October 5, 2022 4:22 am
FORT MYERS, Florida (AP) – President Joe Biden has toured hurricane-ravaged areas of Florida, surveying storm damage by helicopter and bringing a pledge that federal, state and local governments will work as one to help rebuild homes, businesses and lives. Biden says he’s putting politics on mute for now to focus on those in need in and around Fort Myers. He comforted local residents Wednesday, walking among them with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, a potential 2024 rival. (Photo: ABC News)
October 5, 2022 4:19 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed laws absorbing four Ukrainian regions into Russia, a move that finalizes the annexation carried out in defiance of international law. Earlier this week, both houses of the Russian parliament ratified treaties making the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions part of Russia. The formalities followed Kremlin-orchestrated “referendums” in the four regions that Ukraine and the West have rejected as a sham.
October 5, 2022 4:15 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A judge has barred enforcement of an executive order signed by Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney last week banning guns and deadly weapons from the city’s indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, including parks, basketball courts and pools. Common Pleas Judge Joshua Roberts on Monday ordered Philadelphia “permanently enjoined” from enforcing the order after a legal challenge, citing Pennsylvania state law that prohibits any city or county from passing gun-control measures, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The Gun Owners of America, on behalf of several state residents, filed a lawsuit immediately after Kenny’s order, the latest attempt by Philadelphia officials to regulate guns inside city limits. Attorneys for the city had cited its role as a property owner managing its facilities, saying that distinguished the order from previous legislation passed by the city council and struck down in court. Andrew Austin, who represents the plaintiffs, said in a statement that he was gratified by the court’s quick action. But he said it was “in large part because the law is so explicit: The city is not allowed to regulate possession of firearms in any manner.” “It is unfortunate that the mayor and city are willing to waste their time and taxpayer money on these type of ‘feel-good’ measures,” Austin said. “This was nothing more than a press release, and would not have — in any way — addressed the crisis of crime in our city.”
October 5, 2022 4:12 am
FAYETTE COUNTY — (WPXI) – State police in Belle Vernon are looking for the driver of an SUV accused of hitting a man and leaving the scene. The man was walking home from work when he was struck along Grindstone Road in Redstone Township, Fayette County. Edith Sullivan was at her sister’s house about two weeks ago when she and her daughter witnessed the incident. ”Next thing you know, you see the silver or gray car swerve to the right, and heard what sounded like a gun go off,” Sullivan said. “We ran down over the hillside and we heard somebody saying ‘Help me! Help me!’ ” Sullivan said if they were not outside at the time, they would have never seen or heard what happened. “Not even no brake light or nothing, because I was going to chase him in my car,” Sullivan said. State police said debris left at the scene helped identify the make and model of the vehicle they believe was involved — a silver 2017-2020 Ford EcoSport which would have damage to the passenger side. The man’s leg was broken when he was hit. Investigators said because the driver did not stop, they are now looking at potential criminal charges.
October 5, 2022 2:40 am
The Washington and Jefferson Center for Energy and Policy Management hosted a series of panel discussions on “Harnessing Hydrogen” about how to produce hydrogen for energy use and how to effectively manage the capture of carbon and store it so that it no longer is a problem to the atmosphere. The Director of the CEPM Dr. Corey Young states that western Pennsylvania can play a key role in the production of hydrogen and an area for storage of carbon as a byproduct of that production. Young states that because of the natural gas production done in this area, the methane produced by that production can be processed to create blue hydrogen that can be used to power its own infrastructure or transport it to other end users such as the transportation industry and factories that could then decrease their reliance on fossil fuels. Carbon capture and storage is also an economic possibility here as the same type of rock that surrounds the natural gas in this area, is also very useful in the storage of carbon whether it be permanent storage or temporary storage to later be used in products such as fertilizer. The panel discussed how this industry is rather new in the United States and that private industry is starting to take on this technology and that the federal government is key to preliminary funding for the ventures. Currently $9.5 billion is earmarked for hydrogen production in the recently signed Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Bill.
October 5, 2022 2:40 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The family of a cinematographer shot and killed by Alec Baldwin on the set of the film “Rust” has agreed to settle a lawsuit against Baldwin and the movie’s producers, and production may resume on the project in January. Matthew Hutchins, widow of the cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, says in a statement that a settlement agreement has been reached in the New Mexico lawsuit. Matthew Hutchins says filming will resume on “Rust” in January, with the same principal players as before. New Mexico regulators say the production company has failed to pay a fine for safety violations, and have scheduled a hearing for April. Baldwin, Halyna Hutchins and others were setting up a shot inside a chapel on set when the gun he was holding went off in October 2021.
October 4, 2022 4:47 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to step into the legal fight over the classified documents seized during an FBI search of his Florida estate. The Trump team asked the court Tuesday to overturn a lower court ruling and permit an independent arbiter, or special master, to review the roughly 100 documents with classified markings that were taken in the Aug. 8 search. A three-judge panel last month limited the review to the much larger tranche of non-classified documents. A veteran Brooklyn judge, Raymond Dearie, is serving as special master.
October 4, 2022 4:36 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of available jobs in the U.S. plummeted in August compared with July, a sign that businesses may pull back further on hiring and potentially cool chronically high inflation. There were 10.1 million advertised jobs on the last day of August, down a huge 10% from 11.2 million openings in July. In March, job openings had hit a record of nearly 11.9 million. The sharp drop in job openings will be welcomed by the Federal Reserve. Fed officials have cited the high level of openings as a sign of strong labor demand that has compelled employers to steadily raise pay to attract and keep workers.
October 4, 2022 1:53 pm
(WPXI) – Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Max Baer was honored during a public memorial service at Duquesne University Tuesday morning. Baer, who was seventy-four-years-old, died unexpectedly over the weekend at his home near Pittsburgh. Family, friends, elected officials and community members attended his memorial service inside the Power Center along Forbes Avenue. Gov. Tom Wolf was in attendance and said in a statement: “I’m extremely saddened to learn that Chief Justice Baer passed away. He was a respected and esteemed jurist with decades of service to our courts and our commonwealth. I am grateful for his contributions and leadership in the Supreme Court.” Baer was first elected to the Supreme Court in 2003 and was sworn in as its chief justice in 2021. He was set to retire at the end of this year, after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75. A Pittsburgh native, the chief justice graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1971 and from the Duquesne University School of Law in 1975.
October 4, 2022 4:29 am
DUNWOODY, Ga. (AP) – A new report says Georgia Republican Senate nominee Herschel Walker paid for an abortion for his girlfriend in 2009. Walker has vehemently opposed abortion rights and calls the accusation in The Daily Beast a “flat-out lie.” The Daily Beast spoke to a woman who said Walker paid for her abortion when they were dating. The news outlet also reviewed a receipt showing her $575 payment for the procedure, along with a get-well card from Walker and her bank deposit records showing the image of a $700 personal check from Walker. Asked Monday night by Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity whether he remembered sending a $700 check, Walker says he sent people money all the time.
