State briefs
Rating upgraded PITTSBURGH (AP) – New tax revenues and a five-year spending plan prompted Fitch Ratings to upgrade Pittsburgh’s bond rating from BB to BBB, the agency reported.
Fitch Ratings also changed the city’s rating outlook from negative to stable. The move affects about $876 million of Pittsburgh’s general obligation bonds, the agency said Monday.
The improved rating could mean better terms on loans, should they be needed.
The upgrade was influenced by the City Council’s approval of the 2005 budget, which is a part of a five-year spending plan. The Legislature also approved new tax revenues for the city, the investment-rating service said.
Fitch Ratings warned, however, that Pittsburgh’s debt burden remained high and its pension funds remained underfunded.
Mother sentenced
INDIANA, Pa. (AP) – A woman accused of administering near-lethal doses of an antihistamine and a pain reliever to her then-4-year-old son was sentenced Monday to 111/2 to 23 months in prison.
Catherine Irene Gerlesky, 32, of Indiana, in November pleaded guilty but mentally ill to one count of aggravated assault. Prosecutors dropped seven other charges, including endangering the welfare of a child.
Prosecutors alleged that Gerlesky, a single mother of three children, intentionally poisoned her son in June 2003 with Benadryl and then with Tylenol as he was recovering in a hospital. The boy recovered, police said.
Christine Martone, the director of the Allegheny County Behavior Clinic, said Gerlesky has an IQ of 65 and was unable to understand the seriousness of her actions. Gerlesky was also ordered to serve two years probation and pay nearly $600 in fines and court costs.
Jail time issued
LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) – The former superintendent of the Lancaster public schools was sentenced to two years in federal prison for improperly putting a friend and three relatives on the district’s payroll.
Ricardo Curry, 44, also was ordered to pay $59,500 in restitution to district taxpayers. He pleaded guilty in September to mail fraud.
“I am not a criminal,” Curry said Monday before his sentencing by U.S. District Judge Lawrence Stengel in Philadelphia. “My decisions were poor, but I am not a criminal. I thought I could help people in this way, albeit illegally.”
Prosecutors said Curry hired his sister, wife, brother-in-law and friend as district consultants for a total of $59,500. They did little or no work, and Curry received at least $3,000 in kickbacks.
“It has created chaos and a great deal of loss of everything that should have been devoted to children,” current superintendent Rita Bishop said in court.
Suspect found guilty
BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) – A 36-year-old man was found guilty of more than 500 counts of child abuse against one victim.
A jury last week found Raymond E. Haun, of State College, guilty of 520 counts of indecent assault and one count each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, endangering the welfare of children and corruption of minors.
The victim said Haun made her touch him inappropriately at least four times a week from 1994 until 1996. The now-teenage victim also told police that Haun forced her to perform sex acts on him during that period, when she was between 7 and 9 years old.
Haun’s lawyer, Bruce Manchester, was not available for comment Monday.
A relative of the victim said the girl was happy with the verdict and was glad that the ordeal was over.
Guns stolen
WESTFIELD, Pa. (AP) – More than 100 handguns and four civilian assault rifles were stolen in a burglary at a Tioga County sporting goods store, police said.
Police said that the weekend burglary of Ackley and Son Inc. appeared to be the work of professional thieves, who disarmed an alarm system and pried open the front door with a special tool.
The break-in occurred between 9:30 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday, Sgt. David Earle said.
State police and agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were assisting in the investigation.
Store owner Jeff Treadwell said the serial numbers of all the guns were recorded and ATF agents were working with his employees to determine what was taken.
“I’m still not sure what all is missing,” he said, noting that a small amount of cash also was taken.
Worker wins award
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – A construction worker was awarded nearly $750,000 for injuries he suffered in a 1996 construction accident on the state Department of Transportation building.
A Dauphin County jury on Friday found that Barry R. Morder’s employer, Professional Aerials Inc. (PRO AER) of McConnelsburg, was negligent in the April 1996 accident and awarded Morder and his wife $748,263 in damages.
Morder and Herschel A. Dutton were working on a platform when the lift holding it moved suddenly and crushed them against steel beams. Dutton died and Morder is still recuperating from his injuries.
PRO AER had previously reached an out-of-court settlement with Dutton’s wife.
Orris C. Knepp III, Morder’s attorney, said it was never determined exactly what caused the lift to malfunction because the machine’s original basket and control panel had been thrown away.
C. Kent Price, the attorney for PRO AER, could not be reached for comment.
Members quit
ANNVILLE, Pa. (AP) – All five members of the Annville Township Sewer Authority have quit en masse.
Authority chairman Jesse Shenk and members Owen Moe, Karl Brown, Raymond Swingholm and David Horn, resigned last week.
Shenk, who served on the authority 30 years, quit after the commissioners did not second a motion at their Jan. 3 meeting to reappoint him to a five-year term. In his resignation letter, he stated that he believes the issue stems from a conflict with one of the commissioners.
Commissioner Hugh Rooney said he decided not to vote for Shenk’s reappointment after Shenk disapproved of his offer to assist in sewer negotiations with South Annville Township.
The other members quit in support of Shenk, saying he has worked to improve the operations of the local sewage treatment plant and has been a credit to the community.
Challenge approved
CARLISLE, Pa. (AP) – The father of a 4-year-old boy who starved to death can challenge his conviction, a Cumberland County judge ruled Monday.
The ruling means Anthony Thomas, 33, can ask the state Superior Court to overturn his convictions of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault and child endangerment in the death of his son, Quincy Thomas.
Last week, the Superior Court dismissed an appeal by Thomas’ wife, Shenique, 29.
Both Thomases are serving 5- to 10-year prison terms.
Quincy weighed just 20 pounds when he died in 2002 at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, and mattress stuffing and building insulation were found in his digestive tract, prosecutors said.
Suspect charged
READING, Pa. (AP) – A Reading man was charged Monday with trying to hire a hit man to kill 16 people including relatives, a state trooper and Schuylkill County District Attorney Frank R. Cori.
Forrest Vincent Pawling Jr., 59, was charged with 16 counts of solicitation to commit criminal homicide and related counts.
He was arraigned and returned to Schuylkill County Prison, where he is serving a six- to 23-month sentence for indecent assault of a six-year-old girl.
Police said in court documents that Pawling November 2003 sought out, through a cellmate, a hit man to “get rid of” those involved in the case against him. The inmate told authorities, and a trooper posing as a hit man contacted Pawling.
Pawling’s list included his brother, David; his wife, Mary Ann, of Deer Lake; her four children and two grandchildren; and James and Theresa Heister of New Ringgold and their five children. He wanted the homes torched so he could collect insurance money, police said.
Pawling also wanted Cori and Trooper Thomas Robin killed but he asked the “hit man” to spare his dog, Reggie, police said.
Damage remains
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) – More than four months since the remnants of Hurricane Ivan swept through the region, the flood damage is still clear on the 60-mile Delaware Canal State Park.
Much of the historic canal, which runs from Easton to Bristol, remains dry, and miles of formerly hiker-friendly paths are still rubble.
Park manager Rick Dalton said that officials are waiting for approval of repair projects from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which will foot as much as 80 percent of the $9.2 million bill for the canal repairs.
Once FEMA approves, final design specifications will be prepared and the projects – 13 in all – will be sent out for bid, Dalton said.
However, the repairs are expected to take at least two to three years.