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Pennsylvania legislative leaders say a bill that would institute new mandatory minimum sentences for gun-related crime is “off the calendar,” at least temporarily.
This comes as opioid overdoses and gun violence surge across the state.
“Review some of the soft-on-crime pieces of legislation that have been passed in the last few years. I think the combination of all of those policies is having a big effect on this increase in violent crime.”
The court’s decision states that Rudy Giuliani’s conduct as a lawyer for former President Donald Trump during the election and in the aftermath “threatens the public interest.”
Wegmans recently notified customers that two databases used for the company’s internal business purposes were inadvertently left open to potential outside access.
Five people were killed, including three law enforcement officers, in a riot at the Capitol, following a rally for then-President Trump. More than a hundred officers were injured.
The effort supported a wider goal of overturning or invalidating election results in several swing states, including Pennsylvania.
The Diocese said the proposed settlement would be “a significant step forward” to compensate survivors of sexual abuse who have filed claims in the bankruptcy case.
“If we were talking about very specific crimes, non-violent crimes, first offender type crimes, that’s something that I could consider. But we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about all crimes.”
“With a 62 to nothing vote in the senate just last week, I don’t know what else they need to know or learn about the bill, I think they just need to bring it to the floor.”
The two bills would, respectively, allow people who’ve served their full sentence to have records sealed in most cases, and reduce the likelihood that technical parole violations will land them back in prison.
The Elder Parole measure would require a person who is 55 or older to be considered for release by the parole board if they’ve served at least 15 years of their sentence.
“I’m the manager at a bank, I’m looking to hire somebody. I can’t know if this person stole money in his previous job, or her previous job.”
“It seems like every morning we wake up to see another story about violence in our streets or a shooting where innocent victims are either killed or injured.”
“There is already more than enough evidence to warrant Cuomo’s removal from office, yet the Assembly continues to dither and protect his power at the expense of New Yorkers.”
“This has rekindled a flame of righteousness, and righteous indignation that has been smoldering for centuries. We are in the midst of a racial reckoning in this country.”
The New York attorney general’s office has expanded its probe of former President Donald Trump’s business. Here’s what that means — and what could come next for the criminal inquiry.
“Marginalized New Yorkers who can’t pay the arbitrary fees baked into nearly every step of our state’s legal process deserve a justice system that doesn’t pick their pockets and jeopardize their freedom.”
The bill is gaining strength in the State Legislature.
“This ‘reform’ shows a deliberate and callous indifference to the lives and safety of Correction Officers, Correction Sergeants and peaceful incarcerated individuals in the general population of State prisons.”
“I’ve been denied a lot of jobs because of my criminal background. I’ve been denied a lot of housing throughout the years because of my criminal background.”
“If passed, this legislation would pose a serious threat to public safety. Day care providers would have no way to ensure the people they hire to look after your children are not violent criminals.”
Although he was not at the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol, Brendan Hunt posted statements on social media prior to and following the riot calling for the killing of elected officials.
Another version was struck down in court early last year, when a state judge declared it unconstitutional as written.
The former New York City mayor has been under investigation for years by federal authorities, who have been looking into his business dealings in Ukraine.
In an attack that is being investigated as a possible hate crime, a 61-year-old Asian man was pushed to the ground and kicked in the head repeatedly on Friday evening.
Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Lavine said a hotline set up by the committee has generated over 200 tips on probes into sexual harassment allegations made by multiple women.
“We know that real justice is not found in a single conviction. Real justice is transformative, systemic change.”
“When the parole board in the State of New York does not grant the paroles that so many deserve, and you allow them to die in prisons, you have now become a murderer yourself.”
The attorneys tapped to handle the investigation include a former federal prosecutor who helped investigate foreign meddling in the 2016 election.
Several of the men and women from Pennsylvania are among the highest-profile cases under investigation by the FBI.
The defendant is accused of helping rioters overpower D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone, who was beaten with flagpoles, tased and had his gear stolen.
“The Department of Labor told my office that they are investigating, and they have already identified 425,000 fraudulent claims statewide.”
“It’s kind of a Catch-22. They teach the only way to subdue (a person) under excited delirium is choke holds — knees to the neck, hog ties — things of that nature which brings on death.”
The office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. confirmed that it obtained the former president’s tax returns and related documents on Monday.
More than 1,000 people are serving life sentences in Pennsylvania, even though they never intended to kill anyone — 70% of them are Black. A lawsuit calls the concept cruel and unconstitutional.
“There’s a lot of ways that scammers can use this information.”
