March 5, 2023 3:54 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — A skin lesion removed from President Joe Biden’s chest last month was a basal cell carcinoma — a common form of skin cancer. That’s according to his doctor, who added that no further treatment was required. Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the White House doctor who has served as Biden’s longtime physician, said Friday that “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” during the president’s routine physical on Feb. 16. O’Connor says the site of the removal on Biden’s chest has “healed nicely” and the president will continue regular skin screenings as part of his routine health plan.
March 5, 2023 3:48 am
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Defense attorneys for a man accused of stabbing four University of Idaho students to death have asked the Idaho Supreme Court to keep a gag order in place. The attorneys for Bryan Kohberger filed the opposition to the media challenge on Friday. They say a challenge to the order filed by 30 news organizations is premature and that media coverage of the case has been “twisted.” Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths in Moscow, Idaho. The news organizations contend the gag order violates free speech rights and that there are other ways to ensure Kohberger receives a fair trial.
March 4, 2023 3:55 am
BURBANK, Calif. (AP) — Tom Sizemore, the “Saving Private Ryan” actor whose bright 1990s star burned out under the weight of his own domestic violence and drug convictions, has died at age 61. His manager Charles Lago said Sizemore died at a hospital in Burbank, California on Friday. He had suffered a brain aneurysm early Feb. 18 at his Los Angeles home. Sizemore became a star with acclaimed appearances in “Natural Born Killers” and Michael Mann’s cult-classic crime thriller “Heat.” But serious substance dependency, abuse allegations and multiple run-ins with the law devastated his career, left him homeless and in debt for millions of dollars and sent him to jail.
March 4, 2023 3:53 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Archaeologists have found the first direct evidence for horseback riding in 5,000 year old skeletons in central Europe. The advent of horseback riding transformed human history by accelerating trade, communications and warfare. These early riders belonged to a people called the Yamnaya, who originated in parts of what is today Ukraine and western Russia. The researchers identified them as riders based on six tell-tale markers that indicate a person was likely riding an animal, including characteristic wear marks on the hip sockets and pelvis. The Yamnaya expanded across Eurasia, from Hungary to Mongolia, and their relationship with horses may have enabled these great migrations.
March 4, 2023 3:50 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Some residents stranded in Southern California mountain communities by a huge snowfall could be stuck for another week. San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus’ Friday estimate is an improvement in the outlook. The estimate has ranged up to two weeks. The sheriff attributes the change to the arrival of state assistance. A late-February blast of arctic air produced a rare blizzard east of Los Angeles in the San Bernardino Mountains. Thousands of people live at high elevations there in forest communities or visit for year-round recreation. Extraordinary snowfall buried homes and businesses. It overwhelmed the capability of snowplowing equipment geared toward ordinary storms.
March 4, 2023 3:49 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania state representative accused of sexual harassment says he’s not resigning but plans to enter inpatient treatment of some kind. A letter sent Friday to House Democratic leaders by Delaware County Rep. Mike Zabel says he’s “very mindful of and saddened by the sensitive and disturbing allegations.” A union lobbyist this week said it was Zabel who sexually harassed her four years ago. She says he caressed her leg while they were discussing legislation. Zabel is a Democrat first elected in 2018. He didn’t respond to requests for comment Friday, but his letter to Democratic leaders refers to an unspecified illness and says he wants to focus on recovery.
