Pennsylvania category, Page 200
Shapiro heads into reelection year with $3M in account
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro will report that he headed into his 2020 reelection year with more than $3 million in his campaign bank account, about 40% of what he spent to get elected in 2016 to his first four-year term. In a preliminary report his campaign gave...
Mother of 5 found beaten to death in Philadelphia home
PHILADELPHIA — Police on Friday were searching for a suspect who killed a mother of five inside her Philadelphia home. The 25-year-old’s mother called police after finding the back door kicked in on Thursday night and officers discovered the woman dead in an upstairs bedroom, police said. There were signs...
Bill Cosby asks Pennsylvania high court to review conviction
Comedian Bill Cosby filed an appeal Thursday of a court decision last month that upheld his conviction for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman at his home. The latest appeal — filed with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which does not have to take the case — focuses on four key...
Ex-Pa. mayor on prison life: Spin class, teaching and law books
The former mayor of a Pennsylvania city who is serving a 15-year prison sentence for public corruption told a newspaper his life behind bars is “kind of like being mayor but for a lot less money.” Former Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski has spent more than a year at a low-security...
Republicans ‘got greedy’ in drawing Pennsylvania congressional maps, documents say
PHILADELPHIA — A trove of documents recently released by the daughter of a deceased GOP strategist includes some clues about what Republicans were thinking almost a decade ago when they redrew Pennsylvania’s congressional maps in a way that was later ruled unconstitutional. The documents, compiled at least partly amid the...
Allegheny County judge says parents can sue diocese over abuse reporting
PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania judge has ruled that parents of children in the Roman Catholic Church and survivors of sexual abuse by clergy members can move forward with a lawsuit against the Diocese of Pittsburgh alleging that it has not fulfilled its obligations under state law to report child sexual...
Pennsylvania’s senators split on reasons behind killing of Iranian general
A lengthy closed-door briefing by top Trump administration officials Wednesday left senators deeply divided along party lines over whether the president’s assertions of imminent threats were sufficient grounds for killing Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani. Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, told reporters that Trump’s decision was merited and undoubtedly saved...
Ag secretary announces $1 million grant program at Pa. Farm Show
If agriculture is to remain one of Pennsylvania’s top industries, then farms have to succeed as businesses. That was the message at the Pennsylvania Farm Show’s Public Officials Day in Harrisburg, where Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding announced the latest grant to be funded by the 2019 Farm Bill. The $1...
Want to know snow, ice conditions at a Pennsylvania state park? Here’s how
Winter is upon us, and despite the occasional warmup, snow- and ice-related activities are out there. Let’s say you’re in the mood to head out to a nearby Pennsylvania state park for a day of, say, cross-country skiing. How would you check on the conditions? Well, the state has made...
Survey: Fewer Pa. households entered 2019-20 winter without heat
Fewer Pennsylvania households entered the current winter season without heat than in the two previous years, according to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. More than 18,350 households across the state entered the winter season without heat-related utility service or using unsafe heating sources, PUC said in its 2019 Cold Weather...
Report: This is Pennsylvania’s wealthiest county
In Chester County, the median household income is nearly $100,000 — making it the richest county in the commonwealth, according to a new report. Financial news and opinion website 24/7 Wall Street has reported that the southeastern Pennsylvania county boasts a median household income of $96,726, compared to the Keystone...
Former Pa. congressman Mike Fitzpatrick dies at age 56
HARRISBURG — Michael Fitzpatrick, a former congressman from suburban Philadelphia who served four terms in the House before handing off the seat to his brother, died Monday morning after a long battle with melanoma, his family said. He was 56. “Michael Fitzpatrick passed away peacefully this morning, surrounded by family,...
Police probe release of bed bugs in Edinboro Walmart
EDINBORO — Pennsylvania State Police and store management apparently are itching to get their hands on who released live bed bugs Thursday in the changing room of the men’s department inside the Walmart at Edinboro. As of Saturday afternoon, investigators still were scratching their heads trying to find the suspect...
