Pennsylvania category, Page 78
Police: Central Pennsylvania man killed wife, sister, man before fatal gun battle
UNITYVILLE — Authorities say a domestic dispute in central Pennsylvania over the weekend led to a triple homicide and a shootout with state police that ended with the death of the suspect. Officials in Lycoming County said troopers responding at about 9:30 a.m. Saturday to a report of a female...
Suit seeks to have mail-in votes lacking dates counted
HARRISBURG — Several Pennsylvania groups represented by the American Civil Liberties Union have filed suit in federal court seeking to have votes from mail-in or absentee ballots counted even if they lack proper dates on their return envelopes. The suit filed Friday night in Western Pennsylvania by state chapters of...
1.4M Pennsylvanians asked to vote by mail — here’s what that means for Election Week counting
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — More than 1.4 million people in Pennsylvania requested to vote by mail for the Nov. 8 election, but county...
Wolf signs hastily passed $2B tax package that encourages natural gas production in Pa.
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Wolf has signed a $2 billion tax credit package for the hydrogen production, milk processing, and biomedical...
Gov. Wolf signs law to yank toll scofflaws’ vehicle registrations
HARRISBURG — A measure to help the Pennsylvania Turnpike recover more unpaid tolls was signed into law Thursday, legislation that could trigger the suspension of thousands of vehicle registrations early next year. Gov. Tom Wolf gave final approval to legislation aimed at getting owners or operators of some 25,000 vehicles...
What effect did the Oz-Fetterman debate have on the Pa. Senate race? Here’s what 2 new polls show
For all the attention last week’s debate between John Fetterman and Mehmet Oz received, the race appears virtually unchanged — and extremely close — in its aftermath. Separate polls from the Monmouth University Polling Institute and Muhlenberg University released this week indicate the race is essentially tied with six days...
University makes new review of Doug Mastriano’s doctoral research
HARRISBURG — A Canadian university that granted a doctorate in history to Doug Mastriano nearly a decade before he became the Republican nominee for governor of Pennsylvania is investigating a fresh complaint about his work that makes multiple allegations of academic fraud in his recently public dissertation. University of New...
Philadelphia Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, wife, acquitted of fraud charges
PHILADELPHIA — A Philadelphia City Council member and his wife have been acquitted of corruption charges in federal court. Jurors deliberated for five days before finding Councilman Kenyatta Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, not guilty Wednesday in their second trial on honest services wire fraud charges. The Philadelphia Inquirer...
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra paid $15K to take 2 Pa. lawmakers to Europe
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — In the waning days of summer, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra embarked on a whirlwind, nine-city European tour — its...
Pennsylvania court: Ballots in undated envelopes won’t count
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania officials cannot count votes from mail-in or absentee ballots that lack accurate, handwritten dates on their return envelopes, the state Supreme Court ruled unanimously Tuesday, a week before tabulation will begin in races for governor, the U.S. Senate and the state Legislature. The court directed county boards...
Why Black faculty are questioning Penn State’s commitment to diversity, anti-racism
With Penn State in the spotlight for scrapping plans for a Center for Racial Justice, Black faculty members are questioning the university’s commitment to diversity and anti-racism — and a co-author of two reports that previously outlined Penn State’s shortcomings says its latest response simply isn’t good enough. At least...
Why are undated mail ballots such a big deal in Pennsylvania?
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court is expected to soon rule on a case that could decide whether undated mail ballots can...
Crime a focal point in U.S. Senate race between Fetterman, Oz
Ads in Pennsylvania’s combative U.S. Senate race have made crime a focal point in the campaign, and experts say Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz are using the ads to stoke fear in voters. “John Fetterman wants to release convicted murderers from prison,” one ad blares, showing black-and-white...
‘I’ll be much better, but he will still be a fraud’: John Fetterman flips own health struggles against Mehmet Oz
With a precious nine days to go before the election, Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman rallied Harrisburg-area canvassers on Sunday — a potentially fortuitous day for door-knocking, given how many Pennsylvanians were likely at home watching the Eagles-Steelers game. Canvassers gathered at the AFSCME headquarters in Swatara Township for an...
We love Israel ‘more than a lot of Jews’: Doug Mastriano wife’s response draws scrutinyVideo
The wife of Doug Mastriano objected to criticism of her husband’s alleged close relationships with antisemites and his trafficking in antisemitic tropes, saying the couple loves Israel more than many Jews. In answer to a question Saturday posed by Israeli journalist Nathan Guttman from the Kan public broadcaster, Rebecca Mastriano...
Penn State cancels its Center for Racial Justice after faculty push for funding decision
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. Sign up for our regional newsletter, Talk of the Town. STATE COLLEGE — Penn State will not launch its Center for Racial Justice, a key...
Betsy Ross was buried 3 times. She’s not the only American with multiple graves
PHILADELPHIA — On Oct. 16, a group of women with ancestral ties to colonial America placed a marker in a Southwest Philadelphia cemetery at the second of Elizabeth Griscom Claypoole’s three graves. They did this knowing that the woman, also known as Betsy Ross, isn’t there. In her busy afterlife,...
Rep. Scott Perry drops lawsuit over seized cell data
U.S. Rep. Scott Perry has dropped a lawsuit against the FBI after they seized his cell phone and copied its contents to find links to the Jan. 6 insurrection. The FBI seized Perry’s phone on Aug. 9 while he was on vacation in New Jersey, created an image of the...
Lawmakers send Gov. Wolf large package of energy tax credits
HARRISBURG — State lawmakers have voted for an array of tax credits, including a massive incentive designed to help Pennsylvania land one of the hydrogen energy hubs being funded with federal subsidies. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s spokeswoman said Thursday that he was reviewing the legislation that passed shortly before the...
Within hours, Republicans make impeachment drive against Philly DA Larry Krasner a midterm issue
HARRISBURG — When Pennsylvania Republicans announced they were introducing articles of impeachment against Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner on Wednesday, they said the crime situation in the city had gotten so dire, they couldn’t wait any longer to act. Asked if the unprecedented move had anything to do with the...
In Pa. governor’s race, faith surfaces in contrasting ways
In one of the most closely watched races in one of the most contested of battleground states, both gubernatorial candidates bring up religion. But in starkly different ways. Republican Doug Mastriano’s campaign has several hallmarks of Christian nationalism, which fuses Christian and political imagery, words and rituals and promotes a...
How redistricting could alter control of the Legislature — and other changes to watch on Election Day
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — It’s showtime for Pennsylvania’s brand-new legislative districts. The revamped state House and Senate lines were approved by a commission...
GOP lawmakers introduce resolution to impeach Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner
Pennsylvania House Republican lawmakers announced on Wednesday their intention to file articles of impeachment against Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who they say has “tipped the scales of justice in favor of criminals.” The announcement came two days after a Select Committee on Restoring Law and Order issued a second...
Pa. Supreme Court hears arguments on Medicaid funding for abortion
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments over the state Medicaid program’s coverage ban on abortion. Under the 1982 Abortion Control Act, passed by the Pennsylvania legislature, Medicaid prohibits reimbursement for abortions in all instances other than to prevent the death of the woman or in the case of...
Takeaways from Pa.’s highly anticipated U.S. Senate debate between Oz, Fetterman
Tuesday night’s U.S. Senate debate between Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz figures to be remembered mostly for how one candidate spoke instead of what either candidate said. The hourlong debate at the WHTM-TV studio in Harrisburg covered key issues such as inflation, fracking, minimum wage, abortion, international...
