Community members are honoring the life of a teen who was shot to death in Aliquippa last weekend. Loved ones were among those gathered last night for a balloon release in memory of 15-year-old Dahvea Sparrow. Authorities say Sparrow was sitting in a car on Main Street after a party last Saturday night when Lamar Seymour opened the door and fired shots. Police began searching for the 17-year-old suspect after an arrest warrant on homicide charges was issued yesterday.
A measure that will expand Pennsylvania’s property tax and rent rebate program is headed to Governor Shapiro’s desk for his signature. It allows for increased monetary benefits by increasing the program’s income cap and rebate amounts. Specifically, the maximum rebate will rise from 650-dollars to a thousand dollars and the income cap will increase to 45-thousand — they’ll also be tied to the consumer price index. The new law will mark the first time in nearly 20 years that the amounts have been raised. Most of the program’s beneficiaries are seniors and people with disabilities.
Police in Sharon are investigating the stabbing of a 17 year old from Monday. WFMJ-TV reports police were called to an apartment complex on the 100 Block of West Budd Street in reference to a male who was stabbed. Police were able to locate the male victim and provided aid until EMS arrived on scene and took him to the hospital. Police say his injuries were not life-threatening. The suspect, Josiah Page who was transported to the Mercer County Jail and is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and tampering with evidence. A preliminary hearing is set for July 21st.
The jury in the Pittsburgh Synagogue shooting trail is set to resume deliberating this morning in the first part of the sentencing phase. During this portion of the trial, jurors will decide whether or not the convicted gunman Robert Bowers is eligible for the death penalty or not. If the jury decides that he is eligible for the death penalty, the trial will move onto the final phase, where jurors will decide if he is sentenced to life in prison or death. That final phase of the trial would include victim impact statements.
PennDOT District 11 is announcing a full westbound closure of I-376 in Neshannock Township is underway through Sunday July 16th weather permitting. The Closure got underway yesterday. The westbound I-376 lanes of traffic will have a full closure between the 422 West/Business 422 East/Sample Street and Route 18/Mitchell Road interchanges from 7 a.m. through 4 p.m. Crews from JET Excavating will conduct concrete steel repairs on the bridge that carries I-376 over the Shenango River.
Pennsylvania officials will soon have a five-year plan of action for making sure universal broadband service is installed across the state. The plan is required in order for the Pennsylvania to get over a billion dollars in funding from the federal government for internet access expansion. The plan will be submitted to the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority for review July 25th and then sent to the government agency that’s handling the proposals by August 12th. FCC data shows the Commonwealth has more than 300 locations that don’t have broadband-ranked service or that are under-served overall.
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon are sharing the results of air testing done in East Palestine following February’s toxic train derailment. A report released yesterday shows samples taken by a mobile testing lab included high levels of a known irritant called acrolein [[ aa-kruh-leen ]]. Project leader Doctor Albert Presto says the concentrations of the chemical were measured at levels that are higher than those known to be safe to breathe over a period of time. Presto does add that the testing was done shortly after the train accident and he would be surprised if acrolein levels were still elevated now.
A Beaver County man is facing a charge after allegedly conducting security at an election site where he was on the ballot. Officials say Dale Daman is an elected constable who, back in May, performed security at a polling site in Rochester Township. The problem is that Daman was on the ballot in that election, running for township commissioner. Daman allegedly handed out ballots as well that day, which all violated the state’s election code. He is facing a misdemeanor charge.
A proposed bill in the state House would make sure that lawmakers get reimbursed only for costs that they actually paid for themselves. Right now, legislators have generous reimbursement rules for expenses, including per-diem costs that don’t require a receipt. House Bill 1344 would do away with per-diem expenses and would require lawmakers to provide receipts for their expenses.
Nurses with Allegheny General Hospital are calling for changes to the health care system to address staffing and safety concerns. A group of union RN’s met at Allegheny Commons Park in Pittsburgh for a demonstration yesterday. A labor contract for roughly 12-hundred union nurses at AGH is set to expire in October.