2008-08-13 00:44:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lebanon dump truck driver was charged Tuesday with causing the roadway death of a 73-year-old Bowmansville man and injuring his passenger.Shane Reichard, 31 of Elm Street, faces a felony charge of homicide by vehicle, misdemeanor reckless endangerment and three traffic violations, accord......
2008-08-12 01:28:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
The mishandling of a 911 call on the morning of a triple-murder in Manheim Township delayed police response time to the victims' home, officials said.Still, county officials say, a cleaner dispatch likely wouldn't have saved any of the three members of the Haines family or resulted......
2008-08-07 01:37:00
JEFF HAWKES, Staff
You might be on the fence about home rule, but I bet you're not on the fence about paying taxes.That's why a change the Government Study Commission made Tuesday to its proposed 27-page charter should grab the attention of undecided voters.If voters in November approve the ch......
2008-08-07 00:58:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Michael A. Roseboro's defense attorney lashed out at Lancaster County investigators Wednesday, claiming they rushed to charge an innocent man with the slaying of his wife.Allan L. Sodomsky, who represents the Denver funeral director, said investigators, led by Lancaster County District......
2008-08-06 01:07:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A city man convicted in May on eight counts of animal cruelty for cockfighting has been sentenced to up to a year in prison.Misael Torres Colon was sentenced Friday by Judge Margaret Miller to 6 months to a year in prison, 3 years' probation and 200 hours of community service and order......
2008-08-05 00:57:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Michael Roseboro was willing to do anything to be rid of his wife so he could marry his mistress, including killing her, investigators said Monday.Roseboro — arrested Saturday and charged with criminal homicide — had the motive and opportunity to kill Jan Roseboro, the mother o......
2008-08-01 01:02:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
It's been more than a week since Jan Roseboro was killed inside her Reinholds home July 22.As of Thursday evening, no arrests had been made in the slaying of the 45-year-old mother of four.Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman said that doesn't mean authorities ar......
2008-07-28 00:06:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
The Rev. Larry Hummer said he understands police have a job to do investigating the slaying of Jan Roseboro, 45, at her Reinholds home Tuesday.But the pastor of Faith United Lutheran Church in Denver, which Hummer said Jan Roseboro and her family have attended for the past 20 years, also r......
2008-07-17 00:43:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Washington Boro woman admitted in Lancaster County Court on Wednesday that she was drunk when she drove the wrong way on Route 30 and struck a car head-on, killing three men.Sarah L. Timblin, 23, pleaded guilty before President Judge Louis Farina to six felonies and a pair of misdemeanor......
2008-07-15 02:02:00
JENNIFER TODD and LAURA FREEMAN, Staff
A Lancaster County jury Monday convicted a 23-year-old man of first-degree murder for killing a woman inside the East Lampeter Township apartment they shared.Jurors deliberated for less than one hour before finding Pedro Fuentes Flores guilty of murdering 48-year-old Karen Crowley in May 2......
2008-07-14 00:23:00
DAVE PIDGEON, Staff
Patrick Meehan's time in the spotlight didn't last long. And that could be to his advantage.The U.S. attorney who oversees Pennsylvania's eastern district announced his resignation July 7, and immediately the political realm began chatting about the possibility of the Republica......
2008-07-12 01:43:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury watched a slide show Friday depicting the horrific homicide scene that Pedro Fuentes Flores allegedly left behind.Jurors also saw autopsy slides showing the wounds inflicted upon Karen Crowley, the woman prosecutors say Flores killed.Prosecutors presented the......
2008-07-11 01:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
After Pedro Fuentes Flores repeatedly stabbed Karen Crowley, making sure she was dead, he robbed her and burned her body, prosecutors said Thursday in Lancaster County Court.During his opening statement, Assistant District Attorney Christopher P. Larsen, who is seeking a first-degree murde......
2008-07-11 00:50:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
The attorney for triple-killer Alec D. Kreider has asked a judge to change his client's sentence from three terms of life in prison to be served consecutively to essentially one term of life in prison.Kreider, 17, of Manheim Township, pleaded guilty last month, admitting he killed Tom ......
2008-07-10 18:00:00
DAVE PIDGEON, Staff
Correction — The story below, posted on LancasterOnline Tuesday, about the resignation of U.S. Attorney Patrick L. Meehan incorrectly reported the results of Meehan's prosecution of Lancaster County builder Philip Garland. Garland pleade......
2008-07-09 02:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 15-year-old girl told a Lancaster County jury Tuesday that she endured multiple sexual encounters with a man more than 20 years her senior beginning when she was 11 years old.The accused — 35-year-old Joel Ortiz of Lancaster Township — is on trial this week on nine felony and......
2008-07-05 00:03:00
JANET KELLEY, Staff
Joseph P. Geesey was 22 and unemployed, with a wife and family to support, when he first walked into the Lancaster city police station looking for work."There was no message from God, I just needed a job," he said. "Plain and simple."The police hired him, trained......
2008-07-04 00:04:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A man accused of robbing a Lancaster city convenience store at gunpoint then fleeing in a stolen pickup truck was ordered this week to stand trail.Henry Medina-Cedeno and defense attorney Barrie Wellener waived a preliminary hearing at District Judge Mary Sponaugle's office Wednesday. ......
2008-07-03 01:15:00
LARRY ALEXANDER, Staff
When 14-year-old Evelyn Fisher of New Holland disappeared in 1981, law-enforcement officials were baffled.They were certain Gerald Zimmerman, 29, had murdered the girl, but they had not found a body.Then Lancaster County District Attorney Michael H. Ranck had an inspiration. He call......
2008-07-01 01:18:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A judge Monday sentenced a Lititz man to 4 months in prison for hitting a boy walking to school with his car last year and then speeding away to elude police.Dayton Lee Cassel, 21, has already served 28 days at Lancaster County Prison for the Oct. 24 hit-and-run at West Lemon and Mary stre......
2008-07-01 00:55:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County man with an extensive criminal record was sentenced Monday to 8 to 23 months in prison for his third fight with a police officer.County Judge Howard F. Knisely told Terry Graham the latest sentence is the defendant's last chance to have a "wake-up call" and......
2008-06-18 01:20:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
During the 35 days the murders of three Manheim Township family members went unsolved last year, speculation and theories about the case abounded.Tom and Lisa Haines and their 16-year-old son, Kevin, were stabbed to death in their bedrooms early one May morning.Initially, the killer......
2008-06-18 01:07:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A judge sentenced Alec Kreider to spend the rest of his days in state prison Tuesday after the 17-year-old admitted killing a Manheim Township couple and their teenage son.Kreider, a former Manheim Township High School student, pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder 13 month......
