More Evidence In Killing Of Pregnant Amish Woman

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.

Woman Attacked By Bear

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.

Controlled Burn & Explosion In Derailment Not Necessary

March 6, 2024 2:13 am

(WPXI) – NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy testified to Congress Wednesday that a controlled burn and explosion weren’t necessary after a train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio in February 2023. Homendy was questioned by Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) in front of a senate committee. Vance asked Homendy if the Norfolk Southern contractors at the scene lacked a scientific basis when a decision was made on the controlled explosion. “Yes. In fact, they were informed by Oxy Vinyls of the information that should have been taken by the contractors in their decision-making,” Homendy said. “But yes, they did not have that. They lacked the scientific background to address that.” Homendy confirmed that ground crews were told to decide in 13 minutes on the controlled explosion, and no other opinions were offered. Homendy also testified that there was an option to let the chemicals cool down. “This town very well may have been poisoned to facilitate the rapid movement of freight, or at the very least, it was poisoned for reasons that we can’t identify,” Vance said. “That should really concern every single person on this committee.”

Arizona Senator Says She Won’t Seek Re-Election

March 5, 2024 3:53 pm

PHOENIX (AP) — Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona has announced that she won’t run for a second term. Sinema’s decision Tuesday comes after her estrangement from the Democratic Party left her politically homeless and without a clear path to reelection. Senate Republicans recently blocked a bipartisan bill to help secure the U.S.-Mexico border and deliver military aid to Ukraine and Israel, which Sinema spent months negotiating. Sinema had hoped it would be a signature achievement addressing one of Washington’s most intractable challenges. Sinema says she loves Arizona and is proud of what she’s delivered but chooses “civility, understanding, listening, working together to get stuff done.”  (Photo:  AP)

Monroeville Convention Center Will Remain Open

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)

Facebook & Other Social Media Site Services Restored

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)

Lawmakers Aim To Approve Immunity Laws For IVF

March 5, 2024 5:07 am

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers, who face public pressure to get in vitro fertilization services restarted, are nearing approval of immunity legislation for providers. Three IVF providers paused services after the state Supreme Court’s ruling last month that frozen embryos were children under the state’s wrongful death law. Legislative committees on Tuesday will debate the bills that would protect clinics from lawsuits and criminal prosecution for the “damage or death of an embryo” during IVF services. Lawmakers are aiming to get the bills approved Wednesday.

Supreme Court Temporarily Blocks Texas Law

March 5, 2024 5:06 am

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas’ plans to arrest migrants who enter the U.S. illegally and order them to leave the country is headed to the Supreme Court in a legal showdown over the federal government’s authority over immigration. Justice Samuel Alito on Monday issued an order that puts the new Texas law on hold for at least next week while the high court considers what opponents have called the most dramatic attempt by a state to police immigration since an Arizona law more than a decade ago. The law had been set to take effect Saturday under a decision from an appeals court. Alito’s order pushed that date back until March 13.

At Least 17 Killed In Israeli Airstrike In Southern Gaza

March 5, 2024 5:04 am

Palestinian officials say an Israeli airstrike has killed at least 17 people in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. First responders with the Civil Defense circulated footage of rescuers pulling dead and wounded people from the rubble of a house on Tuesday, including a child with blood on his face who was not moving. The nearby European Hospital said it received 17 bodies overnight. The Israeli military said it was carrying out targeted raids on militant infrastructure in Khan Younis while trying to evacuate civilians from the area. The latest fatalities brought the overall Palestinian toll from the nearly five-month war to 30,631, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

It’s Super Tuesday

March 5, 2024 5:02 am

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump are poised to have the biggest day of the primary campaign move them to the brink of winning their party’s presidential nominations and set up a historic rematch that many voters would rather not endure. Super Tuesday elections are being held in 16 states and one territory. Hundreds of delegates are at stake, the biggest haul for either party on a single day. In a dramatic departure from competitive Super Tuesdays of the past, the contests are effectively sealed this year. Both Biden and Trump have easily repelled challengers despite polls showing voters don’t want this year’s general election to be identical to 2020’s.