Lawyers fight death penalty for synagogue shooting suspect
Lawyers for the suspect in the synagogue shooting that killed 11 people in Pittsburgh are challenging the potential death penalty as unconstitutional. Lawyers for Robert Bowers say in court papers filed this week that capital punishment violates the Fifth Amendment’s due process clause and the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Defense lawyer Judy Clarke has made similar arguments in other high-profile capital cases. Clarke says she’s tried to negotiate a life sentence for Bowers but has been rebuffed by prosecutors. No trial date has been set.

DJ Don Imus, made and betrayed by his mouth, dead at 79
By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer
Disc jockey Don Imus, whose career was made and then undone by his acid tongue during a decades-long rise to radio stardom and an abrupt public plunge after a nationally broadcast racial slur, has died. He was 79. Imus survived drug and alcohol woes, a raunchy appearance before President Clinton and several firings during his long career behind the microphone. But he was vilified and eventually fired after describing a women’s college basketball team as “nappy headed hos.”

UNDATED (AP) — A crash on a Pennsylvania highway has killed an 81-year-old man and his adult daughter. The crash on Route 422 in Heidelberg occurred around 12:30 p.m. Thursday, when a car driven by Richard Raihl was trying to turn onto Route 422 West. Authorities say the vehicle and a pickup truck collided, killing Raihl and his 51-year-old daughter, Stephanie Raihl. The truck driver declined medical attention. That person’s name was not released. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and no charges have been filed so far.

An LGBTQ activist from Pittsburgh is headed to trial over a pepper-spraying incident in Ambridge. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano has the story. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

A Michigan woman got all she wanted for Christmas and then some when she discovered her Secret Santa was none other than Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Shelby, who has asked media outlets not to publish her last name, received an 81-pound package from Gates on Dec. 17 as part of a recent RedditGifts exchange. Users who participate in the social media platform’s exchange post information about themselves to provide potential Secret Santa personalized gift ideas, and Shelby has, herself, been a Secret Santa to 95 strangers over the years. She knew something odd was afoot, however, when she received a notification just before Christmas. So what exactly did Shelby receive from her billionaire Secret Santa?

According to the Detroit Free Press, Shelby’s massive haul included:

• Bill’s Deck of Books 2019

• A Harry Potter Santa hat

• The Legend of Zelda Hylian Shield earrings

• Handmade Zelda quilt

• A hammock with bug net

• Almond Roca

• Mint chocolates and other candy

• Toys for her cat

• Seven packs of assorted Oreos

• A cat-themed logic game

• Eight hardcover books

• A manuscript copy of “The Great Gatsby”

• A candle inscribed with a passage from “The Great Gatsby”

• Two adult-level LEGO sets: Harry Potter Microscale Hogwarts and the retired Star Wars UCS R2D2

• Twin Peaks gifts, including an embroidered L.L. Bean jacket worn by crew members during the second season of the show.

A Florida waitress who had just depleted her bank account to make a car repair….received a two-thousand-dollar tip on Christmas Eve form regulars with whom she had shared her financial woes. Last month, Lynette Baio – who has worked at the Speggtacular Restaurant in Clearwater for five years – spent two-thousand dollars on a car repair, and the topic came up in conversation with the couple a few weeks ago. When they returned for dinner Christmas Eve, they left the check as a tip, along with a message that said, “Merry Christmas and restore your savings”.

An Indiana woman was charged with felony neglect after her 5-year-old son was found inside a running washing machine. 30-year-old Heather Oliver of Elwood, was arrested after the incident and charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in bodily injury, a level 5 felony. According to court documents, the boy arrived at an area hospital with his father around 10 a.m. Aug. 16. Hospital staff members reported the boy was drifting in and out of consciousness and had numerous bruises and scratches on his body. The mother had an initial hearing Dec. 19 and was released on bail the next day. The boy, in a forensic interview, told an interviewer her mother was “not nice,” according to court documents. The mother told police she didn’t know how the boy ended up in the washing machine but doctors at the hospital told police the boy’s injuries were “highly suspicious for non-accidental trauma.

A child has died of a suspected cardiac arrest aboard a flight departing Los Angeles International Airport, multiple news outlets reported. Paramedics responded last night to render medical aid to the 10-year-old girl, but “all efforts were futile, and the child was beyond medical help,” the Los Angeles Fire Department said in an alert. The girl was on Delta Flight 2423 from LAX to Seattle when an unspecified medical emergency occurred. The plane turned around while still over Southern California to return to LAX, but the child was pronounced dead by paramedics upon landing. The Los Angeles Police Department will investigate the death.

A water main break caused major issues at Kennywood during its annual “Holiday Lights” festivities last night. Officials said the park did open as scheduled Thursday at 5 p.m. – hours after the water main break – but there was a delay in restoring service. Food stands, among other places at the park, were closed until water was fully restored hours later. Crews were making repairs to the line throughout the day. Officials didn’t say what caused the water main break, but some bathrooms were reportedly unusable, along with several popular food stands. Park attendees said they received vouchers to come back at a later date because of the water main break.