Pennsylvania category, Page 28

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 — Earlier this year, a group of Republican state lawmakers filed suit in federal court to throw out executive actions aimed at expanding voter...

TOMS RIVER, N.J. — A Pennsylvania woman faces a life term after being convicted of murder and weapons offenses last week in the shooting and stabbing deaths of her father and his longtime girlfriend 2 1/2 years ago in New Jersey. The Asbury Park Press reported that 57-year-old Sherry Lee...

This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting. As Sajda Blackwell approached the front of the room, she did a little dance of excitement — a shimmy as she pumped both fists in the air. “All right,...

PHILADELPHIA — A Philadelphia car theft suspect who fled from police outside a hospital earlier this week has been captured in Western Pennsylvania, federal authorities said. Alleem Bordan, 29, was taken into custody at 2 p.m. Thursday at a home in Johnstown in Cambria County, more than 200 miles from...

SPARTANSBURG — Search warrant filings for the Pennsylvania home where a pregnant Amish woman was killed this week said she appeared to have suffered cutting wounds to her neck and head. Two identical search warrants were issued at the request of state police regarding the Monday slaying of Rebekah A....

HARRISBURG — Law enforcement agencies, civil defense officials and election administrators have begun meeting in Pennsylvania to coordinate how they will identify and fight election threats with the presidential contest just eight months away in the battleground state, Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration said Thursday. Shapiro created the Pennsylvania Election Threats...

Sen. Bob Casey is fighting supermarket shrinkflation. The Pennsylvania Democrat introduced a bill Wednesday that opposes the practice of shrinking everyday consumer goods such as cereal, potato chips, laundry detergent and toilet paper. The Shrinkflation Prevention Act targets corporations Casey, who is a co-sponsor of the bill, said are deceiving...

SPARTANSBURG — Investigators have no suspects in the killing of a pregnant 23-year-old Amish woman inside her home in rural northwestern Pennsylvania, and are appealing for tips from the public to help solve the crime, a state police spokeswoman said Wednesday. Rebekah A. Byler was the victim of a criminal...

WILKES-BARRE — A mother went on an alcohol and ecstasy binge after she abandoned her 3-year-old daughter at a hair salon in the 300 block of South Main Street on Sunday. Rasheedah J. Fields, 42, of Park Avenue Towers, Park Avenue, left the child at the hair salon at approximately...

The nonprofit organizations that collect and distribute organs for transplantation in the United States are under federal investigation to determine if they’ve defrauded the government, the Washington Post reported Monday. The probe seeks to determine whether organ procurement organizations, or OPOs, which work alongside hospitals to procure everything from kidneys...

This story first appeared in PA Local, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA taking a fresh, positive look at the incredible people, beautiful places, and delicious food of Pennsylvania. As Beyoncé’s rootsy new country singles “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” usher in a new era for the superstar, other...

YORK — Law enforcement officers in Pennsylvania shot and killed a man who fired at them during a domestic violence call, including aiming shotgun blasts at an officer forced to dive off a porch to protect himself, a county prosecutor said. Spring Garden Township police were called to a home...

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 — In his state budget pitch, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro called for the Pennsylvania legislature to legalize recreational marijuana. Shapiro is not breaking new...

The Biden administration this week canceled $1.2 billion in student debt nationwide. In Pennsylvania, that means 5,600 borrowers with a total of $45.1 million in debt have had their loans wiped clean, according to the U.S. Department of Education. The agency on Friday released a state-by-state breakdown of where the...

This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting. As the presidential election approaches, Pennsylvania is facing a deficit of experienced election directors, increasing the risk of errors that could cause difficulties for voters, disenfranchise their votes, and...

Were this any other year, the leader of Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities simply might have needed to defend next year’s appropriation request and explain how it would enable a sixth consecutive tuition freeze. Instead, State System of Higher Education Chancellor Daniel Greenstein faced sharp questioning from state senators Wednesday about...

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s highest court ruled Wednesday that Republican state lawmakers can no longer try to enforce a subpoena for a wide range of election records they issued in 2021 in a quest inspired by former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election. The court,...

HARRISBURG — A township ordinance that limits firing guns to indoor and outdoor shooting ranges and zoning that significantly restricts where the ranges can be located do not violate the Second Amendment, Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. The man who challenged Stroud Township’s gun laws, Jonathan Barris, began to draw...

Members of the Pennsylvania Senate are seeking public comments following the publication of “Aging Our Way, PA: A Plan for Lifelong Independence,” a 10-year plan to support the state’s older residents. “Every Pennsylvanian deserves to live and age with dignity,” Sen. Maria Collett, D-12, said. “This comprehensive and innovative plan...

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 — In what advocates are calling a historic move, a bill that would legalize syringe services throughout Pennsylvania is making progress in the legislature....

HARRISBURG — Since he became the single biggest force in Republican politics nearly a decade ago, Donald Trump has figured prominently in U.S. Senate races, using his massive public platform and loyal base of support to shape which GOP incumbents run for reelection and which contenders get nominated. This year,...

HARRISBURG — The attorney representing a suspended magistrate judge in Pennsylvania says his client is not guilty of allegations that she shot her estranged boyfriend in the head as he slept earlier this month. Magisterial District Judge Sonya McKnight, 57, was charged last week in Dauphin County with attempted murder...

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 — As the populations of Pennsylvania’s rural counties shrink, officials hope future state spending can help slow projected losses by making investments that attract...

Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities are extending the deadline for thousands of prospective new students to review financial aid offers and decide whether to enroll for fall. The move is intended to mitigate delays being experienced nationwide with the U.S. Department of Education’s revamped Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known...