The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre wants Philadelphians to think love, and what it was like falling in love for the first time.
"We want to make Shakespeare available to the city and we want to hear love stories," said Samantha Clarke of the PST. "The stories of love and loss go hand in hand."
The Shakespearean performance group setup pop-up performance stations at Love Park, Rittenhouse Square and City Hall today seeking passersby to stop and recite a Shakespearean sonnet. In return, participants got Hersey Kisses. The activity helped launch the "Show Us Your Love Sonnet Competition," which runs from December 9 to January 31.
Ezekiel Mathur was on his way to the post office when he saw the sonnet station at Love Park today. He stopped when he saw the Hershey Kisses and jumped into read Sonnet 29.
"I'm not used to reading Shakespeare. The words are not words usually coming out of my mouth," said Mathur. "It was fun. I just might write a sonnet myself."
The top 10 sonnets will get a videotaped performance by a Shakespearan actor and the top four winning sonnets will be performed during each of the company's live performances of Romeo & Juliet in April.
"This city is so perfect. There's so much love already in Philly," said Clarke.
Contact Sarah Glover at 610-668-5580, sarah.glover@nbcuni.com or follow @skyphoto on Twitter.
As residents across the city honor the victims of the Center City building collapse on the eve of the 6-month anniversary, NBC10 uncovered new allegations against the Salvation Army regarding their role in the tragedy.
On June 5, at 10:41 a.m., the four-story western wall of 2136 Market Street toppled down onto the one-story Salvation Army Thrift Store next door. The shop was filled with workers and patrons, all whom were buried under brick, wood and glass.
Some victims suffocated to death under the debris and one woman, Mariya Plekan, was trapped for 13 hours. She had to have both legs amputated at the hip. In total, six people were killed and 13 were injured.
Contractor Griffin Campbell had been demolishing the brick building at 2136 Market and, according to witnesses, images of the site and investigators, the wall was left unbraced and unsupported to sway in the wind.
The project's architect, Plato Marinakos, allegedly warned Campbell the wall could fall at any time, a day before the collapse. Campbell promised to take it down by hand, according to investigators. The contractor then allegedly lied to Marinakos saying he had safely demolished wall, only to leave it standing without supports.
Campbell, 49, was indicted by a grand jury on six counts of third degree murder, six counts of involuntary manslaughter and 13 counts of recklessly endangering another person.
Sean Benschop, a.k.a. Kary Roberts, was also charged in the collapse. Benschop was allegedly high on painkillers and marijuana when he was operating a backhoe at the site. He faces six counts of involuntary manslaughter and 13 counts of reckless endangerment.
In the wake of the collapse, the city’s Department of Licenses & Inspections issued new guidelines for demolitions taking place inside the city.
A special City Council investigative committee also issued 71 reform recommendations ranging from changes in demolition paperwork to altering the Philadelphia Code to giving the Philadelphia Fire Department more power to stop bad demolitions.
NBC10 also obtained the depositions taken by OSHA officials as they continue to investigate whether the Salvation Army allowed employees to work in unsafe conditions prior to the collapse.
OSHA investigators interviewed two Salvation Army employees, their supervisor and an architect who advised the company of the structural integrity of the building.
According to the depositions, an assistant manager for the Salvation Army store told investigators that a supervisor and store manager “knew that the store wasn’t in good condition.”
The assistant also claimed that the “paint was peeling off the walls from water damage” that was caused by the rain. Despite this, according to the assistant, nothing was done.
The assistant claims that when demolition work started, “dust and pieces of the ceiling would be laying on the toilet.”
Andy Stern, Plekan’s attorney, says there’s no doubt in his mind that the Salvation Army was aware of the dangerous conditions of the building.
“I don’t think there is any question that the Salvation Army was aware that the building and structure of the building was not sound and it was a recipe for disaster,” Stern said.
An architect who advised the Salvation Army told OSHA investigators that he sent an email two weeks before the collapse and strongly advised roof protection. However, he says he figured the construction work hadn’t started after he never received a response.
Stern says his client would still have her legs and six others would still be alive if they had known about how unsafe the conditions truly were.
