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Jan 9

NEW: Philly Homicide Tracker–a project of Broad + Liberty “By tracking each homicide, found body, and suspicious death, we hope to either provide greater confidence in the city’s published tally, or we hope to expose and correct flaws in the city data.”

Philadelphia Homicide Tracker - a project of Broad + Liberty

By carefully tracking each homicide, found body, and suspicious death, we hope to either provide greater confidence in the city's published tally, or we hope to expose and correct flaws in the city's...

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“Andy Reid vs. the Eagles – This story has so many subplots that it could fill the two weeks by itself.”

Andy Bloom: The Eagles are heading to Arizona and Super Bowl LVII

The Birds look like a team of destiny in one of Philly’s best ever years for sports. By Andy Bloom

Feb 3

“Education is supposed to be the great equalizer, the ladder that allows children to reach their potential. Charter schools are working, changing lives. This is a government program that is working — and ought to be expanded.”

Guy Ciarrocchi: Charter schools work

Charter schools: a government program that helps children, parents, and educators, while saving the taxpayer money.

Feb 2

“These critical investments will not only improve water quality for all Pennsylvanians, but also play a strong role in meeting the federal government’s pollution reduction goals in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.”

Sen. Scott Martin: Cooperation, not partisanship, will solve Pennsylvania’s environmental challenges

Republicans and Democrats have worked together for good, meaningful environmental regulation in the past. They should continue to do so.

Feb 1

“These districts found a way to use the law to their advantage so they could always raise taxes,” said Pennsylvania Auditor General Timothy DeFoor. “Basically, it’s a shell game.”

Pennsylvania school districts hid $400 million to pass tax increases

At least a dozen Pennsylvania school districts exploited a legal loophole to avoid a referendum on tax increases.

Feb 1

NEW: Beth Ann Rosica: The unchecked authority of school boards to raise taxes "The biggest impact is a board’s ability to raise taxes. Pennsylvania is one of very few states vesting this authority in local school boards."

Beth Ann Rosica: The unchecked authority of school boards to raise taxes

Moving money around to avoid giving the voters a say on taxes is technically legal, but far from ethical. By Beth Ann Rosica

Jan 31

“Speaker Rozzi can call us back to session whenever he wants,” said Jason Gottesman, spokesman for Pennsylvania House Republicans. “It’s time for Democrats to join us, the governor and the Senate and get back to work.”

House GOP holdout blocks session recall as clock ticks on temporary majority

All but one Republican in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives signed a letter this week recalling the chamber to session.

Jan 31

NEW: The Editors: Mastriano struggles with reality in post-election accounting "Taken together, these three anecdotes present a disturbing trend of deception and exaggeration."

The Editors: Mastriano struggles with reality in post-election accounting

Exaggerations and half-truths are not what Pennsylvania Republicans need to chart their path forward. By The Editors

Jan 30

“While Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know law correctly safeguards against open-ended, voluminous requests, it is also possible to require a level of specificity that defeats the purpose of the law.”

Kevin Mooney: Navigating open records requests in an age of pandemics, school closures, and mask...

Pennsylvania's Open Records law is a powerful tool for transparency — one that local governments resist as hard as they can. By Kevin Mooney

Jan 30

UPDATE: Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer apologizes for traffic incident last week, saying she will seek treatment for alcohol addiction. "As Mayor...I realize that I am held to a higher standard and I am prepared to face the consequences of my actions."

Jan 30

After updating this a.m., Broad + Liberty's Philly homicide tracker counts 31 homicides. City's website counts 28.

Philadelphia Homicide Tracker - a project of Broad + Liberty

Everyone knows we should change our passwords more often, but we rarely do it… Safari and Firefox have built-in password generators. If you use a password vault system these services will generate and remember passwords for you.

Liz Terwilliger: New Year's Resolution — get spied on less

Want a sustainable New Year's Resolution? Take better care of your digital footprint in 2023! Liz Terwilliger gives some easy tips.

NEW DETAILS ADDED...including four charges. Upper Chichester police say they believe Keffer struck a guardrail earlier, and was pulled over about a mile from that location.

Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer arrested on suspicion of DUI

The mayor of Pennsylvania's sixth largest municipality is facing four charges, including DUI and careless driving. By Todd Shepherd

The mayor of Upper Darby, a populous Delaware County township just outside of West Philadelphia, was in custody for a DUI yesterday evening. We reported it first 🔥⤵️

Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer arrested on suspicion of DUI

The mayor of Pennsylvania's sixth largest municipality is facing four charges, including DUI and careless driving. By Todd Shepherd

Details are still slow to come by but here's what we know so far: Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer arrested on suspicion of DUI

Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer arrested on suspicion of DUI

The mayor of Pennsylvania's sixth largest municipality is facing four charges, including DUI and careless driving. By Todd Shepherd

“Children need to see faces and mouths to learn how to speak, and how to develop and regulate their emotions,” said Natalya Murakhver, co-founder of Restore Childhood.

An Urgency of Normal is still needed for children

Mask mandates remain a harm to children's learning, even as the pandemic fades. By Kevin Mooney

Here's an element of the dispatch report confirming custody and the DUI suspicion. 8490 is code for headquarters

***BREAKING*** Broad + Liberty has confirmed through multiple sources that Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer was taken into custody Thursday night on suspicion of DUI. Developing…

Last year, Pennsylvania’s largest teacher union reported $88 million in cash-on-hand and nearly $174 million in total assets — enough to pay thousands of new teachers and solve Pennsylvania’s teacher shortage.

David Osborne: PA's teachers union cares about lining its pocket

Pennsylvania's largest teachers union spend 80 percent of members' dues on administration, politics, and lobbying, an analysis shows.

Reminder...

Temple University re-engaging with Philly Police after student murder, despite embrace of “defund”...

The university had flirted with "defund the police" — but now is re-engaging the Philadelphia police in light of the killing.

Issues about the rule of law and the pandemic have bubbled up in other places, mainly driven by citizens who have relentlessly pressed the question, whether in the public square or in the courtroom.

Parent alleges school district acted in bad faith to a state senator’s open records request for...

“If government officials aren't bound by the rule of law, then we are subject to their whims,” a parent said about the open records request.

**NEW** Upper Darby administrator Vince Rongione steps down, ending months of controversy

Upper Darby administrator Vince Rongione steps down

Rongione was the center of a months-long political drama in one of the largest municipalities in the commonwealth.

Developing: Broad + Liberty has confirmed Upper Darby's Vince Rongione has stepped down from Mayor Keffer's admin. B+L covered the saga between Rongione and a bipartisan group of township councilors in 2022. Story later this afternoon... Prev coverage:

After firing, Upper Darby’s Rongione sues township councilors, seeks damages

After being fired last month by the Upper Darby Township Council, Vince Rongione is suing the six members who voted to oust him.

"Fans obtaining tickets at fair prices, instead of getting gouged by resellers, happens only in the make-believe world."

Andy Bloom: You paid how much for Eagles playoff tickets?

Ticket prices skyrocket as the league tries to have it both ways on reselling. By Andy Bloom

Jan 24

“This is not the right way to do it,” said Sen. Carolyn Comitta. “These two other amendments have nothing to do with survivors of abuse or their rights … these measures are just too important to be lumped together.”

Pennsylvania’s ‘divisive’ constitutional amendments inch closer to ballot box

Democrats expressed consternation at having to vote on all three amendments as a package. By Christen Smith

Jan 24

2022 property crime in #Philly compared to 2021: Retail Theft: ⬆️52% Auto Theft: ⬆️36% Commercial burglaries: ⬆️40% Theft from person: ⬆️36% Story:

Nearly all Philly property crime categories show double-digit increases from 2021 to '22

Violent crime gets the headlines but other crimes are also on the rise, further adding to the city’s misery. By Todd Shepherd

Jan 23

NEW: Nearly all #Philly property crime categories show double-digit increases from 2021 to ’22 according to new data released by

@PhillyPolice

Nearly all Philly property crime categories show double-digit increases from 2021 to '22

Violent crime gets the headlines but other crimes are also on the rise, further adding to the city’s misery. By Todd Shepherd

Jan 23

“Urgency of Normal” was founded in January 2022 in response to growing concerns about the impact of Covid-19 policies on the mental and physical health of school age children.

