ON JANUARY 11, ROBERT KEARNS AND PATRICK McLAINE, OF MUNICIPAL ENERGY MANAGERS OF MOSCOW, LACKAWANNA COUNTY, WERE CONVICTED OF STEALING $800,000 FROM BETHLEHEM TOWNSHIP BY AGREEING TO NEGOTIATE WITH PPL TO BUY THE TOWNSHIP'S STREETLIGHTS BUT INSTEAD WRITING THEMSELVES CHECKS AFTER THEY GOT THE MONEY.  NOW, LEHIGH COUNTY D.A. JIM MARTIN SAYS THE MEN DID THE SAME THING TO THE BOROUGH OF COPLAY AND POCKETED MORE THAN $160,000 WITHOUT BUYING THE STREETLIGHTS.  MARTIN SAYS COPLAY MADE TWO PAYMENTS TO THE COMPANY IN 2009 AND THE MONEY WAS DEPOSITED INTO THE COMPANY'S ACCOUNTS BUT KEARNS AND McLAINE SPENT THE MONEY.

  AUTHORITIES HAVE POSITIVELY IDENTIFIED A BODY FOUND IN A CANAL AS THAT OF A NEW JERSEY WOMAN WHO WENT MISSING AFTER SHE LEFT A BAR IN PENNSYLVANIA LAST WEEKEND.   HUNTERDON COUNTY PROSECUTOR ANTHONY KEARNS SAID THURSDAY THAT THE BODY IS THAT OF 39-YEAR-OLD SARAH MAJORAS OF LAMBERTVILLE.  KEARNS SAYS THE AUTOPSY RESULTS POINT TO A "TRAGIC ACCIDENT" AND DO NOT INDICATE THAT HER DEATH WAS SUSPICIOUS.  HER BODY WAS FOUND AROUND 5 P.M. WEDNESDAY BY STATE POLICE DIVERS IN THE DELAWARE & RARITAN CANAL.  MAJORAS WAS LAST SEEN AROUND 2 A.M. SATURDAY, WHEN SHE LEFT A NEW HOPE BAR WHERE SHE WORKED AS A BARTENDER AND CROSSED OVER THE BRIDGE INTO LAMBERTVILLE.

  AN UNIDENTIFIED MAN IS EXEPCTED TO SURVIVE AFTER BEING SHOT THURSDAY AFTERNOON IN THE MARVINE-PEMBROKE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT.  BETHLEHEM POLICE SAY THE MAN CHECKED HIMSELF INTO THE HOSPITAL ABOUT 15 MINUTES AFTER THEY WERE CALLED TO THE 1100 BLOCK OF FRITZ DRIVE FOR REPORTS OF GUNSHOTS.  NO ARRESTS HAVE BEEN MADE.

  A 23-YEAR-OLD ALLENTOWN MAN IS IN LEHIGH COUNTY PRISON AFTER ALLEGEDLY CHOKING A WOMAN BECAUSE SHE "GAVE HIM ATTITUDE."  POLICE SAY ISAIAH WATSON CHOKED THE WOMAN, PULLED HER HAIR AND THREW HER THROUGH A BASEMENT DOOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT HIS SOUTH FOURTH STREET HOME.  WATSON DENIES DOING ANYTHING WRONG.

  THE FAMILIES OF TWO MEN WHO DIED AT LEHIGH COUNTY PRISON ARE SUING THE PRISON.  25-YEAR-OLD DAVID CAMPBELL DIED AFTER A STRUGGLE WITH PRISON GUARDS IN OCTOBER 2011.  27-YEAR-OLD TRAVIS MAGDITCH WAS FOUND DEAD IN HIS CELL IN JANUARY 2012.  THEIR FAMILIES HAVE FILED WRONGFUL DEATH LAWSUITS AGAINST THE PRISON.  CAMPBELL'S FAMILY CLAIMS THE PRISON IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS DEATH BECAUSE GUARDS ASSAULTED HIM, CAUSING INJURIES THAT LED TO HIS DEATH.  MAGDITCH'S FAMILY SAYS THE PRISON IS LIABLE FOR HIS DEATH BECAUSE IT DIDN'T GIVE MAGDITCH AN INHALER EVEN THOUGH THE PRISON KNEW HE WAS ASTHMATIC.  PRISON DIRECTOR ED SWEENEY ISN'T COMMENTING.

  PENNSYLVANIA GOV. TOM CORBETT SAYS HE'S CONCERNED TO HEAR REPORTS ABOUT AN INVESTIGATION OF HIS SON-IN-LAW, A PHILADELPHIA NARCOTICS POLICE OFFICER.  CORBETT'S SON-IN-LAW IS UNDER INVESTIGATION BY THE FBI AND POLICE INTERNAL AFFAIRS.  CORBETT SAID: "I WAS SURPRISED AND CONCERNED TO LEARN ABOUT THE ALLEGATIONS REGARDING MY SON-IN-LAW GEROLD GIBSON.  SUSAN AND I CONTINUE TO GIVE OUR FAMILY OUR LOVE AND SUPPORT."  THE PHILADELPHIA POLICE DEPARTMENT SAID THURSDAY AN OFFICER WAS PLACED ON ADMINISTRATION LEAVE AS A RESULT OF AN INVESTIGATION BUT GAVE NO DETAILS.  THE OFFICER'S NAME WASN'T RELEASED BECAUSE HE WAS NOT ARRESTED OR CHARGED WITH A CRIME.

