Pittsburgh Bureau of Police

On today's program: A new play explores the life and career of Pittsburgh’s first female assistant police chief; Pitt explains why PFAS chemicals are cause for worry; residents of a Philadelphia neighborhood are proud of their exclusionary reputation; and COVID-19 preparations continue in Pittsburgh.  

The shooting at Tree of Life synagogue last year took 11 lives and impacted countless others. For the officers who rushed to the scene that day, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Sergeant Carla Kearns said the first anniversary, like any significant trauma, may be the toughest.

On today’s program: A Pittsburgh journalist tells the stories of families wounded by the opioid crisis; a Hazelwood support group helps families of kids with autism; Pittsburgh prepares to honor slain Officer Calvin Hall; how Youngstown tracks health issues close to fracking sites; and a Lawrenceville nonprofit teaches residents about their housing rights.

On today's program: Fallingwater joins the ranks of Machu Picchu and Notre Dame; fewer than 5% of this year's Pittsburgh police recruits are black; a reporter studying the Thwaites Glacier tracks how it's melting; and a new book looks to answer questions about the future of Judaism in Pittsburgh after the Tree of Life massacre. 

On paper, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police appears to be effective at investigating rape cases. In 2017, the bureau reported it closed 58 percent of its rape cases, according to the city’s response to a WESA Right To Know request. The 2017 national average was 36.5 percent, according to national crime-reporting statistics kept by the FBI.

East Liberty native Tim Ryan grew up wanting to be an attorney, not a chef, but an early stint at dishwashing changed his mind. 

The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police said it is conducting an internal investigation of policies around drinking alcohol while doing undercover police work. According to the city’s open records officer, no formal policy currently exists.

Therese Rocco joined the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police in 1948 as a temporary replacement in the missing persons office. In post-war Pittsburgh, she says, most male officers believed women couldn't handle police work, let alone carrying a weapon. 

It's the oldest, continuously exhibiting visual arts membership organization in the country, boasting alumni like Andy Warhol, Mary Cassat, Samuel Rosenberg and Rochelle Blumenfeld, and works of its 600-plus modern members will be available to view and purchase all over Pittsburgh in 2019.

Hulking German Shepherd Dogs are a ubiquitous part of many police forces -- sniffing for drugs, bombs and all manner of bad guys -- but another breed greets its target with a lick.

  Pittsburgh K-9 trainer Sgt. Sean Duffy says his latest recruit, Cappy, a 17-month-old bloodhound puppy, will be an essential part of the force's search and recovery and missing persons efforts.

Pittsburgh police chief Scott Schubert has presided over a tough summer, fraught with tension between police and protestors. 

By the time Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was shot and killed on a Memphis balcony in April 1968, Pittsburgh's black community had been simmering for years over the once thriving 100-acre section of the Lower Hill District that city leaders had leveled to build the Civic Arena. 

After a career spent helping catch criminals, a retired Pittsburgh police detective is facing charges herself.

Margaret "Peg" Sherwood, 51, allegedly gave false information to prosecutors in two 2014 homicide cases and tried to stop a domestic violence prosecution to protect a jailhouse informant, according to an indictment unsealed in January by the state attorney general's office.

This winter’s saturating rains and repeated freeze-thaw cycles have led to damaged roofs, thousands of potholes and landslides across several steep city hillsides. What are Pittsburgh leaders doing to help the 20 families displaced by Mother Nature, and how can they better address infrastructure needs?

90.5 WESA's Margaret J. Krauss joins the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Bob Bauder to discuss.

Coming up next....

It's been nearly two years since Pennsylvania legalized medical marijuana, and this week, a handful of dispensaries began selling it.