March 28, 2024 4:40 am
Members of the Washington County Opioid Overdose Coalition met Wednesday to discuss data related to opioid overdoses and prevention in Washington County. Cheryl Andrews, Executive Director of the Washington Drug and Alcohol Commission led off the meeting by discussing the Commission’s foundation in 2016 and its affiliation with the Opioid Overdose Coalition. The WDAC is the provider of education, training and overdose prevention supplies. Kiandra Foster is a program manager at the University of Pittsburgh Program Evaluation and Research Unit. She spoke on a number of topics regarding stigma of opioid use disorder and how to eliminate it. She also spoke on harm prevention strategies to assist those with an opioid use disorder. Physical tools available are Narcan kits that can help revive someone experiencing an overdose. Fentanyl and xylazine test strips allow users to test their samples. According to Foster, studies show that if a user finds fentanyl in their sample, between 70%-90% of those users will choose not to continue that particular usage. She also spoke of a strategy of Never Use Alone. That means that if a user chooses to use, they should have someone present to call for medical assistance in case of an overdose. If no one is available, they can call the Never Use Alone hotline to have someone there to make contact with emergency responders if the user overdoses while on the phone. Common Pleas Court Judge John DiSalle (pictured) is a co-chair of the coalition and directs the specialty courts for the county, specifically the drug treatment court. He says that it is impossible to prosecute our way out of the overdose problem. We must overcome the stigma of substance abuse disorders and educate and treat users so that they may find their way out of their addiction. Studies show that there is a 76% drop in recidivism when specialty courts are employed.
March 28, 2024 4:44 am
BULLSKIN TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – A man was killed in a crash in Bullskin Township on Wednesday afternoon. Crews were called to Route 119 near Kingview Road at 3:23 p.m., a Fayette County 911 supervisor said. The victim has been identified as Joseph Baker Jr., 25. Route 119 was closed between Route 819 in East Huntingdon Township and Kingview Road. No one else was hurt, according to dispatchers.
March 28, 2024 4:48 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A federal appeals court says a requirement for Pennsylvania voters to put accurate handwritten dates on the outside envelopes of their mail-in ballots doesn’t run afoul of a civil rights law. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday to uphold enforcement of the required date on return envelopes. The dates are a technical mandate that caused thousands of votes to be declared invalid in the 2022 election. The total number is a small fraction of the large state’s electorate. The court’s ruling puts additional attention on Pennsylvania’s election procedures ahead of the presidential election.
March 28, 2024 2:20 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A proposal to ban the purchase, sale and production of untraceable gun parts has passed the Pennsylvania state House of Representatives. The bill passed on Wednesday, with Democrats in the House using their majority to propel gun control after years of stagnation in a divided state government. The legislation passed the House 104-97, with almost all Democrats and three Republicans voting in favor of it. The bill will likely face a cold reception in the GOP-controlled state Senate, which has not taken up gun control measures advanced by the House this session.
March 28, 2024 4:52 am
BALTIMORE (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says the cargo ship that crashed into and collapsed a bridge in Baltimore underwent “routine engine maintenance” in port beforehand. U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath said at a news conference Wednesday that authorities had been informed that the ship was going to undergo the maintenance. He added that they were not informed of any problems. The ship collided into a support pillar early Tuesday, causing the span to buckle into the river. The bodies of two of six workers who plunged into the water were recovered earlier in the day. The others are presumed dead.
March 28, 2024 4:53 am
ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump argued in a court filing that the charges against him in the Georgia election interference case seek to criminalize political speech and advocacy conduct that is protected by the First Amendment. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee plans to hear arguments on that filing and on two pretrial motions filed by former Georgia Republican Party chair David Shafer during a hearing set for Thursday. Lawyers for Shafer argue that he acted legally when he and other state Republicans signed a certificate asserting that Trump won the 2020 presidential election in Georgia and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.
March 28, 2024 4:57 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are teaming up with President Joe Biden for a glitzy reelection fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Thursday night’s event brings together more than three decades of Democratic leadership. It also provides a gilded exclamation mark on a recent burst of campaign travel by Biden, who visited several political battlegrounds in the last few weeks. Biden has a significant fundraising advantage over Donald Trump, with more than four times as much cash on hand by the end of February. His campaign said the New York City event will boost that total while rallying Democratic supporters.
March 28, 2024 4:55 am
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Former Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut has died, according to his family. He was 82 and died Wednesday of complications from a fall. Lieberman nearly won the vice presidency on Democrat Al Gore’s ticket in the disputed 2000 White House race. Eight years later, he came close to joining the GOP ticket as John McCain’s running mate. The Democrat-turned-independent stepped down from the Senate in January 2013 after 24 years. His independent streak often irked Senate Democrats he aligned with. Yet his support for gay rights, civil rights, abortion rights and environmental causes at times won him the praise of many liberals over the years.
March 28, 2024 8:47 am
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Powerball jackpot has increased to $935 million after no one matched the six numbers drawn. The numbers selected Wednesday night were: 37, 46, 57, 60, 66 and the Powerball 8. The drawing came a day after a player in New Jersey won a $1.13 billion Mega Millions prize. The Powerball jackpot has been growing for months, since the last winner on New Year’s Day. The game’s odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to create big jackpots that will grab attention and increase sales. The $935 million prize for the next drawing Saturday night is for a sole winner who is paid over 30 years through an annuity. Winners usually opt for a cash payout, which for the next drawing would be an estimated $449.7 million.
March 28, 2024 4:07 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for a cryptocurrency fraud that a prosecutor has described as one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan imposed the sentence Thursday in a packed Manhattan courtroom. The 32-year-old Bankman-Fried was convicted in November of fraud and conspiracy charges brought after his once-soaring cryptocurrency trading platform and related companies collapsed into bankruptcy. Bankman-Fried was extradited to the U.S. in December 2022, five years after he started his businesses with plans to revolutionize the emerging cryptocurrency industry.
