2 SEPARATE MURDERS OVER THE WEEKEND IN ALLENTOWN. POLICE ARE LOOKING FOR DAVID HOWARD, WHO IS BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THE KILLING OF ROMAN BENTLEY, WHO DIED SATURDAY NIGHT AFTER A FRIDAY NIGHT BRAWL OUTSIDE FREDDIE'S BAR ON EAST HAMILTON STREET. HOWARD IS DESCRIBED AS 6 FEET 1 INCH TALL, WEIGHING ABOUT 250 POUNDS, WITH DREADLOCKS. POLICE AREN'T SAYING MUCH ABOUT THE SUNDAY AFTERNOON KILLING THAT HAPPENED INSIDE THE WYNNEWOOD APARTMENT COMPLEX ON WEST EMMAUS AVENUE. SUNDAY'S MURDER IS THE THIRD OF THE YEAR IN ALLENTOWN.

  NEGOTIATORS FOR PENNSYLVANIA'S STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM AND THE UNION REPRESENTING ABOUT 5,500 FACULTY MEMBERS SAY THEY HAVE REACHED A "FRAMEWORK" FOR A NEW CONTRACT TO RESOLVE A PROLONGED DISPUTE. THE ASSOCIATION OF PENNSYLVANIA STATE COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY FACULTIES SAID THE ACCORD WITH THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION WAS REACHED EARLY SUNDAY AFTER TWO FULL DAYS OF NEGOTIATING. THE UNION SAYS THE GENERAL FRAMEWORK LARGELY MIRRORS AGREEMENTS WITH OTHER STATEWIDE UNIONS, AND OFFERED NO DETAILS PENDING A MONDAY EVENING VOTE BY ITS NEGOTIATIONS COMMITTEE. THE SYSTEM SAID MORE INFORMATION WOULD BE RELEASED AS THE RATIFICATION PROCESS CONTINUES. MEMBERS HAVE BEEN WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT AT THE 14 STATE-OWNED UNIVERSITIES SINCE JUNE 2011. SCHOOL OFFICIALS CALLED FOR CONCESSIONS ON HEALTH COVERAGE AND OTHER ISSUES, BUT THE UNION CALLED THE PROPOSALS UNREASONABLE.

  INVESTIGATORS ARE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT CAUSED AN EARLY SUNDAY MORNING FIRE THAT DESTROYED AN UPPER MOUNT BETHEL BARN AND KILLED 28 GOATS INSIDE. FIREFIGHTERS WERE CALLED TO RUDOLPH FARMS ON SHADY LANE AROUND 3 O'CLOCK SUNDAY MORNING, BUT BY THE TIME THEY ARRIVED, IT WAS TOO LATE.

  WORKERS AT THE VICTAULIC PLANT IN FORKS TOWNSHIP HAVE OK'D A THREE YEAR CONTRACT. THE UNION RATIFIED THE DEAL BY A 130-7 VOTE ON SUNDAY. IT GIVE WORKERS THERE A 2 PERCENT PAY RAISE IN THE FIRST YEAR, A 2.5 PERCENT RAISE IN THE SECOND YEAR AND A 3 PERCENT THE THIRD YEAR. VICTAULIC WORKERS WILL ALSO SEE NO INCREASE IN WORKER CONTRIBUTIONS FOR HEALTH INSURANCE OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS.

  DURING THIS TAX FILING SEASON, IF YOU RUN INTO A TAX PREPARER WHO MAKES PROMISES THAT SEEM TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, THE IRS' DAVID STEWART SAYS IT PROBABLY IS. "IF YOU GO TO SOMEBODY WHO TELLS YOU TO LEAVE ALL YOUR FORMS WITH THEM AND THEY'LL FILL OUT YOUR FORM AND GUARANTEES YOU THAT YOU'LL GET A $10,000 REFUND AND THEIR FEE WILL ONLY BE 'X' DOLLARS OUT OF THAT REFUND, I CAN TELL YOU RIGHT NOW THAT PERSON IS A SCAM ARTIST," STEWART SAYS. HE URGES YOU TO MAKE ABSOLUTELY SURE ANYBODY YOU USE TO PREPARE YOUR RETURN IS CREDIBLE. HE SAYS THERE WILL CERTAINLY BE SCAMMERS OUT THERE LOOKING TO GET ACCESS TO YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION AND THEN TAKE YOU TO THE CLEANERS BEFORE YOU KNOW WHAT HIT YOU.

