TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — A Washington state man who made over 20 “swatting” calls around the country and in Canada, prompting emergency responses to his fake reports of bombs, shootings or other threats, has pleaded guilty to four crimes. U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman says 21-year-old Ashton Garcia pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to two counts of extortion and two counts of threats and hoaxes regarding explosives. Prosecutors recommend that Garcia, of Bremerton, serve four years in prison. Federal prosecutors say Garcia used voice-over-internet technology to conceal his identity during the calls in 2022 and 2023. He also broadcast them on the social media platform Discord.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Two men accused of racing on a public highway in western Pennsylvania have been ordered to stand trial on charges in a crash involving a school van that left a teenage girl dead. Three other students and two adults were also injured in the Sept. 20 crash in Dravosburg. An Allegheny County judge on Friday upheld all 15 counts against 43-year-old William Soliday II, including homicide. She dismissed the only felony charge against 37-year-old Andrew Voigt and a charge of failing to stop and render aid, but held for court other charges including reckless endangering. Defense attorneys say there is no evidence that their clients were racing.

CENTER TOWNSHIP, PA — On Wednesday, Congressman Chris Deluzio (PA-17) visited and toured a Primary Health Network Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Rochester, Beaver County, PA. There, he met with providers and healthcare professionals to discuss ongoing efforts to better serve underserved patients, including many on Medicaid and Medicare. Congressman Deluzio supports funding for community health centers and has consistently voted to do so over the past year.

Primary Health Network, Pennsylvania’s largest community health center, is committed to delivering high-quality, patient-centered care across a wide range of medical specialties. With a team of dedicated providers and staff, Primary Health Network offers comprehensive services aimed at promoting overall well-being and empowering patients to lead healthy lives. Last year, Primary Health Network reached tens of thousands of patients in 16 counties across Pennsylvania.

“It was great to be in Rochester this week and visit this Primary Health Network community health center and speak with staff,” said Rep. Deluzio. “Healthcare should not be a luxury in America, and we need to make sure that folks in Western Pennsylvania can get the high-quality healthcare coverage and care they need without breaking the bank.”

This FQHC in Rochester provides adult behavioral health care, child and adolescent behavioral health care, dental care, and has an on-site contracted pharmacy for area patients. Other nearby PHN facilities provide additional medical services. Plans are underway to renovate their space to increase services and capacity. Additionally, PHN’s mobile health unit was in Darlington, Pennsylvania last year, caring for people close to the toxic Norfolk Southern train derailment and chemical spill who experienced adverse health impacts.

Photos of the visit are available for download here.

Congressman Deluzio’s visit comes after the announcement that in the most recent Open Enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act (ACA), 21 million people signed up for coverage, breaking all previous ACA enrollment period records. Many of these new enrollees were in states that have not expanded Medicaid and show how the ACA is filling a need and helping Americans access health care.

Last Congress, Democrats strengthened the Affordable Care Act by passing the American Rescue Plan and later the Inflation Reduction Act, bringing down the cost of health care, expanding coverage and helping our nation’s uninsured rate reach a historic low, with nearly nine million more people insured. Meanwhile, House Republicans have proposed repeals and rollbacks to the ACA, ripping away protections for more than 100 million Americans with pre-existing conditions and raising health care costs for working families and seniors. House Democrats will never allow that to happen.

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A federal judge has found two Western Pennsylvania men guilty of three counts  related to the unlawful killing of migratory birds, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced  today.  

Robert Yost, 52, of New Galilee, Pennsylvania, and Jacob Reese, 27, of Enon Valley,  Pennsylvania, were tried before United States District Judge W. Scott Hardy in Pittsburgh in late October 2022.  

The evidence presented at trial established that, in June 2020, Yost—as operator of Yost  Farms in Beaver County, Pennsylvania—and one of his employees, Reese, conspired to kill  migratory birds present on leased farmland operated by Yost Farms using carbofuran, a registered  restricted-use pesticide. The Environmental Protection Agency concluded no later than 2009 that  the dietary, worker, and ecological risks for all uses of carbofuran were unacceptable and that all  products containing carbofuran generally caused unreasonable adverse effects on humans and the  environment. As part of the conspiracy, Yost directed Reese to spread whole kernel corn coated in  carbofuran in and around a leased field used for soybean cultivation to which children had access.  The tainted corn attracted protected migratory birds that were killed within a short distance of where  they ingested the corn. Yost and Reese thereafter took steps to conceal their efforts to poison and  kill the migratory birds, including destroying the feed bag containing the carbofuran-laced whole  corn kernel. When confronted by officials from the Pennsylvania Game Commission and  Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Reese and Yost also lied about their use of poisoned corn  to kill the birds. In total, Yost and Reese were responsible for killing approximately 17 Canada  geese, 10 red-winged blackbirds, and one mallard duck.  

“Robert Yost and Jacob Reese used corn laced with an extremely toxic, banned pesticide to  poison over two dozen migratory birds,” said U.S. Attorney Olshan. “The defendants’ indiscriminate  criminal conduct also put the safety and health of the farm’s neighbors—including small children  and a man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease—at risk. Protecting wildlife and the people who live  in our communities from the illicit use of dangerous chemicals is, and will remain, a priority of this  office and our dedicated partners in state and local law enforcement.” 

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“The deliberate application of a highly toxic pesticide, whose use is restricted due to the  unreasonable risks to public health and the environment, threatened the health and well-being of the  community and the children who played in the poison area, and resulted in the intentional killing of  numerous migratory birds,” said Allison Landsman, EPA-CID Acting Special Agent in Charge. 