The team’s owner said Jared Porter has been terminated after ESPN reported he repeatedly sent explicit messages to a reporter while he worked for the Chicago Cubs in 2016.
“I call on every New York federal official to call on president Trump’s resignation. Don’t put the country through impeachment. Don’t wait for any cabinet action. Call for him to resign as his own act.”
“They don’t necessarily have to know they traveled to go to a riot. They just have to travel and then intentionally get themselves intentionally involved in a riot.”
“The question is whether or not the evidence can be linked to a particular individual and what is the proper jurisdiction to bring those charges.”
As the New York state legislature resumes session today (Wednesday), advocates and some legislators are calling for limits on solitary confinement in state prisons.
“You can just go online and just fill out the application. Which is especially helpful with COVID, thinking about ways to give survivors access to resources in a faster way.”
After the new bail reform laws took effect in January, some areas of the state started to report a rise in crime, particularly in New York City.
“To be clear, no entity or individual is allowed to dictate how or when our investigation will proceed or set the parameters of a lawful investigation,”
Months of protests urged prosecutors and police to support criminal justice reform. But court records show a different path.
U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, (D-Massachusetts) said she sent a letter to the SEC Chairman asking that agency to look at the potential for insider trading.
Online video shows men grabbing a woman during a demonstration and hauling her away in an unmarked van. Police said they arrested the woman on suspicion of damaging police cameras.
“There are men just like me in there. They should have been walking out with me. But instead they’ll probably die in prison.”
“I destroyed that legacy that I built over 35 years,” he said, blaming his downfall on “improper, selfish and ethically indefensible” behavior that grew from a sense of entitlement.
They made several crimes once again eligible for bail, including second-degree burglary, promoting child pornography and vehicular manslaughter.
The government acknowledged problems with sharing evidence with the defense, but prosecutors argue the missteps were inadvertent, not malicious. A judge is assessing the matter.
Video shows an officer using an apparent chokehold on a man who had been shouting invective at passersby and police. Chokeholds have been banned in New York City since 1993.
Action comes one week after Black Caucus members led protest on House floor
“It’s about people wanting to change. Well, New York will be the place that actually makes the change and we pass laws that have done just that.”
For years, the governor says, Democrats in the state didn’t have the political or popular support to enact reforms. Now, lawmakers have passed sweeping police accountability and transparency measures.
“We want police accountability, we want police reform. We want to make sure that if someone makes a 911 call and a false claim, this is potentially a hate crime.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in a tweet, called the incident “wholly unjustified and utterly disgraceful.”
“It takes resources away from the things that we actually need in our community, that make our community thrive.”
“If the police were arresting looters, and they were then being arrested and returned to the street the next day again, that would be nonsensical.”
Both officers, one a Buffalo Police officer and the other a New York State trooper, are currently in stable condition.
Pennsylvania DA says he’s withdrawing citation against woman who allegedly violated stay-at-home order
“Tell them I am doing well, taking it day by day. Spending most of the days sleeping. Symptoms seem to come and go in waves.”
“Nobody is looking to get anybody unnecessarily involved in the legal system.”
“Now people are trapped in their homes, sometimes unsafe, non respectful loving homes.”
“It is wrong for New York State to have prisoners do those types of labor, because they’re getting paid slave wages.”
The New Yorker journalist, who led the reporting on the movie producer’s decades of alleged sexual assault, hailed the bravery of the women who spoke up. Still, he said, “there’s a long way to go.”
An account traced to him had uploaded an image showing a sexual act between a female minor and adult male. The office said police found two other images on Folmer’s cell phone.
The Leader of the New York State Senate says it’s likely that changes will soon be made to the state’s new bail reform laws, which end most forms of cash bail for non violent offenses.
“As a 25-year law enforcement professional, it is unfathomable that information which could be used to prevent crime or a potential terrorist attack, is purposely being withheld.”
Pennsylvania sentences a lot of people to life without the possibility of parole. Research has shown their odds of reoffending are low after years of incarceration.
“The rights secured in our Constitution carry with them certain responsibilities. When it comes to the First Amendment, that responsibility includes the obligation not to threaten to kill others.”
“It did change how I look at people because they’re not, like, all criminals. There are more of, like, people who maybe, like, just had bad luck.”
Brian Kolb stepped down from his leadership post after being arrested for drunk driving on New Year’s Eve.
“Sometimes you’ve got to be profane to be profound.”
A lawyer says Madoff, who is serving a 150-year sentence, suffers from terminal kidney failure. The Federal Bureau of Prisons denied a similar request for release last year.
New York prosecutors have said their piece; now it’s time for Weinstein’s legal team to take the stage. But before his rape trial moves on, here’s a glimpse of the four biggest courtroom moments so far.