2008-06-17 00:37:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Warren Trent was convicted Monday of first-degree murder for killing his ex-girlfriend in 2004, despite defense arguments that he was insane when he shot 34-year-old Amy Matz.A Lancaster County jury returned their guilty verdict at 1:45 p.m. — after about three hours of deliberation.......
2008-06-14 00:58:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Accused killer Warren Trent testified at his murder trial Friday afternoon, often rambling in response to attorneys' questions during a bizarre 70-minute tirade on the stand.Trent, 51, is charged with first-degree murder for killing his ex-girlfriend, 34-year-old Amy Matz, in his Caern......
2008-06-13 01:32:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County judge ruled this week that evidence against accused killer Pedro Fuentes Flores — including the suspect's conversations with police about the death of Karen Crowley and the alleged murder weapon — will be allowed at the man's trial.Judge David L. Ashw......
2008-06-12 01:19:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Warren Trent's allegations that his ex-girlfriend poisoned him were rebutted Wednesday by several medical professionals who testified in Lancaster County Court.Trent, on trial this week on a homicide charge for the 2004 killing of Amy Matz, told investigators he was poisoned two days b......
2008-06-12 00:44:00
LARRY ALEXANDER, Staff
A home with a grim history has been given a new lease.The 1940s Colonial-revival stone house at 85 Peach Lane in Manheim Township, where Tom and Lisa Haines and their 16-year-old son, Kevin, were slain last year, has been sold.The house was sold May 29 for $248,000, according to Ran......
2008-06-11 01:58:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Accused killer Warren Trent dialed 911 shortly after he allegedly shot his ex-girlfriend, but refused dispatchers' repeated instructions to attempt to revive Amy Matz — who was gasping for life on a bedroom floor, according to testimony Tuesday.Prosecutors played the lengthy 911 ......
2008-06-06 02:41:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Seventeen-year-old Alec Kreider is scheduled to plead guilty this month to killing a Manheim Township family last year inside their home, according to court documents and Lancaster County's district attorney.Kreider, a former Manheim Township High School student, is charged with three coun......
2008-06-06 02:30:00
JENNIFER TODD, Staff
Kennel owners hope Thursday's educational seminar on dog-law compliance was the start of an improved relationship with animal-cruelty officials."Someone had to take the first step and, hopefully, this is the day," Michael Glass, of Chester County, said. "There are a lot ......
2008-06-05 02:09:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Testimony Wednesday at a pre-trial evidence-suppression hearing regarding a murder last year in East Lampeter Township detailed a "brutal" crime scene left behind by accused killer Pedro Fuentes Flores.Officer Lisa Gehr took the stand and spoke about investigators' initial co......
2008-06-05 02:04:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster woman who testified against two co-defendants in March was sentenced Wednesday to 6 to 12 years in state prison for her role in the 2006 killing of Shawn "Reds" Hutchinson.Rachel Rakita, 32, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and was sentenced by county Judge Denni......
2008-06-03 01:35:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Citing Todd Sheerer's "blatant and knowing disregard" for the law, a Lancaster County judge Monday tacked $1 million onto his bail after reproaching the former Warwick High School teacher for contacting the student he is accused of sexually exploiting.Judge Jeffery Wright inc......
2008-06-03 01:31:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Stevens man was sentenced Monday to 8½ to 30 years in state prison for numerous sexual assaults on a young female, including rape, beginning when the girl was 5 years old.A jury in March found Michael John Lawrence, 22, guilty of rape of a child and other offenses for the assaults......
2008-05-30 02:05:00
JOHN WALK, Staff
Hoping to purchase a variety of items this weekend but have time for only a one-stop shop?You might be in luck.The 18th annual Lancaster County Drug Task Force auction is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday in the Lancaster County park building at 950 Eshelman Mill Road.The......
2008-05-28 01:09:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Local detectives said they nabbed an "upper-level" heroin dealer this weekend who is accused of bringing drugs here from New York and Philadelphia.David R. Lausell, 35, of New Holland, was arrested after detectives stopped his vehicle early Saturday morning on Route 23 in East Ea......
2008-05-26 00:06:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County judge sentenced a young man Thursday to state prison for a gun crime that he said gives Lancaster city a "reputation" as an "unsafe place."Another young county resident was sentenced for having an illegal gun on an East Petersburg street.Judge ......
2008-05-24 01:10:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A York County judge ordered Wrightsville Mayor Steve Rambler immediately removed from office because of his 1996 felony extortion conviction.But whether Rambler will vacate office without a fight remains to be seen.Rambler could not be reached for comment Friday, but the York Dispat......
2008-05-23 02:02:00
STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
The "Smoketown Six," a group of protesters who were arrested after posing as thong-wearing Abu-Ghraib prisoners during a 2004 campaign stop in Lancaster County by President George W. Bush, have lost their appeal of a lawsuit lodged against state police.A panel of three federal ju......
2008-05-23 01:45:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster city man was sentenced Monday to 6 to 23 months in prison for committing more than a dozen car break-ins late last year.Lancaster County President Judge Louis Farina also ordered Milton Coleman to undergo a drug-rehabilitation program before his release from prison.Colem......
2008-05-22 02:14:00
P.J. REILLY and JOHN WALK, Staff
Assistant District Attorney Monica Mosley has been all but shouting from the rooftops trying to find volunteers in Lancaster city willing to sit on city youth aid panels.So far, however, her words have fallen on deaf ears."For whatever reason, we're not getting the support ......
2008-05-21 11:15:00
ROBYN MEADOWS, Staff
Taylor Pearson is beyond angry. Two Manheim Central Middle School students, both girls, allegedly threatened to shoot her 14-year-old daughter and her daughter's friend on MySpace, a social networking Web site. Pearson is also upset that the Manheim Central School District has not been res......
2008-05-21 02:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT and BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Another Lancaster County high school became embroiled in a sex scandal Tuesday when police arrested the former leader of McCaskey High School's gospel choir and accused him of having a seven-month sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.Police arrested Norman McMillan III, 25, a......
2008-05-21 01:31:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A serial house burglar with a "far-above-average IQ," according to a Lancaster County judge, was sentenced Monday to 3 to 6 years in state prison.Michael William Rowland, 28, of Peach Bottom, and his attorney told Judge Jeffery Wright he broke into six homes in 2006 to feed a her......
