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Latest breaking news and updates

  • Regional Rail service snarled late into Tuesday night because of earlier disabled trains, SEPTA says

    Regional Rail service snarled late into Tuesday night because of earlier disabled trains, SEPTA says

    Regional Rail service through Center City was snarled early Tuesday evening — and late into the night — because of disabled trains blocking a tunnel, SEPTA said.

    “We had a brief power outage at about 4:15 that started this. The power was back within 10 minutes, but we had three trains that could not restart,” said SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch.

    “We are in the process of transferring those customers to other trains, but it is causing major delays,” Busch said.

    Busch later added that the afternoon power outage originated with Amtrak.

    Shortly before 10:20 p.m., SEPTA reported on social media that service “remains significantly delayed due to earlier overhead power loss in Center City. Expect delays of up to 45 minutes.”

  • Pa. State Police ID 3 men killed in Chester County crash

    Pa. State Police ID 3 men killed in Chester County crash

    Pennsylvania State Police identified three men who were killed in a crash when the vehicle they were in allegedly fled from a traffic stop and crashed early Friday in Chester County.

    Devon Hargraves, 35, Gershad Andre, 33, and Larry Wilmer, 36, all of Wilmington, were killed in the crash, state police said this week.

    About 1:20 a.m. Friday, troopers saw a Silver Toyota sedan allegedly violate traffic laws near East Third Street and Garner Drive in New Garden Township.

    When troopers tried to conduct a traffic stop, “the vehicle failed to stop and a pursuit ensued,” state police said Friday.

    “Soon after the pursuit ensued the fleeing vehicle crashed, and the three occupants of the fleeing vehicle are deceased,” state police said.

    The crash happened in Avondale Borough.

    The Pennsylvania State Police said its investigation of the crash was ongoing.

  • Lawsuit accuses PPA of failing to pay its security officers for mandatory breaks

    Lawsuit accuses PPA of failing to pay its security officers for mandatory breaks

    The Philadelphia Parking Authority violated federal and Pennsylvania labor law by requiring the security officers in the agency’s impound lots to work during their mandatory 30-minute meal and rest breaks, according to a proposed class action lawsuit.

    The complaint was filed Monday in Philadelphia’s federal court by Terrez McCleary, who has been working for the PPA as a security officer since 2018. The suit does not say how many security officers are part of the class.

    McCleary staffs a security booth in a PPA impound, which requires her to control pedestrian and car traffic; go on security rounds; and respond to any safety issue, the suit says. During her eight-hour workday, the guard has to take a 30-minute unpaid break. But PPA doesn’t relieve her of her duties during that time, according to the complaint.

    “Put simply, the PPA requires Plaintiff and other security officers to work for 30 minutes without pay,” the lawsuit says.

    Had PPA counted the breaks toward security officers’ time sheets, many would have worked more than 40 hours a week, the complaint says. By not counting the 30-minute chunks, the PPA deprived its staffers of overtime pay.

    The proposed class action asks that the court award PPA’s security officers all the wages they lost due to the imposed break over the last three years, alongside an unspecified amount of damages.

    PPA declined to comment on the litigation.

    The lawsuit will have to be certified as a class action by a federal judge, which is not a forgone conclusion.

    Two Philadelphia Police Department chief inspectors filed a class-action lawsuit in August 2024, alleging they were denied overtime pay for emergencies for over a decade. In September, they asked a judge to certify their case as a class action representing 230 ranking officers.

    District Judge Mark Kearney denied the request earlier this month, explaining that it could not evaluate the claims for 230 officers without individually assessing the circumstances of each one.

    Jeremy Abay, the Pond Lehocky Giordano lawyer representing McCleary, said that the lawsuit fits a class action because the affected security officers would have the half hour deducted on their payroll records.

    “The class here is baked into their job duty,” Abay said. “Here these folks were at their post; they had to be at their post, and they have that .5 deduction on their payroll records.”

  • William Way LGBT Community Center will permanently close its historic Center City building in December. Services will continue elsewhere.

