(File Photo of Handcuffs)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Carnegie Borough, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Pittsburgh reported via release today that twenty-three-year-old Dante Douglas of Pittsburgh was arrested early Sunday morning after a crash in Carnegie Borough that morning. Douglas crashed his vehicle on 652 I-376 East at 12:04 a.m. and he was driving under the influence of alcohol. Charges were filed against Douglas after his arrest.
(File Photo of Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Car)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Ohio Township, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Pittsburgh reported via release today that thirty-one-year-old Angelica Liberto of Pittsburgh was charged after causing a single-vehicle crash in Ohio Township yesterday evening. Liberto was driving on I-279 South at 6:43 p.m. when she lost control of her vehicle, which caused her to exit the left side of the road and hit a guide wire with the frond end of her vehicle initially. According to police, Liberto was charged for “driving on roadways laned for traffic.”
(File Photo of a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Badge)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Findlay Township, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Pittsburgh reported via release today that sixty-four-year-old George Thompson of Aliquippa caused a single-vehicle crash in Findlay Township yesterday evening. At 11:34 p.m., Thompson hit a deer while driving in the left lane of I-376 West, which deployed the airbag of his vehicle. The vehicle of Thompson had damage that was disabling, and Thompson did not get injured after this crash occurred. Imperial Heights Towing and Pennsylvania State Police Trooper McCord assisted at the scene of this crash.
(File Photo of Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Car)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Independence Township, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Beaver reported via release today that thirty-two-year-old Fernando Castro–Rodriguez of Aliquippa was charged after causing a single-vehicle crash in Independence Township on the morning of September 14th, 2025. Castro-Rodriguez was driving on State Route 51 east of Hookstown Grade Road and lost control of his vehicle, which made him go off of the left side of the road and strike a utility pole at 3984 Route 151’s property at approximately 5:19 a.m. According to police, Castro-Rodriguez was charged with various citations. The vehicle of Castro-Rodriguez was also towed at the scene by Southside Garage after it had disabling damage on its front end.
(Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of AAA East Central)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Pittsburgh, PA) Gas prices are eight cents lower in Western Pennsylvania this week at about $3.32 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report. The national average for a gallon of gasoline dropped to $3.03, which was a decrease of over five cents from the previous week. The report also states that the average price for a gallon of gas at this time a year ago was around $3.47 and the average price that you can expect for a gallon of unleaded gas here in Beaver County is $3.44. According to a release from AAA East Central and AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report, here are the average prices for unleaded self-serve gasoline this week in various Pennsylvania areas:
$3.181 Altoona
$3.440 Beaver
$3.542 Bradford
$3.002 Brookville
$3.314 Butler
$2.990 Clarion
$3.044 DuBois
$3.201 Erie
$3.330 Greensburg
$3.320 Indiana
$3.422 Jeannette
$3.497 Kittanning
$3.356 Latrobe
$3.213 Meadville
$3.515 Mercer
$3.260 New Castle
$3.403 New Kensington
$3.336 Oil City
$3.411 Pittsburgh
$3.151 Sharon
$3.420 Uniontown
$3.598 Warren
$3.359 Washington
(Photo Courtesy of Business Wire and the Associated Press, Caption for Photo: Industrial conveyor line at the factory for metal parts. Pretreatment of the surface of parts and paint parts with powder paint.)
PITTSBURGH–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Oct 20, 2025– PPG (NYSE:PPG) today announced the launch of PPG ENVIROCRON® Extreme Protection Edge Plus powder coating, a patent-pending, one-coat innovation that advances edge-protection technology.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251020748552/en/
Engineered to minimize powder retraction and shrinking during curing, ENVIROCRON® Extreme Protection Edge Plus ensures more complete coverage without the need for mechanical edge rounding or blasting. This results in enhanced corrosion resistance, safer handling and a significant reduction in the orange peel texture commonly seen in high-edge coatings.
Building on the proven performance of PPG’s first-generation high-edge formulation, this latest breakthrough provides exceptional corrosion protection on hard-to-coat sharp edges, angles and recesses common in heavy duty equipment, HVAC, electrical and general industrial applications with an improved, smoother finish.
The coating is engineered to minimize powder retraction and shrinking during curing. This helps to ensure more complete coverage for enhanced corrosion resistance and safety in handling because the coated edges are smooth to the touch, eliminating the need for mechanical edge rounding or blasting.
Testing performed by PPG indicates that PPG Envirocron Extreme Protection Edge Plus coating provides coverage that outperforms currently available one-coat and two-coat powder systems. It also significantly reduces the orange-peel texture that is common with standard high-edge solutions. With efficient and economical one-coat application and a smoother, more finished appearance, it sets a new benchmark for edge-protection performance.
