******** WAS ERMA KAYLOR RAPED? UPDATED – BETRAYAL OF TRUST! – 2

TORNADO WARNING!

6-1-12 – Please be safe and check back tomorrow! 

TERRIBLE POLICE WORK   

    There are eight unsolved homicides in the City of Lancaster since Keith Sadler became the Police Chief on April 23, 2008.
    They are:
1. Samuel E. Bair – 8-26-08
2. Hector Ortiz Fuentes – 8-11-09
3. Sandy Reyes-Mateo – 11-21-09
4. Michael B. Evans – 12-19-09
5. Timothy J. Frei – 11-1-10
6. Olga Sanchez-Reyes 12-6-10
7. Spencer Houston – 5-19-11
8. Erma Kaylor – 5-16-12
   For the three full years Sadler has been here, his clearance rate is a terrible 72%. That wouldn’t pass muster in Philadelphia! And now his detectives cannot solve the brutal murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor who never left her home.
    Bring in outside help immediately and Mayor Gray needs to carefully re-evaluate Chief Sadler!   

ARREST THE KILLER
OR RESIGN, CHIEF SADLER!

    Our success can only be measured by the level of confidence and support that we receive from Lancaster’s proud citizens. This can only happen when all residents obtain a decent quality of life.
Help us reach our goal!
Keith R. Sadler
Chief of Police
From the Lancaster Police website (click here).

NOT LIFTING A FINGER!

      Erma Kaylor

    Police Chief Keith Sadler - do not tell me the detectives are working around the clock on the murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor! Do not feed me your “trained professionals” platitudes. Today it is exactly two weeks since she was brutally murdered in her home.
    Yesterday I spoke to the owner of the building and he said he has not spoken to the police. He said they have exchanged “a few voicemails.”
    This is the owner of the building! This is the man Erma Kaylor’s neighbors say she called repeatedly to complain about the people in apartment #2 above her and your detectives have not spoken to him let alone interviewed him in person and at the property?
    This is beyond outrageous! Bring in outside authorities now!
    As horrific as this crime already is – evidence is pointing to the fact that Erma Kaylor was sexually assaulted and the police are keeping the fact from the public.
Please check back later today.

**** How dare you speak to me that way, Police Chief Keith Salder? How dare you? Arrest the killer of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor and do it today! Full details of our conversation to follow either very late this afternoon or tomorrow.

 * UPDATED 5-27-2012 – Apparently the police are unhappy about this post. They should spend their time arresting the killer of  83-year-old Erma Kaylor.  Arrest the killer now!  

PERSON OF INTEREST
IN THE MAY 16 MURDER
OF ERMA KAYLOR

Name:  Markeem Lamar Zink
Possible Nickname:  “Junior”
Age:  20
Date of Birth:  March 21, 1992
Race:  Black/Mixed
Eyes:  Green
Hair Color:  Black

    Markeem Lamar Zink lived with his girlfriend and their daughter in Apartment #2 at 235 W. Vine Street, above the apartment where Erma Kaylor lived for 15 years.
    They were staying with his sister, Ashley, and others in the apartment. 
    Zink had a fight with his sister on May 16th, the night 83-year-old Kaylor was killed. The police were called and he, his girlfriend and their daughter reportedly moved out that night.
    Zink’s last known address was 227 S. Queen Street in Lancaster where they were living with his mother.
    Zink was arrested in Columbia on February 9th of this year for simple assault and theft. He pled guilty before District Justice Robert Herman and the court is still awaiting his payment of the fines.
    Zink was in the Police Log printed in the Lancaster Newspapers for threatening to kill another man on April 9th of this year (click here).
    Anyone with information on Zink should contact the Lancaster Police Department at 717-735-3300.    

BETRAYAL OF TRUST!