    William Way LGBT Community Center will permanently close its historic Center City building in December. Services will continue elsewhere.

    One of Philadelphia’s oldest hubs for the LGBTQ+ community will shut its doors in less than a month, as the half-century-old organization transforms its programming and moves on from its aging Spruce Street building.

    The William Way LGBT Community Center will permanently close its 1315 Spruce St. headquarters on Dec. 18, the William Way board announced Monday. This will end the tenure of “a vital gathering space for trans and gender-diverse individuals” across the region and beyond, officials said; however, William Way intends to continue its services, research, and archival efforts elsewhere.

    “While the building may be closing, our commitment to the community remains unwavering,” said Laura Ryan, cochair of William Way’s board. “Our board, staff, and community partners are actively finalizing plans that will guide the center’s next chapter, and we look forward to sharing those details as soon as we can.”

    The property was listed for sale earlier this year, but it was not known if there was a new owner at this time, a William Way spokesperson said.

    Attendees of Philadelphia’s Pride celebrations run under a large Pride flag outside of the William Way LGBT Community Center in Philadelphia, Pa. On Dec. 18, 2025, the center will permanently close its Center City building.

    This decision follows years of redevelopment plans and failed fundraising efforts for the 175-year-old building that has served as the LGBTQ+ center’s hub since 1997. The center briefly closed for inspection and emergency repairs last fall, reopening a portion of the building in January 2025.

    As of the board’s recent estimates, and after failing to raise enough capital for repairs, the aging pre-Civil War-era building still needs at least $3.5 million in immediate repairs, the board announced earlier this year.

    “Our community deserves a space that is not only safe and affirming, but fully accessible and equipped to support our future,” William Way’s chief operating officer, Darius McLean, said in June. “The decision to move was not made lightly. It reflects our commitment to delivering programs with dignity and excellence, for today and future generations.”

    Jason Landau Goodman, who is not with the group, takes a photo for the Philadelphia Young Democrats, made up of the Penn Dems and Temple College Democrats as they attend a forum for mayoral candidates at the William Way LGBT Community Center Monday night.

    Moving forward, William Way will operate less as a physical center for services than as a foundation spreading these programs across the city. “The heart of William Way has never been its walls. It’s the people, the programs, and the unwavering commitment to creating a space where LGBTQIA+ individuals are seen, valued, and safe,” said board cochair Dave Huting.

    William Way officials confirmed no programs will be discontinued in the transition.

    Some of its most vital programs will be continuing through the nearby Church of St. Luke and the Epiphany at 330 S. 13th St., around the corner from the William Way center. Starting Jan. 5, 2026, all of the center’s empowerment programs, including the elder initiative, peer counseling, and trans programs, will operate out of St. Luke’s.

    The center’s arts programs will live on through programming at partner organizations and other off-site locations through 2026. For instance, in January and February, Arleen Olshan’s Dead Dykes & Some Gay Men exhibition will be on display at the iMPeRFeCT Gallery in Germantown.

    Alexi Chacon, 25, of Los Angeles, then Archives Intern at the William Way LGBT Community Center, poses for a portrait in Philadelphia, Pa., on Tuesday, May 31, 2022.

    The John J. Wilcox Jr. Archives and Library is one of the most important relocation efforts being undertaken, as the center needs to ensure its vast collection of LGBTQ+ history is preserved and ready for its “future home.” Officials for William Way said they have not finalized its new location. Until Dec. 18, the library will remain open for on-site browsing and returns. No materials can be checked out from this point on.

    There will be a few final celebrations to enjoy at the William Way center before its Gayborhood building is closed and transferred to any new buyer. On Thanksgiving Day, from noon to 2 p.m., William Way is hosting a Giving Thanks Dinner and tree-decorating event, featuring an LGBTQ+ sit-down meal and decorating the center’s holiday tree.

    On Dec. 5, from 6 to 9 p.m., the center will host “One Last Dance,” a celebratory evening honoring the many community members, milestones, and memories of the time-honored institution.

