Criminal Justice

Danelo Cavalcante, who escaped from Chester County Prison last week, has been on the run for six days. He was convicted last month of killing his girlfriend and is extremely dangerous, according to authorities.

Lehigh County officials determined the proposed legislation had more than a dozen problems, making it too problematic to present to Allentown voters. The bill would have dispatched an EMT and mental health professional to certain calls and prohibited other first responders from going.

About 40 people protested at Lehigh Valley Hospital Wednesday. Many said they or someone they knew had been falsely accused of medical child abuse by LVHN doctors.

Lehigh County Sheriff’s Office warns residents about a surge in telephone scams and offers tips on avoiding fraudulent calls.

Police in Columbus, Ohio, arrested a 16-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl and charged them with aggravated robbery and felony assault in the Aug. 18 attack near Ohio State University.

Pennsylvania will not release a state-maintained database of certified police officers, even after a national coalition of newsrooms asked Gov. Josh Shapiro to intervene.

The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency awarded Bethlehem a $726,000 grant in January to provide programming intended to reduce violence in five neighborhoods. City officials will begin surveying residents about their needs next week.

A woman accused of intentionally abandoning her dog at a Pennsylvania airport before she boarded a flight to a resort in Mexico earlier this month has been charged with animal cruelty and related charges.

Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said Dominick Hogans ran from police and then shot at them July 24, 2023. Officers were within their rights when they returned fire, fatally shooting him nine times, Martin said.

A Lehigh County report found "systemic overdiagnosis" of medical child abuse, formerly known as Munchausen syndrome by proxy. People came to the Lehigh County Commissioners meeting and said LVHN has falsely accused many of the disorder.

Former Hellertown Police Chief Robert Shupp, who was recently sentenced to prison time for stealing money from the borough, is lined up to get about $32,000 in pension contributions with an approval from Borough Council.

Pennsylvania State Police have rolled out 15 RapidHIT ID systems to troops across the commonwealth. The machines are capable of analyzing forensic samples and generating DNA profiles in as little as 90 minutes.

Palmer Township police officer John Smoke faces up to five years in prison. Authorities accused him of sending the photo to a 16-year-old while he was assigned to Easton Area High School as a resource officer.

Police have charged an Easton man in connection with a recent chop shop investigation. Angel Vidal faces several felony and misdemeanor charges as he awaits a preliminary hearing in Northampton County Prison.

Incidents in the dashboard date only to the start of 2024, which Mayor Matt Tuerk and Police Chief Charles Roca have touted as having historically low crime and homicide rates.

Police are seeking witnesses to a hit-and-run crash on Industrial Drive in Bethlehem that left a pedestrian with serious injuries.

The expanded police department’s finish will set in motion another project in downtown Allentown.

The Northampton County Drug Task Force raided four convenience stores Thursday — three in the Slate Belt and one in East Allen Township. Besides the cash seized, authorities said the value of products confiscated surpassed $400,000.

Elijah Patterson, 19, of Allentown, was found guilty of first-degree murder and other charges after a three-day Lehigh County Jury trial in March.

Christian Lopez-Rodriguez, 21, of Allentown, died Oct. 17, 2020, shortly after he was shot during a robbery on the Hamilton Street bridge, according to authorities.

Said Township Police Chief Frank Lombardo, “The decisions that I make, while for the organization, will always be guided by my time on the street, which brought every type of experience a police officer could have.”

Pediatricians say teen twin boys who were severely malnourished in their parents' care likely would have died in weeks or months if not for medical attention. District Judge Michael J. Faulkner determined that there was enough evidence to send the case to Lehigh County Court.