“Since launching our first-generation high-edge powder in 2019, our scientists have continued to refine the formulation to optimize corrosion performance and elevate the appearance of the finish,” said Marizeth Carvalho, PPG global powder platform lead and general manager Latin America South, Industrial Coatings. “This innovation illustrates our commitment to helping our partners solve their toughest coatings challenges and improve the durability and longevity of their products.”
PPG Envirocron Extreme Protection Edge Plus coating delivers exceptional first-pass transfer efficiency and is highly durable, even in the most demanding exterior and industrial settings. It is available in a wide spectrum of standard and custom-matched colors including micas and metallics and is compatible with both manual and automated powder coating systems for application flexibility.
PPG Envirocron Extreme Protection Edge Plus coating is ideal for end-use applications that have complex metal features such as louvers, blades and other laser-cut parts.
(Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services)
Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News
(Harrisburg, PA) According to a release yesterday from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, earlier this month, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) notified Pennsylvania that it will be unable to fully fund November SNAP benefits because of the federal shutdown. As a result of this, without the Republican-controlled Congress and/or the White House taking action immediately to open the federal government back up, SNAP payments will not be made to almost two million Pennsylvanians. The state of Pennsylvania is not able to backfill these costs. Those that need assistance can either call 211 or visit pa211.org. You can also visit the links below for assistance regarding food:
Click here for food assistance: PA 211 – Get Connected. Get Help.
Click here for an Electronic Benefit Transfer regarding SNAP benefits
Click here for more information about SNAP benefits: Home | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Click here for food assistance: Feeding Pennsylvania | State Chapter of Feeding America
(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Sexual assault suspect Ian Cleary departs from the Adams County Court House in Gettysburg, Pa., May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, file)
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (AP) — A man who sent a Facebook message that said, “So I raped you,” to a woman he had sexually assaulted in college in 2013 was sentenced to two to four years in prison on Monday.
The sentence came more than a year after Ian Cleary was extradited back to Pennsylvania from France over the assault at Gettysburg College and nearly 12 years after the victim first went to police.
The judge took into account Cleary’s guilty plea, his remorse and his long history of mental illness in giving a sentence below state guidelines. Cleary, 32, said he sent the messages as part of a 12-step program, in hopes of seeking atonement.
Victim Shannon Keeler told the court on Monday that the messages only reopened wounds she had long carried over the assault, which went years without being prosecuted.
“The system meant to protect me protected you instead,” said Keeler, detailing in a powerful 10-minute impact statement the years she spent pursuing charges, which prosecutors are often reluctant to file in campus sexual assault cases.
“This isn’t just my story, this is the story of countless women,” she said.
Cleary faced a maximum of 10 years in prison for the attack, and the two sides had initially proposed a four- to eight-year sentence.
Andrea Levy, Keeler’s lawyer, said the sentence was “less than what we expected and certainly less than he deserves,” but she said there was relief that the case was over.
Keeler told police that Cleary sneaked into her dorm on the eve of winter break, when few people were left on campus, then pushed his way into her room and assaulted her. She was an 18-year-old in her first semester on campus at the time.
Senior Judge Kevin Hess said that anyone with daughters or, like him, granddaughters in college would find the crime “horrifying.”
Nevertheless, he said, “the defendant has admitted his guilt, he’s come forward and even though 10 to 11 alarming years have passed in the meantime, we wouldn’t be here today but for his hope for some kind of forgiveness and contrition.”
Cleary left Gettysburg after the attack and ultimately finished college in Silicon Valley, California, where he’d grown up. He then got a master’s degree and worked for Tesla before moving overseas.
In 2019, he sent the Facebook message to Keeler, and she renewed her efforts with police and prosecutors after noticing them a few months later. In 2021, she shared her experience in an Associated Press story on the reluctance of prosecutors to pursue campus sex crimes.
Cleary was indicted weeks after the AP story was published, and following a three-year search, he was extradited from Metz, France, where he had been detained on a vagrancy-related charge in April 2024.
In court Monday, Cleary, standing just a few feet away, apologized to Keeler and his father.
“I’m committed to getting treatment for mental health and stuff like that as I go forward,” he said.
Cleary’s family members have declined to comment on the case and did not attend most of his court hearings.
Keeler, in interviews with the AP, described her repeated efforts to persuade authorities to press charges, starting hours after the assault.
“I had been thinking about this moment for 12 years,” Keeler said after seeing Cleary in court in July, when he pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault. She called it a surreal moment.
Authorities in the U.S. and Europe tried to track Cleary down after the indictment but seemed unable to follow his trail, online or otherwise, until his arrest in the unrelated case.