  WHILE MONTGOMERY COUNTY COMMISSIONER BRUCE CASTOR SAYS HE HASN'T MADE UP HIS MIND IF HE'LL RUN AGAINST GOVERNOR CORBETT IN NEXT YEAR'S G.O.P. PRIMARY, HE SAYS A DECISION ISN'T FAR OFF.  "I DON'T THINK IT CAN WAIT UNTIL THE FALL.  I THINK IT'S MORE LIKE SPRING," CASTOR SAYS.  CASTOR WANTS TO GET A LOOK AT CORBETT'S BUDGET PROPOSAL NEXT WEEK TO SEE IF HE BELIEVES CORBETT IS TAKING THE STATE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION OR STAGNATING.  IF CASTOR RUNS, IT'LL BE A REMATCH OF THE 2004 G.O.P. ATTORNEY GENERAL PRIMARY, WHICH WAS WON BY CORBETT.

  PENNSYLVANIA'S STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM AND ITS FACULTY ARE SET TO MEET AGAIN AS THEY TRY TO RESOLVE A PROLONGED CONTRACT DISPUTE.  UNION MEMBERS HAVE BEEN WORKING WITHOUT A CONTRACT SINCE JUNE 2011.  THEY HAVE AUTHORIZED THEIR LEADERSHIP TO CALL A STRIKE IF NECESSARY.  NEGOTIATIONS ARE SET TO RESUME TODAY.  HUNDREDS OF FACULTY MEMBERS FROM THE 14 STATE-OWNED UNIVERSITIES PROTESTED LAST WEEK OUTSIDE THE STATE SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION OFFICES WHILE THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS HEARD FROM BOTH SIDES.  THE UNION SAYS THE SYSTEM IS MAKING UNREASONABLE DEMANDS FOR CONCESSIONS ON HEALTH COVERAGE AND OTHER ISSUES.  SCHOOL OFFICIALS SAY CONCESSIONS ARE NECESSARY TO ENSURE AFFORDABLE, QUALITY EDUCATION.

  PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE SAY A GLITCH IN THE STATE COMPUTER SYSTEM THAT HANDLES APPLICATIONS FOR CONCEALED-WEAPON PERMITS IS FIXED.  STATE POLICE SPOKESWOMAN MARIA FINN SAYS THE PROBLEM WAS RESOLVED YESTERDAY, AFTER FOUR DAYS OF INTERMITTENT BREAKDOWNS THAT DELAYED PERMITS FOR PEOPLE WHO APPLIED FOR THEM DURING THAT PERIOD.  THE COMPUTER PROBLEM PREVENTED COUNTY SHERIFFS FROM UPLOADING PHOTOGRAPHS AND PRINTING THE CONCEALED-CARRY LICENSES.  FINN SAYS THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE APPLY FOR THE PERMITS EACH WEEK BUT THAT SHE DIDN'T KNOW HOW MANY WERE AFFECTED BY THE PROBLEM.  IT DIDN'T AFFECT THE SEPARATE COMPUTER SYSTEM THAT IS USED TO CONDUCT INSTANT BACKGROUND CHECKS ON MOST GUN PURCHASES IN PENNSYLVANIA.

  GERALDO RIVERA SAYS HE'S SERIOUSLY THINKING ABOUT RUNNING FOR U.S. SENATE IN NEW JERSEY.  RIVERA, WHO HOSTS A WEEKEND SHOW ON FOX NEWS CHANNEL, SAID THURSDAY  HE'S "TRULY CONTEMPLATING" BECOMING A CANDIDATE.  HE SAYS HE HAS SPOKEN TO SOME PEOPLE IN THE NEW JERSEY GOP ABOUT A RUN.  RIVERA ASKED HIS 30,000 TWITTER FOLLOWERS HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT HIM CHALLENGING EITHER SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG OR NEWARK MAYOR CORY BOOKER.  NO REPUBLICAN HAS FORMALLY ANNOUNCED AN INTEREST IN RUNNING.

  GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE IS THANKING PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR COMING TO NEW JERSEY'S AID AFTER SUPERSTORM SANDY AND REMEMBERING THE 42,000 STATE RESIDENTS STILL HOMELESS SINCE THE OCTOBER 29 STORM.  CHRISTIE WAS THE KEYNOTE SPEAKER THURSDAY NIGHT AT THE STATE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE'S ANNUAL TRIP TO THE NATION'S CAPITAL.  CHRISTIE SAYS OBAMA'S RESPONSE WAS EXTRAORDINARY.  THE GOVERNOR RECOUNTED HAVING A HALF-HOUR CONVERSATION ALONE WITH THE PRESIDENT IN THE OVAL OFFICE THREE DAYS BEFORE A $60 BILLION AID BILL WAS SENT TO CONGRESS.

  NEW JERSEY GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE WILL SOON BE CROSSING THE HUDSON RIVER TO APPEAR ON "LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN."  CBS SAYS THE COLORFUL, OUTSPOKEN CHRISTIE WILL MAKE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE WITH LETTERMAN ON MONDAY.  THE GUEST SHOT FOLLOWS NUMEROUS JOKES BY LETTERMAN AT THE EXPENSE OF CHRISTIE AND HIS AMPLE GIRTH.    CHRISTIE TERMED HIS PLUMPNESS "FAIR GAME" FOR COMEDIANS AT A 2011 NEWS CONFERENCE.