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Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Bill Cosby defaults on $17.5 million mortgage, faces foreclosure for a second NYC townhouse
Bill Cosby, the disgraced comedian who has been accused of sexual assault by dozens of women, now has two Manhattan townhouses facing foreclosure. Cosby, 87, allegedly defaulted on a mortgage for his 12,000-square-foot Upper East Side house after not making payments since June, according to court records. The complaint, filed...
What to know about bird flu in Pennsylvania
As more cases of bird flu are reported across species and locations, states across the country are taking precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the virus. Hundreds of thousands of people will gather at the Pennsylvania Farm Show beginning later this week — a potential breeding ground for virus...
Pennsylvania’s political pendulum swung to Republicans this year. Will it stay there?
PHILADELPHIA — Republicans had a major political comeback in Pennsylvania in 2024 after a series of disappointments in recent elections. President-elect Donald Trump won the state by a margin of 1.7 percentage points. Republicans swept the row offices, and ousted two incumbent Democrats in the U.S. House along with longtime...
Trump’s nomination returns Mehmet Oz to the spotlight, puts him on track to oversee health care for 160M Americans
Mehmet Oz stood in front of a camera in July and filmed a TikTok about “how to conquer your constipation.” “Here’s the scoop on the poop brain loop,” Oz said confidently, delving into an enthusiastic pitch for probiotic supplements to keep you regular. In the two years since losing his...
Woman dies after fall at Bethlehem ice rink, coroner says
A woman died early Monday after a fall Sunday at the SteelStacks ice rink in Bethlehem, according to authorities. Maria Luisa Jimenez, 63, of Costa Rica was pronounced dead about 1:30 a.m. at St. Luke’s University Hospital in Fountain Hill, Lehigh County Coroner Daniel A. Buglio said. Jimenez fell backward...
Customs agents seize 22K fake Pennsylvania vehicle inspection stickers shipped from Israel
HARRISBURG — The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency said it has seized more than 20,000 counterfeit Pennsylvania vehicle inspection stickers that were shipped from Israel to an address in Philadelphia. Customs officers found the stickers in two shipments that arrived on two different days, Nov. 26 and Dec. 9,...
Scrutiny, secrecy defined Pa. debates over how to spend opioid settlement billions in 2024
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 — This was a crucial year for opioid settlement money in Pennsylvania. For the first time, counties across the state faced serious accountability from...
Pa. lawmakers passed fewer laws than in recent sessions, but leaders say quality is better than quantity
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 — The divided Pennsylvania legislature passed fewer laws and held fewer voting days over the past two years than in most sessions in recent...
Bucks County hospital employee stole more than $130K from patient convicted of killing 2 sons, DA says
A former Pennsylvania psychiatric hospital employee stole more than $130,000 from a woman convicted of killing her two sons in Bucks County in 2022, prosecutors said. Trinh Nguyen, 41, was being held at Norristown State Hospital for a mental health evaluation and awaiting sentencing for her sons’ fatal shootings when...
An architect designed custom clocks for Pennsylvania’s Capitol a century ago and they’re still ticking
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Capitol buildings are almost always an imposing presence. The seat of government, they tend to be elegant and stately — and frequently capped by a dome. Visitors to Pennsylvania ‘s Capitol are drawn to its priceless artwork, polished marble and intricate carvings, but hidden behind the doors...
Open access: Push for election transparency plays out in Pa. courts
A battle for election transparency is being waged across Pennsylvania’s court system. Against a backdrop of the “stop the steal” movement and persistent accusations of a broken electoral system, an unlikely alliance of GOP lawyers and grassroots democracy advocates is pushing to open elections to greater public scrutiny. Their goal:...
Facing Trump threats, Al Schmidt defended Pa.’s 2020 election as free, fair and secure and believes same about 2024
This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting. Sign up for Votebeat’s free newsletters here. After Donald Trump lost Pennsylvania in 2020, he used Twitter to direct his fury straight at Al Schmidt, then a Philadelphia city...
