April 24, 2024 5:14 am
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Korean War veteran from Minnesota who still carries shrapnel in his leg from when he was wounded in combat will finally get his Purple Heart medal, 73 years late. The U.S. Army notified 96-year-old Earl Meyer, of St. Peter, this week that it has reversed itself and granted him a Purple Heart, which honors service members wounded or killed in combat. The decision came after a campaign by his daughters and attorney. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota championed his case, which previously had been rejected due to a lack of documentation. Attorney Alan Anderson says they’re now hoping to arrange a presentation ceremony “in the near future.”
April 23, 2024 2:53 am
Tuesday is Primary Election Day in Pennsylvania and here in Washington County, Elections Director Melanie Ostrander is predicting a thirty-five-percent voter turnout. Ostrander says that is a typical turnout for a federal election primary. The election has been tainted with a recent decision by the county’s board of elections, to forbid ballot curing, the fixing of mistakes on absentee and mail-in ballots. Ostrander says they have received 14,147 requests for mail-in ballots, with the majority, over ten-thousand, being from Democrats and the remainder, a little over three-thousand, being from Republicans. Out of those, as of Monday, Ostrander says they have received 11,067 back. Out of that number, 8,409 were Democratic ballots, while the remainder, a little over twenty-six-hundred, were Republican. Pennsylvania leaves a number of election decisions up to county officials. The result has been a lack of uniformity ranging from whether to cure mail-in ballots to the use of drop boxes. Westmoreland, Allegheny, Greene and Fayette counties all allow mail-in ballot curing. Locally, State Representative Bud Book has a Republican challenger in the 50th Legislative District. Stephanie Waggett, is a 44-year-old Carmichaels resident, a registered nurse and a former administrator at the Fayette Energy Facility in Masontown. Cook and Waggett will be vying for Republican votes in the primary election. Cook has represented the 50th Legislative District since the beginning of last year as a result of redistricting. The 50th Legislative District includes all of Greene County and portions of Washington County.
April 22, 2024 2:12 am
Charges have been filed against two Washington men who are accused of shooting and killing a teenager in South Franklin Township earlier this month. Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh announced on Monday that charges have been filed against Windale Barfield Jr. and Karon Whitlock in the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Annalaya Wilkerson of Monongahela and the wounding of a 17-year-old girl. Wilkerson and the juvenile were found shot on the side of Jolly School Road on April 13th. Walsh says both men have been charged with criminal homicide, conspiracy, attempted homicide and aggravated assault. At the time the complaint was filed, neither men were in custody. Anyone with information on Barfield and Whitlock should call PSP Washington at 724-223-5200.
April 23, 2024 4:49 am
Peters Township Council spent a long evening making decisions on several land parcels that have been under consideration for development. In the beginning of the night, council reconvened a public hearing on rezoning of approximately 17 acres of land adjacent to E. McMurray Road. On one parcel, an assisted living facility was proposed, on the second parcel approximately 80 townhomes were proposed. Council took testimony for an hour hearing about increased traffic and safety for young children that are in the existing neighborhood that would contain a main traffic artery. Council removed the Mixed Residential Overlay and rezoned the property to Low Density Residential. The developer of the plans, Andrew Zahalsky had no comment on the action. Also at issue was the Froebe Gardens Development adjacent to Peterswood Park. Developers initially asked for a time extension for a decision on the development. That request was denied. Also denied was the approval of the development. Township officials criticized the developer for not taking action on approximately 3 dozen conditions associated with this development and two prior plans that had similar conditions applied to them. Council denied the plan for 191 homes presented and the property will likely be rezoned to Low Density Residential. Finally, at the end of the evening, council heard from residents concerned about a development in North Strabane Township that will border Peters Lake Park. Residents hope that Peters Township Council will join them in their efforts to prevent the building of the Collective at Peters Lake. Council did offer their support to the group but explained to them that they have no say in the matter, but will make sure that North Strabane Township officials are aware of their concerns. Council will hold a joint meeting with the Peters Township School District on April 29 to update each other on happenings in each of their organizations.
April 22, 2024 2:53 am
No one was hurt in a house fire in Houston Monday morning. Washington County 911 tells us the fire broke out at 226 East Grant Street just before ten o’clock. Multiple fire departments were called in to help fight the blaze. The fire was brought under control before noon. The Red Cross is reportedly helping those who were displaced by the blaze. There has been no word on what caused the fire. (Photo: Facebook)
April 23, 2024 4:53 am
NEW YORK (AP) — A veteran tabloid publisher has testified that he pledged to be Donald Trump’s “eyes and ears” during his 2016 presidential campaign, recounting for a jury how he promised the then-candidate that he would help suppress harmful stories and had even arranged to purchase a doorman’s silence. The testimony from David Pecker was designed to bolster prosecutors’ assertions of a decades-long friendship between Trump and the former publisher of the National Enquirer that culminated in an agreement to give the candidate’s lawyer a heads-up on negative tips and stories so they could be quashed. Testimony will resume on Wednesday.
April 23, 2024 4:56 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is returning to Washington to vote on $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine and Israel. They are taking the final steps in Congress to send the legislation to President Joe Biden’s desk after months of delays and contentious internal debate over how involved the United States should be abroad. The $61 billion for Ukraine comes as the war-torn country desperately needs new firepower and as Russian President Vladimir Putin has stepped up his attacks. Soldiers have struggled to hold the front lines as Russia has seized the momentum on the battlefield and forced Ukraine to cede significant territory.
April 23, 2024 4:54 am
(AP) – Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press appear to show a new compound of tents being built near Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip as the Israeli military continues to signal it plans an offensive targeting the city of Rafah. This tent construction is near Khan Younis, which has been targeted by repeated Israeli military operations over recent weeks, but Israel has said it plans to evacuate civilians from Rafah during an anticipated offensive on the southern city, where hundreds of thousands of people have taken refuge during the war, now in its seventh month. On Monday, a failed rocket strike was launched at a base housing U.S.-led coalition forces in Syria, a U.S. defense official said.
April 23, 2024 3:55 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — What began last week when students at a New York Ivy League school refused to end their protest against Israel’s war with Hamas has turned into a much larger movement. Students across the nation set up encampments, occupied buildings and ignored demands to leave Tuesday. Protests against Israel’s war with Hamas had been bubbling for months but kicked into a higher gear after more than 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators who had camped out on Columbia University’s upper Manhattan campus were arrested last week. Dozens more protesters have been arrested at other campuses since, and many now face charges of trespassing or disorderly conduct.
April 23, 2024 3:57 pm
DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department is paying a $138.7 million to settle more than 100 claims that it badly mishandled allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016. It was a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue preying on victims before his arrest. Nassar worked at Michigan State University and at USA Gymnastics. He’s serving decades in prison for assaulting female athletes, including Olympians. For more than a year, FBI agents in Indianapolis and Los Angeles had knowledge of allegations against Nassar but apparently took no action. (Photo: AP)
