Dramatic moments in Tuesday's closing arguments in the sentencing phase of admitted killer Jacob Sullivan. Bucks County DA Matt Weintraub spent some of his time, about two minutes of it, silent. Weintraub told the jury those long, quiet two minutes represented the time it took for Sullivan to strangle 14-year-old Grace Packer inside a Richland Township home Sullivan rented with Grace's adoptive mother, Sara. Sullivan's attorney told the jury his client's life should be spared because Sullivan had no prior criminal history and cooperated with investigators which strengthened their case against both Sullivan and Sara Packer, who is expected to plead guilty to a first-degree murder charge and be sentenced to life in prison.
Former Northampton County District Justice Sherwood Grigg died Monday at the age of 74. Grigg was a district justice from 1969 to 1999. He passed away in a nursing home where he had been residing.
Things are back to normal at an Allentown Diocese office in Lehigh County after a Tuesday scare involving a worker sickened by a piece of mail. Police and fire crews were called to the Allentown Diocese chancery office in South Whitehall Township Tuesday after an employee suffered eye and throat irritation after opening an envelope. Hazmat crews joined the response and the office was evacuated as a precaution, but only for a brief time. The letter has since tested negative for anything dangerous and officials aren't sure what caused the employee to fall ill.
The man found dead at the Emmaus Car Wash over the weekend has been identified. The Lehigh County coroner's office says the body of 64-year-old Neil Dreslin of Douglassivlle was found around 10 o'clock Saturday morning. A ruling on how the Berks County man died has not yet been made.
A former WWE personality from Carbon County is in trouble for violating her parole. Palmerton's Tamara Sytch, better know as Sunny, allegedly missed a scheduled drug test last month. Sytch was in jail Tuesday for parole violations related to DWI guilty pleas from 2016.
Pocono Raceway will still host two NASCAR Cup races next year. However, instead of a June race and then a July race, Pocono's races will be run on a doubleheader weekend June 27 and 28. Trace CEO Nick Igdalsky says while that's changes, some things will not. "There are going to be events going on just like right now from Thursday through Sunday. There is going to be action on the track. The action won't change the environment. Festivities are not changing. We are increasing if anything," says Igdalsky. He says fans can either buy a Saturday ticket at this year's price or a Sunday ticket at this year's price. Combo tickets for both races will also be available.
Gov. Tom Wolf is coming to Monroe County tomorrow to discuss how a state program could help improve infrastructure in East Stroudsburg. The governor will tour the old International Boiler Works factory, where he'll be talking about how Restore Pennsylvania could help knock that property down. Restore Pennsylvania is a billion-dollar proposal intended to create development opportunities while helping local banks to acquire then demolish dilapidated, out-of-use buildings.
Pennsylvania lawmakers are being asked to raise the minimum salary for teachers. Lawmakers were joined by teachers yesterday at the state Capitol in pushing for a new minimum salary of $45,000. Teachers now make a minimum of $18,500.
Temple University says the outbreak of mumps on campus continues to grow. The school now reports 105 probable cases have been diagnosed since last month. Temple is responding to the outbreak by offering free vaccines to students and staffers.
The Hershey Story Museum is having a grand re-opening this week. Officials at the center are promising what they call a re-imagined museum experience. "We are celebrating ten years in our building here on Chocolate Avenue. Over the last ten years we've been listening to our guests and they've given us a lot of great feedback and one of the things that they really wanted to learn more about was Milton and Catherine and their personal lives. So we've taken this opportunity to kind of refresh our exhibits," says Valerie Seiber.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is unveiling a new plan for higher education for New Jersey students. Murphy says the plan called the Student Bill of Rights will focus on exposing students to post-secondary school options, ensuring college affordability and helping students at the middle and high school level understand what college is about. "This is a plan created through direct engagement with and listening to the needs of our students. To their needs of accessibility and affordability," the governor says. Murphy's goal is to have 65 percent of working age New Jersey residents hold a degree by 2025.
Police around the Garden State are cracking down on distracted driving. The New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic says law enforcement officers will be targeting drivers texting or talking on call phones through April 21st. Texting and cell phone usage while driving led to more than 804,000 crashes on New Jersey roads between 2011 and 2015. The initiative is being called U Drive, U Text, U Pay.