ARREST THE KILLER! – 3

Captain of Detectives Kent Switzer

    Make an arrest today, Captain of Detectives Kent Switzer. Make an arrest today in the horrific murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor or I will print his name and description on this site.
    You took an oath to protect the public and never to betray their trust. If you can’t live up to that oath, you need to resign immediately.
    Mayor Gray, you need to get after the landlords in the 200 block of West Vine Street. The property where Erma Kaylor lived should be condemned until it is brought up to code. Gerald Stoltzfoos, the owner of 235 W. Vine Street, are you listening? You will be!
    What an incredible block, filled with amazing, caring people. Mayor Rick Gray and Police Chief Keith Sadler, you need to restore their faith in the law. You need to make an arrest now and bring some closure and peace back to the lives of the people on this block. Many of them are talking about moving. You can’t let that happen. We need people like this!
    Make an arrest today, Captain Switzer!
Please check back later today.

* WHO KILLED ERMA KAYLOR?

 * It was a long and very interesting day in Lancaster.  Thank you to all we met!  Please check back tomorrow.

Her neighbors know! 
Why haven’t the police made an arrest?

WORDS ARE CHEAP?

ANOTHER DAY
ANOTHER UNSOLVED MURDER!

    A friend saw this huge headline last Friday and thought it meant an arrest was imminent. No, I said, this is just what the Lancaster Newspapers do. Everything’s fine. Everything’s great. No need to worry. We’ll forget about all of this in a day or two and so will you!
    Note to friend – please see the permanent box above with a link to another promise by Police Chief Sadler, ”Lancaster police chief vows to find arsonist.”  Words are cheap!
Please check back later today.

BEYOND INCOMPETENCE!

NIGHTMARE!

    “All available Lancaster City Police Criminal Investigators are continuing to work on this case with the assistance of the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office,” a police news release states.
WGAL-TV, May 17, 2012, “Lancaster police release identity of elderly homicide victim,” (click here).
    83-year-old Erma Kaylor, who lived alone and her neighbors report rarely left her home and had few visitors but  received $80 every Wednesday morning, was killed last Wednesday morning in her W. Vine Street home and the combined forces of the Police Department and the District Attorney’s office have yet to make an arrest.
    You mean this killer of an 83-year-old woman is smarter than every one of these trained, seasoned and professional criminal investigators?
    This has to be a nightmare. Would someone wake me up?

THE PUBLIC HAS A RIGHT TO KNOW!

SEALED FROM
PUBLIC INSPECTION?

    Today is one week since 83-year-old Erma Kaylor was killed in her home at 235 West Vine Street in Lancaster. According to neighbors, she rarely left her apartment.
    And there is this from yesterday’s Intell/New Era article by Tom Murse, “Killing leaves a void in Lancaster city neighborhood,” (click here):
    They [the Lancaster Police] have made no arrests and have released little information on the case, other than to say Kaylor had visible traumatic wounds on her body. A search warrant obtained by police has been sealed from public inspection.
    Who sealed the search warrant and why?
Please check back later today.

CLEAN SWEEP?

TROUBLE, TROUBLE, TROUBLE
IN LANCASTER COUNTY!

    Lancaster County’s method of jury selection is unconstitutional according to David Kairys, a Professor of Law at Temple University School of Law and a member of the American Civil Liberties Union. He is also an expert on jury selection.
    Kiarys was shocked when he learned Lancaster County is currently pulling prospective jurors from only one list – Penn Dot licensed drivers and those with photo I.D.’s.
    There will be much more on all of this to come – but defense attorneys – please save your jury pool lists.
BEST IN LANCASTER COUNTY?
    “This police chief [Keith Sadler] is far more open and releases far more information than any previous Lancaster Police Chief,” Mayor Rick Gray said by telephone today. He continued, “He has made it clear from day one that he feels it‘s important to be open with the public. Talk to the chief.”
     In a testy and at times confrontational interview he also said, “I don’t meet with the Chief on crimes.“ He said it’s standard that he meets with the Chief once a week and the last time they met was last week.
    He told me I would have to speak with the police to get any details on the murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor in her Lancaster home last Wednesday. No arrests have been made and virtually no information has been released to the public.
    The Mayor used the old standby saying it’s “a delicate balance” between releasing information and releasing too much which might let the perpetrator know the police are pursing him.
    He said the Lancaster Police are trained professionals and “the best police department in Lancaster County.”
    Asked if he should make a public statement to help put resident’s fears at ease, he said “No” and asked what difference Ms. Kaylor’s age makes. “What does her being 83 have to do with anything?” he asked. “How does that make it different from any other woman being killed?”
    Tomorrow, at the Mayor’s urging, I will call Chief Sadler again as he did not return my phone call from yesterday.
WERE AUTOPSIES PERFORMED?
    This email in last evening:
    Just out of curiosity, has the coroner ever responding to your request to know if an autopsy was performed on the two women who supposedly hung themselves?
    A long story – but the County refused, I appealed, and the State upheld the County. I worded my request incorrectly as they are not required to give “answers to questions.”
    I am being assisted by outside media and new Right-To-Know requests will be submitted to the District Attorney’s office this week.
    I will keep you updated. Is this simply astonishing or what? Do you think there’s something they’re trying to sweep under the rug?

