WJPA News

HARRISBURG – PennDOT announced on Tuesday that Peters Township has been awarded nearly $477,000 through their Green Light-Go Program to improve safety and traffic flow along Washington Road (State Route 19), the township’s primary transportation corridor.  The funding will be used to completely replace the traffic signals at the intersection of Crosswinds Drive and State Route 19. Township officials have identified the intersection as the most outdated traffic signals along the corridor and the ones most in need of replacement.  PennDOT’s Green Light-Go Program provides reimbursement funding to municipalities for projects that improve the efficiency and operation of existing traffic signals. Eligible improvements include upgrades to modern signal technology, traffic signal retiming and enhanced monitoring systems that allow signals to respond to real-time traffic conditions.

PETERS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A  third person has now been charged in connection to what investigators describe as a high school sextortion and catfishing scheme centered around former Peters Township High School student Zachariah Meyers.    According to court documents, investigators allege 24-year-old Charles Ezekiel Usner, or Zeke, sexually assaulted a 15-year-old boy at Peters Lake Park in July 2025 after Meyers directed the teen to meet Usner there. Court records state the meeting was part of what investigators describe as the larger sextortion scheme. According to our news partners at Channel 11, Usner was previously employed in Louisiana by Manson Construction Company.  According to police, Usner recorded the alleged sexual encounter using the teen’s cellphone, which belonged to the victim’s late grandmother. Investigators allege the victim later sent the video to Meyers through the messaging app Telegram.  Meyers was arrested in February after Peters Township police accused him of orchestrating an online sextortion operation.  Investigators allege he used fake online identities to target at least 25 minors and manipulated them into sending sexually explicit images and videos. Usner remains in the Washington County Jail.  Court records show Usner was unable to post bail and is scheduled to appear before another judge for a preliminary hearing on August 18, 2026, at 1 p.m.  He is facing several charges, including statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, and corruption of minors.  Meyers also faces multiple charges connected to the alleged sextortion investigation.  Police have said the investigation remains ongoing.

The Conditional Use Public Hearing for the Cool Valley Illustrative Site Plan continued Monday night in Cecil Township. The proposed development is 216 acres along Interstate I-79, Lewicki Rd., and Morganza Rd. It will be used for retail, town homes, and an apartment complex. During the hearing, supervisors reviewed a list of conditions that the applicant must comply with. These conditions mention traffic patterns, construction regulations, and maintenance of streams and wetlands around the development. Supervisors and residents had the opportunity to ask questions and voice concerns, but there was not much discussion. The hearing lasted less than fifteen minutes. Supervisors voted to approve the plan, and the applicant can move forward with the development. Supervisor Cindy Fisher explains that the board is happy to balance residential and commercial properties in the township. Fisher also says that the board is pleased with how the applicant addressed prior concerns without any issues. Chairman Frank Egizio says that the board has been waiting on this for several years, and they are excited to see it move forward.

CAIRO (AP) — Iran and the Gulf Arab state of Oman have made progress toward a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a potential breakthrough that could help wind down the war in the Middle East. Two regional officials told The Associated Press on Tuesday that under the emerging agreement, ships would enter the Persian Gulf through an Iranian-controlled route and exit through a route controlled by Oman. Service fees would be charged. The talks are ongoing. Any agreement formalizing Iran’s control of the strait would mark a strategic victory for Tehran. U.S. President Donald Trump is under mounting pressure to end an unpopular war that has driven up gas prices.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Twenty-five states sued the Trump administration Monday over its latest tariffs, calling them a pretext for replacing import taxes the Supreme Court struck down in February. The United States last month imposed double-digit tariffs on 59 countries and the European Union, charging that they had not done enough to crack down on imports produced by forced labor. The new tariffs took effect just as the clock ran out on temporary tariffs President Donald Trump had turned to after the Supreme Court defeat. “After losing at the Supreme Court, the administration is once again trying to illegally raise taxes on families and businesses with a new round of tariffs,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has a cleared critical hurdle in his bid to be confirmed to the post after swaying Republican holdouts on a Senate committee to advance his nomination for a floor vote. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 12-10 along party lines Tuesday in support of the nomination of President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney. Blanche has aggressively pushed the Trump administration’s priorities since taking the reins from Pam Bondi in April. The full Senate could vote later this week on Blanche’s nomination. If all Democrats oppose him, Blanche can only afford to lose two Republican votes if Sen. Mitch McConnell, who was hospitalized after a fall, does not return before then.

Federal officials say a man from El Salvador has died at an immigration jail in New Jersey. The jail has been the target of months of protests over living conditions for people detained there. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Monday that 41-year-old Edwin Lopez-Cornejo had been held at Delaney Hall in Newark after being arrested in June. The agency says he died Saturday. The government accused Lopez-Cornejo of entering the U.S. illegally. His official cause of death has not been released. His death has prompted immediate and fierce condemnation from officials and community members. They say this showcases the inhumane conditions at the 1,000-bed facility. President Donald Trump and his deputies have defended the center’s operations.

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Authorities say they’ve arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of intentionally starting one of the devastating wildfires burning around Spokane, Washington. The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said Monday they arrested Aaron F. Farinacci for arson. He’s accused of starting the Old Trails Fire. It’s one of three fires that are burning in the area, which have destroyed at least 700 structures and forced more than 60,000 people to evacuate. The Old Trails Fire sparked on Saturday. Farinacci will make his first court appearance on Tuesday.