March 17, 2023 4:23 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Besieged Republican Rep. George Santos is carrying on in Congress despite calls for him to resign after he admitted to fabricating many aspects of his life story. He faces a crush of investigations, but he is rewriting his story in real time — delivering speeches, dashing through the halls of the U.S. Capitol, business as usual. It’s an unusual up-is-down approach that would have been almost unthinkable in an earlier generation. But it’s one that signals the new norms taking hold amid the deepening of a post-truth era in Congress. Pressed about it, Santos declared, “Truth still matters very much.”
March 17, 2023 4:22 am
DINWIDDIE, Va. (AP) — Attorneys for the family of a Black Virginia man who died in law enforcement custody say video of the incident shows seven sheriff’s deputies pushing down “every part of his body” with “absolute brutality.” Mark Krudys, one of the lawyers for the family of Irvo Otieno, spoke Thursday at a news conference along with civil rights attorney Ben Crump and members of Otieno’s family. Krudys says he “was not really prepared to see” the video footage and stressed that Otieno was in handcuffs and leg irons. He says, “You can see that they’re putting their back into it. Every part of his body is being pushed down with absolute brutality.” Seven deputies and three hospital employees have been charged with second-degree murder in Otieno’s death March 6.
March 17, 2023 4:21 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Eleven of the biggest banks in the country have announced a $30 billion rescue package for First Republic Bank. It’s an effort to stop the California-based bank from becoming the third to fail in less than a week. Shares of First Republic had fallen sharply this week, dropping 60% on Monday alone. For the package, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo would each put $5 billion in uninsured deposits into First Republic. Meanwhile Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs would deposit $2.5 billion each. The remaining $5 billion would come from five other banks.
March 17, 2023 4:19 am
BEIJING (AP) — China says President Xi Jinping will visit Russia from Monday to Wednesday in an apparent show of support for Vladimir Putin. No other details were given, but China has declared a “no-limits” friendship with Russia and refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion _ even while declaring that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries be respected. Beijing has also condemned Western sanctions and accused NATO and the United States of provoking Russia. Putin invited Xi to visit Russia during a video conference call the two held in late December. The visit, Putin said, could “demonstrate to the whole world the strength of the Russian-Chinese ties” and “become the main political event of the year in bilateral relations.”
March 17, 2023 4:16 am
SEWICKLEY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – A man is dead and his wife is fighting for her life after a devastating fire at their Westmoreland County home on Thursday. Intense flames could be seen shooting out of all sides of their home on Yukon Road in Sewickley Township around 4:00 p.m. According to the Westmoreland County coroner, the man who died is 65-year-old David Shotts, Sr. His wife, Ruth, the coroner said, was airlifted to UPMC Mercy hospital with burns and smoke inhalation. Neighbors said they heard an explosion. The cause of this fire is being investigated by the State Police Fire Marshal.
March 17, 2023 4:11 am
A Washington man already serving a sentence in state prison received an additional sentence on Thursday. Evan Hryniewich, 31 pleaded guilty to one count of felony escape. Hryniewich is already incarcerated in SCI Chester for pleading guilty to a robbery of a Marathon gas station in October of 2021. He was given a furlough from jail to tend to a personal matter in April of 2022. Hryniewich never returned to jail as scheduled and was later arrested. His sentence for the robbery is 22 to 44 months. Hryniewich will receive a sentence of 2 years probation to be served once he is released from jail.
March 17, 2023 4:10 am
Washington County Commissioners were met with a large push back from emergency responders throughout the county regarding the replacement of the current 9-1-1 radio communications system. Commissioners approved a measure to have a study conducted to see if current VHF technology can be used in a new radio communications system. The system being studied is a system proposed by TAIT/MRA Inc./ PMC Wireless. The system would cost approximately $22.5 million and would be paid through American Rescue Plan funds. MRA Inc. is the current vendor that supplies radio communications for the county and they would be conducting the study. First Responders from all over the county asked commissioners to table the motion for further consideration. They were upset that the proposal up for vote was not the recommendation from the First Responder Public Safety Advisory Board and the Land/Mobile Radio Subcommittee. The preferred option was supplied by Motorola and worked on a 80 megahertz broadcast system. Commissioners stated that budgetary issues came into play. Motorola could not guarantee that the system would be completely installed by 2026 so that it could be funded totally by ARPA funds. Their proposal was also $7 million more than the proposed budget. Fire Chief Chris Richer from the City of Washington Fire Department spoke of having a fire in January with entrapment and having no radio support from the county 9-1-1 system. Fire Chief Jordan Cramer of South Strabane Township related how his communications on Interstates 70 and 79 cannot be completed with emergency vehicles only a half mile away. Commissioners approved the study by a 2-1 vote. Commissioner Nick Sherman registered the dissenting vote. According to Commissioner Chairwoman Diana Irey-Vaughn, if the TAIT/MRA Inc. study comes back and says VHF does not work, it is back to square one. If the proposal is feasible, it will be approved and sent on to the U. S. Department of the Treasury for their approval for implementation.
March 17, 2023 2:50 am
Fayette County’s District Attorney has issued a temporary injunction to close Sails Inn in Uniontown after two men were shot and killed there last week. Police say 32-year-old Darrell Gregg and 28-year-old Tommy Stargell Jr. were shot and killed at the bar last week after an argument. District Attorney Richard Bower issued the injunction on Wednesday. Bower has referred to Sails Inn as a “nuisance bar” in the past and mentioned that there have been 74 incidents involving police at the bar before the double homicide. The owners had to padlock the bar and give a key to Uniontown police. The bar could be permanently closed depending on the outcome of a hearing that will be held on Monday at 2:30 p.m.
March 16, 2023 8:45 am
Fewer Americans applied for jobless claims last week as the labor market continues to thrive despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool the economy and tamp down inflation. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications for jobless claims in the U.S. for the week ending March 11 fell by 20,000 to 192,000 from 212,000 the previous week. The four-week moving average of claims, which flattens out some of week-to-week volatility, fell by 750 to 196,500, remaining below the 200,000 threshold for the eighth straight week. Applications for unemployment benefits are seen as a barometer for layoffs in the U.S.
March 16, 2023 8:43 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The Pentagon has released footage of what it said was a Russian aircraft pouring fuel on a U.S. Air Force surveillance drone and clipping the drone’s propeller in international airspace over the Black Sea. The Pentagon said Thursday that the 42-second video shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the back of the MQ-9 drone and releasing fuel as it passes. According to the U.S. military, on a second approach, either the same jet or another Russian fighter that had been shadowing the MQ-9 struck the drone’s propeller, damaging one blade. Russia says its warplanes didn’t strike the drone and claimed the unmanned aerial vehicle went down after making a sharp maneuver.
