It was a little more than a year and a half ago when conjoined twin girls were successfully separated at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. We caught up with the twins and their family to see how they were doing.
Twin Girls Doing Well More Than a Year After Separation Surgery
↧
↧
Man Shot During Road Rage Incident in Upper Dublin Township
A man is in the hospital after he was shot during a road rage incident in Upper Dublin Township, Pennsylvania.
The incident occurred Wednesday night on Route 309 near Highland Avenue. An unidentified driver was shot in the arm and pulled over at the Fort Washington interchange. He was then taken to the hospital. Officials have not yet revealed his condition.
Police are investigating the incident as a road rage shooting though they have released few details regarding what happened. No arrests have been made and investigators have not released a description of any suspects.
↧
Boy, 5, Left Alone on Bus for 7 Hours During Dangerous Cold
A 5-year-old Delaware boy was left behind on a school bus for hours during dangerously cold temperatures.
“I was very scared,” Ibn Polk told NBC10.
The kindergartner was on a school bus headed to Linden Hill Elementary School in Wilmington Tuesday morning. He fell asleep on the bus however and never got off. Officials said the bus driver never did her usual sweep after the other children got off and also ignored. She also allegedly ignored the other students when they told her a boy was still on the bus.
A spokeswoman for the Red Clay School District told NBC10 the school made a mistake by not calling his parents when he was marked absent Tuesday morning.
“Clearly that was a fail on our part,” Pati Nash of the Red Clay School District said. “The mom and the dad should have been notified.”
It wasn’t until about seven hours later when the driver was making her afternoon rounds to get students that she heard Ibn cough. She then realized he had been on the bus the entire time. His parents were then notified.
“She could have came back to the bus,” the boy’s father, Abdul Polk, told NBC10. “What you want a dead child now? It was cold. It was freezing.”
The boy’s parents said he was soaking wet and had urinated on himself by the time he was found.
A spokesperson for the Sutton Bus Company said that the driver was fired. The boy’s parents will attend a meeting Friday to watch surveillance video of the incident. Ibn meanwhile, is doing well after the incident.
↧
Business Owners Offer Help to Furloughed Workers
Business owners in our area are offering help to furloughed workers as the government shutdown continues.
↧
President Trump Delays State of Union Speech, Keeps Battling Pelosi
President Donald Trump has decided to postpone the State of Union address until after the partial government shutdown ends. Trump’s decision was made after Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asked the Republican president not to give the speech during the shutdown.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
↧
↧
General Mills Recalls Some Flour Due to Salmonella Concerns
General Mills announced Wednesday it was recalling some 5-pound bags of its Gold Medal Unbleached Flour.
The company said the voluntary recall was being issued "for the potential presence of salmonella which was discovered during sampling of the five-pound bag product."
"This recall is being issued out of an abundance of care as General Mills has not received any direct consumer reports of confirmed illnesses related to this product," the company said in a statement.
The bags being recalled have a better if used by date of April 20, 2020.
Consumers are asked to throw out bags affected by the recall. Consumers who have had to discard products covered by this recall can contact General Mills Consumer Relations at 1-800-230-8103 or visit the company's website.
Photo Credit: General Mills
↧
Lawmakers Push for $15 Minimum Wage in New Jersey
New Jersey lawmakers are set to begin considering a bill to hike the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024.
The Assembly Labor Committee is set to consider the legislation Thursday.
Gov. Phil Murphy, Senate President Steve Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin announced a deal on the wage last week. They're all Democrats.
Thursday's hearing represents the public's first chance to comment on the bill containing the deal.
New Jersey would join California, Massachusetts and New York phasing in a $15 hourly wage if the bill is enacted.
The proposal would raise today's rate from $8.85 to $10 by July 1, climbing by $1 annually until reaching $15 in 2024.
It's not an across-the-board hike. Farm workers' wage will climb to $12.50 over five years, for example.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
↧
Center City Philly's First Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens
Medical marijuana patients will now have a new option for treatment. Beyond / Hello is the first of its kind in Center City.
Photo Credit: NBC10
↧
Measuring Homelessness in Philly
Volunteers took to the streets for the annual count to measure how many people are living on Philadelphia streets.
Photo Credit: NBC10
↧
↧
Hit-Run Driver Learns Fate for Killing Man Out for Ice Cream
A driver who allegedly told investigators he struck "whoever" while high on heroin will serve 10 to 30 years in prison after admitting to killing a Bucks County man out getting ice cream.
Anthony Woods pleaded guilty Tuesday to third-degree murder, homicide by vehicle, accidents involving death or personal injury and other related offenses, according to court records.
Judge Brian McGuffin sentenced the Falls, Pennsylvania, man to 10 to 30 years in prison, per a plea agreement with prosecutors.
Woods, now 42, struck Emmanuel "Manny" Weintraub as the 70-yer-old man crossed the street after getting ice cream on Aug. 21.
[[491486971, C]]
Weintraub was using a cane to cross New Falls Road near Amelia Drive in the crosswalk after leaving JoJo’s Ice Cream & Water Ice as heavy rain fell that summer night. As he was walking, Woods' 2007 gray Nissan Altima went around a slow moving car and slammed into Weintraub, Falls Township police said.
