Pennsylvania category, Page 160
Still hampered by coronavirus, U.S. casinos want recovery aid
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — The U.S. casino industry is seeking tax and regulatory relief from the government as it tries to recover from the coronavirus outbreak, which cost states more than $2 billion in lost tax revenue while casinos were shut down for four months this year. While 90% of...
Philadelphia shooting victim’s family: We sought ambulance, not policeVideo
PHILADELPHIA — The family of a Black man killed when Philadelphia police officers fired a dozen rounds in a shooting caught on video had called for an ambulance to get him help with a mental health crisis, not for police intervention, their lawyer said Tuesday. Additionally, Walter Wallace’s wife is...
Black women see Trump as an existential threat: ‘This election is to save our lives’
PHILADELPHIA — Sherrelle Pritchette has always been a loyal Democrat. But this year, she said, the election feels like life or death. Because death is something her North Philadelphia family has experienced a lot of in 2020. In late March, Pritchette’s mother and sister, who lived together, started to feel...
Pennsylvania sets record for largest daily increase of new covid-19 cases
Pennsylvania reported 2,751 new covid-19 cases Tuesday, per the state Department of Health. New coronavirus cases in the state represent the largest daily increase to date, according to the state. The coronavirus death toll in Pennsylvania continued to grow as 23 new deaths were reported. All 23 deaths reported Tuesday...
More than 3 million in Pennsylvania apply for mail-in ballots
HARRISBURG — A week ahead of the Nov. 3 election, applications in the presidential battleground state of Pennsylvania for mail-in or absentee ballots exceeded 3 million, with Tuesday the last day to request one and legal wrangling creating uncertainty over the deadline to receive them. State data shows that, of...
Philadelphia police shooting of Black man sparks unrestVideo
PHILADELPHIA —Police shot and killed a 27-year-old Black man on a Philadelphia street after yelling at him to drop his knife, sparking violent protests that police said injured 30 officers and led to dozens of arrests. The shooting occurred before 4 p.m. Monday as officers responded to a report of...
Democrats still hold the edge, but Pennsylvania voter registration gains favor GOPVideo
Mary Ann Hegan is part of a voter migration she never anticipated. The 72-year-old retiree from Laughlintown is among more than 486,000 Pennsylvania Democrats who have switched their registration to Republican since 2008. Moving the other way, Tim Gunter, 49, of Philipsburg is among 291,324 Republicans in the state to...
Pa. Liquor Control Board adding seasonal employees at stores
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) says it is looking for more than the usual number of people to fill seasonal jobs at its stores during the holiday season. “This year because of covid-19 and the added sanitation requirement, and just the extra work that’s involved, we want to make...
Pa. health secretary Levine says covid can be contained through masking and other efforts
The Pennsylvania Secretary of Health on Monday had a pointed response to a political declaration that “we’re not going to control the pandemic” as Pennsylvania and most other states see surges in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. “Despite what has been reported in the last day or so, we can control...
Pennsylvania adds over 3,000 covid cases in past 2 days
Pennsylvania has seen more than 3,000 new cases of the coronavirus in the past two days, according to a report from the state Department of Health. In the report released Monday, health officials said 1,407 new cases were added Monday and 1,666 cases on Sunday. Among Monday’s cases, 1,310 were...
Proposed bill would provide relief for theaters, music venues
John Pergal is in a difficult situation. Pergal owns the Thunderbird Cafe & Music Hall in Lawrenceville, and is part of the ownership group for the Roxian Theater in McKees Rocks. Both buildings are usually filled with the sounds of music and the sight of dancing crowds enjoying their favorite...
Inconsistencies in state covid data cause confusion
Throughout the covid-19 pandemic, journalists, health officials and the public have been inundated with data counting infections, deaths, hospitalizations and more. Often the figures come from multiple sources, including databases maintained by state and local agencies — and often, those numbers do not match. “It’s expected that during the middle...
Pa. Attorney General Josh Shapiro seeks second term in race against Republican Heather Heidelbaugh
Attorney General Josh Shapiro calls himself “the people’s lawyer.” Heather Heidelbaugh, his Republican challenger in the Nov. 3 election, refers to herself as “a lawyer’s lawyer.” While Shapiro has garnered national headlines for his impassioned challenges against the Trump administration, Heidelbaugh says the office is one that should focus on...