“There are employees that have testified they thought the ceiling would fall in,” Stern said. “Had she been told that she would’ve left immediately.”
*Note* NBC10's Daralene Jones contributed to this report*
A teenager is fighting for his life after he was struck by a car in Maple Shade Township.
Police say an 18-year-old boy was walking on East Main Street at North Poplar Street Wednesday night when he was struck by a vehicle.
The teen was flown to the hospital where he is currently in critical condition.
Police say the striking vehicle remained at the scene. They continue to investigate the accident.
Stay with NBC10.com for more details on this developing story.
Also on NBC10.com:
An 11-year-old who went missing on Wednesday is now recovering after he was struck by a car.
Investigators say 11-year-old Branden Durham went missing from his home around 12:45 p.m. on the 2500 block of S. 66th Street. Police say surveillance video captured Durham traveling on foot eastbound on Elmwood Avenue from 66th Street at 2:19 p.m.
Durham's mother told NBC10 the boy is developmentally disabled and has the mind of a 7-year-old child. The mother also says they just moved to the area about a month ago and that the child doesn't know his way around.
Wednesday night, police say the boy was struck by a car on 69th and Market Streets. He was taken to the hospital, treated for minor injuries and was later reunited with his mother.
Also on NBC10.com:
The family of a West Deptford High School student is suing the school district after they say she was relentlessly bullied by classmates and no action was taken by officials.
The victim, who is now 15, says the bullying began when she was in 6th grade at middle school and continued into high school. The girl says the bullying got so bad that she refused to start 10th grade last September.
“This young lady was called names that were pretty profound and disgusting very repeatedly,” said Kevin Costello, the girl’s attorney. “They attacked who she was at a very deep level.”
“People would just torment her and say a bunch of things about her,” said Derrick Davenport, a student at West Deptford High. “There was a rumor going on that she was pregnant even though we knew it wasn’t true.”
Costello also says the bullies threatened to shove the girl down the stairs and beat her with a bat. Costello claims the teen and her parents asked the West Deptford School principal and guidance counselor to investigate.
“When students are harassed this way and denigrated and humiliated it’s up to the school to stop it,” Costello said.
The school superintendent was not available to comment on the pending litigation. However, school officials provided a 50-page anti-bullying policy which states that if students or teachers report an incident it must be investigated promptly.
“The investigation shall be initiated by the principal or principal’s designee within one school day of the verbal report of the incident,” the policy states.
Costello claims officials didn’t follow the proper procedure when they were told about the bullying however.
“It was more like, ‘Maybe you have to have thicker skin or just get over it, it will be okay,’” Costello said.
Costello also says there may be evidence of the bullying on cell phone video as well as social media. If it exists, Costello plans to use it in court.
Police are on the hunt for an armed serial robber who they say targeted several businesses in South Philadelphia.
Credit: Philadelphia Police
Police say the suspect first robbed the Terryin Restaurant on the 300 block of Snyder Avenue back on November 20, stealing $30 from the tip jar.
The suspect then allegedly robbed the Lyn Grocery Store on the 2000 block of S. 4th Street, stealing $50.
On Sunday, police say the suspect once again robbed Terryin Restaurant, this time stealing a cash register containing $400.
Finally, on Monday, police say the armed suspect stole $500 from the register at South View Pizza on the 300 block of Durfor Street.
The suspect is described as a thin, dark-skin male standing 5-foot-8 and weighing 130 pounds.
During the November 30 robbery, police say the suspect was wearing a large black winter coat with brown fur around the hood and a black Nike backpack.
During the December 2 robbery, police say the suspect was wearing a black mask, black jacket with fur around the hood and black pants.
If you have any information on the suspect's whereabouts, please call police at 215-686-3013/3014.
A Toys for Tots volunteer was mistaken as a thief when she collected donated toys from a local restaurant this week.
"I’m angry and I’ve been wrongly accused," Mimi McHale said.
McHale has been donating her time, collecting toys for the Bucks County chapter of the national Toys for Tots organization from eight different locations. She said she woke up this morning to a barrage of text messages from her son, saying she was being called a toy thief.
