PA News – The Lancaster Patriot

Chester County Family Faces Ongoing Battle with State Over Homestead Improvements

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Thu, 04 Sep 2025 20:10:56 +0000

Nestled on a 24-acre property in Chester Springs, Shannon Grady and her husband maintain a homestead where they raise goats, ducks, turkeys, chickens, and rabbits. The couple, parents to five children, purchased the property in 2019. Since then, they transformed a portion of the property – a former horse pasture – into a family-friendly space complete with a pond for recreation and animal watering.

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Paul Miller’s Law Takes Effect in Pennsylvania, Banning Handheld Cellphone Use While Driving

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Fri, 06 Jun 2025 12:09:03 +0000

As of June 5, 2025, Pennsylvania’s new Paul Miller’s Law gives police the power to pull over any driver seen holding a cellphone while behind the wheel. The legislation bans the use of handheld communication devices while operating a vehicle in the Commonwealth, aiming to reduce distracted driving. The law is named in memory of Paul Miller Jr., a 21-year-old Scranton man killed in 2010 when a…

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Body of Missing Pennsylvania Park Ranger Recovered After Kayak Incident

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Tue, 27 May 2025 15:25:58 +0000

The body of Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Park Ranger Alec Campbell, 38, of Delaware County, was recovered on Sunday, May 25, authorities confirmed. Campbell had been reported missing on Friday, May 23, after his kayak capsized in the Neshaminy Creek within Tyler State Park. Search efforts for Ranger Campbell began after his kayak overturned around 12:28…

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Lower Birth Rates, Declining Enrollment Prompt Penn State to Recommend Closure of Seven Branch Campuses

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Fri, 16 May 2025 12:50:24 +0000

Penn State University leadership has pointed to declining birth rates and a looming “demographic cliff” in Pennsylvania as significant factors contributing to their recommendation to close seven of its branch campuses. The proposal, made public this week, outlines the potential closure of the DuBois, Fayette, Mont Alto, New Kensington, Shenango, Wilkes-Barre, and York campuses following the spring…

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Josh Prince Seeks Court Intervention After Cambria County Ballot Error

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Mon, 12 May 2025 19:42:16 +0000

In the lead-up to the May 20 primary election, a significant ballot printing error in Cambria County has prompted Commonwealth Court judicial candidate Josh Prince to file an emergency petition, seeking to ensure accurate election administration and protect the voting process. Prince, a constitutional attorney, took action following the confirmation by Cambria County officials that…

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UPS to Close Three Pennsylvania Facilities in Major Network Overhaul

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Fri, 09 May 2025 19:56:06 +0000

United Parcel Service (UPS) will close three facilities in Pennsylvania by June 2025, affecting workers in Dauphin, Allegheny, and Monroe Counties as part of the company’s largest network reconfiguration in history. The closures, targeting sites in Harrisburg, New Kensington, and Stroudsburg, are driven by a push to modernize operations and reduce costs amid economic challenges.

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Officer Named in Damon Atkins Lawsuit Found Dead

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 15:32:05 +0000

A Reading police officer named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by a Reading man who was arrested for public preaching was found dead in her home on New Year’s Eve. Officer Courtney P. Dupree, 28, was found dead on Dec. 31, 2023, in her Wyomissing residence. Her obituary states that “Courtney was currently employed as a police officer for Reading Police Department. She couldn’t be more…

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Eid al-Fitr Could Become ‘Official State Holiday’ in Pennsylvania

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 13:22:21 +0000

The Muslim holiday known as Eid al-Fitr could become an official state holiday in Pennsylvania. House Bill 1752, sponsored by a trio of Democrat representatives in the Philadelphia area, would provide “for the annual designation and holiday observance of the first day of the Islamic lunar month of Shawwal as Eid al-Fitr Day in this Commonwealth.” Eid al-Fitr, one of two major Muslim…

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Kopko: Pennsylvania Growth Rate Will ‘Diminish Considerably’

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Fri, 06 Oct 2023 14:52:18 +0000

During a Harrisburg press conference Wednesday Dr. Kyle Kopko, Executive Director of the Center for Rural Pennsylvania and Adjunct Professor of Political Science at Elizabethtown College, said Pennsylvania’s “overall growth rate will diminish considerably in the coming years.” “Also, we can expect a sharp increase in the number of senior citizens that comprise Pennsylvania’s population and…

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Danelo Cavalcante in Police Custody After Two-Week Manhunt

The Lancaster Patriot Staff — Wed, 13 Sep 2023 17:42:34 +0000

A convicted murderer who escaped from a county prison was captured Wednesday morning with the assistance of a thermal imaging camera. Danelo Cavalcante was hiding in the woods in northern Chester County when the thermal camera on an aircraft picked up his heat signal. Tactical teams then used search dogs to locate Cavalcante. “They were able to move in very quietly. They had the element…

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