March 6, 2024 5:01 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jason Palmer, a previously unknown candidate, won the Democratic caucus in American Samoa on Tuesday. Out of 91 ballots cast, Palmer won 51 and President Joe Biden won 40, according to the local party. Palmer told The Associated Press, “I found out that I had won because my phone started blowing up.” He says he never visited the territory before the caucus. The outcome won’t derail Biden’s march toward his party’s nomination. Only six delegates were at stake in the U.S. territory, which is a tiny collection of islands in the South Pacific. Palmer is a Baltimore resident who has worked for various businesses and nonprofits, often on issues involving technology and education.
March 6, 2024 4:54 am
BUTLER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – A woman was attacked by a bear in Butler Township on Tuesday night. Emergency crews were called to the 100 block of Bellefield Drive at 8:30 p.m. Police said the woman was trying to get a mother bear and three cubs away from her dog when she was attacked. The woman was bitten in the back of the head and on both arms. She was taken to a local hospital. The woman’s condition is not known at this time. The Pennsylvania Game Commission was working to tranquilize the bear and her three cubs. During the process, police said the bear “became aggressive” and had to be euthanized. The three cubs were tranquilized and removed from the scene.
March 6, 2024 5:04 am
Over the last five months, Israel has killed thousands of Hamas fighters, destroyed dozens of their tunnels and wreaked unprecedented destruction on the Gaza Strip. But it faces a dilemma that was clear from the start of the war and will determine its outcome: It can either try to annihilate Hamas, which would mean almost certain death for the estimated 100 hostages still held in Gaza, or it can cut a deal that would allow the militants to claim a historic victory. Either outcome would be excruciating for Israelis. Either would likely seal an ignominious end for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s long political career. And either might be seen as acceptable by Hamas, which valorizes martyrdom.
March 5, 2024 1:55 am
Former Washington City Councilman Allan Bunner died over the weekend at the age of 91. According to his obituary, he was a 1950 graduate of Washington High School and worked at Fairmont Supply Company for more than thirty years. After that he launched the Bunner Agency and worked there well into his 80’s. He was twice elected to City Council in both 1976 and 2004. He died Saturday. Family and friends will be received from 1 to 3 p.m and 6 to 8 p.m Wednesday at the William Neal Funeral Home along Allison Avenue in Washington.
March 6, 2024 4:56 am
Police investigating the killing of a pregnant Amish woman in her Pennsylvania home last week say they recovered three firearms, bullets and two spent casings. The search warrant inventory released Tuesday says they also took away broken knife parts, a white bonnet and the contents of an ash tray, trash can and dust bin. Police have charged 52-year-old Shawn Cranston of Corry, Pennsylvania, with killing 23-year-old Rebekah Byler and her unborn child in the rural Spartansburg home. Cranston remains in the Crawford County Correctional Facility without bail. No defense attorney has appeared in court records, and the county public defender’s office said Monday it wasn’t representing him.
March 6, 2024 5:06 am
A technical issue had caused widespread login issues for more than an hour across Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, Threads and Messenger platforms on Tuesday. Andy Stone, Meta’s head communications, acknowledged the issues on X, formerly known as Twitter, and said the company “resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience.”
March 5, 2024 3:41 pm
(WPXI) – The Monroeville Convention Center will remain open, local leaders announced. The convention center was set to become a retail space later this year, but officials announced there were “successful discussions” with Hobby Lobby and Oxford Development Company to ensure convention center operations will continue. Public officials reportedly provided Hobby Lobby and Oxford with information about the convention center’s importance to the community after the announcement of the facility’s closure- and after review, both organizations decided to pursue termination of their lease at this location. Officials say outreach will begin soon to vendors of shows slated on June 1 or later in 2024, hoping that they will have their events at MCC as originally planned. Several stakeholders, including the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Allegheny County and the Municipality of Monroeville, have committed to a transition plan for the convention center. Under this plan, the convention center will operate as a “long-term community asset” under a community or government-based ownership structure, or a government-backed lease. Officials say plan details are still being formulated. (Photo: WPXI)
March 5, 2024 11:34 am
(AP) – A technical issue caused widespread login issues for a few hours across Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, Threads and Messenger platforms Tuesday. Andy Stone, Meta’s head of communications, acknowledged the issues on X, formerly known as Twitter, and said the company “resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience.” Users reported being locked out of their Facebook accounts and feeds on the platform as well as Threads and Instagram were not refreshing. WhatsApp, which is also owned by Meta, appeared unaffected. A senior official with the U.S. Cyber-security and Infrastructure Security Agency told reporters Tuesday that the agency was “not aware of any specific election nexus nor any specific malicious cyber-activity nexus to the outage.” (Photo: AP)
March 5, 2024 4:47 am
Washington City Council heard public comment at their agenda meeting Monday night. One important comment was from Fern Sibert, Director of Clean and Tidy our County Inc. Fern announced several clean up dates that will occur in the area and she is looking for volunteers. On March 23 they will concentrate on roads and highway ramps. On April 20, parks and playgrounds will be the focus. She also said that she would like to possibly have a competition between city wards to see which ward could clean their area best. Finally, on May 18 the group will focus on waterway washup. Volunteers may sign up using QR Codes on flyers posted throughout the city and on the group’s Facebook page. Not only is Sibert picking up trash, she also has a cap sorting event coming up. She is looking for help to sort collected bottle caps to be packed up to be taken to be made into park benches and tables. She says that she has 7000 pounds of caps and she could use all of the help she can get. That event will be on April 6 from 9 AM until 6 PM at the Holy Trinity Church on Hewitt Avenue. Volunteer information about this event is also available on the Facebook page. In City business council will look to adopt several resolutions to apply for grants that will benefit the park comprehensive plan update and the Stone Pavilion floor rehabilitation project.
March 5, 2024 4:57 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania state court says spreadsheets of raw data associated with every ballot cast in an election aren’t subject to public scrutiny. The Commonwealth Court ruled Monday on “cast vote records,” which were requested by an election researcher whose work has fueled right-wing attacks on voting procedures. The 5-2 ruling sides with Secretary of State Al Schmidt, whose office argued against access to these electronic records from Lycoming County for the 2020 General Election. The court majority says the cast vote records are the “electronic, modern-day equivalent” of all the votes in a traditional ballot box. State law says the contents of ballot boxes are not public records.
