Briefly... CITY/REGION

Tours have resumed in Philadelphia's historic City Hall tower, where a crack was discovered in September.

The tower was closed on Sept. 22, after the crack was found on the tower's north side. Officials believe it may have been related to the earthquake that hit the East Coast a month earlier. City officials say the crack was discovered when marble debris was found on the roof of the ornate building, which is more than a century old.

A lottery has been established for public seating for former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky's next court hearing on child sex-abuse charges.

The Centre County Court of Common Pleas in Bellefonte said yesterday that applications for seating at the Dec. 13 preliminary hearing would be accepted for 24 hours on the county's webpage (http://www.co.centre.pa.us/) starting tomorrow at noon. A random drawing will then be held to assign seats. Those who get seats will be notified Friday.

A court statement said that space is limited, but it did not specify how much public seating was available.

Sandusky is charged with abusing eight boys over a 15-year span in a scandal that has enveloped the school.

A Bucks County jury has awarded $14 million to Ashley Zauflik, who lost her leg after a school bus struck her outside Pennsbury High School in 2007, when she, now 22, was 17.

The school district admitted liability before trial. The National Transportation Safety Board previously found that the driver had stepped on the accelerator, not the brake, causing the accident that left Zauflik in a medically induced coma for a month, and forced doctors to amputate her leg.

Zauflik testified that the crash left her "disfigured" and struggling with depression.

Two bills aimed at the problem of children left unattended in casino parking lots are on their way to the Pennsylvania Senate. The House overwhelmingly approved both measures yesterday.

One bill would make it a misdemeanor to leave children younger than 14 in vehicles parked on casino property and would double the potential fines imposed on casinos if they fail to report such incidents to police and social-service agencies. The other bill would require casinos to post signs warning patrons not to leave unattended children on casino property. Such incidents have been reported at several casinos.

A New Jersey appeals court has given a boost to Campbell Soup Company's plans to raze a former department-store building near its headquarters in Camden.

An appellate court yesterday threw out a lawsuit filed by the owner of the 1927 landmark former Sears building and a Camden activist.

Campbell said it wants to clear the building to develop a corporate park near its headquarters.

The lawsuit argued that some Camden officials had conflicts of interest when they ruled that the building could be razed.

- Staff and wire reports