"I’ve been frantic all day, crying all day," McHale said.
Unbeknownst to McHale, she’d been mistaken as a thief by employees at a local restaurant where she collected toys. The Wings-to-Go restaurant in Fairless Hills released surveillance video to local media that showed McHale taking toys from the bin, placing them into a bag and leaving. Employees said she was stealing the toys.
"She was doing what she was supposed to be doing," said Dianne Cochran, a spokeswoman for Bucks County Toys for Tots. "She went into Wings-to-Go, she informed the person behind the counter she was from Toys for Tots. The employee said, ‘Ok.’"
"I went up to the counter and the young girl said, 'Can I help you,' and I said, 'Oh, I'm just here to pick up toys from Toys for Tots and she said, 'Ok, and she turned around and walked away," McHale said.
The restaurant apologized for the mix-up on Wednesday, saying that McHale did not identify herself, which led them to question whether she was a volunteer.
"According to my employees, and according to the video that you see, it does not appear that she did that. And she had no I.D., she had no markings, no sweatshirt, no I.D. badge, nothing that signified that she was an employee or a volunteer,” said Wings-to-Go co-owner Valerie Niedrist.
Restaurant manager Bert Niedrist said before they made the video public, they talked with the Toys for Tots organization and did everything they felt they could do to verifty if the woman was with the organization. Valerie Niedrist said in the past, volunteers have always scheduled pickups ahead of time. "No one has ever come in out of the blue to pickup," Niedrist said.
Bert Niedrist says Wings-to-Go has participated in the Toys for Tots campaign for 10 years and that when the restaurant decided to make the surveillance video public, they thought they were doing the right thing.
Today, McHale set the record straight.
"I’m not a toy thief; I’m a Toys for Tots volunteer. That’s the end of the story."
On the eve of the six month anniversary of the deadly building collapse in Center City Philadelphia, families and friends of those killed and injured and community leaders stood together for a candlelight vigil to remember those lost.
A prayer service took place at 5:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church at 21st and Walnut Streets on Wednesday night. Following the hour-long service, participants marched to the collapse site at 22nd and Market Streets and held the vigil.
"I thought it was very moving to be here on this corner with the candlelight," said Nancy Winkler, the mother of one of the victims killed in the collapse. "Everyone holding a candle. And the words of the minister saying, 'We're bringing light to this corner.'"
The somber event came a day before the six month anniversary of the demolition disaster that killed six and injured 13 people.
It was 10:41 in the morning on Wednesday, June 5 when the four-story western wall of 2136 Market Street toppled down onto the one-story Salvation Army Thrift Store next door. The shop was filled with workers and patrons, all whom were buried under brick, wood and glass.
Some victims suffocated to death under the debris and one woman, Mariya Plekan, was trapped for 13 hours. She had to have both legs amputated at the hip.
Contractor Griffin Campbell had been demolishing the brick building at 2136 Market and, according to witnesses, images of the site and investigators, the wall was left unbraced and unsupported to sway in the wind.
The project's architect, Plato Marinakos, allegedly warned Campbell the wall could fall at any time, a day before the collapse. Campbell promised to take it down by hand, according to investigators. The contractor then allegedly lied to Marinakos saying he had safely demolished wall, only to leave it standing without supports.
Campbell, 49, was indicted by a grand jury on six counts of third degree murder, six counts of involuntary manslaughter and 13 counts of recklessly endangering another person.
Sean Benschop, a.k.a. Kary Roberts, was also charged in the collapse. Benschop was allegedly high on painkillers and marijuana when he was operating a backhoe at the site. He faces six counts of involuntary manslaughter and 13 counts of reckless endangerment.
In the wake of the collapse, the city’s Department of Licenses & Inspections issued new guidelines for demolitions taking place inside the city.
A special City Council investigative committee also issued 71 reform recommendations ranging from changes in demolition paperwork to altering the Philadelphia Code to giving the Philadelphia Fire Department more power to stop bad demolitions.
