An Easton man on trial for a violent incident involving police is heading to prison. A jury found Jeffrey Folkner guilty Thursday on charges related to arson and assault, but not guilty of attempted murder. Folkner tossed Molotov cocktails at officers during a standoff in July 2018. He also fired a shot out a window and then taunted police with a machete in one hand while making an obscene gesture with the other. His lawyer claimed Folkner did these things in an attempt to commit suicide by cop. Folkner could end up getting as many as 20 years behind bars when he's sentenced in December.
A Lehigh County woman is accused of sexually assaulting her foster son. Catasauqua's Kimberly Race waived her preliminary hearing Thursday on charges she sexually assaulted a 15-year-old boy in her foster care last year. Race, who teaches in the Catasauqua School District, taught the boy while he was in her seventh-grade class but is not accused of sexually abusing him at that point. Race has been suspended from her teaching job. Her arraignment is scheduled for next month.
A Bethlehem couple faces charges after police found them living in squalor. Beatrice Mata and Jose Sepulveda-Michalowski are charged with child endangerment and reckless endangerment following a search of their home. Police say they found animal waste and insects in every room of their home, plus heroin and a loaded firearm within reach of their boys, ages 13 and six. Sepulveda-Michalowski was jailed Thursday, while Mata remains at large. Their adult son, who lives in the home, was also arrested on drug charges.
Allentown police are looking for a man believed to be behind vandalism in the city. Police have posted an image online of a man alleged to be behind spray painting graffiti on several occasions in the area of North 18th Street. Anyone with information on who this man is should call the Allentown Police Detective Bureau with details.
A Monroe County man is being accused of sexually assaulting a woman in town to attend that man's wedding. Stroudsburg's Daniel Carney is charged with sexually assaulting an unconscious person. Police say they investigated Carney after receiving a call from an Oregon woman who claimed to have been sexually assaulted at the Shawnee Inn men's locker room last August. The charges were filed Thursday.
Mike Turzai says invocations are returning to the House. Following a federal court ruling that determined invocations don't violate the Constitution, the House Speaker announced Thursday they will be given before the start of session October 21st.
Gov. Tom Wolf has given an update on the process to apply for a pardon for people convicted of minor, non-violent marijuana offenses. "Like me, the lieutenant governor is committed to giving the people of Pennsylvania second chances. We want to do this in a fair way, a way that keeps society safe, while allowing people to move on with their lives, move on from their mistakes," Wolf says. The governor says he reviews each pardon application individually and believes minor offenses should not carry a life sentence.
In the wake of Gov. Tom Wolf calling for legalizing recreational marijuana, a Democrat lawmaker is proposing a bill that would allow for the sale of pot in state liquor stores. "A state store system that can protect our youth. A state store system that can properly distribute and educate is the way to go in Pennsylvania," says St. Rep. David Delloso. His bill also calls for a 19-percent retail sales tax on marijuana.
Pennsylvania is joining a collaboration of states in an effort to battle climate change. Gov. Tom Wolf issued an executive action ordering the state Department of Environmental Protection to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. The initiative combines the efforts of nine Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states in a strategy intended to reduce emissions while pumping up economic growth through a regional cap-and-trade program involving electric power plants. Wolf claims that due to the threat of climate change, Pennsylvania must take serious, but economically sound, steps to reduce emissions.
You can now download a free app to see the results of restaurant inspections in Pennsylvania. It's called 'Eat Safe PA'. "We have made it easy. We have made it as transparent as we possibly can. We think it's great value in keeping the public protected. But it's not just us saying that, it's not just looking for the inspections board, it's not just taking the owner or operator's word for it," says Pennsylvania Ag Secretary Russell Redding. 'Eat Safe PA' is available on both the Apple and Google app stores.
A third person accused in connection to the recent GoFundMe fraud case is now officially facing charges. Mark D'Amico was indicted Thursday on counts related to conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering. D'Amico, his ex-girlfriend Katelyn McClure and homeless Philadelphia man Johnny Bobbitt allegedly concocted a charitable plea placed on the GoFundMe crowdsourcing site that collected around $400,000 from donors. McClure and Bobbitt already pleaded guilty last March to the same counts lodged against D'Amico. If convicted, D'Amico could end up doing as many as 20 years in prison.
The mayor of Atlantic City is resigning after pleading guilty to using donations to a youth basketball team for his own personal pleasure. The now-former mayor Frank Gilliam submitted his resignation letter Thursday, apologizing to residents and his past supporters. Gilliam admitted in federal court earlier yesterday to taking over $87,000 in donations made to the AC Starz Basketball Club and using the money to cover trips, expensive meals and clothing. Under the plea, Gilliam could end up spending as many as 20 years in prison.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is reminding the public that people who may have information related to the whereabouts of a missing South Jersey child are not in danger of immigration consequences. Murphy tweeted out Thursday that under the Office of the state Attorney General's Immigrant Trust Directive, a person with a tip concerning Dulce Alavez is protected. A combined reward of $35,000 is currently being offered for information that leads to finding her.
The Flyers open the regular season today. Philadelphia plays Chicago this afternoon in Prague. The Flyers will return homo to host the New Jersey Devils Wednesday night.
The Eagles are ready to host the New York Jets Sunday afternoon. Philadelphia has had some time off since defeating the Green Bay Packers last Thursday night. The Eagles are 2-2 while the Jets are 0-3.