Delaware
Delaware County Council gets earful about illegals after shots fired in Radnor park
Delaware County Council once again faced concerns about immigration at last week’s meeting against the backdrop of shots fired in a Radnor park over the weekend.
Sgt. Brady McHale of the Radnor Township Police Department said Tomas Cruz-Gayosso, 33, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was arrested last Sunday after police responded to Skunk Hollow Park on a a report of shots fired.
Several spent casings were found in Cruz-Gayosso’s vehicle as well as opened bottles of beer and liquor. And, the park needed to be closed for 45 minutes while officers investigated.
At Wednesday’s county council meeting, several community members voiced concerns.
“Somebody, Elaine, in a park near your house, fired off six shots,” Charles Alexander of Marple said to County Councilwoman Elaine Paul Schaefer. “That’s great, in a township park in Delaware County, Pa., firing off six rounds.”
Alexander said he’d place blame on council if anyone is hurt by an illegal immigrant.
“Like we haven’t warned you?” he said. “We’re going to continue bringing this up. And when you do nothing and somebody’s child, mother, sister, brother, anyone is hurt, we are going to hold you responsible.”
Gary Ryder of Marple was concerned about the safety of kids who use the park and its nearby environs.
“That guy shot off, an illegal immigrant that you guys are letting in our county,” he said.
Police said Cruz-Gayosso had a work visa but were unable to determine if he was in the United States legally or illegally.
Back at the county council meeting, lifelong county resident Diane Tumolo said she’s a nurse.
“We’re all immigrants. I love immigrants. I take care of immigrants,” she said. “Illegal is the problem … When you have people coming in here that are not documented, we don’t know what diseases they are carrying.”
Debra Morton of Springfield shared her perspective as an immigrant who’s been an American citizen for seven years now.
“I chose to move here because it is a fantastic country,” she said. “When I came to the U.S., I owned a green card. I was subject to blood tests, questioning and biometric records. These are reasonable safety precautions for a country who wants to know who is coming to stay and who is coming to live here.”
She added that family who visit her are also subject to biometric records as they enter.
“It isn’t just about immigration,” Morton said. “It is about the legality of everything that is happening and the safety of people who have children, live in a township with parks … and it terrifies me to think that there are people committing the crimes that we’ve seen in New York and in other areas … It’s a safety issue.”
She voiced concern about the costs of care.
“There’s no way that our society and our county can sustain a large number of people that are not paying taxes because we’re going to run out of money and then we’re all going to be in trouble,” she said.
County Councilman Kevin Madden said he was not going to question their fears or anxieties, and recommended that they take their concerns to those in government, particularly at the federal level, who have jurisdiction over immigration and customs enforcement.
“It’s not us,” he said of county council.
Police specifics
Of last Sunday’s incident, McHale added, “There were no injuries to bystanders or residents near the park.”
He said police were initially dispatched to Saw Mill Park for the reports of shots fired and realized the incident was occurring across the creek bed at Skunk Hollow Park.
Police found Cruz-Gayosso seated in a black SUV with several open bottles of beer and liquor, a 9 mm handgun and six spent casings in plain view.
McHale said the gun was in someone else’s name.
“He does not have a license to carry a firearm,” the sergeant said of Cruz-Gayosso.
Cruz-Gayosso was charged with firearms not to be carried without a license, recklessly endangering another person and DUI.
McHale said Cruz-Gayosso was taken into custody without incident and told officers he was “staying local,” but they were unable to determine what that meant.
McHale said he seems to be transient.
He said it was similar to a case in 2022 when a man was taken into custody after a report of shots fired in Fenimore Woods Park.
In that case, McHale said the man said he had just purchased a gun and wanted to see what it was like to shoot it off.
Regarding a reason for Cruz-Gayosso to shoot, McHale said, “He did not elaborate on the purpose for that.”
The sergeant added that no property in or around Skunk Hollow Park appeared damaged.
Arrested and sent to George W. Hill Correctional Facility, Cruz-Gayosso was released two days later after posting 10% of his $35,000 bail. No defense attorney was listed.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 5 before Magisterial District Judge Sloan Walker.
McHale urged citizens to remain aware, wherever they may be.
“Crime is not immune anywhere,” the sergeant said. “Being alert and oriented of your surroundings is so important.”
Originally Published:
The Hagley Museum and Library houses a collection of patent models
The Hagley Museum and Library houses the nation’s second-largest collection of patent models, many of which the public never gets to see.
For most, 41 years of service is more than enough. For State Librarian Annie Norman, though, even retirement can’t slow her down.
“The work is never done; there’s always something to do,” she said. “I’m going to have to continue to help in other ways.”
Norman will step away this fall after 24 years as the Delaware state librarian and director of the Delaware Division of Libraries.
