A reputed gang member is facing charges for the murder of a Bethlehem teenager. Miles Harper is allegedly a member of the Money Rules Everything street gang and is connected to the death of 18-year-old Tyrell Holmes, who was found dead behind a Bethlehem apartment complex in April 2018. His body had been set on fire after being stabbed. Harper has already been sentenced to a decade in prison for his role in an unrelated July 2018 shooting outside the Lehigh Valley Mall that left two injured. Harper was arraigned on the new charges Thursday.
A Wilson Area School District bus full of children ended up in a field in Northampton County Thursday afternoon. The crash happened on Cedarville Road and Congressional Drive in Williams Township. There were no serious injuries. The bus was driving down Congressional Drive when state troopers say it crossed over Cedarville Road and hit a curb after what appeared to be brake failure. The driver said she put the bus in a lower gear but the bus began to gain momentum after it crossed over Cedarville Road. The driver navigated the bus into a field, where it came to a stop.
Salisbury Township has a new police chief. The township board of commissioners voted 3-0 at Thursday night's meeting to appoint Kevin Soberick to the chief of police position. Soberick has been an officer with the township police department for 22 years. He replaces Allen Stiles, who recently retired after serving as chief since 1994.
Easton police are trying to identify the man was was spotted near the Cheston Elementary School around 3:15 Wednesday afternoon. The Easton PD says they want to know who the man is and determine why he was hanging out near the school.
Lehigh County is getting a big check in order to help pay for its new voting system. The state has given the Lehigh County commissioners a check Thursday worth around $381,000. The money comes from a combination of cash taken from federal funding and a match of state money. All counties in the state were required to implement new voting systems by the end of this year that provide a paper record which voters can verify before casting their ballot.
Pennsylvania's attorney general is directly suing the family who owns the company that makes OxyContin. Josh Shapiro has filed a lawsuit against the Sackler family, the founders of Purdue Pharma. Pennsylvania is already suing Purdue Pharma, but this separate suit is directed at the Sacklers themselves, as Shapiro alleges that certain members of the Sackler family were in control of an irresponsible marketing campaign that pushed the drug in ways that led to an addiction crisis. Shapiro says the Sacklers came into Pennsylvania to prey upon senior citizens, veterans and people suffering from substance abuse.
The state House Democrat Policy Committee is looking into ways to bring down the costs of prescription drugs in Pennsylvania. A hearing was held this week to address a proposal that could put a $100 monthly cap on insulin costs. Several other proposed bills would create a pricing task force and more transparency in drug prices.
A record number of inmates sentenced to life in prison in Pennsylvania are now eligible to have their terms reduced. 21 inmates are being reviewed this week by the PA Board of Pardons. Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman is on the board. "I think that there a lot of individuals who are incarcerated, at great expense to the taxpayer, that don't belong in prison given the amount of time they've spent in prison and given their level of involvement. It's just not commensurate with 30, 35, 40 or more years," Fetterman says. The board will make its recommendations to the governor by today.
Commonwealth Court is ruling a gun owners group can challenge Harrisburg's four firearms ordinances. Firearms Owners Against Crimes wants to challenge the legality of the laws, saying they only limit law-abiding citizens who weren't intending to commit a crime. The city of Harrisburg has 30 days to appeal.
The world's largest U.S. flag will be rolled out in Westmoreland County this weekend. The Great American Flag will be unfurled for an inspection Saturday morning after being kept in storage for nearly 20 years. Ted Dorfman bought the 400-foot-long, seven-ton flag in 2001, right before the 9/11 terror attacks.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is establishing an Electronic Smoking Device Task Force. The governor says the force will be tasked with protecting residents, especially young people, against the dangers associated with vaping. According to Murphy's executive order, the force now has 21 days to submit its recommendations on how to protect the public to him. Murphy says the recent connections made between e-cigarette use, lung disease and death alarm him and state leaders must have a more complete understanding of the risks associated with vaping.