Pennsylvania category, Page 51
Pa. House OKs bill to move 2024 primary by 1 week in protracted fight
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives on Wednesday passed another bill to give an earlier date for its 2024 presidential primary, an effort that has become drawn out and politically charged in a battleground state still weathering former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims about a stolen 2020 election. The bill...
2 more arrested in killing of Philadelphia Officer Richard Mendez, police say
PHILADELPHIA — Police have arrested two more men they believe were involved in the airport parking lot shooting that left one Philadelphia police officer dead and a second injured last week — meaning all remaining suspects in the crime have been taken into custody, authorities said Wednesday. Interim Police Commissioner...
Man gets up to 5 years in prison for Bedford County crossbow death
A Northumberland County man has been sentenced in Bedford County court to spend 15 months to five years behind bars for fatally shooting another man with a crossbow in 2021. Alec Rhoads, 26, formerly of Mount Carmel, was sentenced last week after pleading no contest to one count of involuntary...
Pennsylvania House tackles ‘bot’ problem that left Swifties ticketless for Eras Tour
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Monday passed legislation that seeks to avoid the difficulty Taylor Swift fans encountered this year when they tried to buy tickets to her Eras Tour. By a vote of 193-10, the chamber sent to the Senate a bill that would make it illegal to...
Penn State hires architect, construction managers for $700M renovation of Beaver Stadium
Penn State has awarded a contract for architectural work on its planned $700 million renovation of Beaver Stadium to a firm versed in major sports construction projects, including on Texas A&M University’s Kyle Field and the NFL’s Buffalo Bills stadium now being built. Monday’s announcements of hiring Populous to handle...
New Jersey man arrested in airport parking garage shooting that killed 1 Philadelphia officer, wounded 2nd
PHILADELPHIA — One man has been arrested and at least two other people are being sought in an airport parking garage shooting that killed a Philadelphia police officer and injured another last week, authorities said. Yobranny Martinez Fernandez, 18, of Camden County, New Jersey, was arrested before dawn Monday in...
House bill takes aim at Pennsylvania’s ‘ghost poles’
For a borough of fewer than 900 people, Export has a lot of utility poles. And quite a few of them are right next to each another. Known as ghost poles, the side-by-side poles number in the thousands across Southwestern Pennsylvania. In areas where the poles are a problem, the...
Man charged with pulling gun on pro-Palestinian demonstrators on Pa. Capitol steps
A Lebanon man who pulled up to a peaceful Palestinian rally in Harrisburg, shouted racial slurs and pointed a gun at attendees has been arrested, according to police. Richard Kevin Blandy, 56, faces a felony count of ethnic intimidation and misdemeanor charges of making terroristic threats and simple assault by...
Pa. seeks to expand public awareness of Indigenous culture, history
BETHLEHEM — Pennsylvania’s absence of federally recognized tribal nations means there’s been an incomplete picture of its Native American culture and history, officials said Friday as they announced a grant-funded program designed to change that. The Pennsylvania Tourism Office, in partnership with Lehigh University’s Institute for Indigenous Studies and with...
Weekend weather could make partial eclipse tough to watch in Western Pa.
Indiana University of Pennsylvania professor Kenneth Coles had only one word to sum up the forecast for Saturday’s partial eclipse: dismal. “Clouds and rain is what they’re calling for right now,” Coles said. “But if we get a hole in the clouds — and we’re always hopeless optimists about that...
Shooting at Philadelphia airport garage kills 1 police officer and wounds another
PHILADELPHIA — A Philadelphia police officer was shot and killed and a second officer was wounded when they confronted people breaking into a car at Philadelphia International Airport, police said. A person who was brought to a hospital privately and died there may have been involved in the Thursday night...
Pennsylvania counties tell governor, lawmakers it’s too late to move 2024’s primary election date
HARRISBURG — Counties in Pennsylvania have told Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and lawmakers that it is too late to move up the state’s 2024 presidential primary date if counties are to successfully administer the election. In a letter, the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania said there is no longer enough...