2008-05-20 02:12:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
More than 300 concerned Conestoga residents turned out for an unruly meeting Monday night about a halfway house that has put three sex offenders in their midst.Barnabas House was recently opened by former state Rep. Tom Armstrong at 3113 Main St., an apartment building owned by Ben Vonderh......
2008-05-20 01:26:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
In January, a Lancaster County jury convicted Robert Zuber of criminal trespass for entering his ex-girlfriend's home uninvited and for attempting to intimidate a witness.At his sentencing Monday, Zuber said he was misrepresented at trial and pleaded with the judge to amend the felony ......
2008-05-16 01:46:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury will begin deliberating today on the fate of a Manheim man accused of severely beating his girlfriend, then forcing her into a closet so police wouldn't find her.Bruce E. McLaughlin, 43, is charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and unlawful rest......
2008-05-15 01:49:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Robert Wilson allegedly had been conning people and passing bad checks in Lancaster County for years, and getting away with it, according to authorities.Early Wednesday morning, however, the 38-year-old landscaper and contractor, wanted as a fugitive in Connecticut and facing five outstand......
2008-05-15 01:39:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury deliberated for two hours Wednesday before convicting a man of trying to kill two city police officers last year, then holding a family hostage while evading arrest. The jury found city resident Jose Antonio Rivera-Quinones, 29, guilty of 12 charges, including two counts o......
2008-05-15 00:49:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury deliberated for less than two hours Wednesday before convicting Misael Torres Colon of eight counts of animal cruelty for keeping roosters for fighting.The conviction marks the first successful animal-fighting prosecution in Lancaster County.For each count, C......
2008-05-14 01:43:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury began deliberations Tuesday in the animal-cruelty trial of Misael Torres Colon after one day of testimony.Torres Colon, 29, is charged with eight counts of animal cruelty for allegedly keeping roosters for the purpose of cockfighting. He did not testify at his trial......
2008-05-13 01:07:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
More than two years after police discovered eight caged roosters and a bevy of cockfighting equipment in a city basement, the case is finally headed to trial.Monday afternoon, Judge Margaret Miller ruled against suppressing evidence that might have sunk eight animal cruelty charges against......
2008-05-09 02:00:00
PATRICK BURNS, Staff
An East Petersburg man will be in federal court May 22 for a pretrial hearing on charges that he transported child pornography in his luggage on a flight from England to Philadelphia more than 27 months ago.Patrick Joseph Bunty, 55, was arrested Jan. 27, 2006, by Bureau of Immigration and ......
2008-05-08 11:27:00
JACK BRUBAKER, Staff
Of more than 300 county sex offenders currently listed on the Megan's Law Web Site, 10 are out of compliance with rules governing the site, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. The Web site provides current addresses and photographs of all convicted sex offenders in ......
2008-05-08 01:33:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Lancaster County commissioners on Wednesday voted to hire a former county administrator to audit the county's human resources department and to help find a new director for that department.Timothea Kirchner, who was the county's highest-ranking employee from 1996-2004, will take on......
2008-05-08 01:13:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 12-year-old girl testified Wednesday that she was feeding her cat in the basement of her father's home three years ago when she heard her mother start crying upstairs.Amy Lynn Matz, the girl's mother, was separated from Warren Trent but was at his house that morning in December 2......
2008-05-07 01:18:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Two hundred forty-four commercial kennel owners got the invite. Now it's up to them to take the offer.In a new initiative designed to improve compliance with state kennel regulations, the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office is holding two free educational seminars to help k......
2008-05-07 01:16:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 41-year-old Lancaster city man pleaded guilty Tuesday to causing a high-speed collision on Route 222 that killed a woman and severely injured her passenger.Miguel Rivera admitted to causing the May 13, 2006, crash that killed 46-year-old Tina Whetsel. He pleaded guilty to homicide by veh......
2008-05-06 00:51:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A former employee of a Landisville developing company was sentenced Monday to 2 years' probation and ordered to pay back the $7,230 he stole from the company in 2006.Gary L. Wilson of Lebanon worked as a manager of Tobacco Road Associates until he resigned in July 2005, according to in......
2008-05-02 01:19:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Three Lancaster County residents accused of kidnapping, robbing and severely beating a local man are bound for trial after each defendant waived a preliminary hearing Thursday.Attorneys for the defendants met with prosecutors at District Judge David Miller's office and decided there wa......
2008-05-01 00:59:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Felina Billetdeaux received the maximum sentence Wednesday for beating to death Jonathan Moyer in 2003.Billetdeaux, 23, was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in state prison for the third-degree murder charge. She pleaded guilty Monday to striking Moyer on the head with an aluminum softball bat ......
2008-04-30 01:04:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 28-year-old Lancaster County man was charged Tuesday with breaking in to a Bart Township home in 2005 and assaulting an Amish woman and her father, police said.Christopher Roy Welk, who has been incarcerated for about a year for other home-invasion crimes, was charged with two counts of ......
2008-04-29 00:54:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
An Elizabethtown man was sentenced Monday to 10 to 20 years in state prison for the attempted murder of a Lancaster city man who was dating his ex-girlfriend.Kevin Kaylor, 30, emptied the clip of his handgun, shooting Lisandro Crisostomo multiple times on Feb. 11, 2007, during a dispute ou......
2008-04-29 00:25:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Felina Billetdeaux again pleaded guilty on Monday to third-degree murder for beating her former boyfriend to death with an aluminum softball bat in 2003.Billetdeaux, 23, of Brownstown, faces a maximum sentence of 44 years in prison for killing 17-year-old Jonathan "Jonnie" Moyer ......
2008-04-26 02:15:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
An investigation showed that police Sgt. Brian Nice was "absolutely justified" in shooting Jerry Grant Thursday evening, District Attorney Craig Stedman ruled Friday.•••East Hempfield Township police Sgt. Brian Nice was out of......
2008-04-26 02:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Maryland teenager was sentenced Friday to 1½ to 5 years in state prison for his part in two armed robberies of horse-drawn buggies last year in southern Lancaster County.Christopher J. Lewis, 19, of Rising Sun, wielded a baseball bat while he and his cousin, Joseph Garvey, threate......
2008-04-25 01:30:00
JENNIFER TODD and MICHAEL YODER, Staff
A police officer shot and killed a man during a confrontation outside a home in East Hempfield Township shortly after 7 p.m. Thursday.Investigators said the man was pointing a handgun at a township officer when the officer fired once, hitting the man in the torso.Police were withhol......
2008-04-25 01:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Defense attorney Kurt Geishauser has filed a motion to be removed as counsel for accused killer Warren Trent, in response to Trent's threat of a lawsuit against the lawyer's firm.Trent has said that he intends to sue Reading-based Dimitriou & Geishauser for his legal fees, acco......