March 4, 2023 3:45 am
JOHNSTOWN – Fifty-seven defendants have been charged in two separate, but related Indictments, and by Criminal Complaint, with violating federal narcotics and firearms laws, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today. Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations in the Western District of Pennsylvania initially began investigating a violent street gang operating in western Pennsylvania beginning in 2018. Agents received information from confidential sources, conducted more than 50 controlled buys from members of the organization, and used other investigative techniques over the course of this lengthy investigation. In May 2022, agents commenced court-authorized Title III interception of telephones used by members of the drug trafficking organization. The wiretaps revealed that the DTO was conducting drug trafficking operations in the following areas: Indiana, Westmoreland, and Armstrong counties in the Western District of Pennsylvania; Cleveland, Ohio; Phoenix, Arizona; Seattle, Washington; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Wichita, Kansas; and in Mexico. These interceptions revealed that Arizona-sourced drugs, which consisted of fentanyl (in both pill and powdered form), heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine, were being distributed in our communities by the western Pennsylvania members of the DTO. Over the past ten months, investigators have seized more than 673 pounds of fentanyl-laced fake prescription pills, over 400 pounds of methamphetamine, and more than 16 pounds each of fentanyl powder and cocaine, over $600,000 in cash, nine vehicles, and 47 firearms. (Photo: United States Attorney’s Office)
March 4, 2023 3:39 am
Harrisburg, PA – The Shapiro Administration is reminding Pennsylvanians about the multiple ways to access the life-saving opioid reversal medication, naloxone, as nearly 23,000 opioid overdose reversals have been made with naloxone purchased through one of the state’s programs since 2017. “Anyone can save a life by administering naloxone to a person who is experiencing an opioid overdose,” said Acting Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen. “I encourage Pennsylvanians to obtain naloxone from a pharmacy, community give away event, or other sources – and learn how to give it. You never know when you could save the life of a stranger neighbor, friend, or family member.” Naloxone is a medication approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to rapidly reverse an opioid overdose by quickly restoring breathing to a person if their breathing has slowed or stopped. While naloxone can be administered by individuals with or without medical training to help reduce opioid overdose deaths, individuals are strongly encouraged to take this free training to better prepare themselves to assist someone in need. Completing this training and printing a certificate of completion will protect individuals administering naloxone as Good Samaritans. The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency’s (PCCD) Naloxone for First Responders Program (NFRP) distributes free naloxone to organizations and individuals who may encounter someone experiencing an overdose. Through the NFRP since 2017, Centralized Coordinating Entities (CCEs) distributed 214,514 kits (429,028 doses) to organizations and individuals who may encounter someone experiencing an overdose and an additional 265,308 kits of naloxone directly to organizations serving high-need communities through its statewide portal. More than 22,815 overdose reversals have been reported using state-purchased NARCAN, a particular brand name of naloxone.
March 4, 2023 3:36 am
MCKEESPORT, Pa. (WPXI) — A man is dead after a shooting in McKeesport on Friday evening. According to our news partners at WPXI, Allegheny County police and emergency crews were called to the 1200 block of Park Street at 5:47 p.m. Once on scene, first responders found the victim suffering from gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The name of the victim and other investigation information has not been released yet. This is the fourth shooting death in that city this week. Also Friday, police released the name of the third man shot and killed Wednesday–he is 47-year-old Robert Joyner,. who was fatally shot shot early Wednesday afternoon in the same area as Friday’s shooting. Police had previously released the names of two other men shot and killed Wednesday in a separate shooting at the Crawford Village housing complex. 22-year-old Jerred Dunkin, of Turtle Creek, was pronounced dead at the scene, and 30-year-old Jordan Eubanks, of McKeesport, died later at UPMC Mercy, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said. An 18-year-old was hospitalized in stable condition with a gunshot wound to the leg. That man, Davon Flewellen-Belton, has been charged with two weapons violations after investigators found him with a loaded handgun, according to a criminal complaint filed in the case.
March 4, 2023 3:31 am
Winds overnight Friday and into Saturday morning, some with gusts near 50 mph, brought down some trees and blew around debris, including onto roadways. As of 8am, West Penn Power was showing just about 2100 customers in Washington County were without power Saturday morning, but by 11am, that total was down to 65, with those expected to be restored by noon. The bulk of those outages were in the City of Washington, and Hanover, Somerset and North Franklin Townships. Fayette County, however, had over 20,000 without power, and Westmoreland County had over 9,000 in the dark Saturday morning. Both U.S. Routes 119 and 30 were closed in both directions at points because of downed trees and wires.
