A Philadelphia-area doctor with a Bethlehem office allegedly billed Medicare and another government program for $6.5 million in unnecessary procedures that put patients at risk. According to prosecutors, radiologist James McGuckin, whose local office is Lehigh Valley Vascular Institute, made more than 500 claims for invasive vascular procedures that were unnecessary, put patients in jeopardy and escalated health care costs. This isn't McGuckin's first brush with trouble. Eight years ago he was sanctioned by several states, including Pennsylvania, for performing unnecessary, experimental vascular procedures on hundreds of people and five years ago, McGuckin admitted to performing and billing for vascular procedures that were not needed.
The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority has approved a basic agreement to construct a Courtyard by Marriott hotel on airport property. Authority executive director Thomas Stoudt says the hotel would be adjacent to the overflow parking lot and within walking distance to the terminal. Stoudt says the hotel would be limited to four stories and could contain as many as 125 rooms and could potentially be open as soon as 2025. Initial estimates show a hotel providing $3 million in direct revenue over 10 years.
A Pennsylvania woman who shouted death threats directed at Nancy Pelosi during the January 6th Capitol riot will spend more than two years in federal prison. Pauline Bauer was sentenced Tuesday to 27 months. Prosecutors had recommended that she get six-and-a-half years. Capitol police bodycam footage shows bauer threatening the former House speaker in a rant that also included a confrontation with officers who were forced to retreat from the entry near Pelosi's office.
Federal data shows the productivity of Pennsylvania workers declined in 2022. Information released this week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals Commonwealth residents worked more hours in 2022 than they did in 2021. However, they were less productive, according to the data. Hours worked rose three-point-three percent while output lagged behind at a nearly two-and-a-half-percent increase.
A Penn State study has found that teachers are leaving the state at the highest rate ever. The university's research on teacher attrition shows that nearly 95-hundred educators left the workforce in the 2022-23 school year. The data doesn't show the context of why teachers left: whether it was to take positions in other states or if they quit the profession altogether.
Panicked, screaming 911 calls and a rabbi's tear-filled testimony have opened the trial of the man accused in the Tree of Life shooting. Tuesday's opening activity included statements from a rabbi who said he "expected to die." The sounds of gunfire could be heard in the audio played for the court in the federal trial of Robert Bowers, who is accused of killing eleven worshippers in the 2018 attack on the synagogue outside of Pittsburgh. The dispatcher who took the 911 call also testified that she heard people being shot. Bowers has pleaded not guilty to all 65 federal counts against him. Testimony will resume Wednesday morning in what's called the "guilt phase" of the trial. If the jury finds Bowers guilty, it will decide in a second phase if he is eligible for the death penalty.
An effort is underway to help those who may need more mental health or emotional support as the Tree of Life shooting trial unfolds. 10-27 Healing Partnership has launched drop-in therapy hours every weekday. The group is also asking community members to wear or display blue ribbons to show their solidarity with those impacted by the tragedy. Information on additional resources is available at www.ten27healingpartnership.org.
Ocean City is enacting a slew of measures to stop disorderly teens from gathering on beaches after dark. The new policies come after police responded to nearly one-thousand incidents involving teens during Memorial Day Weekend, including underage drinking, assaults, and vandalism. Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian signed legislation that bans people from entering the beach and boardwalk with backpacks after eight p.m. and closes the public bathrooms by ten p.m. Juveniles will now have a curfew at eleven p.m. rather than one a.m.
Questions remain following the arrest of a suspect in the murder of Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour. Dwumfour was shot to death in February while sitting in her SUV outside her Sayreville apartment. Authorities arrested 28-year-old Rashid Ali Bynum of Portsmouth, Virginia, yesterday morning and said they traced him using his phone and E-ZPass records. The phone records connect Bynum to the Champions Royal Assembly Church -- the Fire Congress Fellowship based in Parlin -- and to mutual contacts with Dwumfour. Bynum is charged with first degree murder and possession of a handgun. He's awaiting extradition to New Jersey. A motive in the case has not been released.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is preparing to launch his presidential campaign. That's according to multiple reports that say allies of Christie have created a super PAC to support him during primary season. The New York Times reports Christie could make a run for the White House official in the next two weeks. Christie would join a growing GOP field that includes former President Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.
The Eagles are mourning the loss of their former linebackers coach. The team announced Bill McGovern died at the age of 60 on Tuesday after a battle with cancer. McGovern coached outside linebackers from 2013-15 and helped guide his unit to 49 sacks in the 2014 season, a tie for second-most in the NFL. McGovern served under Chip Kelly in Philly and went on to coach with the Giants and Bears.