October 3, 2022 4:30 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Prosecutors are saying at the opening of the most serious case to reach trial in the attack on the U.S. Capitol that the founder of the Oath Keepers extremist group and four associates planned for an “armed rebellion” to stop the transfer of presidential power. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Nestler delivered his opening statement Monday in Washington’s federal court in the trial of Stewart Rhodes and others charged with seditious conspiracy. They are accused of a weekslong plot to stop the transfer of power from Republican Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden. An attorney for Rhodes argued that prosecutors built their case on cherry-picked evidence like messages and videos and Oath Keepers were not involved with violence during the riot.
October 3, 2022 4:29 am
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) – Days after Hurricane Ian carved a path of destruction from Florida to the Carolinas, the dangers persisted, and even worsened in some places. It was clear the road to recovery from the storm will be long and painful. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing Monday. And Ian still is not done. Officials warned there still was the potential of severe flooding along Virginia’s coast and coast flooding was possible from the North Carolina Outer Banks to Long Island on Monday. Ian was one of the strongest storms to make landfall in the United States.
October 3, 2022 4:25 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Gaining the right to host next year’s Under-20 World Cup was a major milestone in Indonesia’s soccer development that raised hopes of a turnaround to long-standing problems that have blighted the sport in this country of 277 million people. The death of at least 125 people at a league game between host Arema FC of East Java’s Malang city and Persebaya Surabaya on Saturday is a tragic reminder that Indonesia is one of the most dangerous countries in which to attend a game. The domestic league has been suspended pending an investigation. Soccer is passionately supported in Indonesia but the country’s progress in the sport has been constrained by years of corruption, violence and mismanagement.
October 3, 2022 4:22 am
BEIRUT (AP) – An investigation by The Associated Press and the PBS series “Frontline” has documented a sophisticated Russian-run smuggling operation that has used falsified manifests and seaborne subterfuge to steal Ukrainian grain worth at least $530 million. The AP and “Frontline” used satellite imagery and marine radio transponder data to track three dozen ships making more than 50 voyages carrying grain from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to ports in the Middle East. The ongoing theft is being carried out by?wealthy businessmen and state-owned companies in Russia and Syria. Some of them already face financial sanctions from the United States and European Union. Legal experts say the theft is a potential war crime.
October 3, 2022 4:14 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A spectator at Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Jets has died following a fall at Acrisure Stadium. The Pittsburgh Department of Public Safety say police and emergency service personnel were alerted after the man fell shortly after the end of the Jets’ 24-20 victory over the Steelers. Paramedics administered care on site to the victim before he was transported to the hospital in critical condition. He died shortly thereafter. The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office identified him Monday as 27-year-old Dalton Ryan Keane of Monaca. The Steelers said in a statement that the organization is working with local authorities during the investigation. Keane worked as a pipe-fitter at McCarl’s, an industrial piping company, in Beaver County.
October 3, 2022 3:26 am
CLEVELAND (AP) – Prosecutors in Cleveland are investigating an apparent cheating scandal during a lucrative walleye fishing tournament over the weekend on Lake Erie. A Twitter video shows Jason Fischer, tournament director for the Lake Erie Walleye Trail event, on Friday cutting open walleye and finding lead weights and prepared fish filets inside the winning catch of five fish to bolster their weight. Anglers Jacob Runyan and Chase Cominsky were disqualified. Messages seeking comment were left Monday with Runyan, Cominsky and Fischer. A spokesperson for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources says ODNR officers gathered evidence. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley in a statement said “these individuals will be held accountable.”