Man accused in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing faces federal charge that’s eligible for death penalty
HOLLIDAYSBURG — The man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare’s CEO was whisked back to New York by plane and helicopter Thursday to face new federal charges of stalking and murder, which could bring the death penalty if he’s convicted. Luigi Mangione was held without bail following a Manhattan federal court appearance,...
Pa. Electoral College meets, casts votes for Trump
HARRISBURG — The 2024 presidential election formally closed Tuesday in Pennsylvania with the Republican Party’s 19 certified electors casting their respective ballots in the Electoral College for President-elect Donald J. Trump. The official action, mirrored in statehouses across the U.S., precedes the scheduled joint session of Congress on Jan. 6...
Prosecutors charge suspect with killing UnitedHealthcare CEO as an act of terrorism 
NEW YORK — The man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare’s CEO has been charged with murder as an act of terrorism, prosecutors said Tuesday as they worked to bring him to a New York court from from a Pennsylvania jail. Luigi Mangione already was charged with murder in the Dec. 4...
Lawsuit claims Pa. jail retaliated against inmates by confiscating toilet paper and soap, cutting power and heat
A Pennsylvania jail retaliated against inmates suspected of smoking synthetic marijuana by punishing entire cell blocks — confiscating legal paperwork, withholding necessities like toilet paper, soap and warm clothing, and cutting power and heat, inmates allege in a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday. Top jail officials waged an escalating, monthlong campaign...
Security guard shoots armed man at Harrisburg courthouse
A man was shot Monday morning after he attacked security guards with a knife at the federal courthouse in Harrisburg, authorities told PennLIve. District Attorney Fran Chardo said a guard shot the man between 8:45 and 9 a.m. at the Sylvia H. Rambo U.S. Courthouse on the 1500 block of...
Persistent problems with a Pa. grant for beer promotion led to headaches, layoffs for awardees
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 — At first, things were going smoothly. Filmmaker Nate Kresge said he was receiving grants through a little-known state program to promote Pennsylvania’s beer...
Legalized recreational marijuana is on Pennsylvania’s doorstep
Recreational marijuana remains illegal in Pennsylvania. But lawmakers, advocates and even opponents who have spent countless hours debating the topic in Harrisburg say that likely will change soon. Money, specifically the promise of jobs and new tax revenue, has come to dominate the conversation in the General Assembly. Like the...
Under Shapiro, half of clemency recommendations remain unsigned
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 first two years as governor, Josh Shapiro has signed about 50 percent of the clemency applications recommended to him by the...
Feds propose protection for giant salamanders devastated by Hurricane Helene
You never forget your first time seeing a giant salamander, according to Andy Hill. He was a teenager, standing thigh-high in the Watauga River outside Boone, North Carolina, casting a line on an early fall day when he saw his first eastern hellbender. The salamander stretched 2 feet long and...
Biden commutes sentence of controversial Pa. judge in Kids for Cash scandal
President Joe Biden has commuted the sentence of a former judge in Northeast Pennsylvania who gained notoriety for a scheme to send children to for-profit jails in exchange for kickbacks. That commutation was part of a larger move from Biden, who commuted sentences for about 1,500 people who were released...
McDonald’s employee who called 911 in CEO’s shooting eligible for a reward, but it will take time
PHILADELPHIA — More than 400 tips were called into the New York Police Department’s Crime Stoppers tip line during the five-day search for a masked gunman who ambushed and fatally shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week. NYPD officials said about 30 of those tips were useful as information about...
Legislation aims to address post-traumatic stress among first responders
In February 2023, Sardis Volunteer Fire Company Chief Joe Paiano Jr. entered a burning house in Salem Township to rescue an 11-year-old boy. The boy was among three people pulled from the fire, but he died of his injuries a few days later. The incident affected Paiano in a way...
Suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing could return to New York on a governor’s warrant
PHILADELPHIA — The suspect in the killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO plans to fight extradition to New York to face murder charges, but officials hope to get him back with what’s called a governor’s warrant. The process could happen quickly or take more than a month. New York Gov. Kathy...


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