I think you can use semicolons that way, but only to eliminate confusion when the items in the list contain commas. Eg: Today I ate sausage, eggs, and hasbrowns for breakfast; a sandwich and soup for lunch; and alfredo with chicken, asparagus, and grape tomatoes for dinner. Dammit. now i'm hungry...
"NYPD mass shooting over $2.90" dates it pretty well I'd say. Until cops start more mass shootings over subway fare that is. Story for anyone who's interested