An Urgency of Normal is still needed for children

Mask mandates remain a harm to children's learning, even as the pandemic fades. By Kevin Mooney

Jan 23

“The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ultimately reached the same conclusion I did — the school district didn’t have the authority to enforce those policies without going to the General Assembly,” said Chad Williams, a UCFSD parent.

Parent alleges school district acted in bad faith to a state senator’s open records request for...

“If government officials aren't bound by the rule of law, then we are subject to their whims,” a parent said about the open records request.

Jan 22

The digital universe makes us easier to track, but we can reduce the risk of sharing too much personal data with some simple “data hygiene.”

Liz Terwilliger: New Year's Resolution — get spied on less

Want a sustainable New Year's Resolution? Take better care of your digital footprint in 2023! Liz Terwilliger gives some easy tips.

Jan 21

According to Americans for Fair Treatment, the PSEA spent just “$1 out of every $5 of member dues representing teachers, support staff, and other members. The rest of the membership dues money goes towards running the union, politics, and lobbying.”

David Osborne: PA's teachers union cares about lining its pocket

Pennsylvania's largest teachers union spend 80 percent of members' dues on administration, politics, and lobbying, an analysis shows.

Jan 21

There are sixteen states with restrictions on ticket prices above face value — including Pennsylvania. Penalties for reselling tickets over face value ranging from fines to losing season ticket privileges, might help — but aren’t likely to happen.

Andy Bloom: You paid how much for Eagles playoff tickets?

Ticket prices skyrocket as the league tries to have it both ways on reselling. By Andy Bloom

Jan 20

“We are putting these questions before the voters, so what are you afraid of?” asked Sen. Wayne Langerholc Jr. “Move this process forward. This can be on the ballot in May... Let the voters of Pennsylvania decide these questions.”

Pennsylvania’s ‘divisive’ constitutional amendments inch closer to ballot box

Democrats expressed consternation at having to vote on all three amendments as a package. By Christen Smith

Jan 19

“When I write with a fountain pen, it’s as if I have a little breathing space, a little time to marshal my thoughts, a momentary escape from feeling always under the gun.”

Raising the curtain on the Philadelphia Pen Show

The Philadelphia Pen Show runs through Sunday at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown, reports Richard Koenig.

NEW:

interview: Mastriano says Republicans must adapt to mail-in voting

Giordano interview: Mastriano says Republicans must adapt to mail-in voting

"I didn't embrace [mail-in voting], obviously during the campaign. We probably should have used it as the Democrats had, because I don't see how we win elections without embracing that idea,"...

Jan 19

“It seems like officials in blue states want to keep the people in a perpetual state of emergency,” said Natalya Murakhver, a New York City mother. “We desperately need independent public health voices who follow data and question ‘the science.'”

An Urgency of Normal is still needed for children

Mask mandates remain a harm to children's learning, even as the pandemic fades. By Kevin Mooney

Jan 18

"The story of Comcast, like the tragic tale of so many other major and increasingly international companies, is that of powerful corporations turning on their roots... the country and the people that made them possible," Daniel Greenfield writes.

Daniel Greenfield: MSNBC and the king of hate media

Comcast CEO Brian L. Roberts has used MSNBC’s hate machine to divide and slander America By Daniel Greenfield

Jan 17

By carefully tracking each homicide, found body, and suspicious death, we hope to provide greater confidence in Philadelphia’s published tally, or expose and correct flaws and give a voice to concerned citizens, victims, and survivors throughout our city.

Philadelphia Homicide Tracker - a project of Broad + Liberty

Jan 17

NEW: Parent alleges school district acted in bad faith to a state senator’s open records request for Covid information

Parent alleges school district acted in bad faith to a state senator’s open records request for...

“If government officials aren't bound by the rule of law, then we are subject to their whims,” a parent said about the open records request.

Jan 17

While the Legislature’s power to impeach public officials in Pennsylvania appears to be on solid ground, the Commonwealth Court order questioned state Republicans’ overall impeachment case and what constitutes “misbehavior in office.”