October 9, 2025 4:49 am
SOMERSET TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A Somerset Township father continues to express concerns about target shooting on property near a park. Jared Ritenour says he has called police after hearing what he called hours of gunfire in the woods by his home and next to a playground, ball field, walking track and basketball courts. He tells WPXI “It was like a war zone, and that’s when I called the police,” Ritenour said. “My goodness, it sounded like the beginning of Saving Private Ryan — pow, pow, pow, pow, pow.” Ritenour has been raising concerns on social media and at township meetings, saying the target shooting near the park is dangerous. He says he was laughed at during one of those meetings. He says this is not a Second Amendment issue. “I own guns! I own a lot of guns!” he said. “I just don’t shoot them next to a park.” The property owner, Ronnie Fordyce, defended his rights, saying they’ve been target shooting on the land for nearly four years. He says the group shoots into 300 acres of woods, not toward the park, and that they’re following the law. Fordyce pointed out that state law bans hunting near schools or playgrounds but does not prohibit target shooting.
October 8, 2025 5:56 pm
BOSTON (AP) — Joan Kennedy has died. The first wife of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy died Wednesday at the age of 89. She endured the assassinations of two brothers-in-law and stood by her husband through the Chappaquiddick scandal as well as through his failed 1980 run for president. The couple divorced in 1982. She worked for the mentally challenged and other causes but also struggled with mental health issues and alcoholism herself for much of her life, including several drunk driving arrests. Her son Patrick Kennedy praised her as a classically trained pianist and advocate for addiction recovery who helped break stigma and inspired others to seek help.
October 8, 2025 4:18 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A budget impasse in Pennsylvania is delaying financial aid for in-state college students. The PA State Grant Program gives more than 100,000 students an average of $2,000 each semester. With the state budget standoff stretching into its third month, students face another round of delays after federal glitches and software issues this summer. Even after the governor signs the budget into law, it will take at least a month for schools to begin receiving the money. Some schools are crediting students with money they expect to receive, or offering emergency grant programs. But the president of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities says private schools already have tight budgets
October 8, 2025 1:22 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — Toyota is recalling nearly 400,000 vehicles because the rear-view camera may not display when backing up, increasing the risk of a crash, federal traffic safety regulators said. Included in the recall are 2022-2025 Toyota Tundras and Tundra hybrids and 2023-2025 Sequoia hybrids. The number of automobiles in the recall total 393,838, with the non-hybrid Tundra making up more than half of them. The camera display malfunction is caused by a software problem, which will be fixed with an update by dealerships free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed November 16. Owners can contact Toyota’s customer service at 1-800-331-4331.
October 8, 2025 10:36 am
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Former FBI Director James Comey has pleaded not guilty to lying to Congress five years ago. Comey is set to make his first court appearance Wednesday in a Justice Department criminal case accusing him of lying to Congress five years ago. The Comey case has amplified concerns President Donald Trump’s Justice Department is being weaponized in pursuit of the Republican president’s political enemies. Comey is expected to plead not guilty. That will kick-start a process of legal wrangling in which defense lawyers will almost certainly move to get the indictment dismissed before trial, possibly by arguing the case amounts to a selective or vindictive prosecution.
October 8, 2025 5:01 am
ELWOOD, Ill. (AP) — National Guard troops are positioned outside Chicago and they could soon be in Memphis as the Trump administration pushes ahead with an aggressive policy toward big-city crime whether local leaders support it or not. National Guard members from Texas had settled in at an Army Reserve center in Illinois by early Wednesday, despite a lawsuit and vigorous opposition from Democratic elected leaders. In Memphis, Tennessee, meanwhile, police Chief Cerelyn Davis said Guard troops could arrive by Friday. President Donald Trump’s bid to deploy the military on U.S. soil over local opposition has triggered a conflict with blue state governors.
October 8, 2025 4:57 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Republicans and Democrats have begun pouring money into an election this November for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. It’s the latest example of how state high court races have become proxy battles for the biggest issues roiling the country, from abortion to voting rights to redistricting. Both parties are expected to spend millions of dollars on campaign flyers, digital and TV ads and get-out-the-vote efforts. At stake is whether the highest court in the most populous presidential swing state will keep its liberal majority. But overall spending in Pennsylvania is nowhere near the $100 million spent this year in Wisconsin — a record amount for a state supreme court race.
October 8, 2025 2:21 am
Testimony on day three in the trial of Joshua George, 33 of Smith Township has concluded with differing opinions by expert witnesses. Prosecutors called Dr. Adelaide Eichman, a child advocacy pediatrician that worked at UPMC/Children’s Hospital that reviewed the case of the infant that died of trauma suffered sometime between the time prior to Joshua George dropping his son off for babysitting at the home of grandmother Cheska Rotellini and the time that she called 9-1-1 for medical care. Eichman says that the baby died of blunt force trauma to the head and severe shaking, but would not commit to a definitive timeline as to when symptoms would occur after the trauma was committed. She maintained that symptoms could occur two to four hours after the trauma occurred. Defense attorneys called Dr. Todd Luckasevic, a forensic pathologist that performed the autopsy on the infant and agreed that blunt force trauma and violent shaking caused the death. He characterized the death as a homicide. He stated that the severity of the injuries would have caused near immediate symptoms of being inconsolable. His opinion is that the injuries suffered by the infant probably occurred shortly after 10:00 am that day. He stated that this is the first time in his twenty year career that he has testified on behalf of defense counsel. Testimony will resume on Thursday
October 7, 2025 5:39 pm
MIAMI (AP) — The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Jerry has strengthened in the Atlantic Ocean on a path toward the Caribbean. Jerry has maximum sustained winds of 50 mph Tuesday. It was expected to strengthen into a hurricane in the coming days. Meanwhile, Hurricane Priscilla was near major Category 3 storm status in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico. Its top winds were at 110 mph on Tuesday afternoon, just shy of major hurricane strength. A tropical storm watch is in place for Baja California Sur. Hundreds of miles further out in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Octave was weakening far from the southern tip of Baja California.
October 7, 2025 10:22 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Pam Bondi has repeatedly deflected questions while seeking to defend herself during a combative congressional hearing in the face of growing criticism that she’s turning the law enforcement agency into a weapon to seek vengeance against President Donald Trump’s political opponents. Democrats sought to use Tuesday’s hearing to warn of what they view as the politicization of a department that has long prided itself on remaining independent from the White House. The hearing comes on the heels of the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, which has deepened concerns about the politicization of the department. (Photo: AP)
