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Blair County lacks potential prison ground site environmental reports

HOLLIDAYSBURG — The Blair County commissioners office has no copies of environmental reports for the Duncansville area land where a new county prison could be built, Commissioner Amy Webster said Thursday. While commissioners reported in late May that environmental reviews of the wooded ...

Bill would revise sentencing for second-degree murder

The state Senate advanced legislation Thursday to reform the way defendants are sentenced for second-degree murder convictions. Individuals convicted of second-degree murder are typically conspirators found to have broken other laws while participating in a crime that resulted in a victim being killed. The classic example of this is the getaway driver who is directly involved in the crime itself, though prosecutors at the Capitol on Thursday said most individuals convicted of second-degree murder are responsible for the victim’s death in the crime that led to the defendant’s arrest ...

Enrollment, achievement dropping at public schools

At 1.5 million, fewer students today attend Pennsylvania’s public schools than in 2019 by roughly 5%. That figure climbs to 18% when analyzing enrollment figures since 2000, as the Commonwealth Foundation did in its latest report on public education funding, using state data. The raw data ...

Logan Township supervisors urge fireworks restraint

Members of the Logan Township Board of Supervisors Thursday advised residents to use fireworks around the Fourth of July legally and courteously. Township code prohibits setting off fireworks between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m.; within 150 feet of a building that’s typically occupied; on any ...

James E. Van Zandt VA Medical Center to host housing rights event

The Van Zandt VA Medical Center, in collaboration with the Fair Housing Law Center and Summit Legal Aid, will host an educational event aimed at empowering veterans and their caregivers with the latest information on housing rights and protections under the Fair Housing Act. The event will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday, June 29, at the Van Zandt VA Medical Center, second floor mini auditorium, 2907 Pleasant Valley Blvd., Altoona. The Fair Housing Act makes housing discrimination illegal. Laws protecting the right to fair and equal housing change frequently — this event ...