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Many Pennsylvania district attorneys need to rethink how they respond to allegations of sexual assault | PennLive Editorial

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Many Pennsylvania district attorneys need to rethink how they respond to allegations of sexual assault | PennLive Editorial


Many District Attorneys in counties throughout Pennsylvania have one thing in common, they are reluctant to prosecute people charged with sex crimes.

In fact, extensive reporting from PennLive’s Christine Vendel and Jenna Wise has revealed an alarming statistic: since 2019, prosecutors in Pennsylvania have not pursued an average of 75 percent of reports of rapes and sex assaults, including those committed against children.

Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan took office in January 2024. He was photographed Sept. 26, 2024, in the Lehigh County CourthouseSaed Hindash | For lehighvalleylive.com

PennLive’s series of stories shows Lehigh County has the lowest rate of prosecution of reported sex crimes at about 7 percent over the past five years. And in Elk, Forest, Centre and Lehigh counties, in 2023 police didn’t file charges on more than 90 percent of reported sex crimes. Adams and York County ranked at 12 percent and 15 percent of case prosecuted, respectively.

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Lebanon County’s prosecution rate was a bit higher at 17%, and Lancaster’s was 20 percent.

The low rates of prosecution in these counnties raise disturbing questions about whether police and prosecutors there are doing enough to support sexual assault victims and ensure offenders are brought to justice.

Former state Rep. Brian Ellis will not face criminal charges

Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo announced the findings of a grand jury investigation into former Butler County state Rep. Brian Ellis. At center is State Victim Advocate Jennifer Storm, and at far right is Shea Rhodes, director of the Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation at Villanova University. Ellis did not face criminal charges for his alleged role in the sexual assault of a woman in Harrisburg in 2015.
August 26, 2019.
Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Authorities argue cases of rape and sexual assault can be hard to prove and alleged victims often make confusing and conflicting statements. Advocates for victims of sexual assault say the system is rigged against them not only in Pennsylvania but throughout the nation. Women interviewed for PennLive’s reports echoed those allegations. They complained all too often police and prosecutors don’t believe them. They also accused authorities of having outdated and unrealistic assumptions of how victims should respond to sexual assaults.

Victims said authorities too often put them through even more trauma in questioning, and many are not trained in how to properly deal with victims of sexual assault.

PennLive’s investigative reporting has uncovered a widespread pattern of ignorance in how to properly investigate sex crimes and a pattern of minimizing the trauma victims of sexual assault suffer.

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Four women who say they were raped told PennLive of their nightmarish experiences reporting the crime to police and responding to questions from district attorneys. They said they suffered even more harm from a criminal justice system designed to wear them down, protect their abusers and silence their cries for justice.

Lebanon County Sheriff

A PennLive reporter waited for hours at Pier Hess Graf’s office to talk to her about how she handles sex crimes, but she would not come out to talk.Christine Vendel

In one tragic case, a woman who reported being raped ended up being charged herself when police didn’t believe her story. Lebanon District Attorney Pier Hess Graf charged the 26-year-old woman with making a false report.

Overall, PennLive’s reporting shows police and prosecutors often are prone to skepticism about accusers’ stories and are unaware women may react differently to sexual assault, including being unable to fight back.

There is one ray of hope in the months of investigation, officials in some counties are taking steps to change the system and support victims of sexual assault.

Perry County District Attorney Clay Merris

Perry County District Attorney Clay Merris.
October 14, 2024.
Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.comDan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Perry County has started specialized training for those conducting sex crime investigations. And the county ranks among Pennsylvania’s top five for the rate of prosecuting such crimes. Perry County prosecutors took four sex crimes cases to trial last year and won convictions in all of them. Thirteen other cases in the county ended in guilty pleas.

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The recent trend in Perry County is encouraging, and District Attorney’s office in Pennsylvania counties with low prosecution rates for sex crimes should take note. We urge them to immediately revamp their procedures for handling such cases of let the public know they’re doing so.