The parents of Anne Bryan, one of the victims who died in the collapse, also spearheaded the creation of a blue-ribbon commission to investigate the city's Department of Licenses & Inspections. The 24-year-old woman's parents have also started a petition to turn the site into a memorial. Many families who marched Wednesday night agreed.
"If we build on this property we'll forget," Winkler said. "This is too horrifying for us to ever forget this."
Wednesday night's vigil was not organized by the city but instead by neighbors and friends who were eager to support their community.
A pizza delivery went wrong overnight landing the deliveryman in the hospital as police searched for the suspects.
And, authorities say it appears the thieves targeted the deliveryman when they called for a delivery to the Montevista Apartments in Philadelphia’s Overbrook neighborhood.
“As he approached the sidewalk he was approached by two males -- both males tried to grab the pizza and the money from him,” Police Lt. John Walker. “He struggled with the two males and one of the males fired at least three times.”
A pizza, cell phone and 2-liter marked the spot along the 900 block of N 63rd Street where the worker from Pete’s Pizza was shot three times -- hit in the chest, in the stomach and in the legs. He underwent surgery Thursday morning and could make a full recovery.
The victim, believed to be in 40s to 50s, was rushed to the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania in critical but stable condition.
“At this point it doesn’t look like they got anything,” Walker said.
Walker said the suspects -- described as two men in dark clothing -- ran off to Nassau Street where they jumped in a waiting getaway car.
Investigators are looking for three suspects, including the getaway driver. They hope surveillance video helps in the investigation.
Walker said the men likely targeted the deliveryman.
“We clearly know that they were lying in wait for him,” said Walker.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Philly Police.
Firefighters visited the same home twice in six hours when flames thought to be extinguished began burning again.
The first calls for a fire at the three-bedroom home on the 400 Block of Summit Avenue in Paulsboro went out about 8 p.m. Wednesday. Four companies and 30 firefighters worked to extinguish the flames.
But around 2 a.m. this morning, the Paulsboro Fire Department rushed back to the Gloucester County one-story house after a deputy chief who lives nearby noticed smoke coming from the one-story house.
Either a dryer or a humidifier caught fire in the basement and items, like clothing, helped feed the flames, said Paulsboro Fire Chief Alfonso Giampola.
Giampola says the walls and basement are saturated to the point that the fire will not erupt a third time.
All seven people inside the home at the time made it out safely. The local Red Cross is caring for the family.
Using your smartphone to order a new pair of shoes: typical. Using your smartphone to order a live Christmas tree and having it delivered to your home on the same day: not so typical; that is until today.
For one day only, startup transportation company Uber is allowing customers in 10 select cities, including Philadelphia, to order fresh Christmas trees and have them delivered to their homes on the same day.
Uber is most known for its upscale taxi services, but the company drew national headlines with its first attempt at home delivery services earlier this summer, when it offered one day of on-demand ice cream deliveries in select cities.
Now, Uber has teamed up with the nation's largest fresh tree retailer, Home Depot, to offer the on-demand delivery of live, 7 to 8 foot Christmas trees.
Here's how it works:
On December 5th only, customers can use the Uber app to request a Christmas tree delivery. Customers can have trees delivered to their own homes or to the homes of friends, family members or co-workers.
The entire package cost, $135, will be charged to the customer's Uber account and includes a free tree stand and a monogrammed Uber scarf. Customers can also use the Uber app to track the tree delivery from the store to their door.
First-time Uber app users will have to visit Uber.com, download the app, and sign-up prior to being able to order a tree. As an added perk, new users who use the signup code 'UberTREE' will get $20 off their first taxi ride with the company.
Sounds pretty awesome, right? So, what's the catch?
The deliveries are only available for one day, today, and while supplies last. The promotion also does not allow customers to select the type of tree they would like to have delivered. Rather, the company will automatically deliver the most popular tree in any given market. Philadelphia customers, for instance, will receive only Fraser fir trees.
There's also a no returns policy. So, if you don't like the tree you receive, you're stuck with it.
The other obvious downside is that the service is only offered in select cities.
Getting served at LOVE Park could soon be commonplace if a city leader gets the backing -- and private interest -- for his plan to transform the iconic square.