Fetterman takes swipes at lawmakers, talks hoodies and health scare in ‘Late Show’ appearance
Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. John Fetterman took some swipes at his colleagues in Washington, D.C., during a Wednesday appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” The interview included discussions about his health issues and the challenges facing the United States. Oh, and confirmation that he’s “a Sheetz guy.” Wearing his...
Penn State spars with conservative activist over whether campus event was booked correctly
Penn State says a conservative activist did not appear for a speech on campus because her event was not booked properly, although the speaker’s representatives suggested the university was using this as cover for preventing the event out of political concerns. Riley Gaines made waves among conservative press outlets after...
Pennsylvania universities are still waiting for state subsidies. It won’t make them more affordable
HARRISBURG — Four of Pennsylvania’s universities are plugging budget gaps while they await hundreds of millions of dollars in aid that has been snarled in a partisan dispute among lawmakers in a state that has one of the nation’s most abysmal records for funding higher education. Education advocates argue that...
Fatal Indiana County shooting marks 540th mass incident this year, according to gun violence group
White Township joined the likes of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg as communities struck by a mass shooting when gunfire erupted early Sunday morning at a party at the Chevy Chase Community Center. One person died and at least eight others were wounded in a chaotic scene that state police described...
Witnesses to FBI hunt for Civil War gold in Elk County dispute its story
PENFIELD — In the heart of Pennsylvania elk country, Eric McCarthy and his client, Don Reichel, woke before sunrise to scour the forest for so-called “brown gold,” a rack of freshly shed antlers to add to Reichel’s collection. One hill over, a team of FBI agents also was hunting for...
Some see presidential aspirations in Gov. Josh Shapiro’s school voucher support
HARRISBURG — In the partisan politics of education funding, the school choice movement has pressed states for decades to send taxpayer money to private and religious schools and long had to concentrate its efforts on states where a Republican governor was an ally. That suddenly changed over the summer. Pennsylvania...
Police issue arrest warrant for 19-year-old acquaintance in death of Philadelphia journalist
PHILADELPHIA — Police said Friday that they have issued an arrest warrant for a 19-year-old acquaintance in the death of a Philadelphia journalist who went from sleeping on the street to working for the mayor to writing urgent columns on the city’s most pressing social issues. Josh Kruger, 39, was...
Gov. Shapiro offers first public remarks about the sexual harassment claims involving a former top aide
Gov. Josh Shapiro on Thursday voiced his commitment to a “healthy, safe, professional work environment” for employees who work for his administration as he struggles to address a sexual harassment complaint involving a former top aide. Shapiro, in his first public remarks about the matter, declined to comment directly about...
Pennsylvania chocolate factory fined for failing to evacuate before fatal natural gas explosion
WEST READING — A Pennsylvania chocolate factory was fined more than $44,000 by the federal workplace safety agency on Thursday for failing to evacuate before a natural gas explosion that killed seven people. R.M. Palmer Co. did not heed warnings from employees about a natural gas leak, according to the...
Pennsylvania could go after lottery winnings, tax returns of turnpike toll scofflaws
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s state Senate unanimously approved legislation Wednesday that would authorize the Department of Revenue to go after the lottery winnings and income tax returns of turnpike toll scofflaws. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives. The Associated Press reported in 2021 that an internal study by...
3 Philadelphia officers injured in shooting after dispute about video game, police say; suspect dead
PHILADELPHIA — Three Philadelphia police officers responding to a home where people were arguing about a video game were wounded in a shootout Wednesday evening, authorities said. Acting Police Commissioner John Stanford told reporters the suspect was killed. The officers were taken to an area hospital, where they were in...
Aggravated assault charges filed in case of Philly motorcyclist seen smashing in back of woman’s carVideo
PHILADELPHIA — A man accused of being the motorcyclist seen smashing in the back of a woman’s car while her two young children were inside near Philadelphia’s City Hall and then waving a gun at her after she confronted him has been charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault. Prosecutors...
Attack ads and millions of dollars flow into race for Pennsylvania Supreme Court seat
HARRISBURG — Spending in the campaign for an open Pennsylvania state Supreme Court seat is picking up, with millions of dollars flowing into the race as the sides sharpen their attacks over questions about ethics and abortion rights. The race between Democrat Dan McCaffery and Republican Carolyn Carluccio won’t change...