ARREST THE KILLER! – 2

NOT ANOTHER COLD CASE!

    Will the police make an arrest in the murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor today?
    Click here for today’s, “Killing leaves a void in Lancaster city neighborhood,” and please check back later today.

BLATANT DISCRIMINATION IN LANCASTER!

Frequently Asked Questions

Who may be called as a juror?
You may be called to serve if you are at least 18 years old, a United States citizen, and a resident of Bucks County.
Where does the Jury Selection Commission obtain the name of prospective jurors?
Beginning 2010 instead of using Penn DOT and voter’s registration records we will be using a list created by the state. The statewide jury list will include the names of residents who vote, pay taxes, drive a car, receive welfare or food stamps. The statewide list was created to identify more potential jurors into the jury pool.
From the Bucks County Court website (click here).
    I am going to come back to the Lancaster County method of selecting prospective jurors tomorrow. I am shocked – and the powers that be might want to change it just as soon as they possibly can.
    Between 3:05 and 3:12 pm this afternoon, I placed calls and left messages for the following three people regarding the unsolved Wednesday murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor in her city home: Police Spokesman Lt. Todd Umstead, Mayor Rick Gray and Police Chief Keith Sadler.
    I’m anxiously awaiting your calls, gentlemen! And everyone in the county is anxiously awaiting an arrest in this case.

ARREST THE KILLER!

PEOPLE ON EDGE!

LANCASTER, Pa. – The killing of an 83-year-old woman in Lancaster has a lot of people on edge, including those who work with the elderly on a daily basis.
WGAL-TV, “Elderly people should take caution against intruders,” (click here).
    It’s been five days since Erma Kaylor was found murdered in her home in Lancaster. When will there be an arrest? When?
Please check back later today.

NOT A SINGLE AWARD!

TERRIBLE JOURNALISM!   

    The Lancaster Sunday News and their reporters did not win a single Keystone Press Award (click here) or an Associated Press Managing Editor’s Award (click here) this year. Not one.
    I was going to cover this in much greater detail today, but there are just too many other things to cover – items that detail just how awful and unethical this paper has become.

1.   The murder of 83-year-old Erma Kaylor in her Lancaster home on Wednesday. We haven’t seen a picture of her and we haven’t heard from her family. The public is scared and Police Chief Keith Sadler said we have every right to be scared. He said there is an evil killer on the loose.
    So why didn’t the Sunday News do their journalistic responsibility and provide an update on this investigation? Why aren’t they holding the Chief and the detectives accountable?
    This is simply unbelievable. Detectives can’t be this dreadful at their jobs! Why aren’t murders being solved in Lancaster County?

2.   The Convention Center/Hotel in which the Lancaster Newspapers are unethically a 50% business partner. Their lead front page headline today: “Convention center paradox: doing well, but deep in debt.”
    That is so ridiculous and slanted it’s mind-boggling. I will have much more this week – but I suggest it is time for the Lancaster Newspapers to open their wallet and pay for this monstrosity they forced upon us.

