Today in PA | A PennLive daily news briefing with Claudia Dimuro

Staff and parents alike voiced their concerns over the increasing violence of students at a Pittsburgh Public Schools public hearing the other night. In more Pittsburgh-related news, city officials consider legislation that would allow for them to more properly weigh the pros and cons of annexing and merging with other municipalities. Scranton is no longer distressed. Also, now’s your chance to get your hands on some pretty swell whiskey.

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New regulations put in place by one county has made it the first in Pennsylvania to really crack down on illicit activity in massage parlors. Cryptocurrency ATMs are popping up all over the place. The state Department of Revenue wants to remind you of a free website that helps get all your filings done for tax season 2022. And a woman saved an animal, but what kind of animal it is remains a mystery.

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Philadelphia has installed sensors on over a dozen streetlights that track things such as pedestrian movement as part of its “smart city” pilot program. State police are currently looking for whoever took two large envelopes and stuffed them with dead rats in Perry County. One local park has the highest-ever infection rate of a tick-carried virus in the country. Plus, one man looks for ghosts, Bigfoot, and every other supernatural thing under the moon in Bucks County.

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A couple of women who were driving home from dinner in Enola believe they were being stalked with an Apple AirTag. The University of Pittsburgh’s research on human fetal tissue has been deemed “fully compliant with applicable laws.” The state Senate has just passed a package of bills that looks to push forward protection against and response strategies to hacking. Also, this is how Pennsylvania likes to keep things hot.

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State lawmakers have proposed a needle exchange program to help decrease fatal overdoses. A photo of a teacher taping a mask to a student’s faced has inspired outrage. After four years, a mini-casino in Shippensburg has been awarded a license. Finally, this city can now boast that it’s among pet-friendliest in the U.S.

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There’s a new type of scam targeting Western Pennsylvanians that claims their loved ones have been kidnapped. In everyone’s favorite news topic—gas prices–people in Pennsylvania are paying the most at pumps out of any state east of the Rockies. There’s a new type of war brewing on a historic battlefield. And an Altoona man hit lotto—for the fourth time.

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Pennsylvania state police revealed they seized about $72 million worth of drugs last year with one in particular showing signs of a comeback: cocaine. A woman in Pottstown has admitted to her role in a gun trafficking ring that spanned across five counties. A brand new, almost mile-long bridge will be helping drivers to cross over the Susquehanna River by late summer. Lastly, a Port Authority officer ends up adopting a kitten found abandoned on a bus.

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A former dentist has been accused of killing his wife during a hunting trip in Africa then fraudulently collecting nearly $5 million in insurance money. There’s currently a slow-moving superload making a 400-mile trip through the state. The snow we mentioned earlier this week is definitely happening on Sunday. And are you not entertained by this ancient gladiator helmet on display in Pittsburgh?

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A board member of a Westmoreland County school district would like to stop the use of a CNN news program and other broadcasts as what the superintendent deems “instructional resources” for students. Another school district has decided to reinstate its original Native American mascot almost a year after it announced it would be changed. It’s still not entirely clear what disease killed hundreds of birds last year. Finally, we got some dirt on the Eagles’ and Steelers’ new Lay’s potato chips.

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