Today in PA | A PennLive daily news briefing with Claudia Dimuro

The man who shot a Bucks County police officer is now facing an attempted murder charge as well as others. Mayor Jim Kenney has shot down the call by activists to bring in the National Guard in order to help handle the city’s spike in gun violence. Lockheed Martin announced that it will close its Sikorsky helicopter plant in Coatesville. And if you’re looking to live in a state that has some of th...

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia publicly urged priests not to help parishioners to get religious exemption from getting the COVID-19 vaccine. For the second year in a row, Pittsburgh’s Labor Day parade has been cancelled. That Christopher Columbus statue will remain standing in South Philly. And was that a…baby kangaroo spotted hopping around Lebanon County? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and o...

The fire that destroyed two portable classrooms at an Allentown elementary school in July has been ruled as arson. Three men and one juvenile were busted in Pittsburgh while they were at a hotel with “large quantities of narcotics.” A flash warning is currently in effect and will end early tomorrow. Plus, a Vietnam vet finally had the chance to pay back a debt to his fallen comrade over 50 years l...

A passenger at Lehigh Valley International Airport was caught with a loaded gun for the third time in less than a month. A former West Penn Hospital employee who secretly filmed nearly 60 of his coworkers and patients undressing has been sentenced. The Port Authority has (finally) rolled out its smartphone payment system for bus riders. Plus, this deer got more trick than treat when a Halloween ca...

Healthcare workers as well as college employees and students in Philadelphia must get the COVID-19 vaccine by mid-October or submit to regular testing and other requirements. About half a million state residents will see their extra federal unemployment money end by early next month. The identity of the victim whose head was kept in a Lancaster man’s freezer has been confirmed. And a lost puppy fo...

A Lancaster man charged with criminal homicide kept a human head in his freezer and a dismembered body—which he referred to as a “cadaver doll”—in a bedroom. A union has threatened to sue Governor Tom Wolf to bar him from mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for the Pennsylvania state prison guards it represents. A bank robber essentially got himself caught after posting about the heist on Facebook. Fi...

A ruling that deemed Gov. Tom Wolf’s COVID-19 restrictions as unconstitutional has been thrown out by a federal appeals court. Former SEPTA employees have been charged with embezzling almost $1 million out of the agency. What city officials are calling Philadelphia’s new “mask mandate” has gone into effect as of today. And yet another (seriously) alligator has been spotted in Pennsylvania. See aca...

Accused terrorist Mustafa Alowemer has received a deadline to plead guilty for planning to blow up a Pittsburgh church in the name of ISIS. Parents of children in Northampton Area schools are voicing concerns with regards to a nonprofit that recently donated books. Construction on the Rausch Creek Logistics Center will begin within the next month. And the biggest meteor shower of 2021 peaks tonigh...

A man has been charged in connection with a deadly shootout that occurred outside of a Target. The Philadelphia Water Department is currently fixing an error which left many of its customers way overbilled. Mike Lange is officially retiring from the Penguins’ play-by-play. Finally, a rare plant believed to be extinct is spotted in Pennsylvania. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informa...

First responders, survivors, and the families of 9/11 victims have publicly stated that they want President Joe Biden to stay out of memorial services for the tragedy’s 20th anniversary unless he delivers on the promise he made to release information regarding Saudi Arabia’s alleged role. The state’s prison system will start housing unvaccinated inmates together. This week’s shaping up to be a hot...

Students, athletes, and medical professionals gave their testimonies before the state House Education Committee this week with regards to a bill that would ban transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s school sports. Although praised by patients, doctors are warning against using cannabis as a means to combat opioid addiction due to the lack of research backing its efficacy. Not one, but two fo...

Four teens have been charged in connection with the beating of a man outside of his house in Lancaster. Former Penn State president, Graham Spanier, has been released from prison after two months for the role he played during the Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. Spirit Airlines continues to delay and cancel flights at Arnold Palmer Regional and Pittsburgh International airports. Finally, a book g...

