Virginia and the majority of Pennsylvania. Metropolitan Savas looks at this area as a Church of the Pittsburgh area that is also a part of a greater Church in the United States and finally the greater Church of the world.
July 19, 2023 2:57 am
A Canonsburg man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh for violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan and Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh announced on Tuesday. The one-count Indictment named Rodney Thomas, 50, as the sole defendant. According to the Indictment, Thomas shot and killed a mature bald eagle with an air rifle on or about May 12, 2023, in Mt. Pleasant, Pennsylvania. “This Office remains committed to investigating and prosecuting environmental and wildlife offenses under federal law, including the unlawful killing of bald eagles—the United States’ national bird since 1782,” said U.S. Attorney Eric G. Olshan. “This prosecution is the result of strong coordination with our state and local partners at the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, and the Mt. Pleasant Township Police Department.” If convicted, Thomas could face a maximum total sentence of up to one year in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
July 19, 2023 2:41 am
A Bethel Park man will face trial on multiple charges related to the alleged inappropriate contact with two Washington County juveniles. Following a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, twenty-six-year-old Evan Deckard was bound over for court on several charges of sexual assault. Authorities allege that Deckard began communicating with the 12-year-olds on social media last year and then drove to Canton Township to meet one of the alleged victims where he allegedly offered them vape pens in exchange for sexual favors. Authorities also allege that he then met the other child in Canton Township in April and made the same request. Deckard is in the Washington County Jail, where he is being held on one-hundred-thousand-dollars bond.
July 19, 2023 1:40 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Democratic lawmaker is quitting the Pennsylvania House of Representatives amid a budget stalemate. Pittsburgh Rep. Sara Innamorato’s resignation Wednesday tilts the razor-thin majority her party has claimed in the chamber to a tie. A special election for her seat is scheduled for Sept. 19, a week before the House is expected to return to session. In November, Democrats flipped the precise number of districts needed to control the House at the start of the session. It was their first claim to the majority in 12 years, with a 102 to 101 margin. With Innamorato’s resignation, membership stands at 101 Democrats and 101 Republicans. (Photo: Facebook)
July 18, 2023 12:47 pm
(AP) – Federal safety investigators say they’ve determined that natural gas was leaking from a defective fitting at a Pennsylvania chocolate factory where a powerful explosion killed seven people. The National Transportation Safety Board, which has yet to determine the cause of the March 24 blast, said Tuesday that the leak at the R.M. Palmer Co. plant in West Reading was traced to a gas fitting installed in 1982. Investigators say the fitting had a known tendency to crack. Investigators also found a small leak on a gas fitting installed in 2021. Factory employees have told federal investigators they could smell gas before the explosion.
July 18, 2023 9:46 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. officials say an American soldier who fled across the heavily armed border from South Korea into North Korea had been facing military disciplinary actions. Two U.S. officials say Private 2nd Class Travis King had just been released from a South Korean prison where he’d been held on assault charges and was facing military disciplinary actions in the U.S. King was escorted to the airport to be returned to Fort Bliss, Texas, but left and joined a tour of the Korean border village of Panmunjom, where he ran across the border. At a Pentagon press conference, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin did not name King, but confirmed that a U.S. service member was likely in North Korean custody.
July 18, 2023 9:45 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he has received a letter informing him that he is a target of the Justice Department’s investigation into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election. Trump made the claim in a post on his Truth Social platform. He said he received the target letter on Sunday night. Such a letter can precede an indictment; Trump got one ahead of being charged last month in a separate investigation into the mishandling of classified documents.