Women, men, and children who come forward deserve to have their allegations taken seriously. And they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

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Pennsylvania man arrested for allegedly feeding pet parakeet marijuana and beer

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Pennsylvania man arrested for allegedly feeding pet parakeet marijuana and beer


A Pennsylvania man was arrested on animal cruelty charges for allegedly feeding marijuana and beer to his pet parakeet after bringing the injured feathered friend to a bar, according to reports.

Timothy Grace, 40, was busted on Feb. 21 after carrying his wounded pet budgie named “Blue Skies” in his pocket to Callaghan’s Bar in Greensburg, according to CBS Pittsburgh.

Timothy Grace was arrested on animal cruelty charges for allegedly feeding marijuana and beer to his pet parakeet after bringing the injured feathered friend to a bar. WTAE

“The caller’s a bartender. She says there is a white male at the bar with a parakeet,” a dispatcher reported on the police radio transmissions obtained by the outlet.

“The patron was bragging to other people that were inside the bar that he feeds the parakeet marijuana and has it drink beer on a daily basis,” Detective Sergeant Justin Scalzo told the outlet.

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Grace “appeared extremely intoxicated” when police showed up to the bar and found the pet bird in distress, according to court documents obtained by the outlet.

“Its leg appeared to be broken,” Scalzo said, according to WTAE. “Its foot was actually facing the wrong direction.”

Grave was initially arrested for public intoxication and now faces charges including aggravated cruelty to animals and transporting animals in a cruel manner, the outlet said.

The pet bird was brought to PEARL Parrot Rescue in the Pittsburgh area, which rushed him to an emergency care facility.


Exterior of Callaghan's bar, with a sign showing
The injured parakeet is still breathing hard, remains on antibiotics, and has to wear a splint on his right leg. WTAE

Blue Skies spent four days in the hospital and was later taken in to be fostered by Teri Grendzinski, the president of PEARL. The injured parakeet is still breathing hard, remains on antibiotics, and has to wear a splint on his right leg, CBS reported.

“They realized his leg was broken. He also had some respiratory issues going on,” Grendzinski told the outlet. “He was also very, very skinny.”

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“The leg was broken badly enough there is a chance they’re going to have to amputate the leg if it doesn’t heal correctly,” she added.

If Blue Skies is eventually put up for adoption, he will require specialized care, the outlet said.

“When we got that call, it was horrifying. Why would you do that to a bird?” Grendzinski said.



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Pa. man found guilty of raping teen girl who he took to Mexico

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Pa. man found guilty of raping teen girl who he took to Mexico


A Pennsylvania man was found guilty of repeatedly raping his daughter’s best friend over a three-year span before fleeing with the teen to Mexico.

On Thursday, March 5, 2026, Kevin Esterly, 53, of Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania, was convicted on all counts of rape, statutory sexual assault, involuntary sexual intercourse and endangering the welfare of children.

Esterly shook his head as the verdict was read but said nothing in the courtroom.

Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673.

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Esterly’s trial began on Tuesday, March 3, after a judge denied his pretrial motion for the charges against him to be dismissed and for the Lehigh County District Attorney to be removed as a prosecutor in the case.

Both Esterly and his victim testified on Wednesday, March 4.

The victim — who is now 24-years-old — told the courtroom that she met Esterly and his family while attending church as a child and became best friends with one of his daughters. Esterly was a youth leader and elder at the church at the time. The victim said Esterly also coached her soccer team.

The victim said she became so close to Esterly’s family that she called his wife “mom” and eventually spent almost every weekend at their home in Lowhill Township, Pennsylvania. She also said she vacationed with them in New York state and Ocean City, Maryland.

The victim said Esterly first sexually assaulted her in August 2015 when she was 13-years-old after he gave her alcohol during a family birthday party.

