A gun owner’s change of heart toward the NRA

• Emily Previti/PA Post
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  Emily is a reporter for WITF who’s been covering voting and elections since July 2019 as part of her former role with statehouse accountability news organization PA Post. She was the senior reporter for statewide public media collaboration Keystone Crossroads. Previously, she covered city hall for PennLive/The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pa.), was a watchdog and city hall reporter at The Press of Atlantic City and reported for the Northwest Herald. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.
  
  See other articles by Emily Previti for WITF.

 Ed Mahon / PA Post

Frank Menendez, 54, of Long Island, New York, joined the NRA at the Great American Outdoor Show in Harrisburg.

From The Context, PA Post’s weekday email newsletter:

He resisted joining … until now

Ed Mahon / PA Post

Frank Menendez, 54, of Long Island, New York, joined the NRA at the Great American Outdoor Show in Harrisburg.

• Frank Menendez owns a gun, but has resisted joining the NRA for the nearly 20 years since the massacre at Columbine High School because he felt the organization’s response to the tragedy was “in poor taste.” The 54-year-old welder recently changed his mind, though, becoming a member at the Great American Outdoor Show that just wrapped up in Harrisburg. He talked to PA Post’s Ed Mahon about what’s changed for him.

• Meanwhile, the debate over Pittsburgh’s local firearms ordinances continues. PublicSource talked to Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network President Rev. De Neice Welch about her concerns that the ordinances will negatively affect the city’s black residents. More here.

• Also related: State officials are moving to change Pa.’s hunting season calendar, including extending firearms deer season. The Centre Daily Times broke down the details in this story.

Best of the rest

Dave Klug / Associated Press

Robert Bowers, accused of being the gunman in last October’s Tree of Life shooting, faces new charges.

• The shooter who allegedly killed a dozen people at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue last fall pleaded not guilty to additional charges being brought against him by prosecutors. WESA’s An-Li Herring is covering that story.

• State budget hearings are underway. WITF’s Capitol Bureau Chief Katie Meyer spent day one reporting on the Independent Fiscal Office’s hearing, which focused on the possibility of raising the minimum wage. Katie will cover discussions about statewide pension systems today, while education reporter Avi Wolfman-Arent is following hearings on higher education for Keystone Crossroads and WHYY.

• Lt. Gov. John Fetterman kicked off a listening tour focused on legalizing recreational marijuana last night. But before he got started, Fetterman discussed it with Smart Talk host Scott LaMar. Their conversation is here.