Husband of Pittsburgh official acquitted in Detroit
DETROIT (AP) — The husband of an elected official from Pittsburgh has been acquitted of misdemeanor charges related to a trip to Detroit.
The prosecutor’s office says a jury on Monday cleared Khari Mosley of disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace at a hotel. Mosley is the husband of Chelsa Wagner, the controller in Alleghany County, Pennsylvania.
Wagner, a Democrat, faces a felony charge of resisting police and a misdemeanor . Her trial starts Nov. 12 in Wayne County court.
Wagner and Mosley traveled to Detroit in March to attend a concert. After the show, she went to their room while Mosley went to the bar at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel. The dispute with staff and police began when Mosley didn’t have a room key.

Harris blasts, and takes money from, Epstein’s law firm
By BRIAN SLODYSKO Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kamala Harris bemoaned the influence of the powerful and connected elite last Tuesday when she called on top Justice Department officials to recuse themselves from any matter related to Jeffrey Epstein. She said their former law firm’s work on behalf of the financier accused of sexual abuse “calls into question the integrity of our legal system.”
Yet the same day, Harris’ husband headlined a Chicago fundraiser for her presidential campaign that was hosted by six partners of that firm — Kirkland and Ellis, according to an invitation obtained by The Associated Press.
Harris, a California senator and Democratic presidential candidate, was one of several White House hopefuls to blast the handling of Epstein’s case in Florida a decade ago, when his lawyers negotiated a deal with federal prosecutors that allowed him to avoid the possibility of years in prison. But her decision to move ahead with the fundraiser hosted by Kirkland and Ellis partners while criticizing the firm underscores the tension that can arise when a politician’s rhetoric collides with their need to raise money to sustain a presidential campaign.
“If any connection with Kirkland and Ellis is a stain on (senior Justice Department officials), why isn’t a connection with the law firm for the receipt of campaign contributions a stain on her own campaign?” said Paul S. Ryan, an attorney for the good government group Common Cause.
Ian Sams, a Harris spokesman, said there wasn’t a problem with accepting the campaign contributions because the firm is big and the partners who hosted the fundraiser didn’t work on Epstein’s plea agreement.
“The people involved in that case have not supported her campaign, and she wouldn’t want that support anyway,” Sams said.
The firm and the six partners named on the event invitation did not respond to requests for comment.
The Epstein case has roiled Washington this month after federal prosecutors announced fresh charges against the financier, who is accused of paying underage girls for massages and then molesting them at his homes in Palm Beach, Florida, and New York during the 2000s. President Donald Trump’s labor secretary, Alex Acosta, resigned on Friday over his handling of the case. As a U.S. attorney in Miami, Acosta met with Kirkland and Ellis lawyers and agreed to a deal that allowed Epstein to avoid federal trial by pleading guilty to state charges and serving 13 months in jail.
The new attention being paid to the case has also drawn attention to Attorney General William Barr and Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, who both worked for Kirkland and Ellis. Harris, who is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said it’s necessary that they recuse themselves from involvement in the matter to avoid even the “appearance of impropriety.”
“In our democracy, no one — no matter how powerful or well-connected — is above the law. Yet Epstein’s deal, secured by his lawyers at Kirkland and Ellis, calls into question the integrity of our legal system and undermines the public’s confidence that justice will be served,” Harris said in a statement released hours after the Chicago fundraiser.
Barr is recused from any review of a 2008 plea deal, but has said that he doesn’t need to do so with the current case.
Before her election to the Senate, Harris was the attorney general of California and was elected to two terms as San Francisco’s district attorney. Her husband Doug Emhoff is also a high powered attorney who works in corporate law. So it is perhaps little surprise that law firms have been one of the top industries that have donated to her presidential bid, with Kirkland and Ellis being no exception.
Her campaign declined to say how much was raised at last week’s event and the sum won’t have to be reported to the Federal Election Commission until October. Records show that a handful of employees and partners of the firm donated about $6,000 to Harris during the first quarter of the year — a drop when compared to the $12 million she raised during that time.
“It’s an international law firm with thousands of employees, many of whom probably support Kamala Harris because she’s a tough prosecutor who actually knows how to put away predators, unlike the Trump lackeys who protect them,” Sams said.
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Follow Slodysko on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrianSlodysko

Pennsylvania Initiates Law to Help Protect Children left in Hot Cars

State Law Goes into Effect Today Protecting Good Samaritans

Thanks to a new law that goes into effect today, those who take certain steps to rescue children locked inside hot cars will be provided some legal immunity in Pennsylvania.  On May 16^th, Governor Tom Wolf signed a bill protecting Good Samaritans from liability for damages if they believe a child is in imminent danger, providing that they have made a good faith effort to contact the vehicle owner and emergency responders, and they use no more force than necessary.