2008-04-18 11:27:00
ROBYN MEADOWS, Staff
The Lancaster County District Attorney's Office has received a letter requesting an investigation into whether the Lancaster County Government Study Commission has violated the state's open meetings law, the Sunshine Act. Ephrata resident Rose E. King sent District Attorney Craig Stedma......
2008-04-18 01:54:00
JENNIFER TODD, Staff
An East Earl Township man has been charged with drug offenses after authorities said he dealt drugs with his 5-year-old son in the car.Jeffrey Joseph Merk, 28, of 221 Pleasant Valley Road, was arrested after an investigation by Lancaster County Drug Task Force, during which he allegedly so......
2008-04-17 00:18:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 39-year-old Lancaster man was sentenced Wednesday to three years' probation for injuring two employees at a West Hempfield Township market during a botched retail theft.Samuel L. Warren was confronted by a security guard and several employees of Redner's Market after they saw him......
2008-04-16 01:24:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Thirteen days have passed since James "Jeff" Kerek was found slain on the living-room sofa of his Lancaster city home.With the city's first homicide of the year still unsolved and the killer or killers at large, investigators are looking into Kerek's final days for leads.......
2008-04-11 00:55:00
MADELYN PENNINO, Staff
Felina Billetdeaux repeatedly told police that she didn't want her friend Steva Hagelgans to take the rap for murder.That's what Billetdeaux told West Earl police Detective Dawn Ray, who during a suppression hearing Thursday testified that Billetdeaux was worried that Hagelgans wou......
2008-04-10 01:32:00
LARRY ALEXANDER, Staff
Two men, one walking and one driving, were killed in separate accidents Wednesday.A Lancaster County motorist was killed early Wednesday morning in a head-on collision in Brecknock Township.According to state police, a 2000 International dump truck driven by 31-year-old Shane Michae......
2008-04-10 01:12:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
At first, during her interview with police in 2005, accused killer Felina Billetdeaux stuck to the story she had told her friends about the disappearance of 17-year-old Jonathan Moyer.Billetdeaux claimed she hadn't seen her former boyfriend since he left for Florida soon after the pair......
2008-04-09 01:32:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
The family of a 10-year-old boy struck in a crosswalk by a hit-and-run driver asked that the charges against the driver be dropped.However, according to court testimony Tuesday, that wasn't possible because 20-year-old Dayton Cassel had already filed a guilty plea for misdemeanor charg......
2008-04-09 01:15:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Police have charged a Columbia Junior/Senior High School music teacher and band director with sexual assault for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a student in 2007 when she was 15 and 16 years old.Police from Columbia Borough and West Hempfield Township filed charges Monday agai......
2008-04-05 00:34:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Oprah Winfrey's daily talk show airs in 117 countries, from Zimbabwe to Australia.So when she featured grisly images of Lancaster County's infamous puppy mills on Friday's show, there was a little shame, but a lot more relief that the word is out."I'm not real proud of being a Lanca......
2008-04-03 01:32:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A county judge Wednesday sentenced Elvin L. High, a former dog breeder and twice-convicted animal abuser, to fines and probation for animal cruelty.A jury convicted High in January on one misdemeanor count of animal cruelty. In related charges, Lancaster County President Judge Louis J. Far......
2008-04-02 10:50:00
ROBYN MEADOWS, Staff
Warwick School District wanted to fire Todd Sheerer sooner, Superintendent John George said. But the Lancaster County District Attorney's office asked the school district to delay termination proceedings, which could have impeded their investigation. Charged with having an alleged two-......
2008-03-29 00:33:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Theft charges against a Clay Township man who paid a utility bill last fall with privately made coins were dropped Friday after the man paid the bill in U.S. currency.Fritz Schrom, a 47-year-old Constitution Party activist, was charged Jan. 31 with theft by deception for using silver and c......
2008-03-26 11:20:00
JANET KELLEY, Staff
A former business manager of a Leola garden nursery pleaded guilty in Lancaster County Court today to forging the owner's signature to give herself tens of thousands of dollars in cash bonuses. Police said the bonuses went to buy a variety of luxury items and lavish shopping sprees that ......
2008-03-26 01:53:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A New York trucker accused of causing a head-on collision that killed a woman and her mother last year in Lancaster County was ordered Tuesday to stand trial.Thomas Lamonda, 51, had traces of cocaine in his system, police said, when he failed to notice traffic stopped at a Manheim Township......
2008-03-25 01:38:00
MICHAEL YODER, Staff
A Lancaster County man faces numerous charges of sexual assault and indecent contact with children dating back to 1998.Frederick Thomas Shambaugh, 52, of Elizabethtown Road, was arraigned Monday afternoon before District Judge Jayne Duncan on charges that include 13 counts of indecent assa......
2008-03-25 00:31:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster man pleaded guilty Monday to drunken driving last year when he caused a wreck on Route 30 that killed a Lebanon man and seriously injured the man's wife.Michael J. Tovo, 24, of Swarr Run Road, was driving his sport utility vehicle at nearly 100 mph when it struck the back o......
2008-03-21 01:18:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
A Lancaster County judge has ordered Lampeter-Strasburg School District to reinstate a student it expelled last fall, ruling the district wrongly based its decision on hearsay evidence and exceeded its authority in expelling the pupil.The Martin Meylin Middle School eighth-grader was expel......
2008-03-21 00:20:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County judge sentenced an 18-year-old man Thursday to at least 11½ years in state prison for entering a Manheim Township home through a doggie door and then using duct tape to bind the family of three inside.Manuel "Manny" Fisher, formerly of 615 Eagles View, w......
2008-03-20 01:29:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 40-year-old man with a prior driving-under-the-influence conviction was charged Wednesday with causing a fatal crash while driving drunk last year in Strasburg Township.Richard A. Prokay, of New Providence, was driving with a suspended license when he lost control of a Chevrolet Blazer D......
2008-03-20 01:19:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County judge sentenced a "career criminal" Wednesday to 12 to 24 years in state prison for a pair of armed robberies he committed with a former girlfriend.Matthew R. Martin, 34, formerly of Lititz, was sentenced for robberies in 2005 at an East Earl Township convenien......
2008-03-18 01:19:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Lancaster city police Monday released the identities of two men who were shot early Sunday on West King Street.Juan Marquez, 42, of Lancaster, was killed, and Osvaldo Marquez, 29, of Lancaster, was injured in the 2:30 a.m. shootings near the Rendezvous Steak Shop, 239 W. King St.Pol......
