A man confessed to swiping seat covers from several school buses, said police in Chester County, Pennsylvania.
New Garden Township Police officers responded to four separate theft and vandalism incidents at Kennett Middle School along Sunnydell Road in Landenberg. The first incident was on Aug. 3.
Early Saturday, an officer saw an unattended car parked near the Krapf buses outside the middle school. The officer then saw Matthew Schnelle walking between two buses, said police.
The 22-year-old West Grove resident couldn’t explain why he was at the bus yard, said police. The officer arrested Schnelle after seeing several seat covers in plain sight inside Schnelle’s car. Investigators also found tools used to vandalize the buses, police said.
When questioned, Schnelle admitted to some of the thefts. Police charged him with 13 counts of theft, and 14 counts of receiving stolen property as well as institutional vandalism, criminal trespass and possessing an instrument of crime.
A man indecently assaulted a girl waiting in line for a ride at New Jersey’s Six Flags Great Adventure, said Ocean County prosecutors.
A 13-year-old girl and witnesses told investigators that a 21-year-old man, identified as Ronnie Lacy of New York City, inappropriately touched her from behind as she waited for the Batman ride on Aug. 30, said detectives.
Lacy, was charged with criminal sexual contact and child endangerment and send to county jail unable to post $100,000 bail. A judge also ordered that he have no contact with the victim.
No word if Lacy has a lawyer.
The leader of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia on Tuesday attacked Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump's call for ending automatic citizenship for children born to immigrants living illegally in the U.S., saying the idea "plays on our worst fears and resentments."
"Some in public life — notably, but not only, Donald Trump — have called for an end to birthright citizenship," Archbishop Charles Chaput said in remarks prepared for a church forum that was part of the run-up of activities to a visit later this month by Pope Francis. "This is a profoundly bad idea."
The archbishop said he hoped immigration would be a key part of the discussions during the Vatican-sponsored World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia and the pope's appearance during the closing weekend.
The pope has decried what he has called the "inhuman" conditions facing migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, and encouraged frontier communities to not judge people by stereotypes but rather welcome migrants and work to end discrimination.
Without at first mentioning Trump by name, Chaput began his remarks by declaring: "At least one of our presidential candidates has already made the national immigration debate ugly with a great deal of belligerent bombast."
Trump has proposed the mass deportation of millions of immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, as well as their American-born children. He also supports building a wall along the border.
"They're illegal," he said of the children.
U.S.-born children of all immigrants, including those living in the U.S. illegally, have been automatically considered American citizens since the adoption of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment in 1868. Repeal of the citizenship clause would require the votes of two-thirds of both houses of Congress and support from three-fourths of the nation's state legislatures. Some conservatives, however, believe that the granting of citizenship to children of immigrants in the U.S. illegally could be changed without amending the Constitution.
Chaput, whose archdiocese has about 1.4 million parishioners, urged Congress to give those living in the U.S. illegally "an honest, attainable chance at citizenship."
He also said the nation should stop detaining young mothers with children who are fleeing violence in Central America.
"These families pose no threat to anyone," he said. "Detaining them is inhumane."
Birthright citizenship is not only a constitutional right, it also ensures that children don't become stateless or part of a chronic underclass, he said.
Of Trump's call to end it, he said: "It plays on our worst fears and resentments. And it undermines one of the pillars of the American founding and national identity."
He also directed some criticism at the Democratic administration, noting the deportation rate had hit a record under President Barack Obama.
"This brutally affects immigrant families — especially those with children who are U.S. citizens," he said.
A Montgomery County woman raised thousands of dollars to help a man battling advanced-stage pancreatic cancer.
One problem, Traci Small Kratzer never gave most of the money to Jay Henson, said county prosecutors.
“Help Jay Henson (Deven Eberz husband) beat Cancer!!!!” said the YouCaring page that Montco District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said Kratzer created after Henson, of Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, was diagnosed with cancer about nine months ago.
Henson’s wife Deven said they never asked Kratzer -- who knew the family -- to set up the page and that when she asked Kratzer about the money she would give excuses before she eventually cut two checks for $970 each to the family.
Investigators uncovered that 90 different donations totaling $10,221.68 were deposited into Kratzer’s Wepay page via the YouCaring page from May 17 to July 15. Investigators said that she used the more than $8,000 difference to buy items at McDonald’s, Target, Toys’R’Us, Rite Aid and Sunoco until the account went into the negative.
More than 20 of the donors told investigators that they never gave permission for the money to be used for anything besides the Henson family -- the couple has 4- and 7-year-old daughters, said investigators.
Kratzer, 39, of East Norriton, was arraigned Tuesday on theft charges, according to court documents. Prosecutors planned to seek restitution for Jay and his family.
"You can't give up, you can't," said Jay.
Anyone who wants to help Henson’s cancer fight can click here to give money via MyJayBird.com. The site, started by Henson’s sister-in-law, has already raised $5,000 for the family.
"I can't even begin to thank them enough," said Jay.
Two parents and their two young sons died after being found in a second-floor bedroom by firefighters who had responded to the home after getting 911 calls about a blaze that someone had apparently set in the home, authorities say.