  DEMOCRATIC STATE SENATOR LISA BOSCOLA SAYS MANY PEOPLE PLAYED FRIENDLY SUPER BOWL POOLS SUNDAY AND IN SOME CASES MAY HAVE BEEN BREAKING THE LAW. SHE SAYS THESE SMALL POOLS ARE HARMLESS AND SHOULD BE LEGALIZED.  "THESE SMALL POOLS ARE USUALLY OFFERED BY LOCAL VETERANS CLUBS, VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND CHARITABLE SERVICE CLUBS," BOSCOLA SAYS. SHE CALLS THESE POOLS "A HARMLESS SOCIAL ACTIVITY". BOSCOLA'S PROPOSAL WOULD LEGALIZE BETTING POOLS IF THE ENTRY FEE IS $20 OR LESS, IF THERE ARE NO MORE THAN 100 PARTICIPANTS, THERE IS A RELATIONSHIP BETWEWN ALL PARTICIPANTS AND ALL MONEY GETS PAID OUT TO THE PLAYERS OR A LEGIT CHARITY.

  A LAW CLERK WHO WORKED FOR SUSPENDED STATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICE JOAN ORIE MELVIN WHEN MELVIN WAS A LOWER COURT JUDGE IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TESTIFYING IN THE CAMPAIGN CORRUPTION TRIAL OF HER FORMER BOSS. LISA SASINOSKI SAID FRIDAY SHE WAS "ASHAMED" OF DOING POLITICAL WORK ON MELVIN'S 2003 SUPREME COURT CAMPAIGN, WHEN SASINOSKI WAS MELVIN'S SUPERIOR COURT LAW CLERK. SASINOSKI SAYS SHE WAS FIRED TWO DAYS AFTER SHE OBJECTED TO THE ALLEGEDLY ILLEGAL WORK, THOUGH MELVIN'S CAMP DISPUTES THAT AND SAYS SASINOSKI QUIT TO WORK FOR MAX BAER, WHO BEAT MELVIN IN THE 2003 ELECTION TO BECOME A SUPREME COURT JUSTICE. SASINOSKI STILL WORKS FOR BAER ON THE HIGH COURT. MELVIN WAS ELECTED TO THE SUPREME COURT IN 2009 AND IS CHARGED WITH MISUSING HER STATE-PAID SUPERIOR COURT STAFF FOR POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING.

  THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY IS TRYING TO EASE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS BY DEVELOPING NONTOXIC FLUIDS FOR THE DRILLING PROCESS KNOWN AS FRACKING. BUT IT'S NOT CLEAR WHETHER THE FLUIDS WILL BE WIDELY EMBRACED BY DRILLING COMPANIES. FRACKING HAS MADE IT POSSIBLE TO TAP INTO ENERGY RESERVES ACROSS THE NATION BUT ALSO HAS RAISED CONCERNS ABOUT POLLUTION, SINCE LARGE VOLUMES OF WATER ALONG WITH SAND AND HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS ARE INJECTED UNDERGROUND TO FREE THE OIL AND GAS FROM ROCK. CLEANSTIM IS A PRODUCT BY ENERGY GIANT HALLIBURTON INC. THAT USES ONLY FOOD-GRADE ADDITIVES. THE COMPANY SAYS IT IS WORKING TO REDUCE SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS FOR BOTH WORKERS AND THE PUBLIC. TWO ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS SAY THEY WELCOME THE DEVELOPMENT, BUT STILL HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT OTHER ISSUES CAUSED BY DRILLING.

  CAMPAIGN OFFICIALS SAY DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL HOPEFUL BARBARA BUONO HAS RAISED ENOUGH MONEY TO QUALIFY FOR MATCHING STATE FUNDS FOR THE PRIMARY ELECTION. BUT THE TOTAL AMOUNT THAT THE STATE SENATOR FROM METUCHEN HAS RECEIVED FROM CONTRIBUTORS SO FAR HAS NOT YET BEEN DISCLOSED. SARA FERRILL, THE CAMPAIGN'S FINANCE DIRECTOR, ANNOUNCED SUNDAY THAT THE CAMPAIGN HAD RAISED MORE THAN $380,000 AS OF FRIDAY. THAT AMOUNT IS THE THRESHOLD BUONO NEEDED TO REACH BEFORE SHE COULD BEGIN RECEIVING $2 IN PUBLIC FUNDS FOR EVERY $1 SHE TAKES IN. STATE ELECTION OFFICIALS MUST NOW VERIFY THE DATA SUBMITTED BY BUONO'S CAMPAIGN, AND IT'S NOT CLEAR WHEN THAT PROCESS WILL BE COMPLETED.