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May 8, 2012

Your Daily digest for Philly.com News

Philly.com News
News from the Inquirer and Daily News.
Wounded Philly-area eagle enjoys “Rocky”-like recovery
May 8th 2012, 06:31

Nearly three weeks ago, the young bald eagle was discovered on its back in a pool of blood in a Broomall parking lot. Wildlife officials determined that the 4-year-old male had been shot at some point, suffered from lead poisoning, and, most recently, likely had been hit by a car.

Lawyer in duck-boat deaths says victim had tried to save someone else
May 8th 2012, 06:28

In dramatic opening testimony Monday in the federal Ride the Ducks trial, a lawyer for the families of two Hungarian tourists killed in the July 2010 accident said one of the victims lost her life because she took time to throw a life vest to someone already in the water.

Super PAC backing Romney accepting federal contractors' funds
May 8th 2012, 06:12

The super PAC supporting Mitt Romney's presidential bid has accepted more than $1.2 million from federal government contractors, in apparent defiance of campaign-finance regulators.

Politics may be behind Christie's Internet gaming change of heart
May 8th 2012, 06:12

With his political stock rising, Gov. Christie may again be backing off on approving Internet gaming, and has delayed action that would free New Jersey from a federal ban on sports betting, says the Democrat who sponsored both measures in the Legislature in the hope they would boost Atlantic City.

CIA thwarts al-Qaeda bomber
May 8th 2012, 06:00

WASHINGTON - The CIA thwarted an ambitious plot by al-Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen to destroy a U.S.-bound airliner using a bomb with a sophisticated new design around the one-year anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden, U.S. officials said Monday.

Wegmans makes splash in King of Prussia
May 8th 2012, 06:00

Sixteen years after it was first eyed as a prime spot for Wegmans to plant stakes in the Philadelphia area, a onetime golf course near King of Prussia mall opened to the public this week as home to the latest regional megastore in the chain, whose customers share a cultlike devotion.

Marcus Hook refinery’s fate still uncertain
May 8th 2012, 05:41

Now that ConocoPhillips has agreed to sell its Trainer refinery to Delta Air Lines, and Sunoco Inc. is engaged in talks to run its Philadelphia refinery as a joint venture, the immediate fate of only one of the region’s endangered refineries remains clouded in uncertainty. Sunoco’s Marcus Hook refinery, which company officials say aroused no interest from potential buyers to run as a refinery, is being groomed instead as a potential multipurpose industrial site for storing, handling, and even processing fuel, including by-products from the Marcellus Shale region.

Judge blocks vote on future of Camden police
May 8th 2012, 05:40

A Superior Court judge Monday temporarily blocked a planned Camden City Council vote that ultimately could put in the hands of voters a decision on whether to dismantle the city’s police department in favor of a county force. Judge Faustino J. Fernandez-Vina decided to hear arguments June 11 on a complaint filed by Mayor Dana L. Redd and President Frank Moran that maintaining the department could cause the city “irreparable harm.” He issued an order preventing the city clerk from certifying before the Council a petition with more than 2,000 signatures requesting that Council vote on a proposed ordinance to maintain the department and, if the ordinance is rejected, the voters would get to decide what to do.

For some in South Jersey, RCA is still dear
May 8th 2012, 05:40

If RCA was the Apple of its day, one could say Camden was the Cupertino. But unlike the firm and the California suburb Steve Jobs made famous, the company that made records, radios and TVs in Camden long ago ceased to be a player in the consumer electronics revolution it helped start.

New tapes expected to affect mob trial
May 8th 2012, 05:40

The players have changed, but in the Philadelphia underworld the story remains the same — wiseguys again caught in unguarded moments, talking about all manner of murder and mayhem as a cooperating witness wearing a body wire records them for the FBI. A bail-detention motion filed against two North Jersey wiseguys last week in U.S. District Court offered up excerpts of conversations that prosecutors hope to introduce as evidence in the pending racketeering case against acting Philadelphia mob boss Joseph “Uncle Joe” Ligambi and a dozen associates.

‘Dead Man Down’ shooting location becomes real murder scene
May 8th 2012, 05:10

IN AN EERIE TWIST of fate, an 18-year-old was gunned down Monday afternoon on an East Frankford corner, steps away from where scenes from “Dead Man Down,” a mob thriller starring Colin Farrell, was scheduled to be filmed Tuesday morning. At least six shots rang out at Tackawanna and Kinsey streets about 4 p.m., just after the youth stepped outside a corner grocery store, cops said. He was hit three times in the torso and staggered about half a block to the Kinsey and Ditman streets before collapsing.

