While about 20 homes are damaged, there are no injuries reported after a tornado touched down in the southern Berks County town of Morgantown. These people saw it all unfold Tuesday evening. "There are roofs missing, trees down, siding ripped off, windows blown out and half-a-building missing," one resident said. The National Weather Service will be in Morgantown today to assess the storm and determine just what level of strength it reached.
National Weather Service investigators will visit Indiana County today to determine whether a tornado touched down there. Another round of severe weather Tuesday led to reports of funnel clouds near Homer City and Indiana.
The U.S. Supreme Court has decided it will not hear arguments against the Boyertown Area School District's bathroom and locker room policy for transgender students. That ruling means the policy, which lets students use the bathrooms and locker rooms corresponding to their gender identity, can remain in place. Students sued the district after the policy was enacted in 2016, claiming it violates their right to privacy.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is holding a special meeting this afternoon to vote on the proposed sale of the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem to an affiliate of an Alabama-based Indian tribe. The sale price is $1.3 billion and Wind Creek says it would spend $90 million to expand the resort's existing hotel with a new 300-room tower and spend more than another $100 million to turn the old No. 2 Machine Shop into a massive indoor adventure/water park and hotel.
An Allentown man is admitting to stealing electronics from Target stores then trying to sell them in other states. Elijah Aiken pleaded guilty Tuesday to counts related to transporting stolen electronics across state lines as part of a ring that stretched from Massachusetts and Connecticut to New York and back to Pennsylvania. Aiken admits to working with others, using blow torches to cut through back doors at Target stores, then running off with hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars' worth of computers, phones and other items. He would then move the stolen items to buyers in New York state. He could end up spending as many as 15 years in prison once sentenced in August.
Police are looking for the man who keeps robbing the same CVS store in Bethlehem. Several thefts at the CVS on 8th Avenue are being investigated, including two on May 21st and 25th. The Bethlehem PD has posted photos of the suspect who allegedly has been walking in, then walking out with stolen merchandise.
A Poconos man is heading to prison for producing child pornography while working at a psychiatric services facility. Lawrence Stone has been sentenced to serve 15 years behind bars for crimes committed while he worked at the Scranton Counseling Center. A former case manager, Stone persuaded a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old to engage in sexual activity so he could record them. The 64-year-old Stone will have to register as a sex offender once released.
After being called to the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City Monday night, police there arrested Philllies center fielder Odubel Herrera on charges he assaulted his girlfriend. The Atlantic City PD says Herrera's girlfriend had signs of injury on her arms and neck. "The officers, based upon the visible signs of injuries, went to Mr. Herrera's room and located him there. He was taken into custody without incident and he was very cooperative during the investigation," says an Atlantic City policeman. Herrera has been placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball and will be out of the Phillies' lineup for an indefinite period of time.
A Lycoming County man is fighting for his life after being bitten several times by rattlesnakes. Cody Lee Short is in critical condition after being bitten on the legs and hands Friday night by eastern timber rattlesnakes he reportedly captured. Short, who is facing charges for the illegal capture of rattlers, caught the snakes that bit him with the intention to eat them. It's unknown how exactly Short got bitten, but both state police and the state Fish and Boat Commission are investigating.
The final alleged conspirator in the GoFundMe scam case is pleading not guilty. Mark D'Amico entered the plea Tuesday to counts related to a scheme he allegedly participated in with Johnny Bobbitt and Katelyn McClure. The three allegedly created a phony store that inspired more than 14,000 people to donate more than $400,000 to their fraudulent crowdsourcing campaign. The scam claimed the homeless Bobbitt gave his last $20 to McClure when she ran out of gas in I-95 and that D'Amico and McClure wanted to raise money to repay Bobbitt for his help.