AP PA Headlines 4/8/20
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania has smashed its single-day high for reported coronavirus-related deaths, recording 78 more fatalities. The count boosted the statewide death toll to 240, although the secretary of health, Dr. Rachel Levine, said at least some of the deaths occurred over the weekend. The Department of Health also confirmed Tuesday that the state has nearly 1,600 more cases of COVID-19. That raised the statewide total to more than 14,550 cases.
Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission opened trout season two weeks early to avoid crowding on the traditional opening day.
Chester County launched a plan to test thousands of essential workers for coronavirus-fighting antibodies in their blood.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A federal judge has rejected a bid by the suspect in the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting to have the death penalty removed as a potential sentencing option. Lawyers for Robert Bowers argued that capital punishment is unconstitutional. Senior District Judge Donetta W. Ambrose says in rulings Monday that courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty. Bowers is charged with killing 11 congregants at the Tree of Life synagogue in 2018. He has pleaded not guilty. No trial date has been set.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — As officials consider releasing as many as 1,500 inmates to lessen the impact of COVID-19 on Pennsylvania prisons, county prosecutors are urging lawmakers to pass legislation so those decisions aren’t left to the governor alone. The Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association says it considers “a temporary, legislative solution” to be reasonable. The corrections secretary told lawmakers that if acceptable legislation doesn’t pass this week, he’ll recommend that Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf use reprieves to thin the inmate population. So far, four inmates at the State Correctional Institution-Phoenix outside Philadelphia and 11 corrections employees at scattered sites have confirmed cases of COVID-19.
HARRISBURG, Penn. (AP) — A Pennsylvania state Superior Court panel has ordered a new trial for a man convicted for the murder of a woman in 1979. The Harrisburg Patriot-News reports that the attorney for Gregory Hopkins failed to prevent expert witness testimony that was not generally accepted in the forensic community, Judge Victor Stabile found Monday in overturning the murder conviction. Pathologist Cyril Wecht testified in the 2013 trial that semen linked to Hopkins was deposited in the sheets of the victim, Janet Walsh, at the time of her killing. It is impossible to determine when DNA is deposited on any surface, Stabile noted..
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Features
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s removal of a watchdog tasked with overseeing how his administration spends the $2.2 trillion coronavirus rescue package is his latest challenge of an inspector general community asked to be impartial, above politics and independent of the White House. Trump has fired one inspector general tied to his impeachment, castigated another he felt was overly critical of the coronavirus response and sidelined a third meant to safeguard against wasteful spending of funds for businesses and people in economic distress. The actions have sent shock waves across the close-knit network of watchdog officials in the government.
NEW YORK (AP) — A pair of TV shows that aired season finales picked up a big slice of the ratings pie — a pie made bigger by the growing number of people homebound because of the coronavirus. The series finale of “Hawaii Five-0” aired on CBS last week — and was seen by 40% more viewers than the week before, according to the Nielsen ratings. ABC’s “The Good Doctor” saw a similar season-end boost. It returns to the ABC lineup next season. Overall, Nielsen reports that most primetime shows did better last week than before the quarantine period.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Often when a White House press secretary leaves his or her job, the reporters he or she briefed during their tenure would have a little something to send them off. That wasn’t so when Stephanie Grisham departed as President Donald Trump’s press secretary. The reason was practicality, not politics. In her eight-month stint as the public face of the White House, Grisham didn’t hold a single news briefing, while her predecessors in previous administrations would usually have daily briefings. Replacing her is Kayleigh McEnany, a top Trump campaign spokeswoman. She will be Trump’s fourth press secretary in his three years-plus in office.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves has declared April as Confederate Heritage Month. The Mississippi chapter of Sons of Confederate Veterans recently posted Reeves’s proclamation on its Facebook page. Reeves’s proclamation is not dated, so it was not immediately clear whether he signed it before late March, when the governor started spending much of his time on the state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Mississippi is the last state with a flag that prominently features the Confederate battle emblem. The state has used the same flag since 1894, and people who voted in a 2001 statewide election chose to keep the emblem.
UNDATED (AP) — Augusta, Georgia. Omaha, Nebraska. Louisville, Kentucky. Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The cities aren’t even the biggest ones in their states. But each year, they get national attention because of the sporting events they host. Augusta is home to the Masters golf tournament, Omaha hosts the College World Series, Louisville is home to the Kentucky Derby — and Williamsport is where the Little League World Series dominates late summer. But that’s all changed with the coronavirus pandemic. The Masters would be this week — but it’s pushed back until November while the Kentucky Derby, which is usually in May, will be Labor Day weekend. The College World Series has been canceled — and if the lockdown continues much longer, the Little League title series will likely suffer the same fate.
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