“They don’t give a damn about our community. What they want is to continue to put black and brown folk and poor white folk (in jail).”
“This is the number one issue, it’s not even close. This is what people are talking about.”
The county prosecutor is willing to consider the idea for offenders who committed crimes at a young age and have proven their rehabilitation while behind bars.
For years, dark rumors swirled around the movie producer. So how did those whispered allegations result in a full-fledged criminal trial? Here’s an abridged history.
A bill that would change the process made it through a House committee unanimously, and now goes to the full chamber for a vote.
Bail reform has become a major flashpoint, with Republicans and some Democrats saying the law has meant some repeat offenders and potentially violent suspects being released too quickly.
“There is a lot of people exaggerating the situation. The vast majority of people, they are non-violent crimes, that’s the premise, they are misdemeanors.”
“They are tone-deaf. They are not listening to people back in their districts.”
The chamber narrowly passed a measure that would require judges to issue consecutive sentences for multiple crimes involving guns.
The approximately 170 letters filed in U.S. District Court this week paint very different pictures of disgraced former Congressman Chis Collins.
Assemblyman Brian Kolb was in court in the town of Victor on Thursday where he pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of DWI.
After first reporting that the video had been preserved, prosecutors now say that further investigation shows officials “inadvertently preserved video from the wrong tier” within the Manhattan prison.
After a grand jury implicated more than 300 priests in a statewide sex scandal, nearly every case was too old to be prosecuted. Legislators say that problem inspired these new laws.
“There’s no doubt this is still a work in progress, and there are other changes that have to be made.”
Some state officials are already asking for revisions to a law eliminating cash bail for people charged with misdemeanors and non-violent felonies.
Deputies say Kolb was taken into custody for driving while intoxicated. There were no injuries, and Sheriff Kevin Henderson said there was minor damage to the vehicle.
Kolb was charged on New Year’s Eve when his state-owned SUV got stuck in a ditch near his home in the town of Victor.
One identifies a local priest as an alleged abuser for the first time, while the other accuses a former auxiliary bishop of providing “hush money” in a 1980s case.
Deputies said Brian Kolb was taken into custody for driving while intoxicated. There were no injuries and Sheriff Kevin Henderson said there was minor damage to the vehicle.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, who shepherded the criminal justice reforms through his chamber, said the new laws are meant to change a “racist and classist system.”
The letter from a statewide board could be used against Judge Dennis Reinaker in future misconduct cases.
New York will end cash bail for everyone accused of a nonviolent crime and adopt new rules in the pretrial discovery process.
“I’m writing you to wish you a very happy holidays. Remember there will always be people who care about and support you. The world is a better place with you in it.”
Congressmen in two of New York’s swing districts will vote along party lines in this week’s impeachment vote in Washington.
Former congressman Chris Collins, his son Cameron, and Stephen Zarsky pleaded guilty to criminal insider trading charges in October.
Many Democrats and some Republicans say mandatory minimum sentences are ineffective and biased against black people. The GOP committee chair says he ‘doesn’t see color.’
The leader of the New York state Senate said lawmakers will not revise criminal justice reforms that will result in an end to most forms of cash bail beginning in January.
After 25 years in prison, David Sheppard received clemency for a second-degree murder charge. But he may have to go back to prison for allegedly stealing jeans in 1992.
“I think that has to be faced, and sooner rather than later. I would probably be the one to make that ultimate call, but I would want to make sure there wasn’t any other reasonable option.
Beginning in January, New York ends cash bail for all nonviolent crimes and prosecutors reveal all the evidence they have to suspects within 15 days.
Democrat Movita Johnson-Harrell says she plans to resign. She won her seat in a special election nine months ago, replacing a representative charged with bribery.
“We are forced to stand here, after the fact, calling to the attention of the public, the legislature, and the governor, the serious flaws in these new laws.”
People abused as children will be able to file criminal suits against their abusers no matter how much time has passed.
Among other things, the measures would impose longer sentences for assaulting guards, and punish inmates for a broader range of crimes.
“We do not currently have the staffing to meet the timeline that’s in place right now,” Binghamton Mayor Rich David said.
They’ll now get at least 42½ hours per week out of their cell, and will be allowed to eat and attend religious services with other inmates.
Rikers Island doctor says drug treatment in U.S. jails and prisons is often shaped by societal prejudice, not science.
“Every DA in the state is going to try. What you’ll see is that there are going to be difficulties.”
Several other counties have criticized these reforms as another unfunded mandate.
