Criminal Justice

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has used county office space but hasn't paid rent in three years despite a 2022 memorandum of understanding, county officials said. Said Controller Mark Pinsley: "We're going to deport ICE."

A county judge heard arguments Friday for and against releasing the two pages from a sealed grand jury presentment that deals with the drug-charge allegations against Lehigh County Commissioner Zach Cole-Borghi, of Bethlehem.

Lehigh County prosecutors tried to avoid the standard procedures for criminal court by bypassing defendants' preliminary hearings. Instead, Lehigh County Judge Thomas Caffrey ruled the cases should proceed Friday morning as scheduled.

Former Forks Township Police Chief Michael Friel announced his retirement in December. Township supervisors approved a separation agreement but refused to disclose it until a Right-to-Know request was filed.

Grelvis Estevez Cabrera, 29, received the mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for first-degree murder in the killing of 25-year-old Angel Martinez-Velez in June 2024 in Allentown.

Catasauqua Borough Police are leading the investigation, with assistance from the State Police Forensics Services Unit and the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.

A Lehigh County judge has denied an appeal that sought to clear the way for Nexus 78, a 501,000-square-foot warehouse proposed for North Whitehall Township. The ruling is unlikely to be the last word in the fight over the warehouse's fate.

An investigation is underway into a non-fatal police shooting that occurred Sunday at the former Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Hospital in Allentown, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.

The Bethlehem Police Department is giving kudos to one of its officers, who went beyond simply making a report when he responded to a call for a burglary.

The victim, 29-year-old Rigiberto Hernandez Arias of Allentown, died Nov. 21 after being run over near Emaus Avenue and South Fourth Street in Allentown. An Amazon delivery driver, 30-year-old Troy Johnson, is in Lehigh County Jail on $500,000 bail.

Sunday’s fatal stabbing at Synergy Hookah Lounge on Union Boulevard in Allentown was “the last straw,” the building's owner said, adding he wants the business “gone like cancer.”

A trooper and a suspect both were shot and killed in a shootout in central Pennsylvania, just hours after a 2nd trooper was seriously injured after being shot by the gunman, according to Pennsylvania State Police.

It happened about 5:40 p.m. Friday near South Third and West Union streets in Allentown as city police and state troopers were conducting "high visibility proactive traffic enforcement," state police said. The motorist was taken to a hospital along with another motorist injured when struck by the offending vehicle.

Autopsy reveals cause and manner of death on Tuesday's incident in West Catasauqua Park.

Christopher Ferrante's case became key to the primary race for Northampton County District Attorney. A Common Pleas judge will soon decide whether the case can move forward, and weigh in on one dispute from the primary in the process.

Easton Police Chief Carl Scalzo and South Side Civic Association President Melody Davis-Rogers alerted the community to several car break-ins on South Side at a city council meeting Wednesday.

A 35-year-old woman was shot and killed at a playground in the township on Tuesday, authorities said. Rami Abouloh, 41, has been charged in the incident, according to court documents.

Supporters detailed the merits of the program Tuesday ahead of the council’s imminent deadline to vote on the proposal.

Prosecutors confirmed Johnathan Miklich, a Moore Township police officer, remains suspended from duty. His wife and ex-girlfriend previously accused him of harassment and assault.

Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott outlined the potential for a part-time detective to team up with other agencies to address sex trafficking and child exploitation.

The Lehigh County Office of the Public Defender is set to host its fifth “Community Outreach Day” from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday in the parking garage at Seventh and Walnut streets.

The juvenile charged appeared Thursday in juvenile court and admitted to the allegations involving the tampering of food products with sewing needles at the Lower Macungie Township Giant supermarket