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Pipeline project attracts another criminal investigation

  • Emily Previti/PA Post
Tree-clearing in Delaware County in 2017 prepares land for the construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline project. The builder, Sunoco Logistics, rejected an attempt by a township in neighboring Chester County to block the installation of a valve along the line.

 Emily Cohen / StateImpact Pennsylvania

Tree-clearing in Delaware County in 2017 prepares land for the construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline project. The builder, Sunoco Logistics, rejected an attempt by a township in neighboring Chester County to block the installation of a valve along the line.

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

With tax season in full swing, website WalletHub looked at state and local tax rates across the country. Turns out Pennsylvanians pay higher taxes than residents of any other state but Illinois and Connecticut. The commonwealth placed seventh, though, when WalletHub adjusted its rankings for cost of living. -Emily Previti, Newsletter Producer/Reporter

In the courts

Emily Cohen / StateImpact Pennsylvania

In this photo from 2017, workers clear trees in Delaware County to prepare for the construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline project.

  • Another county is investigating Sunoco and its parent company Energy Transfer over their Mariner East pipeline projects. The state Attorney General is joining Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun Copeland in pursuing a criminal case. Meanwhile, the Chester County DA has impaneled a grand jury for its probe. StateImpact Pennsylvania’s Susan Phillips has all the info here.

  • Attorneys have started picking the jurors for the trial of former East Pittsburgh police officer Michael Rosfeld, who’s facing criminal homicide charges for the shooting death of Antwon Rose II. Rosfeld is white; Rose, who was 17 years old and unarmed when he was shot and killed, was black. The Associated Press reports that race has become an issue in the jury selection for this case; WESA’s An-Li Herring has this related, broader analysis.

  • The Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court is recommending public censure for former Penn State general counsel Cynthia Baldwin, who flipped to become a witness for the prosecution in the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. Now, the state Supreme Court has to weigh in. PennLive’s Charlie Thompson has the full story.

Best of the rest

Quinton Tran, of Lancaster County, exhales vapor at his kitchen table.

Rachel McDevitt / WITF

Quinton Tran, of Lancaster County, exhales vapor at his kitchen table.

  • There’s a bill moving in the state Legislature to ban vaping on public school property. It’s partly prompted by the U.S. surgeon general declaring that teen vaping is an “epidemic,” Pennsylvania Capital-Star’s Stephen Caruso reports. His story is here. For more context, check out this Smart Talk episode about the issue.

  • SEPTA police are back on the job after a weeklong walkout prompted by stalled contract negotiations. More details are in this Associated Press report.

  • The Great Lakes hold 20 percent of the world’s fresh water. Yesterday’s edition didn’t specify the “fresh” part.


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