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“I was scared. Frozen in fear,” the woman told the courtroom on Wednesday. “I pretended I was sleeping.”

The woman accused Esterly of sexually assaulting her almost every time she slept over at his home. She told the courtroom she eventually became addicted to alcohol and drugs, which Esterly gave her in exchange for sex. According to the woman, Esterly gave her cocaine and methamphetamine to keep her awake during school because she “would be up with him all night.”

The woman said Esterly continued to sexually assault her until he was confronted by his wife in 2017. Esterly’s wife then threw him out of the house, according to the victim. She said Esterly continued to sexually assault her over the next year.

Esterly was later arrested and then sentenced to prison after federal agents found him with the victim in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, in 2018. She was 16-years-old at the time.

The woman said she moved on and went to college after Esterly’s sentencing though she still struggled with drug addiction. She said she sought counseling in February 2025. She told the courtroom she received a message from Esterly on LinkedIn that same month in which he apologized for “failing you as a person I was supposed to be for you.” At that point Esterly had been released from prison.

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The woman said she had not told anyone about her relationship with Esterly up to that point and replied to him, “I live with our secret every day as I promised. I would appreciate an apology.”

The woman told the courtroom that Esterly responded by writing, “I hope one day you can forgive me. Nobody knows I reached out to you. That is the best for both of us.”

On Feb. 21, 2025, Allentown Police received a report of Esterly’s sexual assaults which led to the new charges being filed against him. He was arrested in West Virginia in June 2025 after two police pursuits. He was then extradited to Pennsylvania.

The victim told the courtroom on Wednesday that she kept quiet about Esterly’s abuse for years because she “was afraid to speak,” and felt “dirty and ashamed.”

“I wasn’t ready to tell anyone,” she said. “He was a father figure in my life. I loved him.”

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The woman also said she didn’t want to hurt Esterly’s daughter who was her best friend.

When the District Attorney asked her why she was “here today,” she replied by saying, “I want to tell the truth. I want to be set free.”

The woman ended her testimony by saying, “I don’t want to live with this secret anymore.”

After her testimony, Esterly took the stand for 45 minutes, denied all of the accusations against him and accused the woman of lying.

Closing arguments then took place Thursday morning. It then took an hour for the jury of seven women and five men to reach their verdict.

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3 dead in apparent murder-suicide spanning from Pennsylvania to Illinois, police say

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3 dead in apparent murder-suicide spanning from Pennsylvania to Illinois, police say



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Two women are dead in Pennsylvania and a man is dead in Illinois after an apparent murder-suicide, police said on Wednesday.

According to a report from the Pennsylvania State Police, the investigation began in Hillside, Illinois, when police there were dispatched after a man reported two women dead in Jackson Township, Pennsylvania. Police said that when officers got to Hillside, about 15 miles west of Chicago, they found that the man had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

After identifying him, troopers said Hillside officers contacted police from Jackson Township to request a welfare check at the man’s home on Dior Drive, about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh. 

Map shows distance from Hillside, Illinois, to Zelienople, Pennsylvania

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KDKA


Police said officers used forced entry to get into the home and found two women dead from apparent gunshot wounds. It’s believed the two women were family members of the man who died by suicide in Illinois, investigators said. 

Pennsylvania State Police said they’ve assumed control of the case and are “actively investigating” what happened surrounding the three deaths.

Police didn’t release any names, saying the process of formal identification and notification of next of kin hasn’t been completed. Sources told KDKA that the victims were a husband, wife and their daughter.

“At this time, investigators believe there is no ongoing threat to the public, and law enforcement is not searching for any additional individuals in connection with this incident,” police wrote in the public information release report. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation.”

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State police didn’t release any other details on Wednesday but said more information will be made public when it’s available.  

“My first reaction was shocked because this is such a close-knit neighborhood, and to think something that horrible could happen here is very tragic because they were such a good family,” neighbor Danielle Sporer said on Wednesday. 



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