Criminal Justice

The shooting occurred about 1 a.m. Friday in the 400 block of Pierce Street. Police described it as "an isolated incident between known parties."

Jared Gerhard, 31, of Macungie, was sentenced Thursday in a hearing before Lehigh County Judge Anna-Kristie M. Marks to 9 to 23 months in Lehigh County Jail, county District Attorney Gavin P. Holihan said.

Leroy Mendez, 37, was charged with aggravated assault, aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI and accidents involving death or personal injury, all felonies, police said.

The shooting occurred in September 2024 near North Law and Liberty streets. Police said they arrested the 26-year-old suspect after spotting him Monday night walking with a woman in the 1300 block of West Walnut Street.

Brenda Rodriguez entered the plea before Lehigh County Judge Robert L. Steinberg. She is scheduled to be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. Nov. 5 and could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Matthew Torres pleaded guilty to homicide by vehicle while DUI and other charges in the Aug. 4, 2024, death of Leanna Ferraj, 24, of Brooklyn, New York, who was a front-seat passenger in his car.

Two unnamed male students were arrested after previous hoax reports this month. No one was immediately arrested in connection with Wednesday's bomb threat at Allen High School.

The shooting occurred in the area of North Codorus Township in York County — about 115 miles west of Philadelphia, not far from the Maryland line. The shooter was killed by police, authorities said.

Emil Giordano served as a presiding judge on Northampton County Court, Third Judicial District, from 204 through 2018. He joins Tom Shortell on the latest episode of Lehigh Valley Political Pulse to shed some insight on the role and his time on the bench.

Christopher Fitzgerald also served as a correctional officer at Lehigh County Jail at the start of his law enforcement career.

According to a release issued by ICE, Luis Gualdron-Gualdron, “a citizen and national of Venezuela who previously entered the United States without inspection,” was arrested on Jan. 31 without incident near the prison shortly after an immigration detainer was not honored.

Neighbors say a state police pursuit came to a dramatic conclusion at approximately 11:56 p.m., with one car on the street engulfed in flames.

David Isaiah Rivera, 26, was arraigned on charges alleging he fired at a group of people around 4 a.m. outside BKK Lounge, 1500 Union Boulevard, after a fight between two groups inside the club spilled into the parking lot.

A 32-year-old man died and three other people were wounded in a shooting in the parking lot of BKK Lounge, 1500 Union Blvd., early Sunday, according to Allentown police. It was the city's first homicide of 2025.

Jason Krasley, the former Allentown police officer already facing felony charges in two cases, was charged again Thursday, according to court documents. His total bail adds up to almost $1 million.

Brenda Rodriguez, 51, of Palmerton is charged with criminal solicitation/criminal homicide and conspiracy-aggravated assault in the shooting death of her husband, Hector Manuel Garcia Gomez, 46, of Palmerton on Dec. 7.

Joshua and Tracy Dechant were charged Sunday with two felony counts each, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said in a release.

Evan Weaver and Jason Krasley were in Lehigh County Court, where their lawyers argued Thursday against Lehigh County prosecutors' motion to revoke their bail.

According to a release, John C. Miles, of Palmerton, Carbon County, has been charged in the incident that took place Monday, Nov. 11, 2024.

The “No Hate in Our State” town hall, organized by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, is scheduled for noon Saturday at POWER Interfaith, 620 Hamilton St.

Federal prosecutors dismissed criminal charges alleging Tighe Scott assaulted police outside the U.S. Capitol Building. The decision stems from President Donald Trump's executive order pardoning more than 1,000 people convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and all ongoing dismissing ongoing prosecutions.

Francis Anonia, a former Parkland High School performing arts teacher, was arraigned in Lehigh County Court on Friday morning on charges he used his cell phone multiple times to secretly record a male student in a school changing room in 2022. If found guilty of all 19 charges, he could face up to 88 years in prison.