July 15, 2022 1:41 am
NEW YORK (AP) – The Trump family says the former president’s first wife, Ivana Trump, has died in New York City. Trump posted on social media Thursday that “I am very saddened to inform all of those that loved her, of which there are many, that Ivana Trump has passed away.” The skier-turned-businesswoman formed half of a publicity power couple in the 1980s as Trump’s wife and mother of his oldest children. They had an equally public, and messy, divorce after Donald Trump met his next wife, Marla Maples. But in recent years, Ivana Trump had been on good terms with her former husband. (Photo: ABC)
July 14, 2022 9:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week hit its highest level in nearly 8 months, but the total number of those collecting benefits fell. Applications for jobless aid for the week ending July 9 rose by 9,000 to 244,000, up from the previous week’s 235,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. First-time applications generally reflect layoffs. Analysts had expected the number to remain flat from the previous week. The four-week average for claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, rose from the previous week. The total number of Americans collecting jobless benefits for the week ending June 25 fell.
July 14, 2022 4:19 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – New omicron variants are again driving hospital admissions and deaths higher in recent weeks, causing states and cities to rethink their responses to COVID-19 and the White House to step up efforts to alert the public. Some experts say the warnings are too little, too late. The highly transmissible variants have shown a remarkable ability to get around the protection offered by vaccination. Health officials say Los Angeles County, home to 10 million residents, is facing a return to a broad indoor mask mandate later this month if current trends in hospital admissions continue.
July 14, 2022 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The House Jan. 6 committee’s investigation of the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and the events leading up to the U.S. Capitol insurrection is raising questions about former President Donald Trump’s role and whether he committed crimes. The various schemes and talking points that witnesses have revealed also highlight what a president has the authority to do. Government and legal experts say the bigger question is whether further limits can be put on presidential authority to make sure there are no repeats of 2020.
July 14, 2022 4:17 am
JERUSALEM (AP) – President Joe Biden will seek to bolster cooperation between the United States, Israel and other countries during his first full day in the Middle East. His schedule Thursday involves meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and a joint news conference. Lapid represents an interim government that was formed when the previous coalition collapsed, and he’s seeking a full term in November, when Israel holds its fifth election in less than four years. Although Biden will likely be cautious about showing favoritism, his appearances with Lapid could burnish Lapid’s image during a politically chaotic time in the country.
July 14, 2022 4:13 am
DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) – A woman has been sentenced to prison in the death of an infant nearly three years ago at at unlicensed day care in suburban Philadelphia. Fifty-year-old Lauren Landgrebe of Upper Southampton had pleaded guilty in Bucks County to involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment in the August 2019 death of 11-month-old Victoria Watson. President Judge Wallace Bateman sentenced her Tuesday to one day less than a year to one day less than two years in jail, followed by 10 years’ probation. Defense attorney Louis Busico called the sentence “in the interest of justice” but said he recognized the pain of the family.
July 14, 2022 4:10 am
BETHEL PARK, Pa. — (WPXI) – Bethel Park firefighters responded to a fire at a home along Fairview Drive around 6 a.m. Wednesday. Chief David Gerber said the fire started in a shed, spread to nearby trees and then the house. According to Chief Gerber, a couple and their adult daughter got out safely, thanks to the watchful eyes of a good Samaritan. “They were apparently sleeping,” said Gerber. “Neighbors knocked on the door screaming ‘your house is on fire.’” “Whenever something like this happens we all come together,” said neighbor Ben O’Keefe. “It’s very alarming. It’s usually a quiet, dead-end street.” O’Keefe and other neighbors quickly came together to help the family, offering food, drinks, and a place to stay. “The nice thing is there’s a lot of support in this neighborhood,” he said. Thankfully, Chief Gerber said the home should be fixable. “The smoke and stuff is what damaged mostly the inside of the house,” said Gerber. The fire marshal is investigating the exact cause of the fire, as well as the severity of the damage it caused.
July 14, 2022 4:08 am
UNIONTOWN, Pa. — (WPXI) – State police in Fayette County are looking for multiple people they say stole nearly $52,000 worth of jewelry in Uniontown. Troopers believe that two women stole rings, bracelets and necklaces from the Kay Jewelers on Walmart Drive. They called it a typical “distraction theft,” which happened on July 8 at around 12:15 p.m. Surveillance video captured a worker showing the women multiple pieces of jewelry from a side-by-side case. It also shows the women reach into the case and grab merchandise while distracting the employee. Trooper Kalee Barnhart says the women may be out of the area already. “We do believe this theft is suspected to be tied in with others around the East coast.” Barnhard says the forensics team was able to retrieve fingerprints. They are now being processed in the lab, and troopers are hopeful that wil help lead them to the suspects. Police are also looking for two men they saw with the women when reviewing surveillance footage. The men were seen with the women before they entered the jewelry store. Anyone with information is asked to contact state police at 800-4PA-TIPS (800-472-8477).
July 14, 2022 2:25 am
DENVER (AP) – A wealthy dentist accused of killing his wife during an African safari and later collecting nearly $5 million in insurance proceeds admitted to the killing to his longtime lover, a federal prosecutor told a jury Wednesday. The U.S. government alleges that 67-year-old Lawrence “Larry” Rudolph, who founded Three Rivers Dental Group in Greensburg, killed his wife during a 2016 trip in Zambia. Rudolph’s attorney told jurors that Bianca Rudolph’s death was accidental, and he accused prosecutors of relying on circumstantial evidence. Rudolph and his wife were big game hunters. If convicted, Rudolph could face life in prison or the death penalty. The trial is in Colorado because the insurance payouts were based there.
July 13, 2022 5:14 pm
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Netflix has picked Microsoft to help deliver the commercials in a cheaper version of its video streaming service expected to launch later this year with a pledge to minimize the intrusions into personal privacy that often accompany digital ads. The alliance announced Wednesday marks a major step toward Netflix’s first foray into advertising after staying commercial-free for 15 years. áNetflix announced it would create an ad-supported option three months ago after disclosing it had lost 200,000 subscribers during the first three months of the year amid stiffer competition and rising inflation. Netflix still hasn’t disclosed the price of its ad-backed service.