Philadelphia City Council President Darrell Clarke revealed a plan yesterday that would bring seven restaurants, terraces and new gardens to the open space at 15th Street and JFK Boulevard in Center City Philadelphia.
Clarke’s plan promises to raise millions for needed improvements to the aging John F Kennedy Plaza, a.k.a. LOVE Park, by leasing parts of the park to eateries.
Clarke’s office released conceptual design sketches by Philly-based Daroff Design lay out specific details of the plan including seven separate retail spaces ranging from 2750- to 3350-square feet positioned along the outer center parts of the park. The fountain and iconic statue would remain in place with access point to the park from the four corners.
“Our concept is to replace like-for-like and as-is-where-is,” said the design plan.
The existing “Welcome Center” would be refurbished and the new design would also include a central bandstand, self-cleaning toilets and energy efficient lighting.
The design plan includes Duke of York Square in London and Bryant Park as examples of what could be done with the space.
A Chicago-based company already bid $30 million to buy the garage below LOVE Park and it’s possible the same company could be brought in to develop the park above, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
JFK Plaza, which opened in 1965, became a worldwide icon after the installation of Robert Indiana’s LOVE statue during the bicentennial in 1976. It would later become a mecca for skateboarders drawn to its odd -- and underutilized -- designed
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter has his own plan for the park that would keep control of the park in city hands while making $16.5 million in renovations.
Nutter’ plan would be paid for by selling the city-owned parking lot under the plaza to a company that would be able to make necessary repairs.
Scrap metal littered an area roadway this afternoon bringing traffic to a halt.
It wasn’t clear where the debris came from but it was clear that it caused a traffic mess along the southbound lanes of Interstate-95 near Exit 19 near Front and Packer Streets in South Philadelphia.
PennDOT closed the highway near the exit for the Walt Whitman Bridge/Packer Avenue for about two hours around 12:30 p.m. Thursday as crews worked to clear the debris.
Traffic quickly backed up behind the scene.
NBC10 reporter Lu Ann Cahn was riding in a news van when they passed the scene in the northbound lane. She captured a photo showing large pieces of metal strewn across the asphalt.
The roadway was open again by 2:40 p.m.
There were no reports of injury.
“I stabbed him.”
That’s what authorities say a local woman said when they asked what happened to her husband as he lay on the ground grasping for his final breaths.
Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman and Cheltenham Township Police Chief John Norris announced Thursday the arrest and arraignment of Ny Baker of the 7400 block of Overhill Road.
Officers responded to Baker’s home late on Nov. 22 for the report of a disturbance.
Once inside, officers found Darryl Baker, 48, suffering from an apparent chest wound in a second-floor bedroom. Baker gasped for air as police tried to communicate with him, according to authorities.
Medics rushed Baker to Einstein Hospital where he died.
Officers asked Baker’s 52-year-old wife what happened and she responded, “I stabbed him, I stabbed him” according to authorities.
Investigators recovered a 7-1/20inch blood stained knife from the scene and arrested Ny Baker. A judge denied her bail ahead of a preliminary hearing Friday morning on first- and third-degree murder charges, according to court records.
Philadelphia Police have recovered an off-duty officer's stolen SUV which contained his gun, badge and uniform.
A thief stole the officer’s silver Ford Escape from the 900 block of Longshore Avenue in Northeast Philadelphia around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, police said.
Several hours later, the driver slammed the SUV into a home along the 6300 block of Beechwood Street in the East Germantown section of the city. That's about five miles from where it was stolen.
"I was asleep and I was awaken by a loud boom and the house shook," said resident Stephanie Blango.
She says her mother rushed outside following the crash and actually talked to the driver of the stolen SUV. The woman said the suspect told her the Escape was his mothers before disappearing.
"He said it was his mother's car and then he came back and I guess he got something, he went around the corner," Blango said.
Police say the officer's uniform, gun and badge were left inside the SUV. Investigators towed the crashed car from the scene around 11 a.m. on Thursday.
Police have not released a description of the suspect and no one has been arrested.
David Massi’s life could have been saved.