The driver kept going, leaving Weintraub for dead, according to investigators. The victim’s cane and shoes were left behind.
Investigators obtained surveillance images of the hit-and-run vehicle which led to Woods' arrest about a week later.
While being interviewed by police, Woods told investigators he was driving home after buying and using heroin in North Philadelphia and that his car struck "whoever" after he crossed the double yellow-line to pass a slow-moving car, according to a criminal complaint.
Woods told police he was unsure if the person was dead but fled the scene because he believed he had drugs in his system, investigators said.
He allegedly admitted to getting his windshield fixed at an auto glass shop in Trenton, New Jersey. Woods told the shop's owner not to speak with investigators and initially told police he broke the windshield while "copping drugs" in Philadelphia, the criminal complaint said.
"It was important to the Commonwealth and to Manny’s family that Woods be convicted of third-degree murder," Deputy District Attorney Robert James said. "Woods' actions before, during and after the incident demanded a conviction for the most serious offense he could be charged with under the law, and he deserves to serve every day of that 30 years behind bars for the damage he caused to his victim, the victim’s family and the community."
On Tuesday, Woods also pleaded guilty to DUI stemming from a traffic stop earlier in August, the district attorney's office said.
Weintraub, a retired postal worker, was a regular customer at JoJo’s, the ice cream shop said on Facebook. Weintraub had just gotten ice cream after a fundraising event ended and was leaving moments before he was struck.
Weintraub died only days before his wedding anniversary. His neighbor, Marie DiSalvo, told NBC10 Weintraub's wife later found the gift and card he left behind.
"He wrote a special, 'I love you. You're the best thing in my life,'" DiSalvo said. "Something very comforting for her."
This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
↧
Councilman Wants Philly Voters to Decide on Legalized Pot
A Philadelphia city councilman is proposing putting the question of legalized recreational pot to voters on the same day as the first medical marijuana dispensary opened in Center City.
Councilman Derek S. Green will introduce a bill Thursday that leaves it up to voters to decide whether to change the city's Home Rule Charter to legalize recreational pot. Meanwhile, Beyond/Hello opened the city's first Pennsylvania Department of Health-approved medical marijuana dispensary.
[[504808121, C]]
In a statement Green said that, due to Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf recently suggesting the state should consider whether to legalize recreational weed, it is an "appropriate time" for Philadelphians to consider whether they themselves want to see such legalization happen.
Philadelphia first voted to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana in 2014, but the city has not yet legalized the drug.
Green has been a vocal proponent of marijuana in the past. In 2017, after Pennsylvania had OK'd medical marijuana, he led the charge to change a state law that prevented dispensaries from setting up within 1,000 feet of schools or daycare centers.
"The goal is to say to the state, 'Allow us to use the regulatory zoning framework ... to have an industry flourish in Philadelphia and provide constituents with access to dispensaries within their communities," he said at the time.
Beyond/Hello, meanwhile, is one of the beneficiaries of the state's medical marijuana program, which began being rolled out last year. The shop is located on the 1200 block of Sansom Street.
"We've created a welcoming, comfortable and professional space for patients and caregivers to talk with our staff, ask questions and learn about medical marijuana products that may help manage their conditions," said the company's president, Blythe Huestis, in a news release.
Photo Credit: Getty Images, File
This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
↧
What Do You Want to Know About Financial Debt?
NBC10 is one of 19 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the city’s push towards economic justice. Follow us at @BrokeInPhilly.
Do you find yourself struggling to make ends meet because of financial debt? You aren't alone.
Roughly 80 percent of Americans face crippling debt from medical bills, credit cards, student loans, mortgage payments and more.
NBC10 reporters are ready to find solutions that could help you. But first we need your help.
What aspects of living with debt do want us to look into? Submit your questions below and our reporters will work to turn your concerns into stories that are useful, interesting and informative.
Photo Credit: Steve Teare
This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
↧
Cape May Nonprofit Helping U.S. Coast Stay 'Strong' During Shutdown
Cape May County Strong is a nonprofit geared at helping veterans in need. The nonprofit volunteered to assist Coast Guard recruits stationed at the Jersey shore during the partial government shutdown.
↧
↧
Councilwoman Introduces Resolution to Ban R. Kelly From Philly
Councilwoman Helen Gym introduced a new resolution to ban R&B star R. Kelly from Philadelphia, in light of the allegations of rape and child pornography against him.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
↧
Teen Charged in Deadly Stabbing Inside NJ Laundromat
A teenager was arrested and charged in a deadly stabbing inside a laundromat in National Park, New Jersey.
On Tuesday, shortly before 6:30 p.m., police responded to the National Park Laundromat on Columbia Boulevard for a report of a stabbing. When they arrived they found Xavier Byrd, 19, of Deptford Township, New Jersey, suffering from a stab wound.
Byrd was taken to the hospital where he died from his injuries Wednesday at 9:18 a.m.
