May 15, 2024 2:59 am
A South Strabane Township man charged with attempted kidnapping waived his case to common pleas court on Tuesday. According to the criminal complaint, Jose Zaragoza, 48 and his ex-girlfriend agreed to discuss issues with an upcoming court proceeding when police were called to the Giant Eagle parking lot in Strabane Square on May 6. The report indicates Zaragoza approached her with a roll of duct tape and tried to forcibly remove her from her car saying “you’re coming with me.” The report says that he tried to choke her and covered her mouth with his hand as she tried to call for help. Zaragoza fled in his pick-up truck. When police arrived they found the woman with scratches and swelling on her arms and neck. Zaragoza faces felony charges of attempted kidnapping, strangulation and flight along with a misdemeanor simple assault charge. He will be arraigned June 20.
May 15, 2024 1:52 am
‘Tis the season for fun and fresh fruits and vegetables. The Main Street Farmers Market in Washington opens Thursday at the Main Street Pavilion on South Main Street, and will run from 3 to 6 p.m. every Thursday through Oct. 31st. Tracee Malik is the new president of the market this year and she says they are starting off the season with a full vendor lineup. She says every space is filled, as are the visiting vendors’ spaces. In addition to new vendors, Malik says all of last year’s vendors will be back and they have a full slate of entertainment lined up for adults and children. She says various musical acts will be featured throughout the season, plus special events such as First Responder Day, Future Farmers of America Day, Back to School celebration, Vet Appreciation Day, and a Halloween Party to wrap up the market.
May 14, 2024 2:57 pm
OCALA, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Highway Patrol says a bus carrying farmworkers in central Florida has overturned, killing eight people and injuring another 40 passengers. Authorities say the bus was transporting 53 farmworkers early Tuesday morning when it collided with a truck and swerved off a road in Marion County, north of Orlando. The bus crashed through a fence and ended up on its side in a field. The workers were being transported to Cannon Farms in Dunellon, which has been harvesting watermelons. Cannon Farms describes itself as a family owned commercial farming operation that has farmed its land for more than 100 years.
May 14, 2024 2:55 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Cohen is testifying again in Donald Trump’s hush money trial. But there’s been no witness-stand bombast or fireworks so far from Cohen, a man who was defined for years by his braggadocio as Trump’s problem-zapper. Instead, his testimony is about purposefully mislabeled checks, false receipts and blind loyalty. And it underscored the foundational argument of the case — that it’s not about the spectacle of what Trump was paying for, but rather his effort to illegally cover up those payments. A shocking moment did come, but it was courtesy of House Speaker Mike Johnson who appeared at the courthouse with Trump and declared the Manhattan criminal trial illegitimate. (Photo: AP)
May 14, 2024 8:44 am
Two people were flown to area hospitals following a two vehicle crash Tuesday morning in Somerset Township. Washington County 9-1-1 dispatchers say it happened just before 6 a.m. in the 1900 block of Route 136. The crash closed the roadway between Mosier Road and Brownlee Road for about two hours. There is no word on the identity or condition of those injured.
May 14, 2024 5:13 am
BALTIMORE (AP) — Crews have set off a chain of explosives to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. The demolition Monday marks a major step in freeing the grounded Dali container ship. The span landed on the ship’s bow after the Dali lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore on March 26. Since then, the ship has been stuck amid the wreckage and Baltimore’s busy port has been closed to most maritime traffic. The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and restore traffic through the port.
May 14, 2024 5:09 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Kyiv on an unannounced diplomatic mission to reassure Ukraine that it has American support as it struggles to defend against increasingly intense Russian attacks. The two-day visit starting Tuesday comes less than a month after Congress approved a long-delayed foreign assistance package that sets aside $60 billion in aid for Ukraine, much of which will go toward replenishing badly depleted artillery and air defense systems. It’s Blinken’s fourth trip to Kyiv since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. U.S. officials say Blinken will underscore the Biden administration’s commitment to Ukraine’s defense and long-term security.
May 14, 2024 5:08 am
The United Nations says more than half a million Palestinians have been displaced in recent days by escalating Israeli military operations in both southern and northern Gaza. Aid workers are struggling to distribute dwindling supplies to Palestinians in makeshift tent camps facing catastrophic levels of hunger. The United Nations’ agency for Palestinian refugees says around 450,000 Palestinians were driven from the southern Gaza city of Rafah over the past week. The U.N. said Monday that 100,000 people were displaced so far by Israeli evacuation orders in northern Gaza. Israeli forces are battling militants in northern areas despite launching major operations earlier in the war. Palestinian officials say Israeli strikes in central Gaza killed at least 12 people overnight and into Tuesday.
May 14, 2024 5:05 am
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Republican voters have advanced strong Senate contenders in Maryland and West Virginia, giving the GOP a big boost in its push to claim control of Congress’ upper chamber. Former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan claimed the Republican nomination in what will be a marquee race in Maryland against Angela Alsobrooks, a top local official who could become the fourth Black woman in U.S. history to serve in the Senate. Another popular Republican, Gov. Jim Justice, won the Senate nomination in deep-red West Virginia, becoming the overwhelming favorite in the race that represents the GOP’s best pickup opportunity in the nation.
May 14, 2024 5:04 am
PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Punxsutawney Phil’s offspring have names that just might help the famed weather-forecasting groundhog to predict when spring will begin. Phil’s human handlers chose Mother’s Day to announce that the two kits born this spring to Phil and his partner, Phyllis, are named Sunny and Shadow. Sunny is a female, Shadow a male. Each spring, Phil makes a prediction about the length of the remaining winter. According to tradition, if he sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of cold. The club received hundreds of suggested names for the marmot babies. The groundhog family lives in a climate-controlled burrow at the local library.