    Correction: This article has been updated to note when William Way started using the 1315 Spruce St. building. It was in 1997.

  • U.S. states sue over Trump’s $3 billion cut to homelessness program

    U.S. states sue over Trump’s $3 billion cut to homelessness program

    A group of U.S. states filed a lawsuit on Tuesday to compel President Donald Trump’s administration to reinstate more than $3 billion in grant funding used to provide permanent housing and other services to homeless people.

    The 20 mostly Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C., said changes the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced to its Continuum of Care program this month violate federal law and are illegally targeted at LGBTQ people and other communities that are not aligned with the Trump administration’s policy priorities, in the lawsuit in Rhode Island federal court.

    The lawsuit seeks to block the funding cuts and new conditions HUD has placed on receiving the grants.

    Program created in 1987

    New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, said in a statement that communities across the country depend on the program to provide housing and other resources to their most vulnerable members.

    “These funds help keep tens of thousands of people from sleeping on the streets every night,” James said.

    The states that joined New York in the lawsuit include California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Arizona and Kentucky.

    “For decades, these housing programs have helped vulnerable people — families, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, and LGTBQ+ Pennsylvanians — have access to safe, affordable housing,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said in a statement released Tuesday. “Now, the Trump Administration is trying to abruptly dismantle the very system Congress created to fight homelessness. Pennsylvanians depend on this funding and the Trump Administration’s decision will force people out of their homes, defund organizations doing critical work, and leave state taxpayers on the hook. I’m taking action to ensure the federal government keeps its promise — because no Pennsylvanian should be thrown back into homelessness because of political games in Washington.”

    Congress created the Continuum of Care program in 1987 to provide resources for states, local governments and nonprofits to deliver support services to homeless people, with a focus on veterans, families, and people with disabilities.

    The program has long been based on the “housing first” approach to combating homelessness, which prioritizes placing people into permanent housing without preconditions such as sobriety and employment. Along with housing, the grants fund childcare, job training, mental health counseling and transportation services. The Trump administration has criticized the housing-first approach, and HUD this month said it was overhauling the grant program to focus on transitional housing initiatives with work requirements and other conditions. HUD has also barred grant recipients from using the funding for activities that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, elective abortions, or “gender ideology,” or interfere with the administration’s immigration enforcement agenda. Trump, a Republican, has also urged states and cities to clear out homeless encampments and direct people to substance abuse and mental health treatment facilities.

    The changes could cause more than 170,000 people to lose their housing, according to the states’ lawsuit. The states claim the Trump administration cannot impose its own conditions on funds that Congress said should be distributed based solely on need. (Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Rod Nickel)

  • A 3-year-old was starved and beaten to death. Lawsuit accuses Philadelphia FIGHT of failing to report ongoing abuse.

    A 3-year-old was starved and beaten to death. Lawsuit accuses Philadelphia FIGHT of failing to report ongoing abuse.

    Three-year-old Hope Jones weighed 24.5 pounds, less than 99% of children her height and age, just a month before she died in July 2022.

    The child was starved and beaten up by her foster parent, a distant relative from Southwest Philadelphia who pleaded no contest to third-degree murder over Hope’s death.

    A child welfare agency, Northeast Treatment Centers, paid $6.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of failing to supervise Hope’s care. And in a rare move, one of their social workers was charged criminally but later cleared of wrongdoing in trial.

    A new federal lawsuit is pointing a finger in another direction. It accuses medical providers from Philadelphia FIGHT, a community health nonprofit based in Center City, of failing to investigate or report abuse despite a series of red flags from Hope’s wellness checks.

    The lawsuit, filed Friday in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, is against the United States because FIGHT is a federally qualified health center and thus receives funding and operates with requirements from the government.

    Philadelphia’s U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment. FIGHT did not respond to a request for comment.

    The lawsuit is not only the latest legal fallout from Hope’s death, but the latest in litigation brought after children who were part of the city’s child welfare system have been harmed.