Two Montenegrin men were sentenced for their roles in trying to smuggle tons of cocaine through the Port of Philadelphia during “one of the largest drug busts in U.S. history.” A judge has preliminarily approved for Wawa to pay victims of a 2019 data breach mostly in gift cards (and, thankfully, some cash). Craig Wolfley will be in the Steelers radio booth this season while former offensive linema...

Over 100 passengers were left stranded at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport as well as Pittsburgh and Philadelphia International Airports after Spirit Airlines delayed and canceled multiple flights on Monday. The Pennsylvania Lottery hit big money, reporting a total $1.3 billion in profits for programs that’ll benefit the state’s senior citizens. Local firefighters are headed to Montana in order to h...

Police in Philadelphia arrested dozens of dangerous individuals during predawn raids, confiscating items such as guns and drugs. A Tesla dealership is coming to central Pennsylvania. Governor Tom Wolf has issued a plan for the state’s parks. Finally, people from 14 different states rally together to help build a church in Franklin County. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Roughly 116,000 households across Pennsylvania have had their utilities disconnected ever since the state lifted its moratorium on shutoffs back in April. Residents of York County are getting knocks on the door from members of an “election integrity committee” asking about their votes during the 2020 presidential election. This one area has seen the largest amount of 18- to 34-year-olds move in wh...

Fatal drug overdoses spiked in Pennsylvania throughout 2020, increasing by roughly 14 percent when compared to 2019’s numbers. One university has changed its mind and announced that both vaccinated and unvaccinated students won’t be required to wear masks indoors when classes begin this fall. The coach of a Pennsylvania NHL franchise will lead the 2022 men’s Olympic hockey team. Plus, one tearjerk...

Police in Philadelphia are investigating the fatal shooting of a man who opened fire on a crowd by two undercover cops. After over three decades, a man in Adams County has been arrested in the rape and murder of an 85-year-old woman. The state’s Transportation Revenue Options Commission is expected to release a report on ways to best replace Pennsylvania’s gas tax. Also, a quick reminder to look t...

The trial for a district judge who’s accused of tampering with evidence during a traffic stop involving her son has begun in Harrisburg. State lawmakers are looking to revisit the idea of reforming compassionate release for inmates who are sick or elderly. An impressive two-sport athlete has decided to choose baseball with the Pittsburgh Pirates over college football with the Nittany Lions. And sp...

A Pa. court upheld closing a restaurant for violating the mask mandate. The Justice Department won't investigate how Pa. handled nursing homes during the pandemic. Find out how baby corn snakes hatch. Vintage video games sell in an auction for $30K. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Gingerbread Man founder is planning a restaurant comeback in Mechanicsburg. Pa. may be getting up to $1 billion from a national opioid settlement. Pa.’s COVID-19 cases are on the rise again. After 123 years, the Bishop Bridge has closed for good. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A deal that was recently inked between the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority and Amtrak will study a potential passenger rail service to Scranton and New York City. The suspension of a contractor that is accused of stealing millions in employees’ fringe benefits has been lifted early after it was deemed unconstitutional. A man who ran a tropical fish store in Pittsburgh has pled g...

Police in West Hanover Township confirmed that they shot and killed a man who had opened fire on his neighbors’ houses. Furthermore, authorities have revealed that the man who had crashed through a fence at Lehigh Valley International Airport on Friday nearly hit a plane full of people. Governor Tom Wolf has flip-flopped on his previous statements regarding new voter ID laws, now claiming that he’...

The state won big with regards to gambling revenue as casinos and the like racked up billions of dollars during the last fiscal year. As employers continue to struggle to find employees, the workforce has found a new hope in teenagers. Recently released FBI records have revealed that notorious gangster, Whitey Bulger, fixed plenty of horse races—including those at the Pocono Downs—prior to becomin...

The unemployment rate in Pennsylvania dropped slightly in June with payrolls inching their way upwards. Governor Tom Wolf’s office has denied having full knowledge of the state’s multimillion-dollar unemployment error prior to a recent announcement made by the state Department of Labor and Industry. The Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex will at last be hosting big events as more and more PPE equipmen...