2008-03-18 00:54:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster County judge sentenced a 50-year-old Maytown woman to at least three years in state prison Monday for killing a bicyclist she hit with her car while driving drunk last year. Denise Hall, also of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., was driving with a blood-alcohol level more than thr......
2008-03-18 00:08:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
One of three men responsible for the "random" and severe beating of a Quarryville man at a Buck convenience store in 2006 was sentenced to county prison Monday.Anthony N. McElroy, 20, of Peach Bottom, was part of a trio that repeatedly punched and kicked Matthew McFalls Dec. 20, ......
2008-03-17 00:08:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, staff writer
One man was killed and another critically injured when gunfire erupted early Sunday morning outside a Lancaster city sandwich shop, officials said.The men were shot about 2:30 a.m. near Rendezvous Steak Shop, 239 W. King St., according to a release from Lancaster police Lt. Stephen Skiles.......
2008-03-14 01:43:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 17-year-old boy shot his teenage girlfriend in the head, then turned the .22-caliber rifle on himself after an argument late Wednesday night at a Little Britain Township mobile home, officials said.Michael Ryan Hollow was already dead from a single gunshot to the temple when police arriv......
2008-03-13 02:21:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Two Lancaster city men were convicted of second-degree murder charges Wednesday for the 2006 shooting of 31-year-old Shawn "Reds" Hutchinson.Ernest "Butch" Rykard and Jacquin "Mike" Carr each face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole after a j......
2008-03-12 02:02:00
PATRICK BURNS, Staff
Police have not charged the 23-year-old woman who drove her SUV the wrong way on Route 30 early Tuesday and crashed head-on into another vehicle, resulting in the deaths of three York County men.Sgt. Robert Baldwin of the Manheim Township Police Department said investigators are waiting fo......
2008-03-12 01:42:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Testimony concluded in the joint homicide trial of two Lancaster city men after the accused gunman testified Tuesday in Lancaster County Court.Ernest "Butch" Rykard, 43, said he was in a "struggle for his life" with Shawn "Reds" Hutchinson before accidentally ......
2008-03-11 01:35:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Prosecutors rested their case Monday in the homicide trial of two Lancaster city men accused in the 2006 shooting of 31-year-old Shawn "Reds" Hutchinson.Hutchinson died the day after he was shot during an alleged robbery.Defense attorneys for Ernest "Butch" Rykar......
2008-03-11 00:59:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Attorneys are debating this week whether the lone witness to a 2004 homicide near Morgantown will testify against her father in court or through closed-circuit television.Jacklyn Trent was 9 years old when she reportedly saw her father, Warren Trent, shoot her mother, Amy Lynn Matz, inside......
2008-03-08 02:19:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Testimony began Friday in the homicide trial of a Morgantown man accused of shooting to death his girlfriend in 2004 while his 9-year-old daughter watched.Prosecutors are seeking a first-degree murder conviction against Warren Trent, 50, for the Dec. 20, 2004, killing of 34-year-old Amy Ly......
2008-03-07 11:28:00
CINDY STAUFFER, Staff
An Allentown company took tuition money from the families of about two dozen foreign exchange students studying at Lancaster Catholic High School, Lancaster Mennonite High School and Living Word Academy here. But the company did not forward that money to the schools, a state official is char......
2008-03-07 02:15:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Accused killer Ernest "Butch" Rykard spoke with several people about shooting Shawn Hutchinson and "cried like a baby" when he learned Hutchinson had died, according to testimony Thursday in Lancaster County Court.Three women testified that Rykard repeatedly admitted to......
2008-03-06 01:22:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Shawn "Red" Hutchinson was unarmed and hardly struggled when he was ambushed by two men outside his Lancaster city home, forced onto his stomach and shot in the back of the head, an alleged co-conspirator testified Wednesday.The two men who allegedly jumped Hutchinson — Ern......
2008-03-06 01:07:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
The case against Warwick High School music teacher Todd Sheerer, who is accused of having a two-year sexual relationship with one of his students, is headed to Lancaster County Court.Sheerer, 29, of 3471 Coronet Ave., Wednesday waived his right to a preliminary hearing before District Judg......
2008-03-05 01:38:00
JENNIFER TODD, Staff
Well-known local attorney John A. Kenneff died Tuesday evening after a brief illness. He was 59 years old.Kenneff, of 344 E. Orange St., worked as a prosecutor for 26 years in the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office but became a public defender eight years ago.He made th......
2008-03-04 01:48:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Three defendants tied to two different homicide cases in Lancaster County are expected to stand trial this week.Jury selection began in Lancaster County Court Monday in the trial of Jacquin Carr and Ernest Rykard, two Lancaster city men who are accused of the 2006 killing of 31-year-old Sh......
2008-03-04 00:54:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Shaunda Yarnell was driving without a valid license and later told police she was "really tired" from controlled-substance withdrawal and lack of sleep when she caused a two-car wreck that killed a Columbia man in 2006.Monday, the family of 57-year-old victim Mark Howard asked a ......
2008-03-01 01:39:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 20-year-old man will stand trial for the attempted homicide of a Lancaster city man who, police say, was greeted at his front door by a hail of gunfire.Khille Baylis, of 212 N. Reservoir St., waived his preliminary hearing Friday morning before District Judge Janice Jimenez.Baylis......
2008-02-29 01:54:00
LINDA ESPENSHADE, Staff
At the direction of President Judge Louis J. Farina, a court-driven task force plans to set up a mental health court in Lancaster County.Like its predecessors, drug court and job court, mental health court is intended to let nonviolent offenders serve time in treatment programs instead of ......
2008-02-28 01:25:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 22-year-old man involved in the "heinous" 2005 kidnapping of a Mount Joy family laughed at his victims Wednesday before he was removed from a Lancaster County courtroom and sentenced to at least 20½ years in state prison.Anthony Marcus Davis, one of three co-conspirators......
2008-02-27 02:06:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 42-year-old Lancaster city man was sentenced Monday to 2 to 4 years in state prison for performing sexual acts on a preteen girl he baby-sat from 1998 to 2002.Lancaster County Judge David L. Ashworth also sentenced Manuel Morales, formerly of Dauphin Street, to 5 years' probation aft......
2008-02-27 01:51:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 21-year-old Lancaster city man was sentenced Monday to 2 to 4 years in state prison for selling a $20 bag of cocaine to an undercover policeman in a school zone.Before sentencing, Genol Torres pleaded with Lancaster County President Judge Louis J. Farina and prosecutors to reduce the cha......
