Pennsylvania category, Page 44
Teen fatally shot in broad daylight in the middle of Philadelphia street
A teenager was shot in the head and killed Friday afternoon following an argument in the middle of a Philadelphia street, authorities announced. Police said the incident happened in the Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood of Frankford. The teen was arguing with another person just after 2 p.m. along the 4200 block...
Utility shut-off protections in Pa. would be expanded to summer months under bill
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania lawmakers have until the end of 2024 to reauthorize a key area of state law that protects low-income utility customers from sudden...
Man riding on back of garbage truck in Centre County killed after crash into overhanging tree
A man riding on the back of a garbage truck was killed this week when the driver backed into a tree in Centre County, state police at Rockview wrote in a crash report. Nathan Kerstetter, 38, of Milesburg, was hanging off the back of the truck about noon Wednesday when...
Pennsylvania can’t stop young adults from openly carrying guns during emergencies, U.S. court rules
PHILADELPHIA — Young adults in Pennsylvania cannot be arrested for openly carrying guns in public during a declared state of emergency, at least while a court fight over the issue plays out, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. The 3rd U.S. Circuit judges, in a 2-1 decision, relied on the...
Faculty union, Pa. university system reach potential labor deal
The union representing 5,000 state university faculty across Pennsylvania has reached “an agreement in principle” with leaders of the State System of Higher Education, both parties confirmed Thursday. The agreement followed a full day and night of negotiating. It comes almost seven months after the existing agreement between the Association...
Man charged in shooting that critically wounded Pennsylvania police officer
SCRANTON — Authorities have announced charges against a man in what they called an ambush-style shooting that critically wounded a police officer in northeastern Pennsylvania last week. Aiden Gabriel Deininger, 20, of Old Forge is charged in Lackawanna County with three counts of attempted homicide of law enforcement officers, criminal...
Gun control measures advance out of Democratic-controlled Pennsylvania House committee
HARRISBURG — Democrats in majority control of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives advanced several gun control measures Wednesday, including one that would ban sales of automatic and semi-automatic guns, after years of standstill in the politically divided state government. The bills were passed by the Judiciary Committee on party lines...
5 killed when truck hits minivan crashed in left lane of snowy Pennsylvania highwayVideo
SCRANTON — Five women from New York were killed when a tractor-trailer struck people at the scene of a crashed minivan on Interstate 81 in snowy northeastern Pennsylvania, state police said Wednesday. The minivan, carrying four women, went out of control in the northbound lanes of I-81 in Lackawanna County,...
Sen. John Fetterman to pen political memoir with ‘Friday Night Lights’ author
Pennsylvania’s U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s unconventional political career, along with his many personal battles, sounds like the stuff of Shakespeare. Now, it will be a book that the hoodie-wearing Democrat is planning to write, with the help of “Friday Night Lights” author Buzz Bissinger. All this is according to a...
‘This will be a game-changer’: Duquesne University opens medical college
Students in the inaugural class of Duquesne University’s medical college will learn the intricacies of human anatomy through the time-tested method of dissecting cadavers. But they also will slip on a high-tech headset with eyewear and instantly see before them a hologram of the human body. They can walk around...
Pennsylvania lawmakers seek to tame the ‘wild, wild west’ nature of artificial intelligence in elections
A proposed bill that is drawing bipartisan support in the Pennsylvania Legislature would ban the misuse of artificial intelligence in political campaigns and establish fines for violations. State Rep. Tarik Khan, a Philadelphia Democrat, and several colleagues, including one GOP member, issued a co-sponsorship memo for their bill on Dec....
New law aims to make guardianship a last resort in Pa., but some experts say it doesn’t go far enough
This story first appeared in The Investigator, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring the best investigative and accountability journalism from across Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — With little fanfare, Gov. Josh Shapiro in December signed into law a bill aimed at fixing long-standing problems within Pennsylvania’s vexing system for safeguarding adults...