3.   In his column today, editor Marv Adams says this:
      Russ Glass, the assistant court administrator, explained in an email that the county’s jury list is made up of names obtained through the state Department of Transportation “of licensed drivers with a valid license or photo ID who reside … [in] Lancaster County. Essentially, if an individual has a valid license at the time of our request, their name will appear on the list — whether they be alive or deceased.”
    This better not be true or any conviction in Lancaster County will be and should be thrown out. Jurors are chosen from voter’s registration lists and licensed drivers. I will follow up with the court on Monday. Can Adams truly be this stupid and inane?

4.   Chip Smedley, part of their “investigative team” and their “Watchdog” column reporter opens his article this week with:
    Sign, sign, everywhere a sign. Not only has the Watchdog dated himself with a reference to a Five Man Electrical Band tune, but he has segued into the issue for this week.
    Is this a serious column? I didn’t know “Chip” is also a comedian and a really, really lousy one at that. This is terrible! This is awful! Oh, my God!

    I need to stop before my blood pressure goes any higher. It is plain to see why this paper did not win a single journalism award this year.
    This is so intensely scary for the people of Lancaster County who rely on these papers to tell them the truth, hold their public officials accountable and make protecting and serving their readers their only priority.
    The Lancaster Newspapers stopped doing that years ago and everyone is starting to take notice.

“NO ARRESTS HAVE BEEN MADE”

    An 83-year-old woman, Erma Kaylor, was killed in her home in Lancaster this past Wednesday morning and this is the coverage her murder received in today’s Sunday News - two inches or less of print on Page B-1.
    This newspaper is an absolute disgrace.
Please check back later today.

AND A SURPISE FOR MARV TOMORROW!

HITCHHIKERS, CRABS
AND KITTENS!

    Don’t pick up hitchhikers.
One of the tips in today’s WGAL story, “Elderly people should take caution against intruders,” (click here).
    There is still no word of an arrest in the murder of an 83-year-old woman in Lancaster. After the horrific arson murder of Olga Sanchez-Reyes, I wrote “THE TOP TEN THINGS LANCASTER DETECTIVES SAY,” (click here).
    I hope I don’t have to rework the list for this case! Chief Sadler, you said you would catch the killer and we want him caught – now!
    And WGAL, your graphic is a bit over the top! Not to mention that I haven’t seen a hitchhiker in years!
DISRESPECTFUL!
    Reinaker suggested that Thomas reacted to impress his girlfriend.
    “You felt your girlfriend had been disrespected and that’s what caused your blood to boil,” he said. “And so you, the macho football player, decided to confront this person. And you did so loudly and profanely.”
From today’s article, “Crab legs assailant sentenced,” (click here).
    Disrespected? This judge needs to be removed from the bench.
    This whole case received ridiculous coverage and speaking of profane, there are profanity laced comments below this story. I flagged two of them last night and they are still there. If the Lancaster Newspapers are going to use this comment system, they better have someone available 24/7.
    And I will come back to Judge Reinaker’s racist, stupid statement later on this site
WHO WROTE IT BETTER?
    Bloodied and dirty Riegen looked at Madzelan.
    “I’m sorry,” she said sheepishly.
    He laughed.
    “This is what we do,” he said. “I’ve done stranger things.”
From the York Daily Record’s story, “Woman on Rt. 30 gets stuck in car hood while trying to rescue 3 cats,” (click here).   
    If you enjoyed Larry Alexander’s piece on the three kittens in an engine story this morning, Emily Opilo of YDR did a much better job. Her storytelling is far superior and she got both pictures and a video!
    Larry gives her credit at the bottom of his story – but she was actually at the scene and wrote one of those “human interest” stories we all love to read. Meow!
    LIP News is taking the afternoon off, but I’ll be back tomorrow with my special surprise for Sunday News Editor “Marvelous” Marv Adams!

KILLER STILL ON THE LOOSE!

MORE THAN 48 HOURS!

    I want to document the huge headline from this morning’s paper. There is still no word of an arrest in yet another horrific murder.
    I wouldn’t want to live on her block. I wouldn’t want to live five blocks away. I wouldn’t want to live in the city at all.
    How will people sleep tonight?
    Have a good Friday and please check back tomorrow.

AND HE’S NOT VERY GOOD AT IT!

IT’S HIS JOB!

