April 12, 2024 5:04 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate rose to its highest level in five weeks, a setback for prospective homebuyers during what’s traditionally the busiest time of the year for home sales. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage rose to 6.88% from 6.82% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.27%. Rates have been mostly drifting higher in recent weeks as stronger-than-expected reports on employment and inflation. Many economists still expect that mortgage rates will ease moderately later this year, though most forecasts call for the average rate on a 30-year home loan to remain above 6%.
April 11, 2024 2:08 am
A Washington man faced his preliminary hearing Thursday for his alleged role in the killing of a Nottingham Township man and had all charges held for court without a hearing. William Slider, 34 is accused of killing 69 year old Richard Morse in his Mingo Park Estates home. According to the criminal complaint, state police were alerted by a concerned neighbor that found Morse deceased in his home on the afternoon of March 8. The coroner was called and pronounced Morse dead shortly after midnight on March 9. Pennsylvania State Police determined that Slider struck Morse in the head with a blunt object, killing him, between 6:00 AM and 11:30 AM on March 6. Slider is facing felony criminal homicide, aggravated assault and robbery charges along with several other misdemeanor and summary charges. He remains in the Washington County Jail without bond.
April 11, 2024 11:26 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) — O.J. Simpson, the decorated football superstar and Hollywood actor who was acquitted of charges he killed his former wife and her friend but later found liable in a separate civil trial, has died. He was 76. The family announced on Simpson’s official X account — formerly Twitter — that Simpson died Wednesday after battling cancer. Simpson’s attorney confirmed to TMZ he died in Las Vegas. Simpson earned fame, fortune and adulation through football and show business, but his legacy was forever changed by the June 1994 knife slayings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman in Los Angeles. Live TV coverage of his arrest after a famous slow-speed chase marked a stunning fall from grace for the sports hero. (Photo: AP)
April 10, 2024 1:23 am
North Franklin Township Supervisors have stepped up to fix a water main break at Washington Crown Center Mall that forced the facility to close for three days. The break happened on Monday and mall officials announced Wednesday evening that it will reopen at 11 a.m Thursday. The closure has affected most all businesses there, and on Tuesday night, several of those business owners turned out at the supervisors meeting to complain. Supervisor’s Chairman Bob Sabot says as a result, the township decided to use emergency funding to fix the problem. Pennsylvania American Water officials told WJPA that the water line at the mall was a private line and their only responsibility was to turn the water off and then back once they were informed that repairs were complete. Efforts to contact a mall spokesperson have so far been unsuccessful.
April 11, 2024 2:34 am
A California man will face trial for his alleged role in starting a fire in a California apartment building. Christopher Grasty, 38 had 26 felony arson charges, 26 misdemeanor reckless endangerment charges and four other felonies held for court. He is alleged to have started a fire in his apartment at the California Manor apartment building on March 1. The fire, in the building owned by the Washington County Housing Authority displaced 29 people at the time of the blaze. Grasty jumped from the window of his apartment and investigators determined that the fire began in his apartment. According to police Grasty admitted to starting the fire in his unit. All charges were held for court. Grasty is currently being held in the Washington County Jail unable to post an $800,000 bond. His formal arraignment will be on May 23.
April 10, 2024 2:18 am
North Franklin Fire Chief Dave Bane tells WJPA News that one person was hurt and taken to a hospital following a two-vehicle accident around noon on Wednesday in the 1600 block of Chestnut Street, underneath the Interstate 70 overpass. Bane says the driver of a pick-up truck t-boned an SUV. The female driver of the SUV was trapped in her vehicle and firefighters had to work on freeing her. She was taken to a hospital for treatment. There’s been no word on the extent of her injuries. Bane says a male passenger in her vehicle was also taken to the hospital for evaluation. The driver of the pick-up wasn’t hurt. (Photo courtesy of Facebook)
April 11, 2024 4:11 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania state agency has received thousands of applications for the state’s first-ever student-teacher stipends, many times more than the available stipends approved by lawmakers as a way to help end a teacher shortage. The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency reported receiving 3,000 applications by 11 a.m. Thursday, just two hours after the window for applications opened. The $10 million approved by lawmakers for stipends last year, however, is only expected to serve about 650 student-teachers. Lawmakers created a program to give a stipend of at least $15,000 or $10,000, depending on the district. Stipend recipients must commit to teaching in Pennsylvania for three years.
April 11, 2024 4:52 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania on Wednesday rolled out a counterproposal to Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro’s plan to boost college enrollment in Pennsylvania. The plan they unveiled Wednesday pledges help for both in-state and out-of-state students who enroll in degree programs for high-priority disciplines, such as teaching and nursing. The proposal revolves around grants and tuition discounts. Top Republicans also signaled that key elements of Shapiro’s higher education plan rolled out earlier this year are essentially dead in the Legislature. Republicans view their proposal as an effort to counter the demographic trend of a shrinking workforce in Pennsylvania, declining enrollments in higher education institutions and shortages in high-need disciplines.
April 11, 2024 4:55 am
PHOENIX (AP) — The fight over a newly revived 1864 Arizona law criminalizing abortion throughout pregnancy unless a woman’s life is at risk has engulfed the state’s lawmakers. The Arizona Legislature devolved into jeering Wednesday as Republican lawmakers shut down discussion on a proposed repeal of the law. Shouts of “Shame! Shame!” erupted in the state House. The Arizona Supreme Court cleared the way this week for enforcing the pre-statehood abortion ban throughout pregnancy without exceptions for rape or incest. A proposed ballot initiative may ask voters in November whether to enshrine abortion protections into the Arizona state constitution.
April 11, 2024 4:59 am
NEW YORK (AP) — As he prepares to bring the first of Donald Trump’s four criminal prosecutions to trial, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg finds himself at the center of a political firestorm. Since his election two years ago, Bragg, a former law professor, has often spoken about his unease with the job’s political demands. The upcoming trial, over hush money payments allegedly made by Trump during the 2016 election, will test Bragg’s efforts to portray himself as apolitical in the face of relentless attacks from Trump and his supporters. Bragg says he is treating the former president as he would any other defendant in a white-collar crime case. The trial is scheduled to begin on Monday.
