False Reports of School Shootings Across Pennsylvania
Meadville – Yesterday, the Meadville City Police responded to a false report about an active shooter at Meadville High School.  MCPD cleared all of the school’s buildings after responding to the call as a precaution. According to the Pennsylvania State Police, Meadville was only one of several schools in Northwest Pennsylvania and dozens around the commonwealth, subjected to reports of active shooters or bomb threats yesterday; each one was a hoax. These kinds of false reports, which have become known as SWATting are designed to create a major police response where none is needed, they carry severe criminal and civil penalties in Pennsylvania, and can even be punished by up to five years imprisonment on the Federal Level.
The calls are being investigated by state and local police forces and may involve federal authorities in the future. On Tuesday, more than two dozen schools were subjected to similar SWATting attacks in Rhode Island.

Woman Sues Candy Company
West Reading – A lawsuit has been filed against RM Palmer Candy Company by one of its neighbors. A woman named Betty Wright who lives across the street from the factory alleges she suffered severe and permanent injury from the blast and seeks restitution. An explosion in a portion of the factory killed or injured 17 of the company’s employees last Friday. The NTSB has taken charge of the investigation into the cause of the explosion and other agencies are supervising the cleanup of rubble and debris from the site.