2008-02-26 00:55:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A bail bondsman who in 2006 shot a fugitive in Lancaster city was spared a prison sentence Monday by a Lancaster County judge.Instead, Dale K. Kauffman of Columbia was sentenced to 5 years' probation and ordered to stop working as a bail bondsman.Kauffman shot Moises Torres Nov.......
2008-02-26 00:49:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 29-year-old Ephrata man was sentenced Monday to 5 to 10 years in state prison for attempting to rob an elderly man last year in a bank parking lot.Jeremy E. Sawyer was found guilty in December of the April 2007 crime after a bench trial before Lancaster County Judge David L. Ashworth....
2008-02-22 11:10:00
JANET KELLEY, Staff
When a prosecutor earns a reputation as tenacious, detail-oriented and passionate in a courtroom, what happens when the lawyer becomes an administrator? In the case of Craig Stedman, the new Lancaster County district attorney, it translates into a desire to have his entire staff share his passi......
2008-02-22 11:09:00
JANET KELLEY, Staff
A Lancaster County prosecutor has taken his talents to Harrisburg, joining state Attorney General Tom Corbett's staff to fight crime and public corruption. K. Kenneth Brown II served as an assistant district attorney in Lancaster County for 10 years and also was cross-designated as a federa......
2008-02-21 01:46:00
LARRY ALEXANDER, Staff
Various levels of law enforcement, from local to federal, were in Lancaster County Wednesday to discuss gang action along the Route 222 corridor.U.S. Attorney Patrick Meehan and Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman held the meeting at Lancaster's Southern Market Center.......
2008-02-20 02:02:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 20-year-old Lititz woman behind the wheel during a 2006 vehicle crash that killed her high school classmate pleaded guilty Tuesday to homicide by vehicle and related charges.Rebecca L. Grove's defense team and Assistant District Attorney Todd E. Brown agreed to a 1- to 2-year prison ......
2008-02-12 01:50:00
JENNIFER TODD, Staff
A former Lancaster County man was charged Monday with soliciting sex from a 14-year-old boy via the Internet.Gerald Thomas Brennan III, 23, of Royersford, allegedly contacted the boy in late January through the MySpace social networking Web site, according to Lancaster city police Lt. Step......
2008-02-06 02:36:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 31-year-old New York man accused of having at least 30 sexual encounters last year with an Earl Township teenager he met online was ordered Tuesday to stand trial.Joseph C. Gendreau of Middletown, N.Y., waived his preliminary hearing at District Judge Rodney Hartman's office, meaning......
2008-02-02 00:37:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Father-and-son kennel owners faced a district justice Thursday after both were charged with state dog-law violations at their large-scale breeding kennels in Ronks.John E. Esh, owner of Twin Maple Farm, 68 Clearview Road, Ronks, and his son, Daniel P. Esh, owner of Scarlet-Maple Farm Kenne......
2008-02-01 02:00:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 30-year-old Pequea Township man accused of killing his mother-in-law will stand trial after waiving his preliminary hearing Thursday afternoon.Shannon R. Hess is charged with criminal homicide. Police allege he beat and stabbed to death 45-year-old Barbara Fritchman inside the home they ......
2008-01-30 12:07:00
CINDY STAUFFER, Staff
For two months, Christy Mirack and Lindy Biechler have peered down at motorists from a billboard at Routes 283 and 30, asking "DO YOU KNOW WHO MURDERED US?" and pleading for help in solving their decades-old slayings. Their pleas are working. Local investigators have some new ......
2008-01-19 02:26:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A Lancaster County jury delivered a split verdict Friday for Elvin L. High, who was charged with two misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty.In related charges, Judge Louis J. Farina found High guilty of six summary counts of animal cruelty for cropping dogs' ears without a veterinary license......
2008-01-18 02:27:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A Lancaster jury heard Elvin L. High's defense Thursday in his trial on two counts of animal cruelty.Dr. Tom Stevenson of Honey Brook countered earlier testimony by two other veterinarians who said High denied medical care to two of his dogs at his now-defunct West Hempfield Township k......
2008-01-18 02:16:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Police continue their investigation into who started a fire reportedly put out by the man and woman accused of burglarizing the house where the fire occurred.•••Burglary charges have been filed against two people in the case of an East ......
2008-01-18 02:11:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 32-year-old Lancaster city man pleaded guilty Wednesday to shooting his cousin in the stomach several times during an argument last year on East Marion Street.Sammy D. Cuevas was sentenced to 4½ to 10 years in state prison for shooting Jacob Santiago early in the morning of Jan. 1......
2008-01-17 02:18:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Elvin L. High's jury trial on animal-cruelty charges got under way Wednesday before Judge Louis J. Farina.High, owner of the defunct Highgrade Kennels in West Hempfield Township, is charged with two counts of animal cruelty for not seeking veterinary care for two of his dogs.State k......
2008-01-16 01:45:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 20-year-old Lancaster city man was sentenced Tuesday to 5½ to 11 years in state prison for kidnapping another man for ransom in 2006, then shooting at the victim's brother during a botched ransom exchange.Kyle B. Costello, of 317 E. Clay St., and two accomplices kidnapped 20-y......
2008-01-05 01:39:00
CARLA DI FONZO, Staff
Three new commissioners were sworn in during an afternoon ceremony at Lancaster County Courthouse Friday.During the benediction, the Rev. Louis A. Butcher of Bright Side Baptist Church wished Scott Martin, Craig Lehman and Dennis Stuckey well, then suggested to everyone in the ceremonial c......
2008-01-04 02:12:00
JEFF HAWKES, Staff
Because a verdict creates a winner and a loser, some lawyers, like athletes, keep count.Having seen how a trial gets his competitive juices flowing, I expected veteran prosecutor Craig Stedman to know his win-loss record.But Stedman — to be sworn in today as district attorney ......
2008-01-03 02:28:00
JEFF HAWKES, Staff
Attorney Robert Beyer at trial belabored a point about a missing .22-caliber slug.He sought to persuade jurors that just because police failed to find a spent bullet didn't mean his client lied about shooting someone after being shot at first.Beyer raised the possibility that police......
2007-12-28 00:39:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 20-year-old man was sentenced Thursday to 3 to 6 years in state prison for his role in a 2006 gunpoint robbery at a Landisville basketball court.Jordan M. Toney pleaded guilty in July to robbery and criminal conspiracy in the attack on Eric Eshleman. Toney's brother and two friends also ......
2007-12-22 02:28:00
MARK SCOLFORO, Associated Press
A young burglar accused of burning down a Methodist church 13 years ago was ordered to make $2.4 million in restitution. It was, at best, wishful thinking on the part of the court.A new church was built, but no thanks to him. He coughed up a paltry $374.There is no central database ......
