Pennsylvania category, Page 179
Philly police head decries tear gas usage against protesters
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia’s police commissioner, along with the mayor, apologized to the public Thursday for giving statements that were inaccurate in the days after tear gas, bean bags and pepper spray were used against protesters who were trapped on a highway. At least one high ranking commander took a voluntary...
‘We started getting sores all over us’: Grand jury report blasts DEP, health department over fracking failures in Pa.
A scathing Pennsylvania grand jury report two years in the making blasted the state departments of Environment Protection and Health, alleging years of turning a blind eye to complaints against the oil and gas industry left residents exposed to harmful water and air pollution that caused nosebleeds, mysterious sores and...
Pa. man runs 218 miles to nursing home of virus-stricken ‘Nana’Video
SCRANTON — Endurance athlete Corey Cappelloni once ran six days through the Sahara Desert in what’s considered the most grueling foot race on Earth. But a 218-mile run to grandma after she was sickened with covid-19 turned out to be the longest, toughest and most rewarding of his life. Cappelloni...
State police association supports reform legislation passed by Pa. House, Senate
The Pennsylvania State Troopers Association on Wednesday issued a statement supporting police-reform legislation passed by the state House and Senate. “As troopers, we believe our Call of Honor is nothing less than a sacred oath. Every trooper must memorize it. In particular, it includes this line: ‘It is my duty...
He spent 22 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. His lawsuit says Philly police knew his case was flawed
PHILADELPHIA — John Miller spent 22 years in prison almost entirely due to the fleeting word of one man: an accused robber who initially told detectives that Miller had confessed a murder to him. But the robber quickly recanted and said he had lied to police to receive beneficial treatment...
Casey says blocked GOP police reform bill weak on accountability
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey said insufficient accountability is one reason a Republican police reform bill failed to progress Wednesday in the Senate. With a 55-45 tally, Senate Republicans failed to gain the 60 votes needed to proceed to a debate on the bill. Afterward, Casey said an alternate Democratic reform...
Pa. House, Senate unanimously pass police reform measures
HARRISBURG — Bills to give police departments information about an applicant’s disciplinary past and to train officers in how to interact with people of different racial and ethic backgrounds were approved unanimously on Wednesday by the state House. The House voted after an emotional debate to require thorough background checks...
Pennsylvania officials report 54 new covid-19 deaths statewide
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Wednesday reported 54 new covid-19 deaths and 495 new cases in the state. The statewide total is now 83,191 cases, including 632 probable cases, and 6,515 deaths. According to the Department of Health, the most severe cases are seen in patients over the age...
Bill Cosby granted appeal in Pennsylvania sex assault case
PHILADELPHIA — In a stunning decision that could test the legal framework of #MeToo cases, comedian Bill Cosby has won the right to fight his 2018 sexual assault conviction in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The 82-year-old Cosby has been imprisoned in suburban Philadelphia for nearly two years after a jury...
510 new coronavirus cases, 38 additional deaths reported in Pa.
There were 38 new covid-19 deaths and 510 new cases reported Tuesday by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The statewide total is now 82,696 cases and 6,464 deaths, with 631 patients considered probable cases. According to the Department of Health, the most severe cases are seen in patients 65 or...
Allegheny County leads state in mail-in balloting; more expected in November
Faced with the coronavirus pandemic and the prospect of long lines at sharply reduced polling places, Allegheny County voters led the state in embracing Pennsylvania’s new mail-in voting option. A new report by the Center for Rural Pennsylvania found nearly one in three Allegheny County voters requested a mail-in ballot...
Pennsylvania House votes to make Republican Rep. Cutler its next speaker
HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania House turned to a seven-term Republican member Monday to become its next speaker, elevating him to the chamber’s top job a week after his predecessor stepped down in mid-term. The vote for Rep. Bryan Cutler of Lancaster County made him the House’s presiding officer, one step...
