This just in...
A teacher is suspended, extra trains are planned for the Broad Street Run and one is killed and two are hurt in Philly shootings.
Cops: Teen breaks into blind woman's house
An 18-year-old man was charged with a slew of offenses after police said he and other men broke into a legally blind woman's home in Holmesburg early yesterday morning and let the house fill with natural gas.
Police said the woman, 54, was roused from sleep about 3 a.m. in her home on Marple Street near Torresdale Avenue to the sound of men's voices downstairs and her guide-dog barking. The dog apparently chased away the burglars, who had forced their way in through a basement door, said Northeast Detective Division Capt. Francis Bachmayer. Soon, an odor of gas filled the house and police called to the scene discovered that the men had turned the woman's gas stove on without the flame.
Cops arrested Tomayo McDuffy, 18, who lives on the block, in connection with the burglary. He is charged with criminal mischief, burglary, risking catastrophe and related offenses, police said. The woman was uninjured.
East Falls teacher faces 50 shades of suspension
A teacher at an East Falls school was suspended for buying an erotic book - "Fifty Shades of Grey" - for a student to read in class during an independent reading period.
Eastern University Academy Charter School instructor Philip Aidoo purchased the well-known racy book for a 14-year-old boy after Aidoo asked his ninth-grade students for a list of titles they wanted to read during independent reading time. The student's mother became upset when she found the book in her son's backpack, and contacted the school, NBC 10 reported. School officials investigated and Aidoo was suspended for a week without pay.
SEPTA running extra trains for Broad St. Run
SEPTA is planning to run extra subway trains for tomorrow's Blue Cross Broad Street Run, but is also warning customers that many bus-route detours will be in place during the race.
The transit agency will run special northbound express trains on the Broad Street Line before the race. The trains will run every 10 minutes from the AT&T Station, which is near the finish line, from 5:35 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
Dozens of bus routes, however, will face detours during the race due to road closures. Check septa.org for a list of modified schedules. PATCO's High Speed Line trains will run on a regular Sunday schedule, but will have extra cars to accommodate riders.
1 killed, 2 hurt in Philadelphia shootings
One man was killed and two others were wounded in three shootings in Philadelphia between Thursday night and yesterday morning, police said.
In the first, a 42-year-old man was shot in the head during an apparent robbery gone awry about 11:30 p.m. Thursday on Front Street near Spencer Avenue in Olney, police said.
At 12:18 a.m., police said, an 18-year-old was shot in the neck during a possible drive-by shooting on 73rd Street near Elmwood Avenue in Eastwick. Police said the teen was in stable condition at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.
About 12:45 a.m. yesterday, police found a 24-year-old man lying on the pavement bleeding from gunshot wounds to the back and elbow at Montgomery Avenue near 33rd Street in Strawberry Mansion, police said. That man was in critical condition at Temple University Hospital yesterday.
- Morgan Zalot & Philly.com