2007-12-20 02:06:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Former kennel owner Ervin Zimmerman was found guilty Wednesday of 11 counts of animal cruelty and five counts of violating state dog law regulations.Zimmerman's attorney, Richard K. Teitell of Bala Cynwyd, said he will appeal District Justice Daniel B. Garrett's findings.Jeff Paladi......
2007-12-19 12:03:00
CHAD UMBLE, Staff
A study group looking at changes to the county government decided Tuesday against imposing term limits on the district attorney as they finalized their description of a new county executive. The 11-member government study commission, meeting Tuesday afternoon at the county courthouse, unanimous......
2007-12-08 01:14:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Both the prosecution and defense agree Meghan Lippiatt was suffering from a severe mental illness when she killed her young sons 3½ years ago. What they can't agree on is whether Lippiatt knew she was doing something terribly wrong when she drowned 2-year-old Silas and suffocated 4-m......
2007-12-07 02:16:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Meghan Lippiatt did not believe she was doing anything wrong when she killed her two young sons in April 2004, according to two forensic psychiatrists who testified Thursday in Lancaster County Court.Lippiatt's double homicide trial continued Thursday with testimony from Neil Blumberg and ......
2007-12-06 01:38:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
In the months before Meghan Lippiatt killed her two young sons more than three years ago, she was hearing "dark and sinister" voices, according to testimony in Lancaster County Court Wednesday."Every night, the voice said, 'Get the kids, get out and take them to the rive......
2007-12-04 11:55:00
CINDY STAUFFER, Staff
When Karie Mitchell fell asleep behind the wheel of her pickup truck on a foggy, dark September morning, she struck and killed a 12-year-old boy. His name was Emanuel King and he was Amish. That fact has changed Mitchell's life in big and small ways. Emanuel's family immedi......
2007-12-04 01:44:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Every year from 1996 through 2006, the Lancaster County commissioners met at the Farm & Home Center to talk to the public about the proposed county budget.The center on Arcadia Road in Manheim Township is centrally located in the county and has a large meeting hall and a big parking lo......
2007-11-30 02:05:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Police arrested a 30-year-old Lancaster County man Thursday night and charged him with killing his mother-in-law last week inside her Pequea Township home.Shannon R. Hess turned himself in after investigators filed a warrant for his arrest at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Southern Regio......
2007-11-30 01:59:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Police charged a 22-year-old Mount Joy man Thursday with beating to death his infant daughter inside the family's home.Owen Michael Johnson is accused of inflicting fatal head and spinal injuries on 3-month-old Savannah Lynn Johnson the night of Nov. 14.An autopsy showed the bea......
2007-11-28 01:29:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Investigators from eight Lancaster County departments continued their probe Tuesday into the beating death of a 45-year-old Willow Street woman.Barbara Fritchman was killed by blunt-force trauma to her head Friday in her home at 53 E. Boehms Road, police said.As of Tuesday night, in......
2007-11-28 01:23:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
The death of a 3-month-old Mount Joy girl a week ago has been ruled a homicide, and investigators Tuesday continued the search for the infant's killer.A lead investigator said Tuesday night that police are close to identifying a suspect in the case.Savannah Lynn Johnson died Wednesd......
2007-11-27 11:41:00
CHAD UMBLE, Staff
Investigators have determined that Barbara Fritchman's death was a homicide. Fritchman, 45, was found dead in a pool of blood early Friday afternoon at her home on East Boehms Road, south of Willow Street. An autopsy conducted Monday by county forensic pathologist Dr. Wayne K. Ross ......
2007-11-27 01:25:00
MICHAEL YODER, Staff
Barbara Fritchman died of a blow to the back of her head and deep head lacerations, according to an autopsy done Monday on the woman found dead Friday in her home.Southern Regional Police have not named a suspect in what they say is the first recorded homicide in the history of Pequea Town......
2007-11-26 11:18:00
JANET KELLEY, Staff
Barbara Fritchman was found lying on the floor in a pool of blood, according to court documents. She was "possibly dead," a relative told 911 dispatchers, according to court documents, "with blood all over the walls." Although police have yet to say much about the 45-year-old Willow Str......
2007-11-22 00:06:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Five-month-old Kayla Douglas spent her last waking minutes resting on her father's chest inside the family's Washington Boro home, a Lancaster County district judge was told Tuesday.An hour earlier, Joey Douglas had shaken his infant daughter after she fussed and refused to eat &md......
2007-11-22 00:04:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Another dog-breeding kennel was put out of business Wednesday.John B. Miller, owner of Millcreek Puppy Barn Kennel in Bird-in-Hand, pleaded guilty Wednesday to seven violations for poor and unsanitary conditions.As part of a plea agreement, Miller will relinquish the state-issued ke......
2007-11-18 00:16:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS, Staff writer
District attorneys across Pennsylvania will be earning more next year, thanks to a court ruling on one of the last unresolved issues from the 2005 state pay hike. Commonwealth Court ruled Nov. 8 that a July 2005 amendment to the County Code — the law regulating county governments — ......
2007-11-07 13:32:00
JANE HOLAHAN, Staff
Despite challenges from a number of cross filers, all six candidates who were endorsed by the Republican Party won their elections for judge on the Lancaster County Court of Common pleas Tuesday. "The six of us come from various areas and various disciplines of practice," said Margare......
2007-11-07 03:56:00
DAVE PIDGEON, Staff
Democrat Craig Lehman beat an incumbent and an independent candidate in Tuesday's election to become one of the three Lancaster County commissioners.Lehman, a state House budget analyst, will join Republicans Scott Martin, the former Youth Intervention Center director, and County Contr......
2007-11-07 03:43:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Teamwork.That's what all six endorsed Republican candidates for Lancaster County judge said propelled them to victory at the polls Tuesday."We really from the very beginning worked well together," said District Attorney Donald R. Totaro, who was the top vote-getter in ......
2007-11-07 03:14:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
A Narvon man was found guilty Tuesday of animal cruelty for denying his ailing dogs veterinary care.Intercourse District Justice Isaac Stoltzfus found Samuel Sauder of 466 Hammertown Road guilty of two counts of animal cruelty. Stoltzfus ordered Sauder to pay $371 in fines and court costs.......
2007-11-07 03:12:00
LARRY ALEXANDER and MICHAEL YODER
The battle for the East Hempfield Township supervisor race came down to the wire, with the two Republican candidates on the ballot likely winning the contested seats, pending a final count of write-in votes.Incumbent Brett Miller easily won re-election to a six-year position, beating fello......
