Aftermath: Synagogue attack

In the wake of the shooting at Tree of Life, Pittsburgh City Council promises action on gun control. What is even feasible in Pennsylvania?

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City Councilman Corey O’Connor said now is the time for Pittsburgh to take bold action on gun control, even if it means confronting lawsuits and the ire of a Republican-controlled state Legislature and powerful gun rights groups like the National Rifle Association. “We will fight this. Pittsburgh will take a stand,” O'Connor said, holding back tears at a council meeting three days after a heavily armed man killed 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue. “And we will get sued... You want to fight?

PUBLIC SAFETY

Low funding, strained patrols and officer turnover common among some Mon Valley police departments. Will East Pittsburgh’s crisis spur change elsewhere?

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East Pittsburgh is grappling with the fate of its police force, leaning on solutions like consolidation that have long-been discussed in the fragmented region, largely without success.

Will crisis force change? In East Pittsburgh, officials hope so. But interviews with numerous chiefs and leaders in the region reveal a persistent status quo, where funding drastically differs across a patchwork of boroughs and some communities struggle to recruit officers to work breakneck hours for dismal pay.

HEALTH

Street medicine, made in Pittsburgh: A gritty, compassionate solution to everything that’s wrong with health care.

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Editor’s Note: On behalf of PublicSource, writer Timothy Maddocks spent six days between October 2017 and February 2018 embedded with street medicine teams. He attended the 2017 International Street Medicine Symposium and interviewed more than three dozen street medicine practitioners, from Pittsburgh and beyond. Though the days are still warm as we publish this story, soon people experiencing homelessness will again be subject to severe drops in temperature. This story sheds light on how street medicine practitioners aim to help the population throughout the year and how it plays out at the most critical times.  

On a gray January morning, the team from Pittsburgh Mercy's Operation Safety Net follows the hollow sound of a dog barking in the distance to the tent that they’ve been looking for. And there it is, between the Allegheny River and the gravel bike trail: a mismatched collage of older tents and tarps, faded yellow and bright orange.

Inside our Newsroom

PublicSource journalism recognized for its value in challenging times for media

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Dear readers,

We’re thrilled to share with you some good news. So far this year, PublicSource reporters have taken home 16 awards from local, state and regional journalism contests. In addition, the national Education Writers Association recognized PublicSource reporters Mary Niederberger and Jeffrey Benzing as finalists for their stories on disproportionate treatment and challenges for black girls in the Pittsburgh region as part of our “I am a black girl and…” series. Journalism professionals selected PublicSource for the following honors:

A Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for our continuing coverage of Pittsburgh’s crisis with lead in the water. The region in which we claimed the award spans Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

Photos: Activists demand justice for Antwon Rose Jr., an unarmed black teen killed by an East Pittsburgh police officer

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Update (June 27, 2018): The Allegheny County District Attorney's Office charged East Pittsburgh Police officer Michael Rosfeld with criminal homicide in Antwon Rose Jr.'s death. His bail was set for $250,000 by a magisterial district judge. The DA's office said in a statement that they believe setting bail was "improper" because statute indicates that anyone charged with a crime that could result in life in prison is not entitled to bail. However, DA spokesman Mike Manko said the office does "not plan on contesting it at this time." PublicSource reporter Jeffrey Benzing live-tweeted the DA's press conference on Wednesday morning.