    This fall, child welfare agencies were sued over the death of 20-month-old Syvir Hill, who was allegedly drowned by another child in a bath unsupervised, and that of 11-year-old Nayshaun Williams, who died of an asthma attack after a school nurse repeatedly raised concerns that he was not receiving adequate medical treatment.

    The city and its affiliated agencies were sued nearly 70 times between 2012 and 2024 after kids in their care were killed, sexually abused, or injured, an Inquirer/Resolve Philly investigation found. And at least 50 of these lawsuits led to settlements or verdicts of $1 million or more.

    Two agencies declined to extend their contract with the city last year, citing litigation insurance costs.

    The new lawsuit on behalf of Hope’s biological family extends the circle of litigants to include medical providers.

    “It’s another group of professionals that failed Hope,” said Sherrell Dandy, one of the Kline & Specter attorneys representing the family.

    Child welfare services were involved in Hope’s life from her first days on Earth, according to the complaint. Her mother and the infant tested positive for marijuana after the delivery, and the Philadelphia Department of Human Services placed the infant under its care.

    Hope became a FIGHT patient, and her first few visits as a baby went well, the lawsuit says. She was “well-developed and well-nourished,” the complaint says, and had a “good appetite.”

    Hope’s weight reached the 98th percentile at her 15-month wellness visit, in the summer of 2020, but she fell off the growth chart steadily after the following November when she was placed in foster care with a distant relative, the complaint says. Hope failed to meet developmental milestones and lost teeth, a couple times without explanation and another time following an alleged fall.

    The child’s medical records note that she developed an abnormal gait, ate her own feces, and was eating extremely fast followed by periodically vomiting, the suit says.

    The FIGHT physicians did refer Hope to an orthopedic specialist because of her gait, but the lawsuit says that they failed to recognize it as “clinical indicators of severe weight loss and underlying caloric deprivation, starvation, and neglect.”

    Hope’s weight fell to the single digits as summer 2022 approach. She was rushed to the hospital that July and was pronounced dead. The Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office determined that her cause of death was multiple blunt impact injuries, and the manner of death was homicide.

    “The hallmark for health is growth,” said Nadeem Bezar, another Kline & Specter attorney. “During those visits there were alarming things that were never followed up on.”

    A previous version of the lawsuit was filed against FIGHT in federal court in February. A judge dismissed that case in March because Hope’s estate had other administrative remedies to pursue before filing a lawsuit, and said that the appropriate defendant would be the United States. The new lawsuit says that all administrative remedies were exhausted and the government is the only defendant.

  • Rainy weather is coming ahead of a cold, windy Thanksgiving

    Rainy weather is coming ahead of a cold, windy Thanksgiving

    If you’re heading to grandma’s house ahead of Thanksgiving this week, you might want to pack an umbrella — but other than that, it looks like relatively smooth sailing for Turkey Day.

    Forecasters at the National Weather Service station in Mount Holly predict a period of rainy weather ahead of the holiday, with a warm, wet Tuesday and Wednesday giving way to a dry, breezy Thursday. The weekend, meanwhile, looks to be colder, with some potential rainfall Sunday, but no severe weather appears to be on tap, weather service meteorologist Nick Guzzo said.

    “It looks to be just some rain and a possible isolated rumble of thunder,” Guzzo said.

    Showers are expected to arrive in the Philadelphia region Tuesday afternoon, bringing periodic bouts of rain that will stick around through Wednesday, producing around a half-inch of rain, the weather service estimates. Forecasters do not expect any severe weather, but local rainfall totals could hit up to an inch in some areas, and some thunder in the morning is possible.

    Along with the wet weather comes a warm front resulting in milder temperatures likely nearing 60 degrees that will continue through Wednesday evening.

    By late Wednesday, forecasters predict, a cold front is likely to move in, dropping temperatures and drying out the rain. By Thanksgiving morning, high temperatures are expected to reach only the 40s, with breezy weather throughout the day that will likely bring wind chills in the 30s.

