Hits and Misses
Courtesy of Mount Pleasant Township Police Department
Construction crews had just laid down the top layer of cement when a tractor-trailer driven by Douglas Harlan went around closure signs and orange barrels May 15, causing the vehicle to leave deep tire marks in the soft material on Route 18 near Hickory.
Metro Creative
HIT: “The drop shown in the preliminary data is astonishing.” That’s what crime analyst Jeff Asher had to say recently on the website of The Atlantic about the falling murder rate in the United States so far this year. In 90 cities that have released data, murder is down 12% compared to this time last year. Cities like Atlanta and Milwaukee have seen killings decrease by more than 30%. In Philadelphia, murder rates have fallen by more than 20%, and in New York, they have tumbled by 13%. Asher noted that “any explanation of the current trend must remain in the hypothesis phase for now,” but there are some theories about why this is happening. Federal COVID-19 relief dollars were used by some cities to hire more police officers, and the lifting of COVID restrictions has led to social supports being put back in place, along with programs that help individuals who might be inclined to violence. Whatever the cause, we should hope this encouraging trend continues.
HIT: The states that border Pennsylvania, some solidly red, others as blue as Frank Sinatra’s eyes, all have a minimum wage higher than ours. West Virginia’s wage floor is $8.75, Ohio’s is $10.10, Maryland’s is $13.25 and New Jersey’s is $14.13. Pennsylvania’s minimum wage is $7.25, the same it has been since 2006. To put this in perspective, children who were born the last time the minimum wage was raised in Pennsylvania will be seniors in high school next year and are on the cusp of legal adulthood. Of course, many businesses have been paying quite a bit more than $7.25 per hour over the last couple of years to lure workers, but it’s well overdue to raise the minimum wage in the commonwealth. Spotlight PA reported this week that it might actually happen this year. State Sen. Dan Laughlin, a Republican from Erie, is sponsoring a measure that would raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour and increase it annually based on the inflation rate. McLaughlin said, “Due to rising costs, workers are unable to pay for basic necessities and forced to rely on public assistance. It’s time we address the issue and I believe this bill is the most responsible way to do it.”
MISS: Travelers who were apparently in quite a hurry while making their way on Route 18/50 near Hickory could be paying a hefty price for their impatience. For that matter, so will taxpayers. In May, Douglas B. Harlan, a big rig driver from Toledo, Ohio, allegedly drove his vehicle around “road closed” signs and through freshly poured concrete, causing about $81,000 in damage thanks to the deep, long ruts his tires left. Then, just a few hours later, a Canton Township couple are accused of moving barriers and proceeding, only to find their motorcycle submerged in cement. A towing company had to be called, and almost $45,000 in damage was inflicted on the road. John Lawrence Riggle told police that he needed to get his wife, Tonya, back to their house because she was having a migraine and he “wasn’t driving 10 minutes out of my way.” Both Harlan and the Riggles have been charged with felony criminal mischief. If nothing else, this should be a lesson to heed those “road closed” signs when you see them.