Free Republic

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — A man accused of posing as his estranged wife in a Craigslist ad that solicited a hit man to kill him has been sentenced to jail. Public Opinion reported 30-year-old Christian Koelsch was sentenced to a maximum of 23 months in jail after he pleaded guilty to false reports Wednesday. Koelsch was impersonating his wife when he created a Craigslist ad requesting someone to help her "take care of" her ex-husband, according to police. Documents show Koelsch wrote in the advertisement that he beat and abused her. Craigslist provided information to law enforcement about the ad, and...

Pittsburgh city leaders are looking into whether a statue of musical pioneer Stephen Foster should be moved from a spot along Forbes Avenue in Oakland after years of criticism for its depiction of a black character from one of Foster’s songs. Foster, a Pittsburgh native who died in 1864, is famous for classic songs including “Oh! Susanna” and “Camptown Races.” Many of his songs were used in minstrel shows in which actors performed in blackface. The statue depicts Foster sitting above a shoeless banjo-playing “Uncle Ned”, a slave character from a Foster song.

Pastor Christopher Rodkey said he had heard rumors and he didn't sound exactly happy when it was confirmed for him Thursday evening. Matt Jansen, the Spring Grove school board member who drew national attention last year with a recorded phone rant to the pastor over a message board sign wishing "our Muslim neighbors" a "blessed Ramadan," is moving to Rodkey's neck of the woods -- Dallastown. Jansen confirmed Thursday evening he was resigning from the school board because of the move. "I'm not happy about it, but we're about to settle on a house outside the (Spring Grove) district," Jansen...

Officials at the Gettysburg National Military Park said Wednesday that the monuments at the expansive Pennsylvania battlefield will stay despite unrest over Confederate memorials. "These memorials, erected predominantly in the early and mid-20th Century, are an important part of the cultural landscape," battlefield spokeswoman Katie Lawhon told the Hanover Evening Sun.

Philadelphia police arrested a 25-year-old Maplewood, N.J. man Wednesday after he was spotted throwing eggs at the Center City statue of former Mayor Frank Rizzo. The man, whose name was not immediately released, fled from the scene after egging the statue outside the Municipal Services Building across from City Hall. He was caught and charged with disorderly conduct and criminal mischief, police said. The vandalism was captured by 6ABC cameras on the scene. Authorities did not cite a motive. But particularly in the wake of the deadly Charlottesville protest, the statue has drawn new scrutiny of the former mayor and...

They stood together on the steps at Bethlehem's City Hall a group of government and spiritual leaders and members of the community who said they had to do something. "I think it's all senseless. All senseless," begins Bethlehem NAACP President Esther Lee. Lee says the images that she's seen over the last few days, have been tough to watch. "You know, we're 108 years in as NAACPers and we might think things would improve, but they do not. You know we still have this factor about black and white," she tells us. She continues, "What does that have to do...

Vietnam vet Ed Hill earned the Bronze Star but never received it. Now after all this time, Hill received the medal he so rightly deserved.

Park officials say the Confederate monuments in Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania are staying put, according to our affiliate WSET. The national park has not received any complaints about the monuments, park spokesperson Katie Lawhon told USA Today. "These memorials, erected predominantly in the early and mid-20th century, are an important part of the cultural landscape," Lawhon said in an email to USA Today. Lawhon told reporters that the park's mission includes interpreting the actions, motivations, and causes of the soldiers. Gettysburg National Military Park focuses on the Battle of Gettysburg, which was the bloodiest battle during the Civil...

The “March on Google” scheduled for Saturday in Bakery Square has been postponed, Channel 11 Morning News has learned. The lead organizer said it was postponed because of credible “alt-left” terrorist threats against the events planned for locations across the country. The march was scheduled in reaction to the firing of a software engineer who wrote a controversial memo about women in technology. Organizers say the events had been falsely portrayed as "alt-right," which led to the threats. A comment on the event website says, "Mainstream media made malicious and false statements that our peaceful march was being organized by...

