HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Two Pennsylvania government officials have resigned in recent days amid allegations by women of misconduct in the workplace. They are state Fire Commissioner Tim Solobay and Senate security chief Justin Ferrante. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf says Solobay stepped down Sunday. His resignation was first reported by Pennlive.com. It reports Solobay quit after it tried to contact him for a story on a 2011 complaint that he slapped a female Senate aide on her rear-end when he was a state senator.
Solobay declined comment but says he’s hiring a lawyer. Wolf isn’t saying whether he asked Solobay to resign. Senate officials say Ferrante resigned Friday amid an investigation into a workplace harassment complaint first reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Ferrante declined comment to the newspapers, which report complaints came from two female subordinates.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania state government agencies fielded 339 reports of alleged sexual harassment over a recent five-year period. Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration on Tuesday provided the data to The Associated Press in response to a Right-to-Know Law request. The Corrections Department says it had 91 sexual harassment reports over the five years that ended June 30. The Human Services Department had 58 reports, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board had 60 and the state police 34 over that same period.
The administration produced the figures but didn’t provide any details about the reports. It is still collecting information about sexual harassment lawsuits and settlements. Records show all three branches of state government have settled sexual misconduct allegations in recent years, including claims for unwelcome touching, kissing and lascivious comments.
EASTON, Pa. (AP) — A grand jury says Pennsylvania State Police should stop investigating shootings by its own troopers to ensure the probes are transparent and “free from potential bias or conflicts of interest.” The grand jury’s report was released Tuesday. A prosecutor sought the grand jury after state police, citing longtime policy, refused to allow county detectives to take the lead on a probe of a fatal shooting by troopers near Easton.
The panel says state police brass “have a somewhat arrogant opinion” of PSP’s “superiority” over other law enforcement agencies, contributing to the agency’s insistence on handling trooper shooting probes internally. The grand jury says state police shootings should instead be investigated by outside law enforcement. State police spokesman Ryan Tarkowski says the agency remains confident in its procedures but will review the grand jury’s report.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Pennsylvania Rep. Bill Shuster (R-9th, Hollidaysburg, Blair Co. Pa.), the powerful Republican chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, says he won’t run for re-election. Shuster says he wants to focus his time and energy on working with President Donald Trump on legislation to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to build roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
He said in a statement that he’ll spend his final year in office “focusing 100 percent on working with President Trump and my Republican and Democratic colleagues in both chambers to pass a much needed infrastructure bill to rebuild America.” Shuster was bound to leave the powerful position at the end of this term anyway because of GOP rules limiting him to six years as chairman of the committee. His central Pennsylvania district is safely Republican.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A Pittsburgh police officer accused of shackling and handcuffing a woman in his home after she poked him repeatedly in the belly faces a charge of false imprisonment. Court records indicate Rachmiel Gallman told the woman on New Year’s Eve to stop poking him or he’d put her in handcuffs. They say the woman called 911 after he wouldn’t release her from the handcuffs and leg shackles.
The encounter began with the woman and her son wrestling and tickling each other as Gallman watched and laughed. Police say an internal investigation is underway. Gallman doesn’t appear to have a lawyer in court records. A message left at a phone number linked to him hasn’t been returned. Gallman has been released on nonmonetary bail.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (AP) — Jim Tarman, a former athletic director at Penn State who led many of the school’s sports teams to national recognition, has died. He was 89. The university says he died Sunday in State College. Tarman joined Penn State as sports publicity director in 1958. In 1982, he was promoted to director of athletics. He held the position until his retirement in 1993.
The college won six national championships in football, lacrosse and fencing under Tarman. He is also credited with overseeing the school’s move into the Big Ten Conference. Tarman is survived by his wife, two sons and a grandchild. His funeral will be at 11 a.m. Friday at Grace Lutheran Church in State College.
Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Features
LOS ANGELES (AP) — It was a race against the cluck as California Highway Patrol officers scrambled to rescue nearly 20 chickens that ran through highway lanes near Los Angeles. The agency says the birds blocked a portion of Interstate 605 in the Norwalk area Tuesday morning after their cage fell from the back of a truck.
The agency tweeted photos and video of the chickens on the highway and a motorcycle officer collecting them.
Officers managed to rescue 17 birds. Two died. One tweet asked: “why DID the chickens cross the road? Because they obviously did not want to become ‘fast food’ on an LA area freeway, of course!” The driver transporting the chickens was unaware that the birds fell off the truck and did not stop.
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian Armed Forces has unveiled its latest cutting-edge weapon in a New Year greetings video: cuddly puppies. After a year of showing off its military might in Syria, the Defense Ministry has taken a softer approach. The one-minute video shows dozens of puppies sharing food and cuddling with each other. Older dogs are shown playing with unidentified officers.
Over 3,000 dogs are employed in the Russian armed forces. Dogs from the 470th Dog Breeding Center outside Moscow are among the most decorated in Russia. The center won an international competition last summer against the canine forces of Belarus, Egypt, Iran and Uzbekistan.
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. (AP) — About 70 people at a Christmas-themed lingerie party have been arrested and charged with marijuana possession in Georgia. News outlets report Cartersville police said in a release that officers responded to a suburban home about 40 miles from Atlanta early Sunday morning. Partygoers told police the loud sounds were fireworks, not gunshots.
The Cartersville Daily Tribune reports that police found evidence of drugs and started an investigation. It’s not clear how much pot police found, but at least 63 people were charged with possession of less than 1 ounce (28 grams). A flyer obtained by WXIA-TV described the event as a “Christmas lingerie/pajama party” celebrating a 21st birthday. Lt. M.E. Bettikofer with Cartersville police says the investigation is ongoing.
Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
