The woman allegedly murdered by her 80-year-old husband last Thursday inside their Palmer Township home called 911 the night she was killed. Northampton County DA John Morganelli describes what police did when they arrived at the scene. "One of the officers looked through a window and indicated that while checking with a flashlight through the window observed a male standing in the room," Morganelli says. What police apparently didn't do on that call was speak to anybody in the house or go inside before leaving. Morganelli is looking into whether police followed proper protocol. Meanwhile, an arrest warrant has now been issued for Edgar Himel, who allegedly shot Penny VanTassel-Himel to death and may be driving his wife's 2019 Nissan Rogue with the license plate GHV-0051. He is considered armed and dangerous.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is voting to freeze tuition at the commonwealth's 14 state-owned universities for the upcoming school year. That means basic tuition for in-state students will remain at around $7700. The last time the board of governors froze tuition was in the 1998-1999 school year.
Accu-Weather's Bill Deger says today's one of those days where you could get quite a bit of rain in a short period, or, nothing at all. "It will very pretty wildly because these aren't going to be storms that cover the entire area. Some of them will be heavier than others, but if you get under a heavier storm you could see up to three-quarters-of an inch. Some place that see a quick-moving, lighter storm might only get a quarter-of-an-inch. It really depends on where you're at today with these storms popping up," Deger says. He says if you do get one of those storms, flash flooding and damaging winds could be part of them.
Investigators believe a first responder could have also been a victim in a murder-suicide in Berks County. Stefan Strunk is believed to have considered to have targeted the Amity Township fire chief with his gun as firefighters began to comeon the scene in Oley Township. Strunk instead turned the gun on himself after apparently killing his wife, Joy, and then setting his home on fire.
Swimmers looking to take a dip in one Carbon County lake are going to have to wait as state officials say the fecal bacterial count is too high. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources says water testing at Beltzville Lake has revealed an elevated bacteria count. Until those levels are again deemed safe, park guests cannot swim in the lake, although fishing and boating are still permitted. Diseases such as typhoid fever and hepatitis A are among the sicknesses that a swimmer could be exposed to when those bacteria levels are too high.
The state House is offering employees an early retirement incentive to help save some money. The program is offering employees $1000 per each year they've worked there up to 25 years. To qualify, workers must have been with the state House for at least five years and must be willing to leave by October 22nd. There are about 1500 people who work for the state House across Pennsylvania.
Penn National gaming is getting the go ahead to test an online gaming platform. A spokesperson said the Gaming Control Board approved testing to start next week. If all goes well, online gaming could begin shortly afterward.