After partying in Delaware County, Pa. one Friday night last January, the 27-year-old went back to a friend’s apartment and decided to get a heroin fix. However, the drugs were too much for his body and he overdosed. Instead of calling for help, the friends bolted.
"They both left and left him there to die," said Lynne Massi, his aunt. "He was just left there on the floor and it’s just horrible. This drug is just horrible."
When his father found him hours later, David was still alive, but brain dead. He eventually died in the hospital after being taken off of life support.
Lynne believes the friends, one who has since died over an overdose himself, were afraid to call 911 for fear of being arrested.
So earlier this year, the 53-year-old mother of three and member of drug awareness and recovery group Kacie’s Cause, decided something should be done to prevent further deaths.
She asked Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan to help create legislation giving immunity to drug users who get medical attention for someone who overdoses. For Hogan, it was a no-brainer.
"If someone is there with another person who is overdosing, and they call 911 and wait until help arrives, we’re not going to prosecute them," Hogan said. "Knowing that we wouldn’t prosecute, but realizing that a lot of people don’t know that, we wanted to get the legal language in there."
The DA took his case to his counterparts across the Commonwealth during The Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Association’s summer summit and gained support for the measure. Hogan then went to Pa. State Senator Dominic Pileggi (R-Pa. 9th) and the two drafted a Good Samaritan amendment to the state’s current drug law.
"This is very clearly about saving lives and the primary thrust of this is to save lives where medical attention can help someone who is unable to help themselves because of a drug overdose," Pileggi said. "Weighing that against minor criminal offenses relating to drug possession is clearly a very positive way and a really beneficial way to go."
Under the legislation, in order to be granted immunity, a person must contact 911, provide their information and stay with the overdosing individual until help arrives. They can also take the person to a hospital, but have to provide their information to authorities. Officials say, however, the law is crafted to ensure the immunity is not abused. Those who call for help, must be first to call and can’t contact authorities after help has arrived. It also won’t apply to drug dealers.
"We do not want to immunize the dealers," Hogan says. "The legislation is set up so that we’re not helping the dealer who supplied a deadly amount of heroin to a person."
Use of heroin and other opioid drugs like oxycodone and vicodin has spiked in recent years – resulting in an increased number of overdoses and deaths. Health and law enforcement officials in major cities and suburban and rural towns across the state and country have reported issues with opioid drug prevalence. NBC10.com has reported about a number of overdose deaths and addiction issues throughout the region recently.
“Everybody has seen the spike in heroin overdoses and heroin overdose deaths in our region over the past two years,” Hogan said. “That supply is reaching ever deeper in not just our inner cities but into the suburban and rural areas.”
Pa. already has several other Good Samaritan laws on its books. A 2011 addition to the state’s liquor law offers immunity to underage teens who call for help in cases where someone needs medical attention.
Both New Jersey and Delaware also recently passed drug overdose immunity laws. Rocker Jon Bon Jovi applauded the N.J. legislation, which became law just a few months after his own daughter survived a heroin overdose. Stephanie Bongiovi’s overdose occurred in New York, which also has an immunity law on the books, and charges against her and a friend were dropped.
The Pa. amendment received unanimous, bipartisan approval in the Pa. Senate Judicial Committee and was passed up to the full Senate during a vote this week. Pileggi hopes to see the law approved by the full General Assembly by the Spring of 2014.
While it may turn somewhat of a blind eye to drug use and minor drug possession, saving a life is the ultimate goal, say all involved.
"The people who are using can’t help themselves. They need to know that we understand that you’re using. We’re not judging you that you’re using," Lynne said. “But if you’re using…that they know that they can call 911 and save this person’s life and they will not be in trouble."
As for tracking results, Hogan says that will be difficult since people will not be arrested or charged with a crime. All agree, though, that preventing just one death will be worth it.
"I believe 100-percent in my heart, if this law was in effect, that my nephew would be alive,” Lynne says. “I don’t want it to happen to anybody."
Contact Vince Lattanzio at 610.668.5532, vince.lattanzio@nbcuni.com or follow @VinceLattanzio on Twitter.
