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What we're working on: Oct. 23

Here's a look at the stories that are keeping our reporters busy Wednesday: * A woman charged with stealing students' rent money in Hazleton was recently working as a property manager at a local student complex. * A woman tells the creepy story of a man who allegedly broke into her home and said he would "heal" her. * Should she be in jail or not? A judge asks a suspect's parents to help decide. Learn how the case worked out. * Damaged by fire in September, a local manufacturing company is getting back on its feet.

Pa. agency owner sought hit on gay worker, cops say

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The owner of a central Pennsylvania social service agency solicited his uncle to kill or harm a worker who he said threatened to play the "gay card" if she wasn't given a raise or promotion, state police charged. But the business owner's defense attorney contends the allegations are false and based solely on the word of the uncle the businessman allegedly tried to hire.

Marcellus Shale gas growing faster than expected

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Natural gas production from the Marcellus Shale region is growing faster than expected, according to a new federal report issued Tuesday. Marcellus production has now reached 12 billion cubic feet a day, the Energy Information Administration report found. That's the energy equivalent of about 2 million barrels of oil a day, and more than six times the 2009 production rate.

Ex-school cop sentenced in molestation case

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- A former Pittsburgh Public Schools police officer will serve 32 to 64 years in prison for molesting four boys in the late 1990s. Allegheny County Judge Donna Jo McDaniel called 44-year-old Robert Lellock a sexually violent predator and a danger to the community before imposing the lengthy sentence on Tuesday. Lellock was found guilty in July for crimes that happened during the 1998-99 school year. Prosecutors said Lellock pulled the boys from class at Arthur J. Rooney Middle School, took them into a janitor's closest and molested them.

The PE Sneak Peek: Oct. 22, 2013

Here's a look at the stories that are keeping our reporters busy Tuesday: * A teenager is charged with attacking his parents, and it's not the first time, police say. * A judge gives homeowners one more chance to clean up and save a house from demolition. * Some $10 million in endowments should stay in a local town, despite its hospital's merger with Geisinger, an attorney argues. * A woman whacks her brother in the face with a frying pan during a family fray, police say. * Which local town has more free parking on the way? We'll tell you all about it.

Cigars that taste like candy, fruit lure kids, study says

ATLANTA (AP) -- Small cigars flavored to taste like candy or fruit are popular among teens, according to the first government study to gauge their use. About 1 in 30 middle and high school kids said they smoke the compact, sweet-flavored cigars. The percentages rise as kids get older, to nearly 1 in 12 high school seniors, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. The results -- based on a 2011 survey of nearly 19,000 students, grades 6 through 12 -- were published online Tuesday by the Journal of Adolescent Health.

Man calls cops for theft from Pa. workers' fridge

BREINIGSVILLE, Pa. (AP) -- If you ever had your lunch disappear from the office refrigerator, consider what one southeastern Pennsylvania man did: He called the cops. KYW-TV in Philadelphia reports that Upper Macungie Township police were called Oct. 10. That's when, according to a police news release, an employee at Wakefern Food Corp. reported "that an unknown person stole his Jell-O brand strawberry Jell-O snack from the break room refrigerator." Police say the 39-year-old victim was angry because this wasn't the first time someone had stolen his food.

Pa. man charged in crash that claimed 3 lives

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- An eastern Pennsylvania man is facing charges in a crash that claimed the lives of his mother, another woman and her teenage son. Lehigh County prosecutors said Monday that 32-year-old John Edward Mayer of Slatington has been charged with three counts each of vehicular homicide, involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment in the Feb. 23 crash in Whitehall Township. Investigators said Mayer's pickup truck was traveling 86 mph in a 30 mph construction zone when he ran a red light and hit a sedan entering the intersection.

Police: Teens beat Pa. man, 65, over parking space

CARLISLE, Pa. (AP) -- Police have charged two 17-year-old boys with beating a 65-year-old man in a dispute over a parking space in central Pennsylvania. Pennlive.com reports that Carlisle police filed the charges but are not releasing the boy's names because they're charged in juvenile court. Police say the attack happened about 2 p.m. Friday and was captured by city surveillance cameras. Police say one teen beat the man with a tree branch then punched him. They say the other teen threw the man to the ground and kicked him in the face.

The PE Sneak Peek: Oct. 21

Here's a look at the stories that are keeping our reporters busy Monday: * A policeman spots a young man emerging from a morning of sleep -- get this -- in a Dumpster. Now he's facing charges from the homecoming weekend slumber. * A man convicted of more than 1,000 counts of child molestation returns to a local courtroom. Find out why he's back. * Police are still looking for a driver they had pursued overnight after he fled a traffic stop. * Council candidates field questions from voters and media members. * Plus, are parking meters in one local community on their way out?