WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is lashing out against former White House chief of staff John Kelly after the ex-adviser came to the defense of a former national security aide who offered key testimony in the impeachment inquiry. Trump says Kelly “can’t keep his mouth shut.” The Republican president’s comments targeting Kelly came after Kelly defended Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who raised concerns about Trump’s July phone call with Ukraine’s president. That call spurred Trump’s impeachment trial, which ended in an acquittal. The Atlantic magazine reports Kelly said at a public forum Wednesday in New Jersey that Vindman followed his training by raising concerns to his superiors after hearing “questionable” comments from Trump.

NEW YORK (AP) — Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer is telling jurors that prosecutors in the rape case against him acted like moviemakers and portrayed a world where women aren’t responsible for how they interact with men. Donna Rotunno said in a closing argument Thursday that Weinstein is innocent. She appealed to jurors to ignore outside forces and use what she called their “New York City common sense” in weighing a case seen as a watershed for the #MeToo movement. The jury is scheduled to hear the prosecution closings on Friday. Weinstein is charged with raping a woman in 2013 and forcibly performing oral sex on a different woman in 2006. Weinstein has maintained any sexual encounters were consensual.

An Ambridge man faces a hearing on assault charges. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano has more. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

DETROIT (AP) — A Pittsburgh-area official accused of obstructing police at a Detroit hotel has pleaded no contest to disturbing the peace and was placed on probation. The charge is a misdemeanor. Prosecutors say the case could be dismissed if Chelsa Wagner completes the six-month probation without any problems. Wagner is a Democrat and the elected controller in Allegheny County. She was accused of interfering with police as officers tried to remove her husband from the Westin Book Cadillac hotel last March. Hotel staff had called 911 to report that Mosley was unruly during a dispute over registration and a room key.

Beaver County overdose death statistics for 2019 have been released. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano has details. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

Slippery Rock University officials are demanding civility after a campus group’s flyers were vandalized. Signs promoting the College Republicans were covered in graffiti last week, leading to calls for harmony and respect. Democrats vowed revenge after signs promoting Black History Month were defaced and LGBT Pride flags were torn up on the Slippery Rock campus last year.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati tells The Associated Press he will not seek re-election. Scarnati made the announcement Wednesday night. The 58-year-old is a fifth-term Republican senator from Jefferson County in northwestern Pennsylvania. He says he wrestled with the decision but thought it was the right time to step down after 14 years in a job steering a Republican majority through turbulent elections and fights in the Capitol. Scarnati rose quickly, becoming Senate president in 2007 with the endorsement of his predecessor after just six years in the chamber. He said he will remain in his role until the legislative term ends Nov. 30.

Governor Tom Wolf is announcing more help for victims of sexual assault. Wolf says the state Office of Victims’ Services is now accepting sex assault counseling claims for victims of abuse. According to the governor’s office, the claim process, enacted as part of a law last year, covers the costs of therapy and counseling for victims of childhood and adult sex abuse in the state. More info can be found on the website of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

The Beaver County Democrats have announced award winners for 2020. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano has more. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

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One Pittsburgh lawmaker is looking to expand the Clean Indoor Air Act. Representative Dan Frankel, of Squirrel Hill, says House Bill 2298 would close a loophole that allows smoking in some cigar bars, private clubs, casinos, restaurants, and sports venues. State Senator Jay Costa, of Forest Hills, says he plan to introduce a similar bill in the Senate this week.