Homicide victim was man whom Fox29 filmed in police beating
May 8th 2012, 05:10

THE MAN IDENTIFIED as the homicide victim in a triple shooting early Sunday in North Philly — Pete Hopkins — was one of three men filmed by a Fox 29 news helicopter in May 2008 getting kicked and beaten by police, a police source confirmed Monday. Hopkins, 23, of Marshall Street near Norris, in North Philly, was at Rumba’s Bar & Grill at 4th and Norris, a few blocks from his home, early Sunday to watch the Mayweather vs. Cotto boxing match, according to his stepmother, Shirley Hopkins.

Alleged Chinatown groper arrested
May 8th 2012, 05:10

?1? Man surrenders in groping incidents Spring Street near 10th, Chinatown

Police arrest suspect in ATV slayings
May 8th 2012, 05:10

Highway Patrol officers started a hunt for Zaiee Talbert about a week ago because the 24-year-old was wanted for allegedly crashing a car with a pound of weed and an illegal handgun stashed inside after leading cops on a chase. By the time two patrolmen tracked him down Saturday, Talbert was also a suspect in the murders of two teens in March.

Expert: Alleged NoLibs killer no sharper than age 11
May 8th 2012, 05:05

A PORTRAIT of Sabina Rose O’Donnell’s alleged killer emerged in a Philadelphia courtroom Monday as a forensic psychologist explained the conclusions from a battery of tests he administered to Donte Johnson, who is on trial in the 2010 rape and murder of the Northern Liberties waitress. Gerald Cooke, the final defense witness, who was paid more than $9,300 in taxpayer money for his services, testified via video recorded last week that Johnson, 20, was likely born withbrain damage, the origin of which is unknown. His mother was 16 when he was born, and his father factored little in his life due to being in and out of jail, Cooke said.

Truck driver in fatal Schuylkill crash gets 18 months for falsifying logs
May 8th 2012, 05:05

A truck driver who slammed his rig into a sedan on the Schuylkill Expressway in January 2009, killing a Fort Washington man, was sentenced Monday to 18 months in a federal lockup. Valerijs Nikolaevish Belovs, 58, of Somerton, pleaded guilty in October to federal charges that he had falsified his driver’s logs.

Guv, if you have a heart, show some love for students
May 8th 2012, 04:39

LAST MONTH, we photoshopped Gov. Corbett on our cover as the Tinman from the Wizard of Oz, complete with the oil-funnel hat. We were questioning whether the governor has a heart; the accompanying story, by Michael Hinkelman and Catherine Lucey, detailed how Corbett’s welfare department had swept 89,000 kids off the benefit rolls, tens of thousands of them erroneously.

Racial strife strikes police department in Delco’s ‘Twilight Zone’
May 8th 2012, 03:55

Beyond Philadelphia exists another dimension — a dimension of threats, a dimension of fights, a dimension of divisions. You’re moving into a land of both race and politics, of truths and lies. You’ve just crossed over into Colwyn.

Driver in fatal truck crash gets 18 months
May 8th 2012, 03:55

A truck driver who slammed his rig into a sedan on the Schuylkill Expressway in January 2009, killing a Fort Washington man, was sentenced Monday to 18 months in federal prison. Valerijs Nikolaevish Belovs, 58, of Somerton, pleaded guilty in October to federal charges he had falsified his driver’s logs. The Jan. 23, 2009, crash killed businessman David Schreffler and seriously injured a passenger in his car when Belov’s rig, loaded with more than 75,000 pounds of broccoli, slammed into stopped traffic and pinned Schreffler’s car under the truck.

Vacant country club ravaged by fire
May 8th 2012, 03:42

Fire officials in Cheltenham Township are investigating who might have been in the area of a vacant country club building that went up in flames late Sunday. The three-alarm fire, which lit the night sky, already was through the roof of the former Cedarbrook Country Club building when the first of 100 firefighters arrived just after 10:30 p.m. Fire Marshal Joseph O’Neill said the building in the 8400 block of Limekiln Pike was a total loss, although he could not estimate its worth.

Police seek ID of man shot before car rams into house
May 8th 2012, 03:39

Investigators in Delaware County know that the man was shot before the vehicle he was driving went out of control in a narrow alley in Lansdowne, then smashed into the rear of a home and exploded into flames. Late Monday, however, they still had not answered a fundamental question: Who was he?

Pa. budget-cut dissent louder than usual
May 8th 2012, 03:00

HARRISBURG — Spring is the season of pushback in the Capitol. The governor’s spending plan is on the table, and invariably there are groups unhappy about its contents. With steep cuts proposed by Gov. Corbett in education and social services, the chorus of voices has grown louder this year — no fewer than a dozen rallies are scheduled in the Capitol this week alone — as the June 30 budget deadline looms. So, too, has the response by lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike, who think Corbett’s “tough choices” budget cuts too deeply in the areas of education and social services.