    “Chief says police will catch killer” is this morning’s huge front page headline in the print edition of the Intell/New Era.
    Well, that’s his job! Let’s get on it Chief, and arrest this killer!
    Yesterday I linked to WGAL’s November 10, 2010 piece on the unsolved murder of Juan Lopez (click here).  At the very end, did you catch what reporter Ron Martin says? He says: “Tomorrow we go to York County for Hanover’s only unsolved murder.”
    They only have one? Yes, I know Hanover is considerably smaller than Lancaster, but there is still something very, very wrong here and I will have much more on this later.
    Did you also catch Detective George Bonilla in the piece? He’s due to receive an award in several days and I have a lot more to say about him!
    Did you see today’s other headline: “Report: Convention center doing OK?” No, it’s not! Where’s LNP’s disclaimer on this story?
    There’s a lot to cover including updates on my requests to find out if autopsies were performed on the two women found hanging from trees within a week – and I’m all excited – I have another Sunday surprise for Sunday News Editor “Marvelous” Marv Adams.
    You know, I work very hard at these surprises and I hope he’s appreciative! This one is pretty darn good!
Please check back later today.

SLEEP WELL, CHIEF?

KILLERS ON THE LOOSE!

       Police Chief Keith Sadler said the public should feel uneasy that a person who would commit such an “evil” act is still out there.
    “I don’t think anyone should feel comfortable knowing there is someone who could do that.” he said. “Somebody who would do this is a coward, to do something like this to an elderly person who can’t defend herself.”
This afternoon’s update, “Investigation continues in murder of elderly woman; No arrests yet,” (click here).
    Well, there’s nothing like honesty, Chief! But there’s a problem, Chief. You’re leaving a lot of evil killers on the street making everyone very, very uneasy.
    This is not good detective work, Chief!
    The top photo is Juan Lopez, murdered on December 5, 2007 (click here for WGAL’s “Store owner gunned down”).
    The second photo down is Lydia Colon-Torres, killed on September 25, 2009 (click here for “A WALK FOR SANDWICHES”).
    The next photo is Spencer Houston, shot to death on May 19, 2011 (click here for “ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER UNSOLVED MURDER”).
    The bottom photo is Olga Sanches-Reyes, killed by an arsonist on December 6, 2010 (see the permanent box at the top of this site).
   That’s a lot of killers on the loose, Chief! What’s going on?  Should we sleep well?

WRAP IT UP!

LOW NOTES!   

    Rapper, slain rapper, hip-hop musician, hip-hop artist, local rapper, rap artist, local rap artist.
    These are some of the terms used repeatedly for the victim in Lancaster Newspaper headlines during Jakeem Towles’ trial.
    Who was murdered? Do you know his name?
Please check back later today.

DISGUSTING AND INACCURATE

BLATANTLY RACIST HEADLINE 

    ” ‘I’m a dead man walking. I saw the body drop. I have to get out of (Lancaster),’ ” Towles told a friend, according to Larsen.
First Assistant District Attorney Christopher Larsen quoted from his opening statement to the jury by reporter Brett Hambright in his May 7, 2012 article, “Alleged killer’s trial begins,” (click here).
    Around 11:30 p.m., Arpasia Bridgman drove Towles and another man to the city for $20, she testified. Words were exchanged during the 20-minute ride, Bridgman said.
    “You all better not tell nobody,” Towles told the people in the car, according to her testimony. “I’m getting out of (Lancaster). I seen bodies drop.”
A witness in the trial quoted by Brett Hambright in his May 9, 2012 article, “Witness: Alleged hip-hop artist’s killer planned to flee,” (click here).
    In the print edition of the paper on Thursday, May 10th, they ran the above second article on Page B-1 with the large, bold headline, “‘I seen bodies drop.’”
    On May 14th, I published the headline under my headline, “1950’S STEREOTYPE!” and said this
    It’s disgusting and inaccurate! This would not have made print in a Philadelphia paper or any other paper I can think of.
    Larsen used correct grammar. Larsen said “body” not “bodies.” Only one body dropped.
    Hambright was quoting a witness who was repeating what she said Towles said to her. Who had the bad grammar – the witness or Towles? Why would Towles say “bodies” when only one dropped.
    It was a racist headline done by the Lancaster Newspapers and it was done purposely to try to bolster, promote and continue ridiculous and inaccurate 40-year-old stereotypes about black people.
    There were many more stereotypes repeated during their coverage of this trial and their coverage of everything that happens in Lancaster County on a daily basis.
There will be much more tomorrow.

