Today's News- Thursday, January 22, 2009

Rear end accident on Gordon Nagle Trail

Two people escaped injury in a crash on the Gordon Nagle Trail Wednesday night. 73 year old Patrick Gibbons was traveling north on Route 901, trailing several other vehicles. State police say he sneezed and took his eyes off the road. The vehicle ahead of him, driven by 48 year old William Hoy had stopped, and Gibbons was unable to stop in time, rear ending him. The crash happened before 7pm.

Shift in positions at courthouse

A staff member in Schuylkill County's human resource department is being shifted to a new position. At Wednesday's meeting, Martina Chawastiak was appointed to the newly created job of risk manager. The position is being created to cut down on worker's compensation claims. The work she did in the HR department will be assumed by others in that department, according to the Republican and Herald. Last year, the county had to shift $70-thousand dollars to cover worker's comp claims. The move was passed by a 3 to 1 vote, with County Controller Melinda Kantner voting no.

Argall opens campaign office

State Representative Dave Argall, the Republican candidate for the 29th Senatorial District seat held by the late Senator Jim Rhoades, opened his campaign office Wednesday night.
WPPA/T102 News Reporter Kerry Dowd has more from Tamaqua:

DOWD

Argall will be a guest on Step Up to The Mic on Thursday, January 29th.

Building collapses in Shamokin

SHAMOKIN - Three workers escaped injury when a building collapsed in Northumberland County, Wednesday. Emergency crews were called to the corner of Independence and Rock Streets in Shamokin just after 11 Wednesday morning for the structural collapse. The new Knights of Columbus building, which was under construction, collapsed as workers were putting the trusses on the new building. Workers at the pharmacy across the street saw the building collapse and called 9-1-1. Construction on the project will continue despite yesterday's mishap.

Tuesday morning break in at Ashland restaurant investigated

Police in Ashland are looking for the burglars who broke into a borough restaurant. Sometime early Tuesday, Devito's Restaurant on Centre Street was entered and the thieves took money from the cash register. They gained access through a back door. The investigation as to who did it is continuing.

Pa. man considered bank error 'a gift from God'

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania man says when a bank error put more than $177,000 in his and his wife's account he considered it divine providence. Fifty-year-old Randy Pratt and 36-year-old Melissa Pratt waived a preliminary hearing Wednesday. They face trial in Columbia County Court on felony theft and conspiracy charges. The trouble started when a $1,772.50 deposit in the Pratts' FNB Bank account showed up as $177,250 last summer. Police say they withdrew the money and fled to Florida. Randy Pratt told the Bloomsburg Press Enterprise he considered the money "a gift from God." He says the couple gave away thousands of dollars, including $25,000 to a church shelter for the homeless. Melissa Pratt is free on unsecured bail, and Randy Pratt is in county prison. District Judge Donna Coombe denied a request to lower his $100,000 bail.

Murtha: OK to send Gitmo prisoners to Pennsylvania

WASHINGTON (AP) - A western Pennsylvania congressman says he would have no qualms about transferring Guantanamo detainees to a prison in his district. Rep. John Murtha said so in an interview with Fox News. He is a Democrat who heads the House subcommittee that funds the military. An estimated 245 men are held at the U.S. naval base in Cuba. They are believed to be al-Qaida, Taliban or other foreign fighters who pose a threat to the United States. The Associated Press has learned that President Barack Obama plans to sign an executive order Thursday to close the Guantanamo prison within a year. The order would halt military trials of those held there. Murtha says he's encouraged by the president's proposal.

Pa. hospitals report fewer infected patients

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The number of Pennsylvania patients who contracted infections during their hospital stays declined by nearly 8 percent in 2007. That's according to a new state report that provides the first complete year-to-year comparison of infection rates. The Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council says the number of infected patients in 2007 accounted for 2 percent of the roughly 1.6 million patients whose cases were examined. It reflected an infection rate of 17.7 infections per 1,000 patients, down from 19.2 infections per 1,000 in 2006. Urinary tract infections were the most common in both years at Pennsylvania's 165 general hospitals. They are followed by gastrointestinal infections and cases involving more than one kind of infection.

2 Pa. health insurers end merger effort

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Joel Ario says he was planning to reject a proposed merger of the state's two largest health insurers. He says the decision by Highmark and Independence Blue Cross to withdraw the application makes things easier. Ario said that in a written statement released after the companies said they were scrapping the plan to merge because it was clear the state wouldn't approve it. He didn't elaborate on his reasons for stopping the consolidation, but said he planned to discuss them at a news conference Thursday.