    Thursday’s windy weather could bring gusts around 30 mph, Guzzo said. Representatives for Philadelphia’s Thanksgiving Day parade said they were keeping a close eye on the weather and anticipate the balloons will fly.

    “But should the weather not cooperate, we have contingency plans in place,” said Mike Monsell, spokesperson for parade sponsor 6abc.

    Balloons in Philly’s Thanksgiving parade were last grounded due to high winds in 2019 — though wind gusts that year reached high speeds of up to 50 mph. Before that, the parade’s balloons had not been grounded since 1997, when similarly high winds kicked up on Thanksgiving Day.

    Friday and Saturday are expected to bring a preview of winter weather with morning lows in the upper 20s — roughly 4 to 6 degrees below average for this time of year. That is thanks to the cold front moving through the area, Guzzo said, which will keep highs in the low to mid-40s.

    As for weekend rain, Saturday looks dry, but as milder conditions take hold, there is a slight chance of rain Sunday to close out the weekend.

  • U.S. consumer confidence deteriorates in November

    U.S. consumer confidence deteriorates in November

    WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer confidence sagged in November as households worried about jobs and their financial situation, likely in part because of the recently ended government shutdown.

    The Conference Board said on Tuesday its consumer confidence index dropped to 88.7 this month from an upwardly revised 95.5 in October.

    Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index edging down to 93.4 from the previously reported 94.6 in October.

    “Consumers’ write-in responses pertaining to factors affecting the economy continued to be led by references to prices and inflation, tariffs and trade, and politics, with increased mentions of the federal government shutdown,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board.

    “Mentions of the labor market eased somewhat but still stood out among all other frequent themes not already cited. The overall tone from November write-ins was slightly more negative than in October.”

  • The FBI is seeking interviews with congressional Democrats who warned the military about illegal orders, official says

    The FBI is seeking interviews with congressional Democrats who warned the military about illegal orders, official says

    WASHINGTON – The FBI has requested interviews with six Democrats from the U.S. Congress who told members of the military they must refuse any illegal orders, a Justice Department official told Reuters on Tuesday.

    The move, reported earlier by Fox News, comes a day after the Pentagon threatened to recall Senator Mark Kelly, a Navy veteran and one of the six lawmakers, to active duty potentially to face military charges over what Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth described as “seditious” acts on social media.

    The other lawmakers, who made the comments in a video released last week, include Senator Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst and Iraq war veteran, and Representatives Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan, all military veterans.

    The legislators created the video amid concerns from Democrats — echoed privately by some U.S. military commanders — that the Trump administration is violating the law by ordering strikes on vessels purportedly carrying suspected drug traffickers in Latin American waters.

    The Pentagon has argued the strikes are justified because the drug smugglers are considered terrorists.

    Trump accused Democratic lawmakers of sedition

    President Donald Trump accused the six Democrats of sedition, saying in a social media post that the crime was punishable by death.

    His administration has shattered longstanding norms by using law enforcement, including the Justice Department, to pursue his perceived enemies.

    The Justice Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the interviews were to determine “if there’s any wrongdoing and then go from there.”

    The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    In a statement on Monday, Kelly dismissed the Pentagon’s threat as an intimidation tactic.

  • Ukraine backs ‘essence’ of peace deal with Russia but sensitive issues linger

    Ukraine backs ‘essence’ of peace deal with Russia but sensitive issues linger

    WASHINGTON/KYIV — Ukraine on Tuesday signaled support for the framework of a peace deal with Russia but stressed that sensitive issues needed to be fixed at a meeting between President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump.

    Kyiv’s message hinted that an intense diplomatic push by the Trump administration could be yielding some fruit but any optimism could be short-lived, especially as Russia stressed it would not let any deal stray too far from its own objectives.

    U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators held talks on the latest U.S.-backed peace plan in Geneva on Sunday. U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll then met on Monday and Tuesday with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi, a spokesperson for Driscoll said.

