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Biden to bring infrastructure sales pitch to Pa.

HARRISBURG (AP) — President Joe Biden will head to the Allentown area Wednesday as he fights for passage in the Senate of a nearly $1 trillion infrastructure measure that a bipartisan group of senators brokered with him.

The White House is billing Biden’s visit to Macungie as a stop to “emphasize the importance of American manufacturing, buying products made in America, and supporting good-paying jobs for American workers.”

It gave no other details of the visit — Biden’s second to Pennsylvania so far this month after he went to Philadelphia last week to speak on voting rights.

In the Senate, Republicans rejected an effort this week to begin debate on the infrastructure deal. Supporters say they just need more time before another vote, possibly next week.

Macungie is near the home of Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, who voted against opening debate. In a statement after the vote, Toomey echoed other Republicans in pointing out that critical details about the deal are not finalized.

Should an agreement be reached on those, Toomey said he will consider the measure “based on its substance.” Pennsylvania’s other U.S. senator, Democrat Bob Casey, voted with other Democrats to start debate.

The measure includes about $579 billion in new spending on roads, broadband and other public works projects — a first phase of Biden’s infrastructure agenda, to be followed by a much broader $3.5 trillion measure from Democrats next month.

Police: SUV hits trooper, 3 firefighters on I-76; 1 dead

ARDMORE (AP) — A New Jersey woman has been charged with vehicular homicide in the death of a firefighter struck along with two other firefighters and a state trooper as they were responding to a crash on Interstate 76 in suburban Philadelphia, police said.

State police said emergency responders were called shortly after 3 a.m. Saturday to a collision involving two cars in the westbound lanes of I-76 in Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County. Police said the trooper was speaking with one of the drivers when a sport utility vehicle drove up on the right shoulder and hit the trooper and three firefighters as well as one of the cars.

The trooper and two firefighters were taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and another firefighter was taken to Paoli Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, police said. The Lower Merion Township fire department identified him as Tom Royds of Belmont Hills Fire Company and said he went into cardiac arrest at the scene. The condition of the other injured emergency responders wasn’t immediately available.

Police said the SUV driver was arrested at the scene. Court documents indicate that Jacquelyn Walker is charged with vehicular homicide while driving under the influence, aggravated assault by vehicle, reckless endangering and other counts. Court documents list the defendant, who turned 63 on Saturday, as residing in Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey, while state police said she is from Pemberton, New Jersey.

Walker was taken to Montgomery County Prison in lieu of $500,000 bail. Court documents indicate that she requested representation by the public defender’s office, which could not be reached over the weekend; a listed number for her could not be found Saturday.

Police said both drivers involved in the initial crash were charged with driving under the influence.

Man charged in slaying outside Philadelphia cheesesteak shop

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Pennsylvania man has been charged in the early morning shooting death of a New Jersey man outside a well-known Philadelphia cheesesteak shop, authorities said.

Paul Burkert, 36, of Reading is charged with murder, reckless endangering, evidence-tampering, conspiracy and weapons offenses, police said.

David Padro, 23, of Camden, New Jersey was shot shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday after an argument broke out between customers outside Pat’s King of Steaks in south Philadelphia. He was pronounced dead about a half-hour later at Jefferson University Hospital, police said.

A spokesperson for the District Attorney’s Office said witnesses told investigators that the fight was over a parking space rather than a football rivalry, as initial reports had suggested, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

David Padro Sr. told the paper that his son and his girlfriend were in Philadelphia to go to a nightclub and had stopped for a bite to eat. He described his son as “a very humble kid” who was getting into day trading. Last weekend, he came to swim in his father’s pool and before he left made sure to say “Dad, I love you,” he said.

“He was a good person, you know?” Padro Sr. said. “A good kid that didn’t deserve to die this way. Nobody does.”

It’s unclear whether Burkert has an attorney; a listed number for him couldn’t be found Saturday.

Man pleads guilty to kidnapping, killing young Amish woman

LANCASTER (AP) — A man who led authorities to the remains of a young Amish woman in Pennsylvania pleaded guilty Friday to kidnapping and killing her.

Justo Smoker, 35, pleaded guilty in Lancaster County to third-degree murder, kidnapping and other offenses in the death of 18-year-old Linda Stoltzfoos, who was last seen walking home from church in the Bird-in-Hand area on June 21, 2020.

Smoker was sentenced to 35-1/2 to 71 years in prison. He faces an additional sentence of more than 17 years for violating parole from a previous series of burglaries and robberies.

“This effectively is a life sentence for Smoker,” District Attorney Heather Adams said at a news conference after the hearing.

Authorities said they believe Smoker killed Stoltzfoos within a few hours of kidnapping her, buried her in one location where her stockings and bra were later found, then moved her body to another grave, on railroad property behind a business where he worked. A coroner said she was strangled and stabbed.

Smoker led authorities to her remains in April as a condition of his plea agreement, Adams said.

The LNP newspaper reported that Smoker apologized to Stoltzfoos’ family in court, saying he had “robbed the family of time and memories.” President Judge David Ashworth called Smoker a “predator of the worst kind.”

Smoker was on parole from string of armed robberies he committed in 2006. He was released from prison in February 2019, 16 months before Stoltzfoos was killed.

Candidate for governor says he did not cause fatal accident

HARRISBURG (AP) — Charlie Gerow, a Republican who announced his candidacy for governor last month, said Friday that he is cooperating with a police investigation into an accident in which a motorcyclist was killed, and that shut down the Pennsylvania Turnpike for seven hours.

Gerow apparently drove for several miles with the motorcycle stuck to the front of his car, according to a witness. In a statement through a spokesperson, Gerow said he did not cause the accident and he was not injured.

Pennsylvania State Police have released little information about the accident Wednesday night just before 10 p.m., saying only that it involved a motorcycle and a car that a Gerow spokesperson identified as the one Gerow was driving.

The turnpike was closed for seven hours after the accident in the westbound lanes in Chester County, just west of the King of Prussia interchange, police said in a news release.

The Chester County coroner’s office identified the victim as Logan Carl Abbott, 30, of Bradford County. The cause of death is multiple blunt impacts and toxicology tests on the victim are pending, Chester County Coroner Christina VandePol said.

It is not clear whether other vehicles were involved, or how the accident happened.

A highway construction worker told Spotlight PA/The Philadelphia Inquirer that he was working on the turnpike’s eastbound lanes Wednesday night when he saw a Mercedes pass by with a motorcycle wedged into its grill.

Gerow, 66, runs a communications and marketing firm in Harrisburg with offices two blocks from the state Capitol, where he is a familiar face.

In the statement, Gerow said he “looks forward to the State Police completing their investigation and is confident that the investigation will confirm that he was not the cause (of) the accident.”

Gerow said he was advised not discuss the matter further until the investigation is complete.