July 12, 2023 4:52 am
PETERS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — People in Peters Township and beyond are sharing their deepest sympathies, prayers, and dollars, by the thousands, for a woman brutally attacked with a hammer over the weekend. An online fundraiser hit over $100,000 to help Jen Pardini recover from a traumatic brain injury and other serious conditions. According to the police report Jen broke up with 28 year old William Oberschelp and moved out of their shared apartment, and back home with her parents, ten days prior to the attack. Investigators say Oberschelp admitted to taking an Uber to Jen’s parents’ Thompsonville Road house — uninvited — going into her bedroom and waking her up early Saturday morning. The pair went to the garage and began arguing, and Oberschelp admitted to hitting Jen in the back and head with a hammer before kicking her while she was on the ground. Police say he then took her phone and ran off, leaving her lying unconscious in a pool of blood. She was flown by medical helicopter to Allegheny General Hospital in critical condition. When officers came to his apartment Oberschelp told them, “I’m the one you’re looking for,” according to police paperwork. Oberschelp is being held at the Washington County Prison without bond. Peters Township police are asking neighbors to check their surveillance cameras for any video of the attack. Police are also searching for the woman’s phone and anyone who come across it to contact the department and do not touch it.
July 12, 2023 2:25 am
Washington City Council is expected to formally approve on Thursday, an increase in the city’s internal insurance rates. Mayor Scott Putnam says the rates for their liability, commercial and property/casualty insurance are going up twelve-percent. Putnam says that translates into about a twenty-thousand-dollar increase over last years premium payment. Putnam attributed the increase to a number of things, including building replacements, losses over the past five years and just in general, the increasing cost of insurance. Putnam says he is hopeful that the increase, once council is ready to work on a new budget, will not be passed on to taxpayers.
July 12, 2023 2:22 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A partisan dispute about funding for three of Pennsylvania’s state-related universities may mean higher tuition for in-state students as a budget impasse continues further into the summer. The state government approached two weeks without full spending authority on Tuesday. Funding for Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh and Temple is in limbo. The three universities receive state subsidies. Gov. Josh Shapiro and his Democratic allies have supported raising state aid to the three schools by 7% to $623 million, collectively. Republicans have balked and repeatedly rejected efforts to approve the aid in recent weeks.
July 11, 2023 2:50 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Bank of America must reimburse customers more than $100 million and pay $150 million in fines for “double-dipping” on overdraft fees, withholding reward bonuses on credit cards and opening accounts without customer consent. It is one of the highest financial penalties in years against Bank of America, which has largely spent the last 15 years trying to clean up its reputation and market itself to the public as a bank focused on financial health and not on overdraft fee income. (Photo: ABC)
July 11, 2023 5:11 am
ATLANTA (AP) — A new grand jury sworn in Tuesday in Atlanta will likely consider whether criminal charges are appropriate for former President Donald Trump or his allies for their efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has been investigating since shortly after Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to ask him to find just enough votes to beat Democrat Joe Biden. The investigation expanded to include examination of a slate of Republican fake electors, other phone calls to Georgia officials and unfounded allegations of widespread election fraud. Willis is expected to present her case before one of two grand juries that was seated Tuesday.
July 11, 2023 5:09 am
(AP) – Few Republicans have high confidence that votes will be tallied accurately in next year’s presidential contest, suggesting years of sustained attacks against elections by former President Donald Trump and his allies have taken a toll. A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that just 22% of Republicans have high confidence in the 2024 vote count compared to 71% of Democrats. The findings underscore the partisan divide caused by a relentless campaign of lies related to the 2020 presidential election. The survey also found that independents have grown skeptical about the integrity of the upcoming election. Just 24% have the highest levels of confidence that the votes will be counted accurately.
July 11, 2023 5:08 am
VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — NATO opened its summit Tuesday with fresh momentum after Turkey withdrew its objections to Sweden joining the alliance. It’s a step toward the unity that Western leaders have been eager to demonstrate in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a significant step toward Sweden’s membership. It also will alleviate tension in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called it a “historic day” late Monday evening as he announced the agreement. U.S. President Joe Biden is scheduled to meet separately on Tuesday with the leaders of Turkey and Sweden.
July 11, 2023 5:06 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten has been released from a California prison after serving 53 years for two infamous murders. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Tuesday that Van Houten “was released to parole supervision.” Her release comes days after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced he would not fight a state appeals court ruling that Van Houten should be granted parole. Van Houten received a life sentence for helping Manson’s followers carry out the 1969 killings of Leno LaBianca, a grocer in Los Angeles, and his wife, Rosemary. (Photo: ABC)
July 11, 2023 5:04 am
Lethal flooding has simultaneously hit India, Japan, China, Turkey and the U.S. Northeast. Scientists have long warned that more extreme rainfall is expected in a warming world. Climate pollutants, mainly carbon dioxide and methane, hold more heat in the atmosphere and a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture. That results in storms dumping more precipitation with sometimes deadly outcomes.
July 11, 2023 4:55 am
After a successful first tour of duty in April, goats from Allegheny Goatscape will return to Chartiers Creek in Canonsburg. “Goatscaping” will occur in the same place as the last time, the Adams Avenue and Four Coins Drive sides of the creek. Cleanup efforts are due to the vegetation around it that could leave the borough liable for damages if a serious flood hits, as told by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. The goats can safely reach areas that humans can’t in the creek. The goal of using the goats is to improve Canonsburg’s score with the USACE and meet the Department of Environmental Protection’s regulations. Canonsburg Borough President Eric Chandler spoke highly of the work of the animals landscaping and says their return is for unfinished business with some trees around the creek. “Our plan was to come behind them and cut the trees down,” said Chandler. “Once the goats come in, we’ll have a group that will come in and cut the trees down.” After the goats complete their landscaping, a tour of the area will be scheduled with the USACE to show their improvements.