Prosecutors say the couple, 29-year-old Amanda Morris and 35-year-old Lyndon Shane Beharry, and their two sons, ages 4 and 7, were pronounced dead after the flames at their home on Joline Avenue in Long Branch were extinguished late Tuesday.
Authorities say that all four were found in the same second-floor bedroom and all fire damage was confined to the second floor. The fire doesn't appear to be accidental because several blazes had been set throughout the home, authorities said. After the family was discovered, investigators found that all four people had injuries that appeared to be unrelated to the fire, officials say.
Authorities say it's not clear who started the fire, nor was it known whether the family died from the flames or from the other injuries. Investigators added they are not ruling out murder-suicide as a potential cause for the deaths. A neighbor said the husband and wife had a major argument Tuesday night, though the nature of that argument wasn't clear.
A medical examiner will determine how the family of four died.
Police officers were the first to respond to the scene, but heavy smoke and flames kept them from entering the home.
"They heard that people may be up there, so they tried to get into the house and do whatever they could for the people who were there," said Jason Roebuck, Long Branch's director of public safety.
No other injuries were reported and there was no damage to other homes.
Prosecutors say that Lyndon Beharry is a 16-year veteran of the Long Branch Department of Public Works.
"He was an excellent mechanic and a very good-natured person," department director Fred Migliaccio told the Asbury Park Press.
Several employees were tied up during the armed robbery of a dollar store in Philadelphia late Tuesday night.
The incident happened about 11 p.m. at the Family Dollar store located in the 5800 block of Woodland Avenue.
According to investigators, two armed suspects entered the store and tied up several employees.
The suspects stole an unknown amount of cash before running out of the store.
The employees were not physically injured.
The suspects remain on the loose.
One person was killed and a second was injured during a wild shootout on a busy street in Philadelphia Tuesday night.
The chaotic scene happened about 10:30 p.m. at the intersection of 62nd and Market Streets in West Philadelphia.
According to investigators, 21 shots were fired and three different guns were used during the shootout.
A 25-year-old male was shot in the chest and died.
A 36-year-old male was shot in the hip and is in stable condition.
There were no other injuries.
Police are searching for two suspects.
Investigators said they will review footage on several surveillance cameras attached to businesses in the area.
The deadly shooting remains under investigation.
An alternative is now available for those looking to travel from New Jersey into Philadelphia while Pope Francis is in town.
One of the options is to walk across the Ben Franklin Bridge, which is closed to cars.
However, there is another option and its adding service that weekend: The RiverLink Ferry.
The RiverLink Ferry will run from Friday, September 25, through Monday, September 28, with extended hours on Saturday and Sunday from 7:30 a.m. -midnight.
All tickets will be sold online.
Representatives with the RiverLink Ferry are encouraging patrons to arrive one hour before their scheduled departure time. Delays are also expected.
The fare is $7 each direction for adults and children, with no refunds available.
For more information, including the schedule and how to buy tickets, simply click on this link.
Philadelphia police are searching for several teen suspects wanted for armed robberies targeting taxi drivers.
The robberies happened between August 23 and August 26.
In two of the incidents, the suspects threatened the taxi drivers with a gun and demanded money.
In the first incident, the suspects were picked at 16th and Sansom Streets and dropped off in the 1500 block of Deal Street. In the second robbery, the suspects were picked up at 12th and Race Streets and dropped off again on Deal Street.
In the most recent incident, a 50-year-old male cab driver picked up a customer and dropped him off at an empty lot in the 4200 block of Orchard Street. The cab driver was approached from behind by two suspects. One of the suspects struck the victim in the back of his head with a handgun.
The suspects took the victim’s wallet, which contained $100, before running away.
All three robberies have involved a gun and the same description of all three suspects. All the suspects are believed to be in their teens.
Anyone with information is urged to contact police.
USA Today has named the Schuylkill River Trail the nation's best urban trail and local lawmakers and environmental officials celebrated the award Wednesday morning on the Schuylkill Banks Boardwalk.
The event was held at 10:30 a.m. and lasted about an hour.
Twenty trails were nominated for USA Today's 10 Best Readers' Choice Award for Best Urban Trail. Readers voted for their favorite and the Schuylkill River Trail came out on top.
The trail, which covers almost 130 miles over five counties, is known for its reputation as a local amenity as well as a tourist attraction with excellent views of downtown Philadelphia, according to a press release.
Representatives from each of the five counties covered by the trail participated in a flag unfurling.
Pennsylvania State Rep. David Maloney rode his bike all the way from Berks County to arrive at the event.
Shake Shack provided free custard at the event, according to a press release.
The Philadelphia Phillies are looking for a few good women. Fans can start applying now to be a 2016 Phillies Ballgirl today.
According to the official description of The Phillies Ballgirls, they are ambassadors for the Phillies both on and off the field. They represent educated, athletic and energetic women who hope to serve as role models in professional sports for young girls.
Applications are open until September 28.
According to the team, applicants must be at least 18 years old and have softball experience and knowledge of the game of baseball.
Interested fans can send a resume and a two-minute video demonstrating your softball skills and explaining why you would make a great Phillies Ballgirl to: Phillies, Citizens Bank Park, One Citizens Bank Way, Philadelphia, PA 19148 or online to ballgirls@phillies.com.
