October 3, 2024 4:45 am
BELLE VERNON, Pa. — (WPXI) – A fifth-grade student at Marion Elementary in the Belle Vernon School District reportedly threatened to bring a gun to campus while he was on the bus Tuesday, according to a letter from the superintendent. The letter says that multiple students overheard the comment and reported it to the bus driver. The driver notified the school administration, and the student was kept home from school on Wednesday. According to the superintendent, the student will be kept out of school while the situation is investigated by local law enforcement “Please know that the safety of our students is our top priority, and we take this matter very seriously. We encourage you to speak with your children about the importance of reporting concerning comments or behaviors to a trusted adult, as the students on the bus did today. Their quick action allowed us to address this situation swiftly,” the letter reads.
October 3, 2024 2:02 am
The Borough of Charleroi met at their agenda meeting and one discussion item that caused earlier strife in the county, caused even more tense feelings in the borough. After Donald Trump referenced Charleroi in a campaign rally speech in September, Borough Council President Kristin Hopkins-Calcek released a statement simultaneously with a press release authored by the Mon Valley Alliance. Because board members of the MVA were not aware of the release, several have resigned to show that they in no way were involved with the issuance of the press release. Councilman Larry Celaschi called out Hopkins-Calcek for not alerting borough council of her statement. Celaschi says that the signature made it look like it was an official statement from the board, they should have been consulted. At particular issue was a line that made reference to a 50 acre industrial property along the river. Celaschi said that it was insensitive to the employees at the Corelle Plant to infer that they will be out of their jobs soon by marketing the property. Hopkins-Calcek indicated that it was in no way a concession to the plant closing. She recited the elected officials that she has been in contact with both federally and in the state. She said the statement was to be taken as forward thinking because if the plant does close, she wanted to make people aware of the location and the strong workforce available in Charleroi. Business that council will consider at their voting meeting will be a first reading of a proposed ordinance establishing building permits in accordance with the Uniform Construction Code. They will look to approve several maintenance issues in the borough and vote to advertise for a new solid waste collection contract.
October 2, 2024 5:51 pm
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A San Diego doctor charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s fatal overdose has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute the surgical anesthetic ketamine. Dr. Mark Chavez entered the plea Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal court. The “Friends” star died last year of an overdose of the powerful anesthetic. Chavez and two others have now pleaded guilty in the case and agreed to cooperate. Prosecutors’ two main targets are a doctor allegedly supplied by Chavez who is accused of selling the drug to Perry, and a woman who prosecutors say is a drug dealer who sold him the lethal dose.
October 2, 2024 5:48 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Some manufacturers and retailers are urging President Joe Biden to invoke a 1947 law as a way to suspend a strike by 45,000 dockworkers that has shut down 36 U.S. ports from Maine to Texas. At issue is Section 206 of the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, better known as the Taft-Hartley Act. The law authorizes a president to seek a court order for an 80-day cooling-off period for companies and unions to try to resolve their differences. Biden has said, though, that he won’t intervene in the strike.
October 2, 2024 5:44 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Prosecutors say Donald Trump laid the groundwork to try to overturn the 2020 election even before he lost, knowingly pushed false claims of voter fraud and “resorted to crimes” in his failed bid to cling to power. A newly unsealed court filing lays out fresh details from the landmark criminal case against the former president. It argues that the former president is not entitled to immunity from prosecution. It was submitted by special counsel Jack Smith’s team following a Supreme Court opinion that conferred broad immunity on former presidents and narrowed the scope of the prosecution.
October 2, 2024 5:43 pm
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have toured the hurricane-devastated areas of North Carolina and Georgia. Biden, in a helicopter, flew over toppled trees, twisted metal and towering piles of debris Wednesday in the normally tourist friendly downtown of Asheville, North Carolina. At the same time, Harris was getting her own look at the storm’s damage in Georgia. Both were seeking to demonstrate a larger commitment and competence in helping damaged communities after Donald Trump’s false claims about their administration’s response. Harris praised the workers straining, in her words, “to meet the needs of people who must be seen, who must be heard.” (Photo: AP)
October 2, 2024 4:07 pm
Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry announced that charges were filed against former Greene County District Attorney David Russo (pictured) and former Chief Detective for the Greene County DA’s Office, Zachary Sams, following a presentment from the 51st Statewide Investigating Grand Jury. Russo, 47, of Holbrook, Greene County, and Sams, 40, of McDonald, Washington County, were charged Wednesday morning. Russo was arrested and appeared before Magisterial District Judge Tom Ankrom and bail was set at $50,000 unsecured. Zachary Sams was served with a summons to appear in court. Russo and Sams were both charged with retaliation for past official action, official oppression and conspiracy; additionally, Russo was charged with conflict of interest and misapplication of entrusted property. The charges detailed in the presentment stem from a series of ongoing disputes that developed between Russo and other Greene County officials, and the actions Russo and Sams took, using the powers of their office, against their critics. The common thread underpinning the case was Russo’s desire to deliver retribution against his political enemies and bolster his reelection bid. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Heather Serrano, Deputy Attorney General Aaron McKendry, and Senior Deputy Attorney General James Price.
October 2, 2024 9:57 am
STEELTON, Pa. (AP) – The Republican challenger trying to flip the U.S. Senate seat in swing-state Pennsylvania says he’ll press for U.S. military action in Mexico to target fentanyl trafficking networks. David McCormick is proposing a controversial and complicated idea that seemed to originate with former President Donald Trump. McCormick is challenging Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania. The issue of fighting fentanyl is playing a big role in the campaign. McCormick envisions using the U.S. military’s drones and special operations teams in Mexico to destroy fentanyl trafficking cartels. Critics say such operations would do little to hurt the cartels or stem the flow of fentanyl, while raising delicate questions about sovereignty.
October 2, 2024 5:15 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Some 45,000 dockworkers at 36 U.S. ports from Maine to Texas are on strike for the first time in decades. And experts say the workers may wield the upper hand in their standoff with port operators over wages and the use of automation. Organized labor enjoys rising public support and has achieved a string of recent victories in other industries, with the backing of the pro-union administration of President Joe Biden. Their negotiating stand is likely further strengthened from having the nation’s supply chain of goods under pressure from the effects of Hurricane Helene, which has coincided with the peak shipping season for holiday goods.
October 2, 2024 5:14 am
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian medical officials say at least 32 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israeli strikes in southern Gaza. The European Hospital in Khan Younis said it received the bodies after heavy Israeli airstrikes and ground operations in the city overnight and into Wednesday. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Israel has continued to strike what it says are militant targets across Gaza nearly a year after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack ignited the war. That’s even as attention has shifted to Lebanon, where Israel is battling Hezbollah, and to Iran, which launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel late Tuesday.
