May 31, 2023 5:21 pm
Washington County 911 says there were no injuries in a fire that broke out just before four o’clock Wednesday afternoon in the eleven-hundred block of Old Farm Road in Cecil Township in Lawrence. The fire reportedly affected multiple town homes there.
May 31, 2023 1:31 pm
The Pittsburgh Business Times has issued its new rankings guide of the top scoring school districts in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The list includes schools in Washington, Allegheny, Westmoreland, Fayette, Beaver and Armstrong counties. Coming in at number one – overall – was the Upper St. Clair School District. Peters Township took the top spot for Washington County schools. They were listed as number three. Canon-McMillan is 24th; Chartiers Houston is 34th; followed by Trinity and then Bentworth at 36. Fort Cherry was 46th; Avella was listed at 51 followed by California. McGuffey was number 71; Charleroi came in at 74; Burgettstown was 78; Ringgold was 84; Beth Center was listed at 90 and Washington was listed at 91. The paper says their rankings look at three years of state standardized test scores, including PSSA’s and Keystone Exams.
May 31, 2023 5:08 am
A drone attack on Moscow has exposed breaches in Russia’s air defenses and underlined the Russian capital’s vulnerability amid expectations of a massive Ukrainian counteroffensive. Tuesday’s strikes that lightly damaged three apartment buildings angered Russian hawks, who criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin and the military brass for failing to protect Moscow. Ukrainian authorities rejoiced over Tuesday’s attack but customarily avoided claiming responsibility. The raid followed a May 3 drone strike on the Kremlin that lightly damaged the roof of a building serving as one of Putin’s official residences. Previously, drones came down near Moscow in what Russian authorities described as botched Ukrainian attempts to attack the city.
May 31, 2023 5:06 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hard-fought to the end, the debt ceiling and budget cuts package is heading toward a crucial U.S. House vote. President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy are working to assemble a coalition of centrist Democrats and Republicans to push it to passage over fierce blowback from conservatives and some progressive dissent. They are rushing to avert a potentially disastrous U.S. default in less than week. Despite deep disappointment from hard-right Republicans that budget cuts don’t go far enough, McCarthy insisted he would have the votes to ensure approval. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says the package reduces deficits by $1.5 trillion over the decade. Liberal Democrats are upset the deal greenlights a natural gas pipeline development through Appalachia.
May 31, 2023 5:04 am
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is set to begin his first full day of presidential campaigning with a four-stop blitz through Iowa, trying to prioritize personally connecting with voters while proving he has the mettle to take on former President Donald Trump. DeSantis has appearances in Sioux City, Council Bluffs, Pella and Cedar Rapids on Wednesday. He’s packing in early events in the state whose caucus kicks off GOP White House primary voting as part of a leadoff sprint that will eventually take him to 12 cities across Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina before Saturday.
May 31, 2023 5:03 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea’s attempt to put the country’s first spy satellite into space failed. Wednesday’s failed launch is a setback to leader Kim Jong Un’s push to boost his military capabilities. After its unusually quick admission of failure, North Korea vowed to conduct a second launch after learning what went wrong. A satellite launch by North Korea is a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions. South Korea and Japan briefly urged residents to seek shelter during the launch. South Korea’s Defense Ministry released photos of a salvaged white, metal cylinder suspected to be part of the crashed North Korean rocket.
May 31, 2023 5:00 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – Light rail service was impacted at several T stations in Pittsburgh and the South Hills on Tuesday. Service was suspended between the North Side and Gateway stations due to a possible electrical issue. Bus shuttles were called to operate between these two stations. In a separate incident, a PRT spokesperson said it appears that a set of wheels on a rail car came off the track. That car was not in service and no passengers were involved. Single-track operation where in effect between Washington Junction and Private Drive in the South Hills. All Blue and Red line cars will be boarding and alighting passengers from the inbound platform at Washington Junction until further notice.
May 31, 2023 4:56 am
(AP) – Testimony has resumed in the trial of a suburban truck driver charged with carrying out the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. Carol Black told the federal jury in Pittsburgh on Wednesday about how she and her fellow New Light congregants, including her 65-year-old brother, Richard Gottfried, heard loud noises as they started Sabbath services in the basement of the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018. She says they quickly realized it was gunfire and that some of them hid. Black says she watched as the gunman killed an 87-year-old member of her congregation. She found out later that her brother was among the 11 people killed that day. Robert Bowers could get the death penalty if convicted.
May 31, 2023 2:39 am
A North Franklin Township man pleaded guilty to several felony and misdemeanor charges on Monday. Austin Garrett, 21 is accused of felony strangulation and robbery charges and several misdemeanor firearms charges that occurred from February of 2020 through May of 2021. According to police, Garrett punched his girlfriend in the head and face. He also grabbed a 1 month old baby from her, set it aside and then placed his hands around her neck causing her to struggle breathing and lose consciousness in July of 2020. Garrett will spend the next 3-6 years in state prison on the strangulation and robbery charges. He will then spend three years on probation for a person not to possess firearms charge. As part of a robbery sentence Garrett will also pay $300 restitution.
May 31, 2023 2:37 am
A Hopewell Township man requested a jury trial at his plea court hearing on Monday. Briar Chase, 24 is accused of multiple incidents of sexual assault of a juvenile between 2019 and February of 2021. According to police Chase assaulted the victim beginning at the age of 14. When arrested, police found several sexually explicit photos of the victim on Chase’s phone along with text messages to his girlfriend discussing the incidents that occurred in an Independence Township home. The trial is set for September.