Sweeping reforms that will end cash bail for all misdemeanor and nonviolent felony charges in New York state take effect in January. But some law enforcement groups are objecting.
The traffickers were caught with 11.9 kilograms of fentanyl — enough to kill nearly 6 million people, by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s standard.
Lawyers for President Trump say they plan to appeal to the Supreme Court, potentially setting up an election-year decision about disclosing the president’s finances.
The ACLU and other groups had argued the victims’ rights constitutional amendment is too broad and could compromise the rights of the accused. The judge agreed.
A New York pathologist who observed the autopsy says Epstein’s neck fractures are “more indicative” of homicidal strangulation than suicide. The current medical examiner stands by her conclusion.
What Pennsylvania voters need to know about the victims’ rights amendment on the Nov. 5 ballot
Union leaders interpreted Corrections Secretary John Wetzel’s quiet aside at a prison closure hearing as dismissive.
“We have choices about what we consent to and what we don’t consent to. That’s a nonviolent practice of withdrawing consent.”
Opponents of the victims’ rights amendment say it’s too broad and would cause “immediate and irreparable harm” to the accused. Marsy’s Law backers firmly disagree.
Marsy’s Law would insert a bill of rights for crime victims in Pennsylvania’s constitution. The ACLU thinks it’s too sweeping and would need to be broken into parts.
Lebanon isn’t not the only county that does this. The Pennsylvania ALCU says it has heard at least seven others have similar policies. The group is hoping its suit has statewide implications.
“There has been an ongoing and pervasive culture of sexual harassment and abuse in our society, and it is made worse by the fact that victims of second- and third-degree rape only have five years to bring a legal claim against their attacker,”
“The Sackler family does not belong in bankruptcy court,” Rep. Max Rose said of Purdue Pharma’s owners. “They belong in handcuffs.” He and others want charges for drug companies linked to the crisis.
The top Republican, arrested on child pornography charges, was heavily involved in efforts to overhaul redistricting and elections laws.
Mike Folmer, 63, was arrested at his home on Tuesday. According to court documents, he told police that he “had been dealing with some personal problems.”
The state attorney general says the high-ranking Republican is not “above the law.”
The U.S. Marshals Service says Blane Barksdale, 56, and wife Susan, 59, “overpowered and kidnapped” three people, including two security guards, on Aug. 26 during extradition from New York to Arizona.
“The fact that his own kind of kitchen cabinet of support, a kitchen cabinet of reforms, has turned on him and said you must leave, this could be the tipping point.”
The two men want to propose an alternative to the anger and bitterness the scandal has wrought.
For people concerned about “porch pirates” walking off with their packages, the U.S. Postal Service offers a free service to help customers keep track of their mail.
School districts in New York have a new tool to catch drivers who pass school buses that are stopped to drop off or pick up kids.
The decision backs the recommendation of an NYPD administrative judge earlier this month that Pantaleo should be fired for his role in Garner’s death in 2014.
“The penalty should be the same as it is for other terrorism crimes — up to life without parole — because these are hate crimes on steroids.”
‘The people in Geneva that you come back and visit, do they know the kind of person you really are?’ And for the first time there was silence. Do you know you’re a murderer of souls?’ And there was silence and he dropped the phone, then he hung up.”
Attorney General William Barr says he was appalled by the death of Jeffrey Epstein at a New York City jail over the weekend. He blamed the correctional center for failing to”adequately secure” him.
A key issue in this criminal case is the U.S. Constitution’s “speech and debates” clause. That says a member of Congress can’t be challenged for something he says in Congress.
The alleged killer of Bianca Devins posted images of her death on social media that remained visible on platforms like Instagram for more than a week.
Governor Cuomo called Trump’s speech one of the “great acts of hypocrisy,” saying the president has “made racism his stock and trade” through his prior remarks and tweets.
A Pennsylvania tip system created to improve school safety fielded some tips about school violence, but received far more inquiries about student mental health, according to new data.
The alleged perpetrators were onetime Pennsylvania state inmates out on parole. And in a commonwealth that has been working systematically to get people out of prison, that prompted concern.
“This latest episode of senseless gun violence resulted in the loss of one of our recent graduates—graduates in whom we place so much hope because of their potential to create a brighter tomorrow.”
“The pink lady is changing her trademark to an orange jumpsuit,” a North Carolina sheriff said. She got her nickname because she often wore a hot pink purse. A suspected accomplice was also arrested.
“You have to ask yourself, why is every diocese in the country dealing with child sex abuse? The answer is, the coverup, the protection afforded to child predators.”
“In New York, people regularly spend months and years and even decades in solitary confinement. People have spent 30 years (there). It’s barbaric. It has to stop.”
