A local school district is trying to balance its budget by having fewer employees. The Easton Area School District will cut 60 jobs through attrition to try to balance the 2024-25 budget. At its school board meeting, superintendent Tracy Piazza said the district won’t replace 40 paraprofessionals who retired or quit over the course of the past school year. She previously announced 20 vacancies left by departing teachers, administrators and maintenance workers would not be filled.
More information is being released about a woman that allegedly shot and killed a dog in Bethlehem on Tuesday. Police say 49-year-old Becky Carrasquillo-Rodriguez fired several shots at her neighbor's home, then went inside and fatally shot their dog. The suspect reportedly claims that she heard her neighbors say they were going to harm her. "As part of the bail conditions, we asked for a mental health evaluation. There are issues about public safety, obviously," says Northampton County DA Stephen Baratta. He says a preliminary hearing is set for June 25.
The Allentown City Council will consider adopting a declaration of rights for the homeless population. Councilmember Ce-Ce Gerlach says the resolution is a statement declaring that the city values every resident regardless of their housing status, but not everyone is onboard. Councilmember Santo Napoli believes the resolution, which includes the right to give and accept resources in public settings, could encourage panhandling. The declaration has advanced from a council subcommittee to the full chamber for consideration.
A Lehigh Valley tradition isn't happening this year. This year's Kazoo Parade in Nazareth has been canceled, according to a post on the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce's Facebook page. The post does not say why the parade was cancelled.
A computer upgrade will close the Miller-Keystone Blood Centers for one day.
The blood center says the system upgrade will close all donor centers on Saturday, June 29. To make up that donation deficit, Miller-Keystone locations will be open on Sunday, June 30, from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Maryland police say Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman was driving at a "high rate of speed" before he was involved in a car accident over the weekend. A witness said Fetterman's vehicle was going "well over the posted speed limit" shortly before rear ending another car Sunday morning. A spokesperson for the Democrat's office said he and his wife Giselle went to a local hospital after the crash and were discharged the same day. Fetterman posted a video on social media thanking people for well wishes, saying they're "doing well and happy to be back home" with their families. An investigation into the accident is ongoing.
State officials are on the path to end toll booths stops on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Starting next year, the eastern and northeastern extensions of the turnpike will use open-road tolling, with the goal of the entire turnpike using the system by 2027. With open-road tolling, drivers can pass through toll plazas without stopping, as overhead structures will capture license plates and E-ZPass transponders for billing. The Turnpike Commission says open-road tolling will be good for both traffic and the environment, as it will reduce C-O-2 emissions.
Dozens of Black pastors from across Pennsylvania are urging Governor Josh Shapiro to embrace the latest school choice proposal. The pastors sent an open letter to the governor on Tuesday, asking him to back the legislature's plan to allow kids from Pennsylvania's lowest performing schools to find another school. Black Pastors United for Education said the plan would take politics out of education, and 'comprehensively fund and secure educational freedom and opportunity.'
New Jersey's top federal prosecutor says Senator Bob Menendez wanted to discuss the prosecution of a developer before the senator recommended him for his job. U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger testified yesterday in the federal bribery trial of the Democratic senator. Prosecutors say Menendez's efforts to intervene in court cases was one way he tried to reward businessmen who paid him and his wife bribes of cash and gold bars. The senator and his wife have denied wrongdoing.
Wildwood's board of commissioners has approved a policy that bans certain purses and backpacks on the city's beaches and boardwalk between eight p-m and four a-m. The policy takes effect immediately. Ocean City put into effect a similar ban last year. Wildwood officials have implemented the ban after a noisy start to the season that prompted a state of emergency when unruly crowds disrupted Memorial Day weekend.