The never ending saga of whether undated or incorrectly dated mail-in ballots should be counted in Pennsylvania has taken its latest turn, with a federal judge ruling that Pennsylvania counties cannot reject a voter's mail-in ballot for either of those reasons. Judge Susan Baxter says tossing out undated or incorrectly dated ballots violates a voter's First Amendment right, since voting is considered freedom of speech. Baxter calls dating the envelope a “minimal” burden, but says she determined that the government hadn’t asserted any legitimate reason why it should be imposed on voters. This decision, which comes from a challenge in Berks County, could impact how votes are counted in next month's primary elections.
One person is dead after a Tuesday fire in Polk Township. The fire broke out at around 11:30 a.m. at a residence on Mountain Road. A 71-year-old man, whose name has not been released, was pronounced dead at the scene. There has been no word on how the fire started.
A former agent in the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office is going to prison for possession of child pornography. Lehigh County officials said 41-year-old Joshua Gonzalez was sentenced to three-and-a-half-years behind bars after entering a guilty plea in January. Authorities said Gonzalez was arrested after investigators discovered he uploaded multiple videos of child sex abuse to Dropbox. He was reportedly found to be in possession of thousands of explicit images of children.
A former Lehigh University student from Ghana has been acquitted by Northampton County Judge Jennifer Sletvold. The judge said she didn't see enough evidence to convict Otis Opoku at the nonjury trial. Opoku was charged with stealing more than $212,000 in financial aid. He and three other international students had been thrown out of Lehigh University. They were accused of using fake transcripts to get admitted, then being given collectively, hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial aid.
It appears a closed restaurant is going to become a bank. The Palmer Township Zoning Hearing Board granted a special exception Tuesday night for the old Friendly's restaurant on William Penn Highway. Fulton Bank plans to install a drive-thru for a proposed bank in the building that previously operated as Friendly's restaurant. That location's Friendly's closed three years ago.
Gas prices are seven-and-a-half cents higher than one week ago across Pennsylvania. According to AAA East Central, the average price for a gallon of gas in Pennsylvania was $3.30 as of Tuesday, up from nearly $3.23 a gallon the previous week. However, it's 32 cents below the price from last April 1. In the Lehigh Valley, the average price is $3.17 a gallon, up more than a nickel from the prior week, but 32 cents lower than last year.
A former Lehigh Valley elected official has passed away. Former Lehigh County Commissioner Grayson McNair passed away on March 29 at Country Meadows in Allentown. McNair was a Lehigh County Commissioner from 1996 until 2001 when he was appointed as Lehigh County's Director of Human Services. Grayson McNair was 84 years old.
Monroe County prosecutor Michael Mancuso is suing StubHub. Mancuso says the ticket reseller is guilty of violating Pennsylvania's Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. He says the company uses unfair and deceptive practices in the charging of so-called 'junk fees' to unsuspecting customers. Mancuso is asking for restitution, statutory penalties and fees.
A pilot and his son are continuing to recover after the plane crash in Lancaster County last month. The Lehigh Valley Health Network says Matt and Judah White are now in good condition, meaning they are "conscious and comfortable." The two were critically injured when their plane went down in the parking lot of the Brethren Village Retirement Community on March Ninth. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
PennDOT is now opening drivers license centers on Mondays ahead of the Real ID deadline on May seventh. The locations are typically closed on Mondays but the move is meant to help alleviate some of the long lines workers are seeing right now. Pennsylvania residents will be unable to board commercial flights or get into some federal buildings without a passport or Real ID after the May deadline. The PennDOT website has a list of all the documentation that is needed to get the federally-compliant ID card.
Pennsylvania is joining a coalition of 23 states in a lawsuit against the Trump Administration for cutting billions-of-dollars in grant money for public health. The lawsuit says the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services abruptly terminated close to twelve-billion-dollars in grants across the country. According to Governor Josh Shapiro, $500 million of that was meant for Pennsylvania. The governor said the federal government broke a "half-billion-dollar contract" with the commonwealth, and accused the Trump Administration of undermining the state's ability to protect the health of its residents.
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker's filibuster on the floor of the Senate ended Tuesday night. After the marathon, Booker said he was proud to have given voice to Americans bewildered by the Trump administration. "Sore and weary and tired, but I'm enormously grateful for a lot of folks who sent me their very personal stories to give me a chance to speak to the fear, hurt, pain and anger of a lot of Americans," Booker said. Booker's filibuster beat the previous record set by Senator Strom Thurmond almost 70 years ago. Thurmond spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes to protest the Civil Rights Act in 1953. Booker spoke for 24 hours and 20 minutes.
A staffer for Senator Cory Booker is under arrest for allegedly carrying a pistol on Capitol grounds without a license. This was just minutes before the New Jersey Democrat took to the Senate floor for his speech. Kevin Batts is a special assistant for the lawmaker. Police said he was arrested after failing to go through security.
New Jersey is increasing penalties for organized retail theft. As smash and grab crimes rise across the nation and New Jersey, Governor Murphy says the bipartisan legislation increases financial penalties for retail theft rings, along with potential time served. It also bolsters the resources law enforcement will have to investigate these types of crimes, with the Attorney General's Office now creating a task force. Officials say this is not about someone stealing a pack of gum, but highly skilled criminal enterprises that brazenly target retailers, causing them to lose billions of dollars every year.
There's still no decision on whether to ban the so-called 'Tush Push' play perfected by the Philadelphia Eagles. Proponents of banning the short yardage play say it's a safety issue. Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie says he sees nothing to indicate that's accurate. "We've been very open to whatever data exits on the 'Tush Push' and there's just been no data that it's not a very safe play. If it weren't, we wouldn't be pushing the 'Tush Push.'" Lurie says. The NFL tabled the issue and will further discuss it next month.