The Kermit Gosnell Case: Verdicts
On the tenth day of deliberations, a jury of Dr. Kermit Gosnell’s peers—including eight African-Americans—rejected the defense’s premise that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s case against Gosnell was a “racist, elitist prosecution.” At 2:45pm yesterday, Sheriff Jewell Williams walked into the courtroom donning a small sheriff’s star on his blazer...
Continue Reading
Grieving While Gay: There’s a Tax on That
When Roxborough resident Jim Smith’s partner was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last May, both knew there would be a series of legal and health hoops to jump through. But what followed was an insult-to-injury moment that’s only possible because of Pennsylvania’s stone-age laws. He did chemotherapy for a few months, but we did go to an attorney just to...
Continue ReadingIs Rick Santorum Pitting Social Conservatives Against the GOP Itself?
The national Republican Party may be looking to modernize itself, but former Pennsylvania senator and presidential candidate Rick Santorum seems to have other ideas. “An alliance of political consultants and unprincipled politicians want to throw social conservatives like you and me out of the Republican Party,” he wrote by email to supporters of Patriot...
Continue ReadingWhat does Prop. 8 mean for LBGT couples in PA?
Last week, the Supreme Court of the United States took up two cases that effect LGBT equality by way of same-sex marriage: Proposition 8 out of California and the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). After the Prop. 8 arguments on Tuesday, Philadelphia Weekly talked to Philadelphia-based attorney Angela Giampolo of Giampolo Law Group to make sense of what...
Continue ReadingPA Gun Background Checks Almost Tripled Since Sandy Hook
According to records published by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), 135,603 background checks for firearms purchases were conducted in Pennsylvania last month. That’s almost triple the number of previous years: 47,456 background checks were conducted in Pennsylvania in January 2012 and 49,123 in January 2011. The startling...
Continue ReadingPennsylvania Ranked Third in Annual Pro-life List
Americans United for Life, a DC-based anti-abortion lobbying and advocacy group, just released their annual “Life List.” Pennsylvania ranks third place, sandwiched between Oklahoma and Arkansas. Sounds about right. Pennsylvania has been ranked third every year on the list since 2010. In 2009, it took first place. AUL is a key architect of the anti-abortion...
Continue Reading
Rep. Sims Sworn In: LGBT Community Will ‘Hold Heads High as Equal Citizens’
An image from Buzzfeed. Rep. Brian Sims is not just the only new Philadelphia legislator headed to Harrisburg this legislative session, he’s the first member of the LGBT community ever elected to the Pennsylvania Legislature. (And one of two gay members of the state House; Republican Mike Fleck came out after the 2012 election.) On Thursday afternoon, members...
Continue ReadingVirginia: the Latest State to Exploit Philadelphia’s Gosnell Abortion Tragedy
While Kermit Gosnell — if convicted, one of the nation’s only known serial baby-murderers — sits in a cell awaiting trial in March, his name has been everywhere. Ever since the grand jury presentment detailing his alleged crimes of infant murder, illegal late-term abortions, drug trafficking and associated offenses was published in January of 2011, anti-choice...
Continue Reading
From Creators of Pro-Fracking ‘Truth Land’ Comes Pro-Fracking ‘The Real Promised Land’
Because making one online video response to an anti-fracking movie is never enough, the Independent Petroleum Association of America’s public relations firm has released a series of pro-hydraulic fracturing and natural gas vignettes they’re calling “The Real Promised Land.” The videos, whose titles play on the new Matt Damon movie Promised Land, which...
Continue Reading
DAILY GRINDER: Philly Dems Getting Ready to Combat Pa. Lottery Privatization
The Penn-syl-van-ia LOTT-ER-Y must die No shock here: Democrats in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives are not happy about Gov. Tom Corbett’s plans to privatize everything, including the Pennsylvania lottery system (which benefits older Pennsylvanians everyday.) State Sen. Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia) said the governor needs to at least come to the...
Continue Reading
