AP PA Headlines 3/1/19
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Authorities say a Pennsylvania mother who admitted to letting her sons store fentanyl at her house has been sentenced to 300 hours of community service. Federal prosecutors said Thursday that 60-year-old Dorothy McCracken was sentenced to 36 months of federal probation for conspiring to distribute fentanyl.
A 2016 investigation into her sons, Sam and Wayne McCracken, confirmed the brothers were storing large amounts of fentanyl from July to December 2016. Phone interceptions confirmed the two were storing the drugs at Dorothy McCracken’s home in Ambridge, about 17 miles (27 kilometers) outside Pittsburgh.
Authorities say she knew about the drugs in her home. The McCracken brothers were convicted of dealing fentanyl and each sentenced in October to nearly four years in prison.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Health officials are ordering U.S. Steel to stop its violation of federal sulfur dioxide standards at three Pittsburgh-area processing plants following a Christmas Eve fire that affected pollution control at one of its plants. The Allegheny County Health Department issued the enforcement order Thursday. It says U.S. Steel must reduce its use of coke oven gas and daily sulfur dioxide emissions at Mon Valley Works. Coke is a type of coal product commonly used as industrial fuel.
U.S. Steel spokeswoman Meghan Cox says the company made significant environmental performance improvements before the fire and significant progress on repairs since the fire. She said the plant is working around the clock to resolve the issue. The Dec. 24 fire at the Clairton Coke Plant had disabled the plant’s coke gas processing operations and emissions increased.
YORK, Pa. (AP) — Police have captured an emu that’s been on the run in southern Pennsylvania. Northern York County Regional Police say the large bird was caught Tuesday after residents spotted it walking through backyards and on roadways. Police say animal wranglers with Ellis Animal Services walked the bird to a local emu farm where it has been corralled with other emus.
The bird was first spotted walking down the middle of a road Feb. 18, scaring a man who was working in his yard. Police have yet to locate the bird’s owner. The emu farm’s owner has volunteered to take the bird if the owner never comes forward. Anyone missing an emu is asked to contact police.
Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Features
BURLINGTON CITY, N.J. (AP) — A southern New Jersey school employee has won a round in a dispute over using a sick day during last year’s Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl victory parade. The state Public Employment Relations Commission has ruled the worker’s union can challenge a decision to deny him sick leave. The Courier-Post of Cherry Hill reports the New Jersey School Boards Association addressed the “football flu” policy on Wednesday. The group says the Burlington City employee missed work on three days around the time the parade was held, including the parade date. The worker, whose name wasn’t released, said he had the flu for several days during that time. It is unclear whether he went to the parade.
District Superintendent Patricia Doloughty had told employees two days earlier that anyone absent due to illness on the parade date had to provide a doctor’s note. School officials eventually denied the use of sick leave when the worker failed to produce a note. “I did not see a physician due to the fact that they do not want people with the flu in their offices and it is a viral infection,” the worker told the school board. The worker also noted he was not asked to provide a doctor’s note for the other days he missed due to illness. The worker’s union sought binding arbitration to resolve the issue. But the school board sought to block arbitration, contending it had a managerial right to deny the sick day.
HONOLULU (AP) — A man called for jury duty in Hawaii shouted “he is guilty, he is guilty” outside a courtroom and ended up spending a night in jail. That’s according to a lawyer representing Jacob Maldonado. The attorney says Maldonado was having a bad day during Tuesday’s outburst and wanted to get out of being on a jury on an assault case. The judge wasn’t amused and ordered Maldonado’s arrest on a contempt charge and set a $10,000 cash bail. Maldonado spent the night in jail. He was released without being charged or fined.
CHARLOTTESVILL, Va. (AP) — On Wall Street, it would be called a hostile takeover.
Federal court documents filed Thursday shows one of the nation’s largest neo-Nazi groups appears to have an unlikely new leader: a black activist who has vowed to dismantle it. Court documents filed suggest James Hart Stern wants to use his new position as director and president of the National Socialist Movement to undermine the Detroit-based group’s defense against a lawsuit.
The NSM is one of several extremist groups sued over bloodshed at a 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Stern’s filing asks a federal court in Virginia to issue a judgment against the group before one of the lawsuits goes to trial. It’s unclear how Stern came to take over the group.
Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
PA Sports, Scores & Skeds
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies have agreed to a $330 million, 13-year contract. The deal for the 26-year-old All-Star who spent his entire big league career with the Nationals is the largest in baseball history. Harper topped the $325 million, 13-year agreement Giancarlo Stanton reached before the 2015 season with the Marlins. The deal also tops the previous high for a free agent. That was set last week when Manny Machado signed a $300 million, 10-year deal with the Padres.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Tobias Harris scored 32 points and Ben Simmons had a triple-double to help the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-104. Harris, acquired earlier in February in a deal with the Los Angeles Clippers, posted his highest point total in eight games with the 76ers. Philadelphia center Joel Embiid, the league’s No. 6 scorer, missed his fourth straight game with left knee soreness. Thunder forward Paul George, the league’s No. 2 scorer, sat out with soreness in his right shoulder.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Corey Dickerson was 1 for 3 with a single in three at-bats in his first spring training game for the Pittsburgh Pirates, an 8-6 loss to the New York Yankees. Dickerson and Adam Frazier are among players being eased into game action. Dickerson, who hit .300 with 13 homers and 55 RBIs in 135 games last season, was a designated hitter and could play in the outfield next week.
BOYS HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Class 1A District 4 Championship
Lourdes Regional 64, Neumann 40
Class 2A District 4 Championship
Millville 56, Northeast Bradford 36
Third Place
Bloomsburg 60, South Williamsport 50
GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Class 1A District 4 Championship
Lourdes Regional 35, Sullivan County 29
Class 2A District 4 Championship
Mount Carmel 55, Sayre Area 26
Class 2A District 6 Championship
Bellwood-Antis 52, Juniata Valley 49
Here are the scores from yesterday’s national sports events:
———
INTERLEAGUE
Final N-Y Yankees 8 Pittsburgh 6
Final Baltimore 5 Philadelphia 5
Final Boston 13 Washington 5
Final Detroit 7 Atlanta 6
Final Houston 7 Miami 5
Final Philadelphia 11 Toronto 5
Final Kansas City 3 San Diego 2
Final Oakland 10 Chi Cubs 3
Final Arizona 10 Cleveland 7
———
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Seattle 8 Chi White Sox 3
Final Texas 10 L-A Angels 6
Final Tampa Bay 1 Minnesota 0
———
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final N-Y Mets 3 St. Louis 2
Final Milwaukee 10 Cincinnati 8
Final Colorado 7 L-A Dodgers 7
Final San Francisco 6 Milwaukee 2
———
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Indiana 122 Minnesota 115
Final Orlando 103 Golden State 96
Final Cleveland 125 N-Y Knicks 118
Final Houston 121 Miami 118
Final Philadelphia 108 Oklahoma City 104
Final Utah 111 Denver 104
———
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final N-Y Islanders 6 Toronto 1
Final OT Columbus 4 Philadelphia 3
Final Edmonton 4 Ottawa 2
Final Boston 4 Tampa Bay 1
Final Arizona 5 Vancouver 2
Final SO Vegas 6 Florida 5
Final OT Dallas 4 L.A. Kings 3
———
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (1) Gonzaga 86 Pacific 66
Final (9) Michigan 82 Nebraska 53
Final (24) Wofford 80 Chattanooga 54
Final California 76 (25) Washington 73
TODAY’S SPORTS SCHEDULE
———
INTERLEAGUE
Toronto at Atlanta 1:05 p.m.
N-Y Mets at Detroit 1:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Toronto 1:07 p.m.
Colorado at Oakland 3:05 p.m.
Milwaukee at Seattle 3:10 p.m.
St. Louis at Houston 6:05 p.m.
L-A Dodgers at Cleveland 8:05 p.m.
———
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Tampa Bay at Baltimore 1:05 p.m.
Boston at Minnesota 1:05 p.m.
Chi White Sox at Texas 3:05 p.m.
Kansas City at L-A Angels 3:10 p.m.
Baltimore at N-Y Yankees 6:35 p.m.
———
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pittsburgh at Philadelphia 1:05 p.m.
Washington at Miami 1:05 p.m.
Chi Cubs at Arizona 3:10 p.m.
San Diego at L-A Dodgers 8:05 p.m.
Cincinnati at San Francisco 9:05 p.m.
———
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Chicago at Atlanta 7:30 p.m.
Charlotte at Brooklyn 7:30 p.m.
Washington at Boston 8:00 p.m.
Portland at Toronto 8:00 p.m.
New Orleans at Phoenix 9:00 p.m.
L.A. Clippers at Sacramento 10:00 p.m.
Milwaukee at L.A. Lakers 10:30 p.m.
———
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Pittsburgh at Buffalo 7:00 p.m.
Washington at N-Y Islanders 7:00 p.m.
Philadelphia at New Jersey 7:00 p.m.
Montreal at N-Y Rangers 7:00 p.m.
St. Louis at Carolina 7:30 p.m.
Nashville at Winnipeg 8:00 p.m.
Vegas at Anaheim 10:00 p.m.
Colorado at San Jose 10:30 p.m.
———
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
(21) Buffalo at Miami (Ohio) 8:00 p.m.
Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
