Seeking justice after hazing death | Morning Newsletter
And Pa. Turnpike’s debts
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The Morning Newsletter
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Welcome to Sunday.
It’s cloudy with a chance of showers and a high near 69.
Seven years after the hazing death of Tim Piazza at Penn State in a case that drew national attention, his parents’ long battle for justice and reform will soon culminate in a Centre County courtroom. Our lead story covers the Piazzas’ push for change in Pennsylvania and across the country as they prepare to face the final sentencing of the people who took part in Tim’s hazing.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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Tim Piazza went to a booze-fueled hazing party at Beta Theta Pi in February 2017 hoping to join the fraternity. Instead, he lost his life.
After their son’s devastating death, Jim and Evelyn Piazza found solace and support in other families who lost children to hazing. Together, they educate other students and parents about the dangers of hazing and press for reform in law enforcement and at colleges and universities.
And their efforts have reached Capitol Hill. On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed what could become the first federal anti-hazing law. It now moves to the Senate.
In Evelyn’s own words: “While it won’t help save our kids, in most instances, we think this kind of tool would have prevented our kids from going to the organizations that they did, and they would still be here.”
This Tuesday, the Piazza family will face the former president and vice president of Beta Theta Pi in court. They are the final two fraternity members to be sentenced for their part in that night.
Following Tim’s death, Penn State permanently banned the fraternity and restricted Greek life on campus, and says it still remains diligent in its response to hazing. The Piazzas, who settled their civil suit against the university, say they still wish the school was doing more to crack down.
Seventeen years ago, lawmakers decided that the Pennsylvania Turnpike would contribute to subsidizing state public transit and other transportation projects — even ones unrelated to America’s First Superhighway.
Today, that means the toll you pay also helps pay back loans and accumulated interest worth billions of dollars. It also means that drivers will continue paying the price as tolls continue to go up, and as the Keystone State struggles with a public transit system in financial distress.
Or as Turnpike Chief Financial Officer Richard Dreher puts it, “Customers are really on the hook” to eventually pay it all back.
As the turnpike crawls out from under the debt load, officials look to reducing operational expenses and working on alternative sources of revenue.
Ahead of the state Senate Transportation Committee’s next hearing on transit funding, reporter Tom Fitzgerald explains how we got here — and points to another funding crisis worth paying attention to.
What you should know today
Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance visited Newtown, Bucks County, Saturday, underscoring the political importance of the region and the state in the November election.
Hollywood powerhouse Shonda Rhimes joined with Pennsylvania political heavyweight Gov. Josh Shapiro Saturday to rally for Vice President Kamala Harris in a campaign stop in Montgomery County where the focus was access to women’s health care.
Two more arrests were made in last weekend’s car meetups incidents throughout Philadelphia.
Hurricane Helene has caused at least 52 deaths and billions of dollars of destruction across a wide swath of the Southeast. President Joe Biden called the devastation “overwhelming” and said his administration was committed to helping the impacted region recover.
College students could have big sway in this election. Here’s how they’re getting engaged and motivating other young voters on Philly-area campuses.
Thursday’s City Council session came a day after Mayor Cherelle L. Parker unveiled the terms of the city’s deal with the Sixers to build a new arena. Between a bill to establish a prison oversight board and another to ban landlords from using “price-fixing” software, get a rundown on everything that happened at City Hall.
A new study found that 1 in 12 U.S. public schools lost at least a fifth of their enrollment post-COVID. Many of these schools struggle academically. We explore what this means for Philly schools, eight of which saw big drops in enrollment.
A new mural will decorate the Ninth Street building that once housed Connie’s Ric Rac in honor of its founders, brothers Frankie and Joe Tartaglia, who meant a great deal to many Philly artists.
Philly is so single, it’s the most single big city in America. Put off by dating apps, more millennials are turning to a network of Facebook groups that help them find love and take the guesswork out of dating — for better or worse.
Speaking of dating, we tracked down the guy behind the viral “Dave is single” billboard in West Philly. Two months and more than 20 first dates later, turns out the scene is still tough.
The Philadelphia Orchestra opened its 125th season in Marian Anderson Hall Thursday night with a powerful performance. Terry Gross of Fresh Air hosted the evening, with violinist María Dueñas, a world premiere, and an old favorite.
❓Pop quiz
Philadelphia rocker Kurt Vile was reportedly spotted at Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday. He was escorting his daughters to see which songwriter and producer perform?
A) Sabrina Carpenter
B) Charli XCX
C) Billie Eilish
D) Taylor Swift
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
This British bassist and songwriter (and former “Police” man) is a big fan of the Philadelphia Orchestra and hosted the One Fine Day fest at the Mann.
Hint: 🐝
GROUND SERMON
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Rita Therese Kehoe who correctly guessed Saturday’s answer: Vincent Van Gogh. His “Sunflowers,” on loan to London’s National Gallery from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, was targeted Friday by climate activists who tried to throw tomato soup on it. The painting was not damaged.
Photo of the day
🎶 Today’s Sunday track goes like this: “All we got to do is treat each other right.”
👋🏽 I’m making it my goal to finish The House Across the Lake today. Up next: Intermezzo. Read anything good lately? Email me back with a recommendation or two. And as always, thanks for starting your day with The Inquirer.