October 2, 2022 8:16 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Max Baer, the chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, has died only months before he was set to retire, the court confirmed Saturday. He was 74. Baer died overnight at his home near Pittsburgh, the court said in a news release. The court didn’t give a reason for his death but called his “sudden passing” a “tremendous loss for the court and all of Pennsylvania.” The court said Justice Debra Todd now becomes chief justice “as the justice of longest and continuous service on the court.” She is the first female chief justice in the commonwealth’s history, a court spokesperson confirmed. “Chief Justice Baer was an influential and intellectual jurist whose unwavering focus was on administering fair and balanced justice,” Todd said in the release. “He was a tireless champion for children, devoted to protecting and providing for our youngest and most vulnerable citizens.” Gov. Tom Wolf ordered state flags at commonwealth facilities, public buildings and grounds lowered to half-staff, saying he was “extremely saddened” by the death of such a “respected and esteemed jurist with decades of service to our courts and our commonwealth.” Baer, a Duquesne Law graduate, and brother to Mark Baer, owner of Budd Baer Auto in Washington, was an Allegheny County family court judge and an administrative judge in family court before he was elected to the high court in 2003 and became its chief justice last year. Baer also served as deputy attorney general for Pennsylvania from 1975 to 1980 and was in private practice before entering the judiciary.
October 1, 2022 11:26 am
Pittsburgh, PA-(WPXI)-Baer died at the age of 74 in his sleep, according to a release sent by state Sen. Jay Costa. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said he died at his home near Pittsburgh.“I am saddened and heartbroken to learn of the passing of the Honorable Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Max Baer, a respected leader, and a true public servant,” Costa said in a statement. “It has been a joy to call him a friend for the past 30 years as he has served Allegheny County and the entire commonwealth of Pennsylvania. A fellow Duquesne Law School graduate and lifelong yinzer, Justice Baer leaves an accomplished legacy of moral clarity, justice, and care for our democracy. I will miss him greatly and am holding his family in my prayers today.”Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said, “He had such a significant, positive impact on the judiciary, first as a Common Pleas Court judge, and then as a member of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and then as the Chief Justice. His loss will be greatly felt. Max’s heart and passion for those who were in need, particularly families and children, was well known and evident in much of his work. His efforts to raise money for kids, through the music fund that raised money through an annual concert and the annual comedy night, a highlight of the political season, was unmatched.”Baer, a Pittsburgh native, graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1971 and from Duquesne’s University School of Law in 1975, per his online profile. He served as a deputy attorney general for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 1975-1980 and was elected as a judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County in 1989. He was elected a justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in 2003 and was sworn in as chief justice of Pennsylvania only last year.“This is a tremendous loss for the Court and all of Pennsylvania,” Justice Debra Todd said in a statement. “Pennsylvania has lost a jurist who served the Court and the citizens of the Commonwealth with distinction. Chief Justice Baer was an influential and intellectual jurist whose unwavering focus was on administering fair and balanced justice. He was a tireless champion for children, devoted to protecting and providing for our youngest and most vulnerable citizens. His distinguished service and commitment to justice and fairness spanned his decades on the bench – first as a family court judge in Allegheny County and eventually as administrative judge in family court before being elected to serve on the Supreme Court.“On behalf of the Court, we offer our deepest condolences to family, friends and colleagues of Chief Justice Baer.”Further information on funeral services has not yet been released.
October 1, 2022 10:23 am
Governor Tom Wolf announced on Friday that over 1.7 million Pennsylvanians are eligible the Biden Administration’s student debt relief plan. That plan may cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for eligible borrowers. These student loan borrowers will not be taxed by the state for this relief. According to the federal Department of Education 988,800 borrowers are eligible for $20,000 in debt relief and 731,000 will have their federal loans completely forgiven. In October, the Department of Education will contact eligible borrowers and make the relief application available.
October 1, 2022 9:33 am
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) – Memphis’ long-held problems with testing rape kits quickly have come under renewed scrutiny with Cleotha Henderson’s arrest last month in the killing of Eliza Fletcher, a mother and kindergarten teacher who was abducted while jogging. Authorities say a rape kit submitted in September 2021 for the sexual assault of a different woman sat untested for nearly a year. It wasn’t until Sept. 5 – three days after Fletcher’s abduction – that DNA from the 2021 assault matched Henderson’s in a national database. That revelation has sparked outrage and left many wondering whether Fletcher’s killing could have been prevented. It has also shown a spotlight on continued delays even after Memphis worked through a large backlog of untested rape kits.