Defense lawyer John Abom maintained that Cleary was homeless at times and unaware of the charges. Adams County District Attorney Brian Sinnett said he had his doubts but could not prove that Cleary was on the run.
The AP typically does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly, as Keeler has done.
“The system that failed me a decade ago finally delivered accountability, but at a cost. Evidence was lost. Time passed,” she told the court Monday, noting that results of the rape kit she was given that night had been destroyed by the time of the indictment.
“My life moved on, but the impact never went away, not for me, not for my family, not for anyone who had to watch this unfold again and again,” she said.
(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – The Supreme Court in Washington, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said on Monday that it will consider whether people who regularly smoke marijuana can legally own guns, the latest firearm case to come before the court since its 2022 decision expanding gun rights.
President Donald Trump’s administration asked the justices to revive a case against a Texas man charged with a felony because he allegedly had a gun in his home and acknowledged being a regular pot user. The Justice Department appealed after a lower court largely struck down a law that bars people who use any illegal drugs from having guns.
Last year, a jury convicted Hunter Biden of violating the law, among other charges. His father, then-President Joe Biden, later pardoned him.
Arguments probably will take place early in 2026, with a decision likely by early summer.
The Republican administration favors Second Amendment rights, but government attorneys argued that this ban is a justifiable restriction.
They asked the court to reinstate a case against Ali Danial Hemani. His lawyers got the felony charge tossed out after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the blanket ban is unconstitutional under the Supreme Court’s expanded view of gun rights. The appellate judges found it could still be used against people accused of being high and armed at the same time, though.
Hemani’s attorneys argue the broadly written law puts millions of people at risk of technical violations since at least 20% of Americans have tried pot, according to government health data. About half of states legalized recreational marijuana, but it’s still illegal under federal law.
The Justice Department argues the law is valid when used against regular drug users because they pose a serious public safety risk. The government said the FBI found Hemani’s gun and cocaine in a search of his home as they probed travel and communications allegedly linked to Iran. The gun charge was the only one filed, however, and his lawyers said the other allegations were irrelevant and were mentioned only to make him seem more dangerous.
The case marks another flashpoint in the application of the Supreme Court’s new test for firearm restrictions. The conservative majority found in 2022 that the Second Amendment generally gives people the right to carry guns in public for self-defense and any firearm restrictions must have a strong grounding in the nation’s history.
The landmark 2022 ruling led to a cascade of challenges to firearm laws around the country, though the justices have since upheld a different federal law intended to protect victims of domestic violence by barring guns from people under restraining orders.
(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Sexual assault suspect Ian Cleary departs from the Adams County Court House in Gettysburg, Pa., May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, file)
(AP) A man who sent a Facebook message that said, “So I raped you,” to a woman he later pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting on a Pennsylvania college campus awaits sentencing on Monday.
Ian Cleary, 32, faces a potential four- to eight-year sentence under a joint proposal for the 2013 attack on Shannon Keeler at Gettysburg College. The judge is free to accept or reject the terms.
According to Keeler, Cleary sneaked into her first-year dorm on the eve of winter break, when few people were left on campus, then pushed his way into her room and assaulted her.
Cleary, who left Gettysburg after the attack, ultimately finished college in Silicon Valley, California, where he’d grown up. He then got a master’s degree and worked for Tesla before moving overseas.
Years later, he sent the Facebook message to Keeler, and she renewed her efforts with police and prosecutors to have charges filed. In 2021, she shared her experience in an Associated Press story on the reluctance of authorities to prosecute campus sex crimes.
Cleary was indicted weeks later and following a three-year search, was extradited from Metz, France, where he had been detained on minor, unrelated charges in April 2024.
Cleary did not contest the account when he pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault in July.
“I had been thinking about this moment for 12 years,” Keeler said that day, after seeing Cleary in court. She called it a surreal moment.
“It’s taken a lot of twists and turns to get to this point,” said Keeler, now 30. “It took a lot of people doing the right thing to get us here.”
Keeler, in interviews with the AP, described her decade-long effort to persuade authorities to pursue charges, starting hours after the assault.
Authorities in the U.S. and Europe tried to track Cleary down after the indictment, but seemed unable to follow his trail, online or otherwise.
In court Thursday, defense lawyer John Abom said Cleary was homeless at times and unaware of the charges. Adams County District Attorney Brian Sinnett said he had his doubts, but could prove that Cleary was on the run.
The charge carries a maximum 10 years in prison. Cleary’s family members have declined to comment on the case and have not attended his court hearings.
The AP typically does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly, as Keeler has done.