[Editor's Note:  The spacing between the various quotation marks in the opening sentences are directly from LNP's online version of the story - and I believe they are incorrect!]

* SENTENCED TO DEATH

    If I don’t love my own people, who else will? Everyday I hear and see the unequivocal evidence of our “society’s” view of my people; criminal, lazy, ugly, gangster, scary, drug abuser/pusher, absentee, uneducated….We are a beautiful and proud people, with a wonderful and storied journey and history on this planet called earth.
Posted on Facebook.
I have a lot to say today.  Please check back later.

   * Oh, my God!  Are those black feet on the scale on the homepage of Lancaster Online?

* UPDATED – LIFE ON THE LINE

 * The jury is still deliberating as of 3:30 pm today per my phone conversation with Diane in Judge Howard Knisely’s chambers. 

FINAL DESTINATION

Understanding.
Smiling.
Charming.
Wishes to have every playstation game.
Dreams of having a dog to play with again.
Wants to play baseball.
Wonders who is going to be the first female president.
Who fears killing.
Who is afraid of K.K.K.
Who likes football.
Who believes in God.
Who loves to eat Jr. Whoppers from Burger King.
Who plans to be a good father.
Whose final destination is heaven.
    A handwritten poem by Jakeem Towles at the age of 10 and presented in the death penalty phase of his trial yesterday in the Lancaster County Courthouse.

     This is going to be the hardest decision of your lives. This is the hardest thing for all of us.
Part of my heart is gone. I’ve dreaded this day. I’ve dreaded this moment. I don’t know if I’m good enough to do this.
I wish I could sit down and talk with you. I wish we could have a conversation.
You have been attentive jurors. The trust we have in you is deserved.
Defense attorney Patricia Spotts addressing the jurors yesterday afternoon in her closing argument to save Jakeem Towles from the death penalty.
Please check back later today.

EMOTIONAL MORNING IN COURT

DEATH PENALTY PHASE
    It was an emotional morning in the death penalty phase of Jakeem Towles’ trial in courtroom #3 of the Lancaster County Courthouse.  His mother, his aunt and her husband, and his sister testified along with Bryant Burgh, a Deacon in the Brightside Baptist Church and coach of their basketball team, and Joan Packston from Tristar Staffing.
    His sister was the last to testify before the lunch break and she broke down in tears as did his family sitting in the second bench.
    Asked how she felt about her brother facing the death penalty she responded, “It makes me sad.  He raised me and I don’t have a dad.  He gives me advice.” She began to sob as defense attorney Pat Spotts asked her to “pull it together.”
    She said she would try and said, “He tells me to stay in school.  He tells me to follow my dreams.”
    She told the court she wants to be a nurse.
    The jury heard primarily about the early years of Towles, the oldest of three brothers and one sister all to different fathers and a basicially absent mother.
    A doctor will be the last to testify on his behalf follwiing the lunch break and then Prosecutor Chris Larsen will give his closing statement followed by the defense.

1950′S STEREOTYPE!

‘I SEEN BODIES DROP’

    Did you seen it?
    This was the large headline in Thursday’s print edition on page B-1 to the article covering the murder trial of Jakeem Towles.
    It’s disgusting and inaccurate! This would not have made print in a Philadelphia paper or any other paper I can think of.
Please check back later today.

* UPDATED – DO YOU KNOW?