“Sunshine streaming through car windows turns the vehicle into an oven, and lower the windows slightly is ineffective at keeping the temperature low,” says Theresa Podguski, director of legislative affairs for AAA East Central.  “This law, and last year’s law for pets trapped in hot cars, will go a long way towards reversing the alarming upward trend of hot car fatalities.”

The National Safety Council reports 51 children died last year of pediatric vehicular heatstroke, which is more than any other year on record.  Heat rapidly overwhelms the body’s ability to regulate temperature, and children under the age of four are especially vulnerable because their bodies do not have the same internal temperature control as an adult’s and can warm three times to five times faster.  Heatstroke can occur when the outside temperature is as low as 57 degrees, and even with the windows slightly lower, temperatures inside a car can reach 125 degrees in minutes.

While carmakers continue developing new safety features to assist parents, AAA offers the following safety tips:

• Never leave children or animals unattended in a car, not even for a short period of time.
• Create reminders and habits, such as leaving an item needed at your next stop in the back seat.
• Make sure all child passengers have left the vehicle after it is parked.
• Keep vehicles locked at all times, even in the garage or driveway, to prevent children from climbing into vehicles and becoming trapped.
• Never leave keys and/or remote openers within reach of children.

For Pet’s Trapped in Hot Cars:

According to PennDOT, Governor Wolf signed House Bill 1216 into effect last fall, which gives police officers and first responders the authority to enter a vehicle and retrieve a cat or dog that is in immediate distress.  While it is similar to the child rescue law in that officers or emergency responders must have a good-faith and reasonable belief that imminent danger is at hand, House Bill 1216 is different in that it does not give civilians the authority to enter a vehicle by force.  PennDOT advises those who see a dog or cat in a vehicle that appears to be in distress to contact local authorities, and to not enter the vehicle themselves.

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 79 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members.  Past news releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Western Pennsylvania Gas Average Moves Closer to Three-Dollar Mark
The average price of gasoline across Western Pennsylvania is six cents higher this week at $2.983 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

States in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast region are experiencing some of the lowest volatility in gas prices in the country, despite low refinery utilization rates and gasoline stock levels.  On the week, most states saw gas price increases of three cents or less (Pennsylvania, +3 cents).

Regional refinery utilization is now down to 69%.  However, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports the region saw a build of 714,000 barrels in gasoline inventory to total levels at 59.2 million barrels.  The build was a surprise, but good news for the region and will help to keep gas price volatility in check.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average               $2.983
Average price during the week of July 8, 2019                                       $2.920
Average price during the week of July 16, 2018                                     $3.107

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$2.843      Altoona
$2.963      Beaver
$2.996      Bradford
$3.091      Brookville
$2.988      Butler
$2.983      Clarion
$2.956      Du Bois
$3.031      Erie
$2.987      Greensburg
$2.992      Indiana
$2.999      Jeannette
$2.995      Kittanning
$2.984      Latrobe
$2.982      Meadville
$3.006      Mercer
$2.928      New Castle
$2.995      New Kensington
$2.992      Pittsburgh
$2.953      Sharon
$2.990      Uniontown
$2.999      Warren
$2.983      Washington

On the National Front
Since last Monday, 18 states have seen their gas price averages increase by at least a nickel.  The national gas price average is $2.79, which is an eight-cent increase since the beginning of July.  Gas prices have increased amid more expensive crude oil prices, robust demand and decreasing gasoline stocks.  Today’s average is four cents more than last week and a dime more expensive compared to a month ago.

Hurricane Barry, which made landfall in Louisiana this past weekend, seems to have had little impact on the national average thus far.  The storm temporarily halted 60 percent of all crude production in the Gulf of Mexico last week.  As it subsides and floodwaters diminish, crude production will resume.  Until then, crude stocks may tighten in the region and could cause prices to increase modestly.