The organizer of protests planned at Google offices around the country says he’s trying to decide whether to cancel the rallies due to concerns over possible violence. Organizer Jack Posobiec tells the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Tuesday that he’s very concerned about threats of violence at the scheduled events Saturday in Pittsburgh and eight other locations where Google has offices. They are in reaction to Google’s firing of a software engineer who questioned company diversity efforts and argued that biological gender differences helped explain why women are underrepresented at the company. …

An anti-Trump activist has been accused of executing his neighbor who was a prominent Republican supporter. Clayton Carter allegedly shot George Jennings, both 51, twice in the head outside his home in Pennsylvania in the early hours of August 8. The men had already been arguing the previous night and police were called after Carter pulled a gun, but managed to diffuse the situation. Clayton Carter, 51, is accused of shooting neighbor George Jennings, also 51, twice in the head in Pennsylvania last week +3 Clayton Carter, 51 (left), is accused of shooting neighbor George Jennings, also 51 (right), twice...

As officials across the country examine whether to display Confederate monuments in U.S. cities, the area park dedicated to one of the most noteworthy Civil War battles has no plans to remove anything memorializing Confederates. In the wake of white supremacist rally and ensuing violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, Gettysburg National Military Park has not received any new complaints about its Confederate monuments at the park, said spokeswoman Katie Lawhon. More than 1,300 monuments, markers and plaques are housed at the park to memorialize the historic battle, including a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and a Confederate flag on...

An accused fentanyl dealer awaiting arraignment on felony drug charges at the federal courthouse in Pittsburgh hanged himself in a holding cell, rather than face justice on drug charges. According to TribLive.com, the drug defendant, Gregory Japalucci, 38, of Westmoreland County, Pa., died Saturday at a local hospital following the hanging on Wednesday. U.S. Marshals Service has offered few details about the incident, which took place in a federal courthouse holding cell while Japalucci was awaiting his appearance in court. Background from TribLive.com: A federal grand jury indicted Japalucci in June on felony charges of delivery and possession with intent...

A West Goshen, Pennsylvania man shot his GOP neighbor twice in the head and killed him late Monday night. Clayton Carter, an unhinged anti-Trump fanatic, shot his neighbor twice in the head on his neighbor’s property.

Democratic Rep. Yvette Clarke is vowing to fight the U.S. Army’s refusal to change streets named after Confederate generals at a New York base.

Police say an Italian restaurant in eastern Pennsylvania is apparently a favorite spot for one man – a burglary suspect jailed on charges he's broken into the place three times. Forks Township police had already charged 32-year-old Maurice Greene for burglaries at DeLorenzo's Restaurant on Feb. 1 and Sept. 28 before they determined he was also responsible for a Sept. 7 break-in. The (Allentown) Morning Call says Greene is accused of taking $1,318 worth of bottled alcoholic drinks and $432 in cash from the register. Police say they found his DNA on an open bottle of Smirnoff Ice left on...

ICE has dumped over forty illegal aliens on a small Pennsylvania community. They were released from ICE custody under the Alternative to Detention [ATD] program. ATD is considered a “humane alternative” to detention centers but does take into account the communities that are affected. Some of them are required to wear GPS ankle bracelets. The illegal aliens are Gypsies, allegedly from Bucharest, Romania. They have been placed in California, PA which is a town of fewer than seven thousand people. Since Romania was admitted to the EU, there has a been exodus of Gypsies who seek greater welfare benefits in...

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George Scott, a 20-year military veteran and Lutheran pastor, launched his campaign to unseat third-term U.S. Rep Scott Perry for the 4th congressional district seat on Tuesday. Scott, who lives in Dillsburg, is running for the Democratic nomination. He announced his candidacy to his Harrisburg-area residents in the in the capitol rotunda, saying he would "restore sanity to our political process." It was Scott's second of four events across the district planned for Tuesday. Scott grew up on a farm in Adams County and enlisted in the Army after college. He said Tuesday he served as an Army officer in...

<p>A Pennsylvania school district will allow students to use restrooms corresponding to their "consistently and uniformly asserted gender identity" in settling a federal lawsuit brought last year by three transgender students.</p> <p>Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund announced the settlement Tuesday in Pittsburgh.</p>