WHAT‘S GOING ON?
    I’ll keep this simple today and come back another day with far more detail.
    The below are Lancaster Newspaper “correspondents” for their 17 community sites based on School Districts. There are 28 total correspondents, not counting duplications from one site to another or any already on the LNP staff. They are all white.
    There are four different people named to call for advertising on the sites – they are the three at the far right of the second row – Carla Good, Aaron Sullivan and Sean O’Donnell, and the bottom row far left – Jeff Alboum. Needless to say, they are all white as well.
    Add these to the editorial staffs of the Intell/New Era (54) and the Sunday News (27), and you have a total of 113 on staff. One of these is a minority. After all, they need someone who speaks and writes Spanish to edit LaVoz, now don’t they?
    Have you seen the U.S. census figures for Lancaster County and the City of Lancaster? By golly, something just ain’t right here! What do you think is going on?

WHO ARE THEY?

   Do you know who they are? Have a great Mother’s Day and check back later.

* UPDATED – SHUT IT DOWN, NOW! – 2

* It’s been a busy day – but, yes, we need a citizen’s group to involve itself with the convention center and its aftermath and I will actively work on it in the upcoming weeks. Meanwhile, excellent comments are coming in below.
    A twenty-two year old man was found guilty of first degree murder today by a Lancaster jury. On Monday, the prosecution will go for the death penalty. Brett Hambright, the Lancaster Newspaper reporter covering the trial, has yet to tell us the racial and ethnic make-up of the jury. Lancaster County is notorious for its all-white juries and it’s many, many years past time that juries be representative of the citizens of the county. There will be much more on this, including another Sunday surprise for Sunday News editor, “Marvelous” Marv Adams! I bet he’s excited!
    My Right To Know requests regarding whether autopsies were performed on two women found hanging from trees in the County within a week has interested outside media. I will have updates on this shortly.
    Have a great Friday and I will be back tomorrow.

                  THE TIME IS NOW!
         Becky, a referendum could be launched, signatures gathered, and a vote could be forced by Lancaster Countians. Lancaster is a third class city and because of that residents have the right to write something to be considered a referendum and then be put up to general vote.It seems to me that the hoteliers have a lot to gain by this and might be interested in doing so.It should have been done before the W&S building was torn down but I feel that Lancastrians didn’t actually know (or care) that they had this right
    This has been done in other cities, third class or not, where the law allows the populace to mount a referendum and a special election to decide on it.
A comment in under “SHUT IT DOWN, NOW!” below.
    It’s time to take action, now!
Please check back later today.

SHUT IT DOWN, NOW!

VERY FEW OPTIONS!    

    “The number of events held at the Penn Square meeting center is well within industry standards and the number is growing.”

    What the F does that mean? The standard in the CC industry is FAILURE. With very few exceptions, these centers fail. Then they enlarge themselves and then they fail even bigger. We were supposed to be “different.”  We were supposed to piggyback on our tourism success and EXCEED industry standards. After that, we were supposed to see even more tourism by all those happy conventioneers that would return with their families.
    I guess that was all a load of BS because we are simply “within industry standards.”  Furthermore, with revenue from hotel taxes WELL BELOW projected levels, we don’t seem to be generating too many rooms before, during, or after (immediately or down the road) these conventions. They keep talking about events. Events don’t pay for this center…hotel rooms do and those are not the type of events that we seem to be attracting.
    This would be comical if it were not so sad. I am all for a County restaurant and sales tax. We were stupid enough to allow this to happen and now we need to take our medicine or close the place or bring in the slots…the options are not endless.
    Next time that you see them, please make sure you thank the following folks for the “gift”: Gib Armstrong, Mike Sturla, Paul Thibault, Ron Ford, Terry Kauffman, Charlie Smithgall, Rick Gray, Julie Dickson, Steve Diamantoni, Nelson Polite, Jim Pickard, Ted Darcus, the top brass at LNP, Rufus Fulton, Dale High, Nevin Cooley, Mark Fitzgerald, Tom Smithgall, Tom Baldridge, and John Esbenshade.
A comment posted under today’s story, “Lancaster County Convention Center funding urged,” (click here).
    Very well said and so very sad. I think you should move the Lancaster Newspapers to the top of the “thanks” list, though. Maybe Sunday News editor Marv Adams could make up the difference out of his own pockets? After all, he told us the chance of this happening was the same as “a huge volcano erupting in Pequea Township.”
    And I notice our now Coroner, Steve Diamantoni, is in your list! I’ll have more about him later today….