Pa. needs to spend $5.4B to close gap between rich and poor schools, report advanced by Dems says
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania will need to spend at least $5.4 billion to close the gap between rich and poor school districts, according to a long-awaited...
Pa.’s poorest school districts were slated for a funding boost, but aid went to construction instead
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. BELLEFONTE — Pennsylvania’s poorest districts won’t receive $100 million in new money to help fill vacancies and reduce funding deficits after lawmakers diverted those dollars...
Head of Pa. House Freedom Caucus vies for open state Senate seat
The head of the Pennsylvania State Freedom Caucus is vying for the state Senate seat that represents Cumberland and York counties. Rep. Dawn Keefer has announced she is running for the Republican nomination in the race for the 31st District, currently held by Sen. Mike Regan. Regan has announced he...
Democrats’ education funding report says Pennsylvania owes $5B more to school districts
HARRISBURG — A commission reviewing how Pennsylvania distributes money to public schools narrowly approved a report Thursday that suggests the state is underfunding districts by more than $5 billion and should begin immediately to close that gap. The vote on the report by the Basic Education Funding Commission was backed...
Pennsylvania police officer, suspect critically wounded in Scranton shooting
SCRANTON — A police officer in Pennsylvania was shot and critically wounded early Thursday as he helped investigate two other shootings, authorities said. The shooting in Scranton occurred around 4:30 a.m. and also left a suspect wounded, state police said. Both were treated at a hospital and were listed in...
The tribes wanted to promote their history. Removing William Penn’s statue wasn’t a priority
HARRISBURG, Pa. — The National Park Service’s proposal to remove a William Penn statue from a historic site in Philadelphia —- quickly withdrawn amid a backlash — wasn’t a priority for some of the Native Americans the agency was required to consult with as it prepared to renovate the deteriorating...
McCormick, Casey announce big campaign hauls in U.S. Senate race
Rivals in Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate race raised roughly $10 million combined in the past three months, setting the stage this year for yet another huge influx of cash into a legislative race in the Keystone State. In 2022, the clash for an open Senate seat drew more than $400 million...
Got turkeys in the yard? The Pa. Game Commission wants to know
Got turkeys in your yard during the early morning hours? The Pennsylvania Game Commission wants to know. The commission is seeking the public’s help in its annual turkey brood survey, taking stock of the game bird’s overall health in Pennsylvania. “It is the largest turkey project we’ve ever conducted, with...
4-year-old among 2 killed in central Pa. fire sparked by smoking, says coroner
A child and an adult were killed in a house explosion in York County on Monday morning, authorities say. The York County coroner’s office late Monday night identified the victims as a 4-year-old boy and a 79-year-old man. Their names will be released on Tuesday, the coroner said. The coroner’s...
Pa. bear harvest lowest in 16 years for hunters, but wildlife experts know the likely causes
After white-tailed deer hunting, no big-game species draws the interest of Pennsylvania sportsmen like black bears. The Keystone State is renowned for its bruin-hunting opportunities, as well as the extremely large bears it gives up annually. Over the years, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) has expanded its bear hunting opportunities...
IRS seizes former skill game executive’s cash, accounts as part of tax investigation
Federal investigators have seized more than $400,000 from a retired Pennsylvania State Police corporal who, until recently, served as compliance director for Pace-O-Matic, the maker of Pennsylvania skill games at the center of a legal quandary over whether they are gambling devices. The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation branch posted...
Park Service retracts decision to take down William Penn statue at Philadelphia historical site
HARRISBURG — The National Park Service withdrew a proposal Monday to take down a statue of William Penn at a Philadelphia historical site as part of a renovation that touched off a torrent of criticism over the legacy of the man who founded the province of Pennsylvania. In a brief...
School funding, permitting at top of Pa. legislature’s 2024 agenda
This story first appeared in The Investigator, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring the best investigative and accountability journalism from across Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — In the new year, Pennsylvania lawmakers plan to put a lot of their energy into changing permitting processes, getting a long-sought constitutional amendment over the...