Throughout her tenure, Norman made waves; the director helped create the Delaware Library Consortium, which allowed all of Delaware’s Public libraries to share items, and brought the library system along during a wave of technological change. For these achievements, she was named to the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame in 2016 and appointed by President Joe Biden as a member of the National Museum and Library Services Board.
We spoke with Norman as she wraps up an accomplished career about her proudest achievements, and the state of libraries in 2026.
Question: As you look back on your tenure, what was your proudest accomplishment?
Answer: What I’ll be known for more than anything is probably the statewide library catalog and consortium. The politics of bringing all of those libraries together, after years of there being four separate library catalogs in Delaware, took about eight years. More recently, I think bringing the school libraries into that catalog is going to be really significant. We’ve got more than 50 school libraries to be a part of the statewide catalog, something we think can really help with the literacy crisis in this state.
One of the biggest challenges of your tenure was adjusting to the large wave of technology that came about. How have you and the Delaware libraries handled it?
It’s been very systematic. We have a great IT team that helps manage for us, as well as the state funding 100% of library technologies. The growth of the iPhone has certainly had a huge impact on literacy, but we’re really just working hard to bring back the excitement of reading.
The Delaware libraries’ programming have always been a popular resource. How important do you view these offerings to local communities, and will they continue to expand?
Yes, libraries are about enrichment, which means helping support people in things like entrepreneurship, education and innovation. We’ve had libraries start up job centers, which were so successful we could expand to entrepreneurship, and even help with more basic social needs, by starting a “social innovation team” to help with more of the social services-type work.
Where we still struggle is we can only help people access Delaware systems to help with their needs, not fix things within those systems. For that reason, we always encourage these systems to work with us, so the Delaware library system can fit everyone’s needs.
Cuts toward libraries just occurred in New Castle County, with the potential for more to come. How will the library system look to stay afloat?
Because of the economy, because of federal changes, things can get difficult, it’s not the first time we’ve experienced budget cuts. We’ve progressed significantly over the years, but there is much more work to do, and I don’t know that the public understands how critical libraries and librarians are to literacy.
The power of walking into a library and being able to choose what you want to read for a child is powerful, and until people understand that, we can’t achieve our literacy goals.
Adam Denn is an intern reporter for Delaware Online/The News Journal. You can reach him at apdenn@delawareonline.com.
Inspiration
Do you have a suggestion for our Inspiration page? E-mail Tammy Paolino at tpaolino@usatodayco.com
DELAWARE COUNTY, Ohio — People in Delaware County said it feels like new housing developments are popping up on every corner.
WSYX
“What haven’t you noticed, right? The whole area just exploded,” said Scott Shonebarger.
Scott Sanders, the executive director of the Regional Planning Commission, said companies like Intel and other industries are a main driver for thousands of people moving to Delaware County.
With the big boom comes an urgent need for more housing.
John Wicks is the developer at Real Property Design and Development.
He has spent over a decade building homes for families in Delaware County.
Wicks said the Olentangy School District is one of the hottest spots for new homes.
“I started with one high school up until the 90s, then now we’re up to four up to five different high schools so it’s just a big draw,” said Wicks. “It’s a beautiful community.”
The district has grown into the fourth largest in Ohio with a new elementary school opening next year, and a fifth high school in 2028.
Wicks said the growth has presented some challenges over the years like labor shortage and some opposition.
“It’s become a big issue for a lot of people that live in and around these areas. They tend to oppose new growth and new development, so restrictions have gotten a little bit harder. Costs have obviously gone up over the last 20 years,” said Wicks.
The planning commission says between 275,000 and 350,000 people could call Delaware County home by 2040.
That’s up from 214,000 in 2020.
Scott Shonebarger said he supports growth but wonders when is enough.
“I mean to a certain extent I think you know at some point right you have to have some sort of boundaries I think, getting into the fact that now you have five high schools,” said Shonebarger. “What’s the limit?”
Police in Wilmington, Delaware, shot and killed a 19-year-old man Wednesday night.
The incident happened in a residential area near 24th and Jessup streets just after 11 p.m., Wilmington police said in a news release. The person who was shot has not been publicly identified.
Officers were monitoring a large crowd gathered outside when they saw a man exit a home with a handgun and point it toward the crowd, police say.
When officers approached the man, he ran away and a foot pursuit began, police say.
At some point in the chase, an officer fired their weapon and hit the 19-year-old. The man was taken to a local hospital, where he later died.
Police say they recovered a loaded gun from the man and that the officer was not injured.
Video filmed at the scene shows a crowd of residents gathered outside after the shooting.
Police are asking anyone with more information to come forward. The shooting is under investigation by the Delaware Department of Justice and Wilmington police.
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