August 22, 2023 9:29 am
Pennsylvania Superior Court has rejected an appeal by Washington County Clerk of Courts Brenda Davis and affirmed a contempt of court judgement against her. The three-judge panel issued the decision Friday. It backed County President Judge John DiSalle’s decision one-year ago when he sentenced Davis to 15 days in the county jail and a $5,000 fine for defying his order to turn over juvenile case files from her office. That led to a wild scene between Davis and Sheriff’s deputies at the Courthouse. Security footage showed Davis resisting deputies and then sliding down the wall of a hallway claiming she had been injured. Superior Court found that Davis “took matters into her own hands in defiance” and that because of her “outrageous” behavior Judge DiSalle was within his right to find her in contempt.
August 22, 2023 5:12 am
Tennessee lawmakers are convening a special session this week that highlights the divergent response states are taking to a spate of mass shootings. The special session on public safety is unlikely to produce any new gun control laws from Tennessee’s Republican-led Legislature. But numerous Democratic-led states have passed an array of new restrictions, including bans on certain semi-automatic weapons and expanded background check requirements. Many of the new laws already are facing court challenges. The state action comes a year after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled people have a right to carry guns in public for self-defense.
August 22, 2023 5:10 am
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A federal judge is set to consider whether Texas can keep a floating barrier on the U.S.-Mexico border. A court hearing is planned Tuesday and comes days after Texas repositioned the oversize buoys closer to U.S. soil. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott says the barrier was moved as a precaution because of allegations the buoys had drifted to Mexico’s side of the river. Both the Biden administration and Mexico want the barrier removed. The Justice Department has accused Texas of unlawfully putting the buoys on the international boundary. It’s not clear when U.S. District Judge David Ezra might issue a ruling.
August 22, 2023 5:09 am
LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Maui authorities say more than 800 people remain unaccounted for two weeks after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century destroyed the community of Lahaina. It’s a staggering number that presents huge challenges for officials who are trying to determine how many of those people perished and how many may have made it to safety but haven’t checked in. As of Monday the toll of confirmed dead was 115. A list of the missing was published after a 2018 wildfire killed 85 people in Paradise, California, and officials were able to reduce the number of names from 1,300 to just about a dozen within a month. But Maui officials are not making their list public.
August 22, 2023 5:07 am
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin will be notably absent when Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders from the BRICS group of emerging economies begin a three-day summit in South Africa on Tuesday. The bloc, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, is holding its first in-person meeting since before the COVID-19 pandemic. But Putin will participate via video call after his travel to South Africa was complicated by an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued for him in March over the abduction of children from Ukraine. Xi, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will attend in person.
August 22, 2023 5:06 am
CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (AP) — Crews worked to dig roads, buildings and care home residents out of the mud across a wide swath of Southwestern U.S. desert Monday, as the first tropical storm to hit Southern California in 84 years headed north, prompting flood watches and warnings in half a dozen states. The National Hurricane Center said only vestiges of a weakened system was moving over the Rocky Mountains. Hilary first made landfall as a hurricane in Mexico’s arid Baja California Peninsula on Sunday before becoming the first tropical storm to hit Southern California in 84 years. Officials warned it still could cause severe flooding and mudslides in areas.
August 22, 2023 4:58 am
WARREN, Pa. (AP) — A man who was the subject of a manhunt in two states last month after his escape from a northern Pennsylvania jail is facing more charges in both the escape and in the original kidnapping case. A district judge ruled Monday there was enough evidence to forward both cases against 34-year-old Michael Burham to the Court of Common Pleas. Burham is accused of having abducted a couple to evade capture in New York, where he was wanted in a rape case and for questioning in a murder case. A 68-year-old Mead Township woman testified that she and her 89-year-old husband were driven 18 hours to South Carolina.
August 22, 2023 4:55 am
The Washington County Sheriff’s Department and the Washington Health System teamed up to unveil the newest vehicle in the Sheriff’s fleet. This vehicle is wrapped to drive cancer awareness in the community and is on display at the Women’s Health Center at 80 Landings Drive in South Strabane. Sheriff Tony Andronas said the idea came about from the graphics designer for the cars. His family was particularly affected recently and he donated his design talents to help Washington County in the effort of driving cancer awareness. Brook Ward, President and CEO of the Washington Health System stated that unveiling the car at the Women’s Health Center could not better drive the point that “everyone in their family has been touched by cancer in some way.” He is proud of their partnership between the Sheriff’s Department and the county. Ward also pointed out the programs available to cancer and breast cancer patients through the Washington Health System. The diagnostic center at the Women’s Heath Center has a Breast Navigator to help patients though their treatment. They have a palliative care team, surgical staff and the WHS/UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Radiation and Oncology Therapy Unit. New to the list is the Cancer Fit Program produced at the Cameron Wellness Center. It helps cancer patients build strength and energy during the treatment and recovery process. The Sheriff’s vehicle will be on display at the entrance to the Women’s Health Center through Thursday.
August 22, 2023 4:53 am
Monday was a busy day in the Peters Township School District. According to Superintendent Dr. Jeanine French, Monday was the first day for all teachers to report. Along with veteran teachers the district welcomed 16 new faces that will be disbursed throughout all district buildings. The school board worked through an agenda Monday night that was largely procedural. One item of interest, district participation in classes at the Western Area Career and Technology Center has increased by 50%. French states that there will be no new items or classes for students to encounter. She says that they stay close to their practice of teaching fundamentals and building on those. She credits that path as the reason the district is ranked near the top of all area schools year after year. Covid-19 does not concern the district. French says that they will treat it just like the flu and ask that when students are sick, to just stay home. French was also happy to report that transportation is not an issue this year. All bus routes are mapped out and staffed. The first day of school for Peters Township students is Monday August 28.
August 22, 2023 2:43 am
The trial for a Fredricktown man accused of several sex offenses against a child began in Washington County Common Pleas Court on Tuesday. Russell Jolliffe, 33 is accused of rape of a child, aggravated indecent assault of a child and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child. The alleged offenses occurred in 2018 in Bentleyville and were discovered in 2021 when a relative of the alleged juvenile victim found pornography on the child’s electronic tablet. Morning testimony centered on the alleged minor victim. The testimony was at times vary labored. It stated how Jolliffe accompanied the juvenile to their room and proceeded with sexual assaults. Further testimony revealed that assaults occurred in retail store bathrooms. The alleged victim testified that the assaults occurred on multiple occasions when they were five years old. Afternoon testimony was provided by expert witnesses in child abuse. An entire forensic interview of the alleged victim was played in court. The interview corroborated testimony from the morning. The prosecution has rested its case, defense testimony will begin at 9:00 AM on Wednesday.