GOP asks Supreme Court again to block Pa. ballot extension
HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania Republican Party is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to speedily take up its case to block counties in the presidential battleground state from counting mailed-in ballots received up to three days after the Nov. 3 election. The Republican Party’s late Friday filing came four days after...
Pennsylvania reports 3rd consecutive day of more than 2,000 coronavirus cases; 29 new deaths
Pennsylvania on Saturday reported 2,043 new coronavirus cases — a dip from yesterday’s record-setting 2,219 — but still the third consecutive day the state has posted more than 2,000 cases. The state Department of Health reported 29 new deaths attributed to the coronavirus after posting 33 Friday, which matched the...
Plan to waive liquor license fees could take revenue from Pennsylvania municipalities
Municipal leaders weighed in Friday on a lifeline Gov. Tom Wolf proposed for the bar and restaurant industry a day prior, with some saying it might help businesses but also could take away from revenue at a time when every little bit helps. “Losing any money right now is big,”...
Pa. ballots can’t be tossed out over voter signature, court says
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court ruled unanimously Friday on a key concern surrounding an avalanche of mail-in ballots in the presidential battleground state, prohibiting counties from rejecting ballots because the voter’s signature on it may not resemble their signature on their registration form. Two Republican justices joined five Democratic justices in the...
Pennsylvania reports record 2,219 new covid-19 cases for a single day
Pennsylvania on Friday reported a record-high 2,219 coronavirus cases in a single day. It is the second consecutive day with new reported cases above 2,000. The state’s 7-day average has risen to a high of 1,642 cases with a 7-day total of 11,493. With 18,008 test results, the daily positivity...
Gov. Wolf wants to waive liquor license fees for bars, restaurants as pandemic reliefVideo
Gov. Tom Wolf has asked the state Liquor Control Board to waive all licensing fees for bars, restaurants, clubs and hotels next year in an effort to bring some financial relief to an industry slammed by the covid-19 pandemic. “This disease thrives when people get together, and it hits at...
New lawsuit targets Pennsylvania’s mail-in ballot deadline
HARRISBURG — A new lawsuit filed Thursday is challenging Pennsylvania’s court-ordered deadline to count mail-in ballots that are received up to three days after the Nov. 3 election in the presidential battleground state. Plaintiffs include a Republican congressional candidate and four registered voters from Somerset County. The lawsuit comes 12...
Pennsylvania reports over 2,000 new coronavirus cases
With 2,063 new cases, Pennsylvania on Thursday reported its highest number of single-day cases of coronavirus since the pandemic started in March. The state also reported 30 new deaths attributed to the coronavirus. The new cases bring the total number of cases in Pennsylvania to 188,360. October has seen all...
Feds arrest 15 foreign students for work-status fraud in ‘Operation OPTical Illusion’
Federal immigration authorities have arrested 15 nonimmigrant students for alleged education-related fraud, authorities said Wednesday. The arrests took place in a number of cities, including Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Boston, Houston and more, the federal authorities said. The 15 arrested allegedly claimed they worked for companies that did not exist. “Nonimmigrant” status...
Record 9 million people register to vote in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has eclipsed 9 million registered voters for the first time and is expecting record turnout as voters cast ballots by mail or drop box and in person at county elections offices before the election and at the polls on Nov. 3. As of Wednesday, the state had processed 9,050,870...
Pennsylvania adds 1,425 coronavirus cases, 48 hospitalizations
Pennsylvania reported more than 1,000 new coronavirus cases for the 16th straight day Wednesday. The Pennsylvania Department of Health added 1,425 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total to 186,297. For comparison, in the past 16 days, there have been 22,090 new covid-19 cases, while in the 16 days prior to...
Longtime Pennsylvania courts clerk in Schuylkill County gets 27 months for fraud
SCRANTON — A longtime Pennsylvania clerk of courts has been sentenced to 27 months in prison on federal charges that he stole public money and then tried to hide his tracks by forging records. Former Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts Stephen Lukach Jr., was sentenced Tuesday in Scranton after pleading...
