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Police officer hiring in US increases in 2023 after years of decline

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Police departments across the United States are reporting an increase in their ranks for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 killing of George Floyd, which led to a historic exodus of officers, a survey shows. More sworn officers were hired in 2023 than in any one of the previous four years, and fewer officers overall resigned or retired, according to the 214 law enforcement agencies that responded to a survey by the Police Executive Research Forum, or PERF. Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police officers spurred nationwide ...

Appeals court keeps alive efforts to remove Columbus statue

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A Pennsylvania appeals court has kept alive an Italian heritage group’s challenge to efforts by the city of Pittsburgh to remove a statue of Christopher Columbus from a city park. The Commonwealth Court on Friday sent the dispute over the 13-foot bronze and granite Schenley Park statue back to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court for further consideration of issues raised by opponents of the removal. The Italian Sons and Daughters of America filed suit in October 2020 after the Pittsburgh Art Commission voted to remove the statue and then-mayor Bill Peduto also ...

Republicans’ defense of the ‘Biden 16’ starts with Pa.’s primary

NEW HOPE, Pa. (AP) — Mark Houck makes a potent appeal to conservative Republicans in this corner of eastern Pennsylvania when he describes his arrest and subsequent acquittal on federal charges that he pushed a Planned Parenthood volunteer outside a Philadelphia abortion clinic. The account has become a staple of Houck’s first-time bid for the U.S. House in suburban Philadelphia, a central battleground of the 2024 election, from the presidency on down. “I’m telling you this because this is how I became a target of the federal government — the weaponization of the ...

If you are a longtime resident of Pennsylvania, it still is a bit of a jolt to the senses to drive through what was once coal country and see an oversized, cheery, red billboard sitting along U.S. 30 reading “VOTE REPUBLICAN.” However, it is a reminder of how much the people who live in these old industrial and coal-rich counties have shed the local Democratic politics of their upbringing. Voter registration numbers, as we shall see, show as much. Important to note: These voters have not changed personally, but their parties have done so. Democrats have abandoned their ...

Barges break loose on Ohio River

PITTSBURGH — More than two dozen river barges broke loose from their moorings and floated down the Ohio River in Pittsburgh, striking one bridge that had already been preemptively closed and damaging a marina, officials said. The boats eventually were pinned to the riverbank or went over a dam downstream, officials said. Pittsburgh police, fire and emergency medical services responded around 11:25 p.m. Friday to reports of the barges “floating uncontrolled” down the river, Pittsburgh Public Safety said in a statement. The area had been hit by flooding after heavy rains ...

Carnegie Science Center’s mission remains the same, but name changes

If you venture to Pittsburgh’s North Shore and drive by the Carnegie Science Center on almost any weekday during the school year, you’re likely to see at least a couple of school buses parked outside. The facility, which is part of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, is a magnet for field trips, and has undoubtedly helped spark an interest in science in many young people throughout the region. It’s a fun place for adults, too, it must be said. It was announced last week that while the mission of the Carnegie Science Center will remain, it will be taking on a new name. Thanks ...