PITTSBURGH — Former state Sen. Jane Orie's request to be released on bail while appealing her conviction on campaign corruption charges has been denied.

Orie's attorney requested last week that the former lawmaker be released while she appeals her March conviction on charges she used her taxpayer-funded staff for campaign purposes. Prosecutors opposed that request and a judge rejected it Tuesday.

A Pittsburgh newspaper says Orie's attorneys are seeking a new trial on the grounds that the judge erred by barring discussion of the “personal animus” between her family and Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr.

The defense alleged the charges were politically motivated, which prosecutors denied.

Two other Orie sisters are charged in the campaign corruption investigation, including suspended state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin.

HARRISBURG — Former state Rep. Mike Veon, already serving the longest prison term handed out in Pennsylvania's state probe of legislative corruption, was sentenced Tuesday to at least one additional year behind bars for a separate conviction for misusing state funds at a nonprofit organization he once ran.Dauphin County Judge Bruce Bratton on Tuesday sentenced the one-time House majority whip to a prison term of one to four years, fined him $1,500 and ordered him to pay $119,000 in restitution. He also sentenced the longtime Beaver County lawmaker to four years' probation once he is released.Veon, a Democratic power broker at the Capitol who is now prisoner JP4714 at Laurel Highlands State Prison in Somerset County, told Bratton he accepted responsibility for his actions and apologized.Veon, 55, was among 25 former legislators and aides with ties to the Democratic and Republican caucuses in the state House of Representatives who were charged in an ongoing investigation that the state attorney general's office launched in early 2007.

PITTSBURGH — A bond rating service says Highmark's proposed $475 million takeover isn't enough to save Pittsburgh's second biggest hospital network.Moody's Investor Service says dropping patient volume and continued operating losses mean the West Penn Allegheny Health System will need more capital or other outside investments in the next two years.Highmark, the state's largest insurer, announced the takeover of the six-hospital West Penn Allegheny system in November. State regulators must still approve the deal.Although Moody's predicts that will happen, the ratings service says West Penn's financial outlook remains negative and has kept its junk bond rating on $737 million in debt the hospitals have issued.Highmark has reportedly given West Penn half of the $400 million in grants and loans promised in the deal, which includes another $75 million to start a medical school.

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Three Rivers Regatta will be longer than usual because the Fourth of July holiday falls in the middle of the week.In recent years, the regatta has been combined with the city's Independence Day celebration and usually includes the weekend nearest the holiday. This year, the Fourth of July is a Wednesday, so the regatta will begin on June 30 and run through the fireworks celebration the night of the Fourth.The regatta will feature power boat races, free concerts, nightly laser light shows and other events in and around Point State Park.Also in the works are an artificial ice rink and a sculpture being made out of 150 tons of sand.