Testimony: Murder suspect Johnson functions like child
May 8th 2012, 02:59

Donte Johnson is 20 years old, but the way he thinks, communicates, and copes with problems is more in line with the mind of child, according to a forensic neuropsychologist who testified in Johnson’s murder trial Monday. Johnson, accused in the June 2010 rape and slaying of Sabina Rose O’Donnell, has an IQ in the 70s, which places him on the borderline of what is considered “mentally retarded,” said Gerald Cooke, who administered a series of tests to Johnson this year.

Cycling championship shortens route, adds amateur race
May 8th 2012, 02:58

The professionals won’t have to conquer “The Wall” as many times during this year’s Philadelphia International Cycling Championship, but for the first time, amateur riders will get to test themselves on the same course, including the iconic 17 percent grade incline in Manayunk. Race organizers are shortening the professional race, knocking it down from 10 trips around the 14.7-mile course to seven, but instituting a morning ride for amateur enthusiasts, who will get to complete three circuits.

Ex-FBI agent: Priest’s accuser told truth
May 8th 2012, 02:58

A former FBI agent hired by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to investigate clergy sex abuse concluded that a Bucks County man was telling the truth when he said the Rev. James J. Brennan tried to rape him when he was 14. Testifying Monday at Brennan’s trial, the investigator, Jack Rossiter, said the priest consistently denied any “intentional” sexual contact with the teen when the boy stayed at his apartment in 1996.

Lawsuit: E-readers needed for the blind, not just seniors
May 8th 2012, 02:57

Already singed by the state plan to downsize Philadelphia’s branch library for the blind, the Free Library of Philadelphia has now been sued by four blind patrons who cannot use the library’s new electronic book readers. The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, said that the e-reader lending program, begun in November at the main library off Logan Square, uses devices that are not accessible to the blind.

Camden curfew blocked by lawsuits, delays
May 8th 2012, 02:40

Instead of shutting down late-night businesses early, Camden’s curfew law has become the tale of one delay after another. A lawsuit scheduled to be heard Tuesday from some business owners and city activist Frank Fulbrook challenging the ordinance has been delayed until the end of summer.

Push for African American cinema bears fruit
May 8th 2012, 02:40

Before Philadelphia’s invited movers and shakers even arrived at the red-carpet premiere of Changing the Game, Rel Dowdell’s urban tale of corruption and redemption, moviegoers were instructed to leave their smartphones in their cars or turn them over to security before entering the Van Pelt Auditorium at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. After all, it took Dowdell seven long years to birth his baby, and to miraculously land a nationwide distribution deal. He wasn’t about to risk some lowlife in a tux recording his movie and turning it into a bootleg before it even hit cineplex screens. Wasn’t going to happen.

Duck boat victim threw lifejacket overboard to help first mate
May 8th 2012, 01:11

As a barge descended on a tiny duck boat in July 2010, 16-year-old Dora Schwendtner threw her life jacket overboard to help the duck's first mate, her family's lawyer said Monday.

Donte Johnson will not testify at murder trial
May 7th 2012, 17:54

Prosecutors in the trial of Donte Johnson, accused in the June 2010 strangling death of Sabina Rose O'Donnell, concluded presenting their case this morning in Common Pleas Court.

1 ticket wins $118 million
May 7th 2012, 16:35

No such luck this time for Philadelphia. The latest Mega Millions jackpot, worth $118 million as an annuity, was won by a ticket purchased at a Citgo in Glenwood, Ill.

Free noon concerts announced for Center City
May 7th 2012, 15:55

Wednesday will be the day for free lunchtime concerts around Center City from June 6 through the end of August. The musical genres will run from rockabilly to reggae, and the locations will vary, from Seventh and Market Streets to 18th and the Parkway.

3 homicide victims ID’d
May 7th 2012, 14:48

Philadelphia police have released the names of the victims of three separate weekend homicides and announced an arrest in one of the fatal shootings. The most recent slaying happened during a triple shooting shortly after 1:30 a.m. Sunday in the 2000 block of North Fourth Streetin North Philadelphia.

Farrell’s a sniper, Howard’s a hugger at Philly film shoot
May 7th 2012, 13:36

Dead Man Down will be getting spirits up once again today in Center City, with more shooting planned all day on Walnut Street between 16th and 17th Streets. Not only is a film being shot, but this mob movie has its share of gunplay, and lots of Terrence Howard fans have had the thrill of posing with the actor from Lafayette Hill.

Mom: NJ teen was drinking before Pa. school death
May 7th 2012, 11:10

The mother of a Lafayette College freshman who died after he was found unconscious in a residence hall says her son had been drinking heavily at a celebration for his 19th birthday.

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