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Olivia Marble/LehighValleyNews.comThe controller's report — published in mid-July — says the Guardian ad Litem program in Lehigh County lacks centralization, oversight and consistency in billing and compensation. That undermines "public trust in child welfare proceedings," he said. -
Hayden Mitman/LehighValleyNews.comThe case against Matthew Wolfe relied heavily on the expert testimony of Dr. Debra Esernio-Jenssen, the former Lehigh Valley Health Network physician being sued for alleged medical child abuse misdiagnoses. With her credibility under scrutiny, prosecutors agreed to cut years off Wolf's sentence.
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Witness said Jose Vladimir Jerez, 24, of Allentown, was driving erratically while trying to pass another car when he crashed his car into a utility pole in October. A 20-year-old passenger, Ezequiel Hernandez-Cartagena, died less than 90 minutes later. -
A former Easton Area High School resource officer who pleaded guilty to sending a sexually explicit image of himself to a 16-year-old female student in 2024 was sentenced to 9-to-24 months in Northampton County Prison, it was announced on Wednesday.
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Said Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott, “It’s not used for enforcement. It’s just a means, similar to the news media, of being able to bring up that camera and check the traffic conditions, or if there's an accident, it could be utilized for investigative purposes.”
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Angel Martinez-Velez, 25, of Allentown, was shot and killed June 1, 2024, on the basketball court at Allentown's Fountain Park.
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Allentown police were called just before 2 a.m. Sunday to a home in the 100 block of Pine Street, where officers found a girl suffering from a gunshot wound to the face, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office.
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Police were called to a South Side neighborhood just before 11:30 p.m. on Saturday for a report of a shooting. All of the wounded are expected to survive, police said.
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John Gehrmann, stepfather of Palmer teen Enci "Aubrey" Wu, has been charged with illegally recording phone conversations with authorities and other individuals while he was looking into the girl's disappearance.
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Mayor Matt Tuerk called on the county's president judge to “issue a public and unambiguous policy” banning ICE agents from county courthouses, a move he said would “be a major step in restoring trust in government and faith in its fairness.”
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Lehigh County Board of Commissioners have Ok'd a four-year, $34.6 million contract with PrimeCare Medical to serve inmates in their corrections facilities.
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The hotline, created by the Lehigh Valley Emergency Response Network, will serve as a tool for residents to report concerns about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity.
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Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin will not be seeking reelection after nearly 25 years in the office
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Northampton County District Attorney Terry Houck is running for a second term in office. This will be his first race defending the seat as an incumbent.
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Christopher Schweikert, 27, of Coplay, who also is a teacher at Freedom High School, had a sexual relationship with the girl, whom he coached, according to Northampton County prosecutors.
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State legislators were set to address extending the statute of limitations for victims of childhood sexual abuse — a bill that had been passed in the last session — but, partisan bickering stalled the move. Local Democratic legislators explain what happened.
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The man accused in the fatal stabbings of four University of Idaho students appeared in court Thursday. Bryan Kohberger has yet to enter a plea and is waiting to learn whether prosecutors in the high-profile case will pursue the death penalty.
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David Collins will take on the new job next month, overseeing plans to keep the jail safe and secure.
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Legislators in the state's House of Representatives were set for a special meeting Monday to increase the statute of limitations for victims of childhood sexual abuse. They stalled all day and never held a vote.
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Bryan Kohberger's DNA was found on a knife sheath at the crime scene, an investigator said in court documents unsealed Thursday.
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An Idaho magistrate judge on Tuesday reportedly issued a gag order in the Bryan Kohberger case, barring officials from talking publicly about many aspects of the case outside of court.
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Bryan Kohberger, the man with Lehigh Valley ties facing first-degree murder charges in the slayings of four University of Idaho students, did not fight extradition at a hearing Tuesday in Monroe County Court.
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People in Pennsylvania who buy or carry fentanyl testing strips will no longer face potential criminal charges for possession of drug paraphernalia.
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Allentown police say four people were shot Sunday night in the 1100 block of East Clair Street — site of the nonprofit East Side Youth Center. On Tuesday, folks played pickleball inside with the doors locked.