State police cite ‘significant advances’ in case of Pa. boy missing since 1986
State police in North Central Pennsylvania said Sunday they are confident they are getting closer to solving the cold case of a toddler missing since the 1980s, according to newspaper reports from across the region. Corey James Edkin was 2 years old when he vanished from a home in White...
Pennsylvania reports 464 more covid-19 cases, 4 more deaths
Pennsylvania state health officials on Sunday reported four more covid-19 deaths and 464 additional cases, bringing the state’s total number of cases to 81,730. A total of 6,423 people have died from the virus. There are 631 patients who have a positive serology test and either covid-19 symptoms or a...
Pennsylvania reports 504 new covid-19 cases, 20 new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Saturday reported 504 new coronavirus cases and 20 new covid-19 deaths. The new numbers brings the total case count to 81,266 and 6,419 deaths. The state considers 631 patients as probable cases but not confirmed. More than half of coronavirus cases in the state...
Pa. lawmakers review legislation to allow counting of mail-in ballots before Election Day
Lawmakers in the General Assembly are reviewing potential legislation that would allow election officials to begin counting mail-in ballots before 7 a.m. on Election Day, a provision that advocates say will be crucial in getting timely election results in November. While voting-by-mail election reforms have faced political pushback from Republicans...
Contact tracing IDs more than 4,000 exposed to covid-19 in Pennsylvania
More than 4,000 people who were exposed to covid-19 have been identified through contact tracing efforts throughout the state, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced Friday. “We are now equipped with hundreds of contact tracers that can help us mitigate the spread of this virus,” Secretary of Health Rachel Levine...
NAACP sues Pennsylvania over primary election access issues
Citing long lines at polls on primary day in Eastern Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Conference of the NAACP is suing the state, seeking to ensure additional protections for voter access are in place in time for the November presidential election. The suit, filed Thursday in Commonwealth Court, charges the state’s decision...
Gov. Wolf loosens restrictions in last of Pa.’s counties except Lebanon
Parts of Pennsylvania that were among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic will move next week into the less restrictive “green” zone for reopening businesses and restarting group activities, the Wolf administration announced Friday. The 12 counties going from yellow to green under Gov. Tom Wolf’s color-colored reopening system...
34 million criminal cases now removed from public view under Pa.’s Clean Slate law
More than 34 million criminal cases have been removed from public records under the Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate law, state court officials say. The law, the first of its kind in the United States, was implemented last June and provides for the automatic expungement of public records pertaining to low-level crimes...
Momentum builds for making Juneteenth a federal holiday
There is a growing movement afoot to declare June 19, or Juneteenth, a federal holiday. The date marks the day in 1865 when Union Gen. Gordon Granger read the Emancipation Proclamation in Galveston, Texas, informing former slaves of their freedom provided by the order President Abraham Lincoln issued on Jan....
Pennsylvania reports 526 new covid-19 cases, 38 new deaths
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Friday reported 526 new coronavirus cases and 38 new covid-19 deaths, bringing the total case count to 80,762 and 6,399 deaths. The state considers 630 patients as probable cases but not confirmed. More than half of coronavirus cases in the state are in patients...
Pennsylvania’s Department of Health seeks $301M federal covid-19 grant
Pennsylvania’s Department of Health is pursuing a $301 million federal grant to strengthen its ability to respond to the covid-19 pandemic, and will earmark $100 million for local health departments if the grant is awarded. “This funding is essential to our future response to the covid-19 pandemic in Pennsylvania,” Secretary...
Pennsylvania’s jobless rate slides back from pandemic peak
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s unemployment began sliding down from its pandemic peak in May, even clocking in at below the national rate as payrolls grew by almost 200,000, the state said Friday. Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 13.1% in May, down 3 percentage points from April’s adjusted rate, the state Department of...
Philadelphia man charged with blowing up cash machine
PHILADELPHIA — A 24-year-old Philadelphia man has been charged with using explosives to blow up a cash machine as demonstrations rocked the city this month. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said it would oppose bail for David Elmakayes at a hearing scheduled for Friday. Elmakayes was charged Thursday with using an...
