Articles by Mark Scolforo

McDonald’s Franchisee Agrees to Pay $4.4M Over Manager’s Sexual Assault of Teen

A franchisee of fast food giant McDonald’s has agreed to pay a teenage girl $4.4 million to settle her lawsuit over having been sexually assaulted by a Pittsburgh-area restaurant manager who was a registered sex offender, the victim’s lawyers announced …

Civil Rights Lawsuit Filed Over 2022 Philadelphia Fire That Killed 9 Kids, 3 Adults

Families of the 12 people killed in a Philadelphia row house fire that began in a Christmas tree two years ago sued a pair of city agencies Friday, claiming unsafe conditions on the property violated the victims’ civil rights. The …

Pennsylvania Court Says State Police Must Show How They Monitor Social Media

Pennsylvania`s Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the state police can`t hide from the public its policy on how it monitors social media. Advocates for civil liberties cheered the decision. The law enforcement agency had argued that fully disclosing its policy …

Sin or Crime? Inquiry Targets Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Handling of Child Sex Abuse

A Pennsylvania grand jury in recent months accused nine men with connections to the Jehovah’s Witnesses of child sexual abuse in what some consider the nation’s most comprehensive investigation yet into abuse within the faith. The sets of charges filed …

Pennsylvania Nears Vote on Opening Window to Child-Abuse Lawsuits

Pennsylvania House Democrats put their freshly minted majority status to work this week in shutting down Republican efforts to make changes to legislation designed to let victims of childhood sexual abuse file otherwise outdated lawsuits. After the winners of three …

Pennsylvania Gov. Wolf Seeks Child Sex Abuse Claim Window

]Pennsylvania’s new state House speaker declared Friday that no other legislation will pass his chamber until it approves a constitutional amendment granting child sexual abuse victims the power to file what would otherwise be outdated claims. House Speaker Mark Rozzi, …

Pennsylvania Loosens Rules on Where Medical Malpractice Cases Can Be Filed

Pennsylvania’s highest court lastThursday reversed its own two-decade-old rule that required medical malpractice cases to be filed in the county where the alleged harm occurred, a win for civil plaintiffs and the lawyers who represent them but a potentially costly …

Firefighter’s 10 Relatives, Including 3 Children, Among Victims in Fire He Battled

Fire tore quickly through a house in northeastern Pennsylvania early Friday, killing seven adults and three children and horrifying a volunteer firefighter who arrived to battle the blaze only to discover the victims were his own family, authorities said. The …

Video Gives More Detail on Collapse of Pittsburgh Bridge

Video footage from a bus of the bridge collapse in Pittsburgh this year shows one end of the structure had already fallen when an expansion joint at the other end was pulling apart, federal investigators said Thursday. The National Transportation …

Suit Claims Trucker in Pennsylvania Crash Wore Noise-Canceling Headphones

Victims of a crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike that killed five people and hurt nearly all the dozens of passengers on a bus nearly two years ago claim in a lawsuit that one of the drivers was wearing noise-canceling headphones. …