Byrd’s death was ruled a homicide and investigators identified a 16-year-old teen from Woodbury, New Jersey, as the suspect. The teen was arrested and charged with murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and possession of a weapon. The teen will be held in the Lakeland Juvenile Detention Center pending court proceedings.
If you have any additional information on the incident, please call Detective Warren Rivell of the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-685-7396 or Detective Frank Mullin of the West Deptford Police Department at 856-381-1170.
You can also email the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office at tips@co.gloucester.nj.us.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
↧
Rain Leads to Flood Threat Throughout the Region
Heavy rain led to a flood threat in some parts of the area, including White Marsh Township in Montgomery County.
↧
No Deportation For Low-Level Offenders, Philly DA Says
While the federal government remains shut down over Congress’ inability to agree on border security, Philadelphia prosecutors are preparing to change the way they handle cases involving immigrants, both documented and not.
On Thursday, some 300 attorneys started training on how to minimize the risk of deportation for low-level and nonviolent offenders. The policy, introduced last year during Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s first month in office, would also protect witnesses who are immigrants.
It mirrors other policies Krasner implemented shortly after taking office, including ending cash bail for non-violent offenders and not prosecuting low-level drug cases.
“If you have a hard-working person who ... is supporting a family, does not have a criminal record, becomes intoxicated and does something that is not so severe, that is exactly the type of case where we are looking to show a level of compassion,” Krasner said Thursday.
But such compassion would not extend to sex or violent offenders, Krasner added.
“That is just not a situation where we feel the law needs to bend in order to accommodate immigration status,” he said.
The immigration policy was predictably met by two very different responses when it Krasner first announced it. Advocates applauded the decision, calling it a step forward in Philadelphia’s transformation into a sanctuary city.
Detractors, such as the Department of Justice, called Krasner’s policy “dangerous” and an “abandonment of the rule of law.”
But 12 months after making his announcement and hiring a special counsel tasked with training other prosecutors on the intricacies of immigration law, Krasner is doubling down on the policy.
“All this hysteria around immigration is political in nature,” he said. “We do not have an epidemic of people crossing the border.”
At least a quarter of Philadelphia’s immigrant population remains undocumented, according to the Pew Research Center. Overall, the city’s total foreign-born population increased in the last decade, reaching about 200,000 and accounting for about 13 percent of Philadelphia’s general population, according to a 2017 Pew report.
Advocates worry that those people, many of whom already live in the shadows, will be further marginalized if they feel the justice system is not on their side.
Census data from 2010 showed that incarceration rates among Latino men was significantly lower than that of native-born men without a high school diploma.
Native-born men between the ages of 18 and 39 had an incarceration rate of nearly 11 percent — more than triple the 2.8 percent rate among foreign-born Mexican men and five times greater than the 1.7 percent rate among foreign-born Salvadoran and Guatemalan men, according to the American Immigration Council.
“A witness probably would not come forward, probably a survivor of a crime ... will not come forward, if they think they might get caught up in ICE’s custody,” Erika Almiron, executive director of Juntos and city council candidate, said. “There are further policies for us to look into, but this is a great start.”
The appointment of immigration counsel Caleb U. Arnold was largely inspired by a similar experiment in Brooklyn. The idea was to encourage a better relationship between law enforcement and immigrant communities by not marginalizing already shunned residents.
In April, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s office hired two immigration attorneys to train all staff on immigration issues and advise prosecutors when making plea offers and sentencing recommendations.
Gonzalez, a longtime veteran of the New York criminal justice system, said in a New York Times interview that targeting immigrants for deportation only weakens law enforcement’s ability to work with those communities. Witnesses and victims are less likely to come forward when a crime is committed, he said.
Over the summer, the City of Philadelphia ended a contract with U.S. immigration officials that allowed them to access Social Security and country of origin data after someone was arrested. PARS, or Preliminary Arraignment Reporting System, become a rallying cry for both Krasner and Mayor Jim Kenney.
“Quite frankly, cooperating with ICE at this time makes our city less safe because it makes undocumented individuals fearful of coming forward to report crimes or testify in criminal cases. That’s simply unacceptable,” the district attorney said in August.
Photo Credit: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images (File)
↧
↧
Gov. Murphy Helps Families of Coast Guard Members as Government Shutdown Continues
The men and women of the coast guard could miss a second paycheck next week if the government shutdown continues. On Thursday, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy visited Cape May. We take a look at what he's doing to help coast guard families.
↧
New Delaware Bill Cracks Down on Slow Left Lane Drivers
We all know how annoying a slow driver in the left lane can be. But lawmakers in Delaware say that they're also dangerous. That's why a new bill was introduced that would crack down on slow drivers in the passing lane.
↧
Philly Councilwoman Wants to Ban R. Kelly From City
Philadelphia councilwoman Helen Gym has joined the #MuteRKelly movement in the aftermath of a recent documentary bringing to light rape and child porn allegations made against the singer several years ago. Gym introduced a bill that would ban Kelly from the city.
Photo Credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images for BET
↧
More Pages to Explore .....