“The conviction of Robert Yost and Jacob Reese demonstrates EPA’s resolve to vigorously, with its  federal and state partners, investigate, prosecute, and hold accountable those who criminally apply  toxic pesticides and target species protected under federal law.” 

Judge Hardy scheduled both sentencing hearings for May 29, 2024, with the defendants each facing a total maximum term of imprisonment of 13 months and a total fine of $31,000. The actual  sentence imposed would be based upon a consideration of statutory sentencing factors and the prior  criminal history, if any, of the defendants.  

Assistant United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Brown and Special Assistant United States  Attorney Perry D. McDaniel are prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Office of Law Enforcement, Environmental Protection  Agency – Criminal Investigation Division, and Pennsylvania Game Commission conducted the  investigation that led to the prosecution of Yost and Reese, with assistance from the Pennsylvania  Department of Agriculture. 

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio. Published January 26, 2024 1:53 P.M.

(Beaver Falls, Pa) Beaver Falls Police, along with the Beaver Falls Fire Department were back on scene Friday afternoon near the area where a female was found dead just over two weeks ago. Other unmarked vehicles were also present. Beaver County Radio witnessed investigation activity approximately a quarter mile north of where the scene for the body found was. It is a wooded area along train tracks directly behind and down the hill of where Geneva College is located. The first officer Beaver County Radio encountered was retrieving brown paper bags from a police cruiser and did not have any comment to what was going on. Another set of officers at the scene were spotted walking through the woods. They told Beaver County Radio that the area is private property and to leave the scene immediately. Other activity could be seen further down the tracks. Two additional police cruisers arrived and stopped Beaver County Radio on the way out, saying that the Chief had requested they inform us that entering the area again would result in being arrested.

Two weeks after the body was found, Beaver Falls Police have yet to confirm any details other than a deceased missing female was discovered and insisting there is no danger to the community. A week after the incident, Beaver Falls Police put out a request for help from the community, asking for surveillance footage in specific areas.  There has also been no word from the coroner. Sources say the victim was 41 year old Rebecca Miller of Beaver Falls, and that she had suffered multiple stab wounds. She was last known to be going on a walk with a male friend. Her body was discovered along a walking trail in the woods near the Geneva campus. A painted cross with the name “Becky Miller” is now present at the entrance to the trail. Beaver County Radio observed that the fence along the trail has multiple holes in it large enough for people to go through, however we have no confirmed details that suggest any of the breached fence may have played a role in the incident.

Photos from the scene:

FILE – Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro arrives before President Joe Biden speaks in Blue Bell, Pa., Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. Shapiro’s administration says he plans next month to propose steps toward fixing a state higher education system that’s among the worst in the nation in affordability. The administration didn’t release many specifics Friday, Jan. 26, and says the Democratic governor will give more details in his Feb. 6 budget address. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration says he plans next month to propose steps toward fixing a state higher education system that’s among the worst in the nation in affordability. The administration didn’t release many specifics Friday, and says the Democratic governor will give more details in his Feb. 6 budget address. The administration says Shapiro will propose “significant” aid for state-owned universities, community colleges and their students. It says the schools should be united under a governance system that improves coordination and limits competition and duplication. After that, Shapiro wants to cut tuition and fees to no more than $1,000 per semester for lower-income Pennsylvania students at state-owned universities.

Norfolk Southern locomotives are moved through the Conway Terminal in Conway, Pa., Saturday, June 17, 2023. Norfolk Southern reports their earnings Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Norfolk Southern’s fourth-quarter profit fell 33% because of the ever growing costs of the cleanup of last year’s fiery derailment in eastern Ohio. The railroad did deliver 3% more shipments during the quarter but even without the costs related to that toxic crash, its profits still would have been down 14%. The Atlanta-based railroad said it earned $527 million, or $2.32 per share, during the quarter. Without the $150 million in additional derailment costs, Norfolk Southern would have made $677 million, or $2.83 per share. But even that is just behind the $2.86 per share that Wall Street predicted. The railroad now estimates the total costs related to the East Palestine derailment will top $1.1 billion, but that total will only continue to grow.

FILE – In this April 10, 2018 file photo, a high school principal displays vaping devices that were confiscated from students in such places as restrooms or hallways at the school in Massachusetts. Schools around the country are installing sensors and cameras to crack down on student vaping, and handing out harsh punishments for many who are caught. Schools have invested millions of dollars in the surveillance technology, including federal COVID-19 emergency relief money meant to help schools through the pandemic. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Schools around the country are installing sensors and cameras to crack down on student vaping and handing out harsh punishments for many who are caught. Schools have invested millions of dollars in the surveillance technology, including federal COVID-19 emergency relief money meant to help schools through the pandemic. It can surprise students that schools even have such technology. E-cigarettes have inundated middle and high schools. The devices can dispense vapor containing higher concentrations of nicotine than tobacco cigarettes. Millions of minors report vaping despite efforts to limit sales to kids by raising the legal age to 21 and ban products preferred by teenagers.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published January 26, 2024 9:42 A.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) The public is invited to the event on Thursday, February 1, 2024 from 9am to 5pm, according to a post from the library.   A message said 95 and STILL FABULOUS! There will be cake, refreshments, music, games, a photobooth, and gifts for those attending.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published January 26, 2024 9:37 A.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) Police were called to the 1200 block of Main Street just after 3 a.m. Thursday for a man shot in the head and an injured wife. Aliquippa police called in the state police to take over the investigation.  They remained at the scene for several hours. The man was transported to a Pittsburgh hospital and his wife was also transported to the hospital.