June 3, 2023 4:09 am
Pittsburgh-(AP)-Police have described how they exchanged fire with a gunman who carried out the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history, frantic to get wounded worshippers at Pittsburgh synagogue to safety as they shot and neutralized the suspect. Several officers took the stand on Friday, the fourth day of the prosecution’s case against Robert Bowers. The 50-year-old truck driver’s lawyers have acknowledged he shot and killed 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018, but are working to spare his life. Police testified about a chaotic sequence that featured booming gunshots, flying glass and a haze of smoke before Bowers finally surrendered.
June 3, 2023 4:01 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI)- The United States Postal Services released a list of cities with the most mail carriers who were bitten by dogs. Pittsburgh tied with Memphis, San Francisco, Denver and Akron for spot No. 17. Each of those cities had 19 reports of mail carriers being bitten by dogs in 2022. In 2022 alone, more than 5,300 mail carriers were attacked by dogs. The list was released ahead of National Dog Bite Awareness Week, a public service campaign by USPS. The campaign is meant to encourage dog owners to help support safe mail delivery. “When letter carriers deliver mail in our communities, dogs that are not secured or leashed can become a nemesis and unpredictable and attack,” said Leeann Theriault, USPS employee safety and health awareness manager. “Help us deliver your mail safely by keeping your dog secure and out of the way before your carrier arrives.” The campaign runs from Sunday, June 4 through Saturday, June 10.
June 2, 2023 3:53 pm
NEW DELHI (AP) — Two passenger trains have derailed in India, killing at least 50 people and trapping hundreds of others inside more than a dozen damaged rail cars. Authorities say about 400 people were taken to hospitals after Friday’s accident, which happened in eastern India, about 220 kilometers (137 miles) southwest of Kolkata. The cause was under investigation. The railroad ministry said 10 to 12 coaches of one train derailed, and debris from some of the mangled coaches fell onto a nearby track. The debris was hit by another passenger train coming from the opposite direction. Up to three coaches of the second train also derailed.
June 2, 2023 2:59 pm
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — A building under construction near the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven has partially collapsed during a concrete pour, injuring seven people including two critically. But officials say there were no fatalities in Friday’s collapse. Fire Chief John Alston Jr. says three people were partially buried under the rubble and were rescued. He says the injuries included broken bones. Officials a portion of second floor collapsed through the first floor and into the basement. Workers told officials the concrete was being poured faster than they could spread it, and it pooled too much and caused the collapse. Federal officials are investigating.
June 2, 2023 12:54 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Justice has informed former Vice President Mike Pence’s legal team that it won’t pursue criminal charges related to the discovery of classified documents at his Indiana home. The department sent a letter to Pence’s attorney on Thursday informing him that, after an investigation into the potential mishandling of classified information, no criminal charges will be sought. The news comes days before Pence plans to launch his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination for president. It’s a campaign that would put him in direct competition with former President Donald Trump.
June 2, 2023 8:48 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Teachers are leaving their jobs at an accelerating rate in Pennsylvania, amid fears of a nationwide exodus of burned-out teachers. A new analysis by Penn State’s Center for Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis shows that the rate of teacher attrition in Pennsylvania grew faster in the 2022-23 school year and hit its highest point in a decade of tracking. The past two years, schools saw relatively modest changes in attrition even as teachers reported more dissatisfaction with the job. Penn State education professor Ed Fuller says now that labor markets are tight and it’s much easier for teachers to find a job near where they live.
June 2, 2023 5:05 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Amazon will pay more than $30 million to settle alleged privacy violations involving its voice assistant Alexa and its doorbell camera Ring. The Federal Trade Commission voted Wednesday to file charges in two separate cases Wednesday that could also force the company to delete certain data collected by its popular internet-connected devices. Amazon didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. In the Alexa case, the FTC said Amazon had deceived users of its Alexa voice assistance service for years by failing to delete all children’s voice transcripts that parents requested. The FTC ordered the company to delete inactive child accounts as well as certain voice information and geolocation data.
June 2, 2023 5:04 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation’s employers stepped up their hiring in May, adding a robust 339,000 jobs, well above expectations and evidence of enduring strength in an economy that the Federal Reserve is desperately trying to cool. Friday’s report from the government reflected the job market’s resilience after more than a year of rapid interest rate increases by the Fed. Many industries, from construction to restaurants to health care, are still adding jobs to keep up with consumer demand and restore their workforces to pre-pandemic levels. Yet there were some mixed messages in the jobs figures, which also showed that the unemployment rate rose to 3.7%, from a five-decade low of 3.4% in April.
June 2, 2023 5:03 am
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — President Joe Biden fell onstage at the U.S. Air Force Academy graduation on Thursday. The White House says Biden is “fine” after he tripped over a sandbag. Biden had been greeting the graduates in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at the front of the stage with salutes and handshakes. Biden turned to jog back toward his seat when he fell. He was helped up by an Air Force officer as well as two members of his U.S. Secret Service detail. He then returned to his seat to view the end of the ceremony. White House communications director Ben LaBolt tweeted, “He’s fine,” and Biden later joked that he had gotten “sandbagged.”
June 2, 2023 5:01 am
HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) — An internal investigation finds that Border Patrol medical staff declined to review the file of an 8-year-old girl with a chronic heart condition and rare blood disorder before died on her ninth day in custody. U.S. Customs and Border Protection has said the Panamanian child’s parents shared the medical history with authorities after being taken into her custody. But CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility says in a statement released Thursday that a nurse practitioner declined to review documents about the girl the day she died and denied requests for an ambulance.