A look at other deadly bus crashes in the U.S., Pennsylvania
Five people were killed in a violent bus crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike early Sunday, adding to a long history of deadly bus crashes across Pennsylvania and the United States. Deadliest U.S. bus crashes Sept. 17, 1963: Fifty-three farm workers were on a flatbed truck being used as a makeshift...
Coca-Cola truck crashes into home in Quakertown
Two families were displaced Saturday in Quakertown after a tractor trailer crashed into their home on Route 313, borough police said. The Coca-Cola truck drove into the twin home at 656 and 658 W. Broad St. just before 6:45 a.m. after missing a sharp turn on that part of the...
Soup for toddlers sold online recalled due to undeclared allergens, USDA says
A Massachusetts business is recalling about 200 pounds of lentil and beef soup for toddlers shipped to Pennsylvania and four other states and Washington, D.C., the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced. Kettle Cuisine Midco is recalling the ready-to-eat product because of misbranding and undeclared allergens, the department’s Food Safety and...
Pennsylvania requires permits for hemp growers and processors in 2020
Like hemp growers, facilities that process the crop also will have to get permits in 2020 as Pennsylvania’s emerging industry enters its second year, state officials said. The commercial cultivation of hemp, which had been banned by the federal government for 80 years, took off in Pennsylvania last year after...
2020 predicted to have a super Groundhog Day
Feb. 2 is a loaded date this year. The usual celebration of Groundhog Day has some company in 2020. The day starts with Punxsutawney Phil’s 134th prognostication set to run 3 a.m. to 8 a.m. Then, the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the Washington Capitals at 12:30 p.m. on NBC. Groundhog...
Ex-teacher in Bucks County charged with taking up-skirt photos of students
OTTSVILLE — A former high school teacher has been charged with secretly taking indecent photos of three students and posting them online. Francis Reppert, 26, of Quakertown in Bucks County, outside of Philadelhia, was arraigned Thursday on charges of indecent exposure and invasion of privacy. He was released on $500,000...
State Rep. Valerie Gaydos introduces bill to shrink state legislature
After being in office for about a year, state Rep. Valerie Gaydos, R-Allegheny, thinks there might be a few too many seats in the chamber. Gaydos, 53, of Aleppo, recently introduced legislation which would cut legislative districts in Pennsylvania from 203 to 151, a move that would require amending the...
Steelers’ mascot Steely McBeam recreated in butter at Pa. Farm ShowVideo
HARRISBURG — The butter sculpture for this year’s Pennsylvania Farm Show was unveiled Thursday, featuring three of the state’s professional sports team mascots. This year’s sculpture, crafted from about 1,000 pounds of donated butter, shows Steely McBeam, Gritty and Swoop — mascots for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Flyers and...
Blackface again mars Philadelphia’s troubled New Year parade
PHILADELPHIA — The mayor of Philadelphia sharply criticized two men who wore blackface while marching in the city’s annual — and often racially troubling — New Year’s Day Mummers Parade, calling their actions “abhorrent and unacceptable.” The group the men apparently were affiliated with, the Froggy Carr Wench Brigade, was...
Pa. Farm Show opens Saturday with some new food offerings
Food is one of the biggest draws to the Pennsylvania Farm Show, and this year is no exception. The Pennsylvania Dairymen’s Association, famous for its milkshakes, is introducing a new sandwich — Grilled Cheese Stix. The offering features mozzarella cheese sandwiched between Martin’s potato bread, served with a side of...
Gov. Wolf outlines effort to bolster Pa. mental health services
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s governor announced a broad effort Thursday to improve mental health services and change public perceptions of mental illness. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf rolled out an initiative that includes more resources and a public outreach campaign, saying the approach was inspired by a similar strategy the state has...
Reminder: Pennsylvania’s ‘Do Not Call’ list is now permanent
Perhaps you were too busy holiday-ing to notice, but as of Dec. 3, your protection from phone spammers got a lot stronger. As of that date, Pennsylvania’s “Do Not Call” list dropped the requirement that customers re-register their number every five years. That means once you are on, you are...