2007-11-06 01:40:00
DAVE PIDGEON, Staff
Let the voting begin.Today is Election Day, and voters in Lancaster County will decide who will run the county government, fill six seats on the bench of the Court of Common Pleas, oversee school districts and shape budgets for numerous municipalities.Terms for county commissioner, ......
2007-11-06 01:24:00
SUSAN E. GRUBB, Correspondent
The issue of a West Donegal Township supervisor who last week allegedly used township staff and equipment to run off campaign fliers arose at Monday's board of supervisors meeting.One township resident called for Roger Snyder's resignation, while another spoke in his support.As a re......
2007-11-02 03:29:00
TOM KNAPP, Staff
A family doctor with political experience is vying with a former emergency medical technician for the post of Lancaster County coroner.Meanwhile, the retired surgeon who now holds the post is running an active write-in campaign in hopes of retaining his job.Republican candidate Dr. ......
2007-11-01 01:29:00
JENNIFER TODD, Staff
A West Donegal Township supervisor is under investigation for allegedly ordering staff to run off thousands of campaign fliers on a township copy machine Wednesday, police said.Roger Snyder, a Republican seeking a third term, was not present while the literature was being copied, according......
2007-10-30 02:39:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 49-year-old man pleaded guilty Monday to voluntary manslaughter and an illegal gun charge for killing his roommate last year inside their Lancaster city apartment.James Noah Collins was sentenced to 6 to 12 years in state prison, plus 3 years' probation, for the April 29, 2006, shoot......
2007-10-24 01:14:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Lancaster city man was sentenced to 3½ to 8 years in prison Tuesday for assaulting a police officer and using his own infant son as a shield as a group of officers tried to arrest him.Michael Lilly, 32, was found guilty in June of elbowing Lancaster city police Officer Shawn Sheck......
2007-10-24 01:08:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A 40-year-old city man was sentenced Tuesday to 20 to 40 years in prison for a string of robberies a judge called "terrifying."William Lopez Morales was one of a group of armed men who invaded a Lancaster Township home in 2005 and robbed seven Millersville University students sta......
2007-10-18 03:11:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Warwick School District is implementing a series of seminars and programs for students, staff members and parents in response to racial incidents at district schools earlier this month.The activities will include student assemblies, training sessions for staff members, public seminars and ......
2007-10-17 02:32:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Warwick School District has hired consultant Quay Hanna, a self-proclaimed "reformed racist," to help the district address bigotry in the wake of two racial incidents at district schools this month.Hanna, who will be paid $10,000 through the end of the school year, has helped schools, coll......
2007-10-13 03:23:00
MADELYN PENNINO, Staff
A jury in York deliberated for two hours Thursday before finding a former Columbia man not guilty of hitting a police officer with a ceramic flower pot.Zebulun Sweeney, 20, a 2005 graduate of Columbia High School, was found not guilty of aggravated assault and recklessly endangering anothe......
2007-10-11 02:32:00
P.J. REILLY, Staff
Lancaster County commissioners Wednesday were presented with five possible sites for a new county morgue.And commissioners chairman Dick Shellenberger promised the board will pick one of those sites by Oct. 31."We will do our homework on this, and we invite you (the public) to ......
2007-10-10 11:18:00
TOM MURSE, Staff
This is the bizarre tale of one George Friedrich Schrom. Or, as he insists, two "different" George Friedrich Schroms. The first fellow, he says, pleaded guilty in 1990 to one felony charge of conspiracy and six lesser charges of theft after trying to hawk a half dozen stolen c......
2007-10-10 01:59:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Three suspects in a Lancaster city home-invasion robbery that ended in a 50-year-old man's death have been charged with homicide.One of the accused, 27-year-old Kenneth Sands, was ordered Tuesday at a preliminary hearing before District Judge Cheryl Hartman to stand trial for the Aug. ......
2007-10-09 01:31:00
BRIAN WALLACE, Staff
Warwick School District plans to suspend or expel three white high school students for yelling derogatory and racial slurs and throwing trash at a group of black students outside the high school.Superintendent John George announced the disciplinary action — scheduled to take effect t......
2007-10-09 01:16:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
State police recently charged four teens suspected in holdups on two horse-drawn buggies in southern Lancaster County in May.Police say a 19-year-old man and three juveniles — one of whom is being charged as an adult — were involved in two robberies May 20 in Fulton and East Dr......
2007-10-08 00:15:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
State police charged a Quarryville man Sunday with seven violations relating to a high-speed vehicle crash in August that critically injured the driver of a horse-drawn buggy.Ray S. Simpson, 35, was traveling well above the posted speed limit on Kirkwood Pike the night of Aug. 29 when he s......
2007-10-03 01:44:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Lancaster General Hospital confirmed Tuesday the discovery of 350 narcotic drug vials hidden above ceiling tiles in staff bathrooms.The state Attorney General's office also confirmed its Bureau of Narcotics Investigation is looking into the matter.In a prepared statement, hospital s......
2007-10-02 01:17:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A "day of frustration" led to the beating death of 3-year-old Iannely Pomerantz at the hands of her mother's boyfriend in 2006, a defense attorney told a Lancaster County judge Monday.A broken hairbrush apparently was the last straw for 21-year-old Wilfred Torres.Torre......
2007-09-29 03:30:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
Lancaster General Hospital is being investigated by the state Attorney General's Office after drug vials were found in an unauthorized area of the hospital, sources said.Lancaster County District Attorney Donald Totaro confirmed the state opened an investigation after being contacted by ho......
2007-09-29 03:29:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A former Lancaster city police officer pleaded guilty Friday to indecent assault of his roommate's girlfriend at their home last March.Kenneth W. Eckert, 27, was placed under two years' probation and fined $300 plus court costs for repeatedly touching the woman without her consent earl......
2007-09-27 02:53:00
SUSAN E. LINDT, Staff
An Earl Township dog breeder pleaded guilty Wednesday to multiple animal cruelty charges and is now out of business.At a hearing before District Justice Rodney Hartman, kennel owner Paula Hutchinson of Hutchinson Kennel pleaded guilty to five animal cruelty citations and 11 violations of s......
2007-09-25 00:36:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
Lancaster city police are investigating the death of a newborn infant found Monday afternoon in a trash bin behind the Lancaster YMCA.City police officers found the body about 12:30 p.m. in a Dumpster in the 500 block of North Market Street.A person who was walking in the area betwe......
2007-09-20 00:54:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff
A Megan's