The lawyer for the man charged with Francesco Cali’s murder says he plans to make an insanity defense including that he became irrational after believing a pro-Trump Internet conspiracy theory.
Robert Morgenthau, the patrician lawman who a former aide said spent four decades “making mischief for people who engaged in bad conduct,” died Sunday at age 99.
Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the 62-year-old former head of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, was convicted in February for drug crimes. A life sentence was mandatory.
“The need is it let the public know that we are deeply concerned about this issue.”
It’s part of a broader effort to make the commonwealth’s criminal justice system less punitive.
Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus) is introducing a bill to review the pretrial release system across the country. It would focus on the monitoring practices for those on pretrial release.
Pennsylvania is in the early stages of enacting new requirements designed to reduce sexual assault on college campuses.
The bill doesn’t change much about the existing laws protecting crime victims. Jennifer Storm, the state’s Victim Advocate, said it would mainly give them standing to sue if those rights are violated.
The secretive group espoused a philosophy of self-help but was accused of recruiting women as sex slaves. Charges against Raniere, known as “The Vanguard,” included sex trafficking and racketeering.
The drugs were reportedly found in seven containers aboard the MSC Gayane at Philadelphia’s Packer Marine Terminal. Authorities say it is one of the biggest-ever drug busts in the U.S.
Activists and survivors of solitary confinement are on a hunger strike to try to convince New York state lawmakers to end long-term solitary confinement.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said officials began seizing 46 ice cream trucks in a crackdown on owners who allegedly skirted 22,495 summonses and evaded nearly $4.5 million in traffic violation fees.
New York transit officials think he would surf on top of a train, get into the operating cabin, and then yank the emergency brake. The train would be delayed, along with others on that line.
There’s a bipartisan push in the Capitol to ensure job opportunities aren’t being unfairly limited.
“Just like we have diversity when we create statute, we should have diverse opinions from the vast diversity of Pennsylvania come into play when the courts are applying those statutes.”
“All they’ve ever gotten is a slap on the wrist. It’s time for that to change. I’ll hold the oil and gas companies criminally liable for poisoning our air and our drinking water.”
An odd-couple pair of House lawmakers are teaming up on a bill that would get rid of the death penalty in Pennsylvania.
When a police investigator, Fred Akshar (R – Endwell) had intimate relations with a mother of a crime victim. According to the Gannett papers, Akshar had helped investigate her son’s murder.
“When you see 65 of these people being arrested, 65 of the people who are responsible for bringing this dangerous drug into our community locked up, that’s a good day for us.”
Lawsuits show police have sometimes used this powerful tool to take property from innocent people. Now, there has been a radical shift that’s occurred with little notice.
“The objective here is to protect individuals, who are not convicted of a crime in many instances, from having their mugshots be publicly listed into perpetuity.”
In 2015, the Department of Health reported more than 1,800 rape kits collected in Pennsylvania had been sitting, untested, for at least a year.
A report on the case from the commonwealth’s Human Services Department has found that investigators missed signs of abuse for years.
“This lawsuit contains detailed allegations about the Sackler family and their attempt to hide the vast fortunes they collected at the expense of actual lives.”
Evaldas Rimasauskas admitted to his role in helping to orchestrate a two-year-long scam that tricked employees into wiring more than $100 million to his own company’s bank accounts.
Prosecutors in both California and New York City announced charges against the well-known onetime attorney for Stormy Daniels. Avenatti also had a cameo in the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation saga.
Prosecutors said Sayoc posed “a serious risk of danger to the public” and described him as “a flight risk.” His lawyer made no objection to the decision. Sayoc could face up to 48 years in jail.
In an interview, former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara talks about his new book, Doing Justice, and weighs in on how executives have been able to avoid criminal prosecution and on Robert Mueller’s probe.
The proposed law would also mandate instruction for parents, guardians and school personel on how to recognize the signs of child sexual abuse and how to respond.
Three weeks ago, the state prison system settled a lawsuit brought by the ACLU and other groups who said the Department of Corrections was violating inmates’ constitutional rights by making copies of legal mail.
Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman was ordered to serve some of his time concurrently with a 4-year term handed down last week, making his sentence a total of 7.5 years.
In a killing that echoes mob murders of the 1980s, a man who was believed to be running a Mafia family was gunned down outside his home in Staten Island.
The Department of Environmental Protection has issued more than 80 violations, halted construction at times along the route, and fined the company $12.6 million.
New York’s Attorney General Tish James says she’s reached an agreement with the state legislature to amend the state’s double jeopardy laws.