    U.S. and Ukrainian officials have been trying to narrow the gaps between them over the plan to end Europe’s deadliest and most devastating conflict since World War Two, with Ukraine wary of being strong-armed into accepting a deal largely on the Kremlin’s terms, including territorial concessions.

    “Ukraine — after Geneva — supports the framework’s essence, and some of the most sensitive issues remain as points for the discussion between presidents,” a Ukrainian official said.

    Zelensky could visit the United States in the next few days to finalize a deal with Trump, Kyiv’s national security chief Rustem Umerov said, though no such trip was confirmed from the U.S. side.

    White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on X that over the past week the U.S. had made “tremendous progress towards a peace deal by bringing both Ukraine and Russia to the table.” She added: “There are a few delicate, but not insurmountable, details that must be sorted out and will require further talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States.”

    Oil prices extended an earlier decline after reports of Ukraine potentially agreeing to a war-ending deal.

    Underlining the high stakes for Ukraine, its capital Kyiv was hit by a barrage of missiles and hundreds of drones overnight in a Russian strike that killed at least seven people and again disrupted power and heating systems. Residents were sheltering underground wearing winter jackets, some in tents.

    Zelensky will discuss sensitive issues with Trump

    U.S. policy towards the war has zigzagged in recent months.

    A hastily arranged summit between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska in August raised worries in Kyiv and European capitals that the Trump administration might accept many Russian demands, though the meeting ultimately resulted in more U.S. pressure on Russia.

    The 28-point plan that emerged last week caught many in the U.S. government, Kyiv and Europe alike off-guard and prompted fresh concerns that the Trump administration might be willing to push Ukraine to sign a peace deal heavily tilted toward Moscow.

    The plan would require Kyiv to cede territory beyond the almost 20% of Ukraine that Russia has captured since its February 2022 full-scale invasion, as well as accept curbs on its military and bar it from ever joining NATO — conditions Kyiv has long rejected as tantamount to surrender.

    The sudden push has raised the pressure on Ukraine and Zelensky, who is now at his most vulnerable since the start of the war after a corruption scandal saw two of his ministers dismissed, and as Russia makes battlefield gains.

    Zelensky could struggle to get Ukrainians to swallow a deal viewed as selling out their interests.

    He said on Monday the latest peace plan incorporated “correct” points after talks in Geneva. “The sensitive issues, the most delicate points, I will discuss with President Trump,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address.

    Zelensky said the process of producing a final document would be difficult. Russia’s unrelenting attacks on Ukraine have left many skeptical about how peace can be achieved soon.

    “There was a very loud explosion, our windows were falling apart, we got dressed and ran out,” said Nadiia Horodko, a 39-year-old accountant, after a residential building was struck in Kyiv overnight.

    “There was horror, everything was already burning here, and a woman was screaming from the eighth floor, ‘Save the child, the child is on fire!’”

    Macron warns against European capitulation

    Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said an amended peace plan must reflect the “spirit and letter” of an understanding reached between Putin and Trump at their Alaska summit.

    “If the spirit and letter of Anchorage is erased in terms of the key understandings we have established then, of course, it will be a fundamentally different situation (for Russia),” Lavrov warned.

    A group of countries supporting Ukraine, which is known as the coalition of the willing and includes Britain and France, was also set to hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday.

    “It’s an initiative that goes in the right direction: peace. However, there are aspects of that plan that deserve to be discussed, negotiated, improved,” French President Emmanuel Macron told RTL radio regarding the U.S.-proposed plan. “We want peace, but we don’t want a peace that would be a capitulation.”

    In a separate development, Romania scrambled fighter jets to track drones that breached its territory near the border with Ukraine early on Tuesday, and one was still advancing deeper into the NATO-member country, the defense ministry said. (Reporting by Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, Devika Nair, Tom Balmforth, Pavel Polityuk, Alessandro Parodi, Michel Rose, Luiza Ilie and Sergiy Karazy; writing by Matthias Williams; editing by Frances Kerry and Mark Heinrich)