At the close of Friday’s formal trading session on the NYMEX, West Texas Intermediate increased by one cent to settle at $60.21.  In addition to Hurricane Barry’s impact on crude production, prices increased last week as the market continues to worry about tensions in the Middle East, which could restrict global oil supply.  If those concerns continue into this week, crude prices will likely continue to increase.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 79 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members.  News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Women urge jail until trial for Epstein as judge weighs bail
By LARRY NEUMEISTER and JIM MUSTIAN Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Two Jeffrey Epstein accusers urged a judge Monday to keep the wealthy financier behind bars until he goes on trial on federal charges that he sexually abused underage girls.
The women stood just feet from where Epstein was seated in his blue jail outfit as they asked a federal judge to reject a request by Epstein’s lawyers that he remain under house arrest in his $77 million Manhattan mansion until trial on conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.
Courtney Wild, an unnamed victim in the 2008 lawsuit against the Department of Justice for the secret plea deal that allowed Epstein to avoid similar charges, spoke for the first time in court with a fellow accuser.
Wild said she was sexually abused by Epstein in Palm Beach, Florida, when she was 14.
“He’s a scary person,” she said.
Annie Farmer said she was 16 when she met Epstein in New York.
“He was inappropriate with me,” she said, not elaborating.
The Associated Press doesn’t name alleged victims of sexual abuse without their consent. Through their lawyers, both Farmer and Wild said they were willing to be publicly identified.
Judge Richard M. Berman said he’ll rule Thursday whether Epstein can be freed with a strict bail package, but he noted at the outset of two-hour hearing there was a presumption in cases involving sexual abuse of children that a defendant will remain locked up.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex Rossmiller said the government’s case is “getting stronger every single day” since Epstein was arrested July 6 as he arrived at a New Jersey airport from Paris on his private plane.
During a raid at Epstein’s Manhattan mansion following his arrest, Rossmiller said, investigators found “piles of cash,” ”dozens of diamonds” and an expired passport with Epstein’s picture and a fake name in a locked safe.
“How many safes are there in so many other locations like these?” Rossmiller asked.
He labeled the well-connected Epstein, 66, a flight risk and danger to the community, saying he should remain incarcerated until he is tried on charges that he recruited and abused dozens of underage girls in New York and Florida in the early 2000s.
Epstein’s lawyer, Martin Weinberg, said that his client has not committed crimes since pleading guilty to soliciting a minor for prostitution charges in Florida in 2008 and that the federal government is reneging on a 12-year-old plea deal not to prosecute him.
Epstein had demonstrated that he “disciplined himself,” Weinberg said, by not engaging in any crimes since the Florida deal, in which he agreed to submit himself to sex offender registration procedures in multiple states.
The “14-year gap is an elegant rebuttal” to expectations that he would re-offend, Weinberg said.
But the judge later noted he had read literature related to sex offenders that indicated the chance of a sex offender committing a new crime grew over time.
In addition to the charges in the indictment, prosecutors are also reviewing dozens of electronic files seized during the raid on Epstein’s New York residence, finding even more photos than the trove of pictures of nude and seminude young women and girls they had reported prior to a court hearing a week ago.
Prior to the hearing, prosecutors said in court papers that additional women in multiple jurisdictions had identified themselves to the government since Epstein’s arrest, saying they were abused as minors. Also, dozens of individuals have called the government to report information about Epstein and the charges he faces, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said they believe Epstein might have tried to influence witnesses after discovering that he had paid a total of $350,000 to two individuals, including a former employee, in the last year. That came after the Miami Herald reported the circumstances of his state court conviction in 2008, which led to a 13-month jail term and his deal to avoid federal prosecution.
Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta resigned last week following renewed criticism over the 2008 plea deal with Epstein he oversaw as the U.S. attorney in Miami.
Epstein’s lawyers said the accusations against him are “outside the margins of federal criminal law” and don’t constitute sex trafficking since there were no allegations that he “trafficked anybody for commercial profit; that he forced, coerced, defrauded, or enslaved anybody.”
But prosecutors said efforts by defense lawyers to characterize Epstein’s crimes as “simple prostitution” were “not only offensive but also utterly irrelevant given that federal law does not recognize the concept of a child prostitute — there are only trafficking victims — because a child cannot legally consent to being exploited.”

When emergency hit the area this past weekend, most people were unaware of what was going on. There is a service that you can sign up for, called Swift 911, that notifies you of emergencies. Beaver County Radio News Intern, Christina Sainovich, has details…

 

 

To see the entire interview with Sandie Egley, click the video below to the Facebook live.

Sentencing has been handed down for Donovan McFrazier of Beaver Falls was caught with unspecified amounts of cocaine and over 40 grams of fentanyl July 9th, 2018.

McFrazier was sentenced to 5 years in federal prison on his conviction. According to US Attorney Scott Brady’s office, McFrazier will serve four years on supervised release after he is out of prison.

Pennsylvania’s casinos have lost a bid to shut down online lottery games that they say are too much like casino gambling, just days before the state’s first casinos launch their own online gambling portals. Friday’s decision in Commonwealth Court is a victory for the state lottery, although the casino owners’ 9-month-old lawsuit will continue. Lottery officials say the games are in accordance with the 2017 state law that authorized them, but the casinos argue that some online lottery games violate it because they simulate slot machines and casino-style gambling.

Pennsylvania State Police say they’ve seized eleven-million-dollars’ worth of illegal drugs in the second quarter of 2019. Troopers announced over the weekend that from April 1st to June 30th, 84 pounds of heroin and around 33 pounds of fentanyl were confiscated, which alone has a combined street value of more than three million dollars. More than 500-thousand-dollars’ worth of cocaine was also seized, but marijuana was by far the largest capture, with more than four million in processed pot impounded. Over two-million dollars in narcotic pills were also confiscated by troopers over that time period.