Ailing Pa. casino gets more of barred owner's cash

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - A member of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board says he doesn't like allowing Mount Airy Casino Resort owner Louis DeNaples to put $15 million into the business. Gary Sojka says he voted to do so because denying permission could put 900 people out of work at the Pocono Mountains resort and dry up a revenue stream for the state. DeNaples is charged with perjury, accused of lying about his alleged ties to organized crime figures to get a casino license. He's banned from the casino in the meantime. The trustee appointed to run the casino in his absence says the $15 million comes from other businesses DeNaples owns. Sojka says he's worried because the gaming board's investigators haven't confirmed that.

Memorial to President's Home in Pa. gets new funds

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter says he's asked President Barack Obama to visit the Philadelphia site where George Washington and his slaves lived.
A memorial is now set to open late next year on the spot near Independence Hall. Nutter's predecessor, John Street, says the memorial has even greater significance now that the nation has a black president. Street and Nutter are also black. They spoke along with Gov. Ed Rendell, who says he's asked the Delaware River Port Authority to kick in $3.5 million in economic development funds for the $8.4 million project. Rendell is chaIrman of the bistate agency and says he considers the grant a wise use of agency funds. A decision by the DRPA is expected Friday.

Pa. reform backer Stilp pays $500 ethics fine

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Political activist Gene Stilp says he wanted to avoid a lengthy and expensive legal battle over a State thics Commission complaint against him. He says he paid a $500 fine to settle it. The law bans disclosure of any information about matters that "are before the commission." Stilp says he told reporters about his complaint -- but he didn't break the law because the complaint hadn't been filed yet. He says his complaint asked the commission to investigate then-House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese or someone from DeWeese's office over publicly funded opinion polling. There's no word on who filed the complaint against Stilp. DeWeese spokesman Tom Andrews offered no immediate comment.

Tyco Electronics cutting 2,500 from North America

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Tyco Electronics Ltd. is slashing 2,500 jobs in North America and closing two plants in southcentral Pennsylvania. The company announced the cuts Wednesday, saying it is seeing reduced demand for its electrical components and telecommunications equipment. Jobs will be eliminated from many Tyco plants across the country, although a Tyco spokesman says the company is not disclosing specific job cuts by plant or region. The two Pennsylvania plants to be closed are in Carlisle and Emigsville. Both make electronic connectors. That work will transfer to Tyco plants in Greensboro, N.C., and Rock Hill, S.C. Tyco also is closing a small plant near Ottawa, Canada.

Bar panel recommends 4 more judicial candidates

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania bar panel has given passing grades to four more prospective candidates for Pennsylvania's statewide appellate courts. The Judicial Evaluation Commission gave its top "highly recommended" rating to two judges who are eying seats on the state Supreme Court. They are Superior Court Judge Joan Orie Melvin and Philadelphia Judge Paul Panepinto. Another Philadelphia judge, Paula Patrick, received a second-tier "recommended" rating for Superior Court. Allegheny County lawyer Michael Sherman received a recommended rating for Commonwealth Court.

W.Pa. man charged with killing sister-in-law's child

UNIONTOWN, Pa. (AP) - Police say a western Pennsylvania man who mistakenly believed he impregnated his sister-in-law is charged with killing the newborn by throwing the baby into a creek more than eight years ago. Wednesday's arrest of 33-year-old Warren Bircher, of Adah, comes nearly two months after police charged his sister-in-law in the child's death. State police in Uniontown say Bircher was overheard saying that someone was pregnant and he was going to put the child in a bag and drown it like he does with animals because he couldn't afford another child. Authorities say after 25-year-old Sarah Hawk gave birth in the summer of 2000, Bircher put the newborn girl in a plastic bag and tossed it into a creek. Bircher and Hawk are charged with homicide and concealing the death of a child.

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama starts Day Two with a private meeting on the nation's battered economy. Obama's plan to award a $500 tax credit to most workers is expected to advance through a key House panel as Democrats prepare his $825 billion
economic recovery plan for a floor vote next week.

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama is expected to fulfill some of his campaign promises today. A senior Obama administration official says the president plans to sign an executive order to shut down Guantanamo within a year. It's one of three orders expected on how to interrogate and prosecute terror suspects.

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Caroline Kennedy has ended her quest for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton in New York. Kennedy's decision has boosted the chances of several other candidates, including Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who surpassed Kennedy in statewide polls last week.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistani security officials say U.S. intelligence agents looked on as Pakistani police arrested an al-Qaida suspect believed to be linked to the 2005 London transit bombings. The officials say an unmanned spy plane and three helicopters hovered over the area during the raid on a house on the outskirts of Peshawar.

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - Authorities are charging a graduate student from China in the fatal stabbing of a woman on Virginia Tech's campus. An electronic alert system, which was updated after the campus' massacre, warned students to stay put while police investigated the killing.