3 Killed in Pa. toll booth, troopers fatally shoot gunman
Last edited Sun Mar 20, 2016, 07:38 PM - Edit history (1)
Source: NY DAILY NEWS
An armed robber fatally shot two Pennsylvania Turnpike employees near a toll booth on Sunday morning, before being killed in a gun fight with police.
The attack happened just before 7 a.m. on the Fort Littleton Interchange in Fulton County, when the killer opened fire on the toll booth worker in an attempted robbery, police said in a statement.
The shooter also killed a Turnpike contractor during the deadly shooting, police said.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the deceased victims, the turnpike employee and the contractors, Turnpike Chairman Sean Logan said in a statement. Certainly, today will be a day that none of us will soon forget.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/robber-fatally-shoots-2-pa-toll-booth-killed-police-article-1.2571067
In_The_Wind
(72,300 posts)Reter
(2,188 posts)May he rot in hell.
haikugal
(6,476 posts)PSPS
(13,512 posts)liberalnarb
(4,532 posts)Hoppy
(3,595 posts)Why, I remember the time when Little Hoppy was in the 8th grade and there was a math test for which I didn't study.
No problem....
"Dear Jesus, please help me with the test tomorrow."
Damn, if it didn't snow and school was closed the next day. The day after was the beginning of Christmas vacation and the teacher forgot about the test when we got back.
Now that's customer service for ya.
I did fail the next test, however. That might have had somethin' to do with why I was in the 8th grade twice.
He ain't helped Ol Hoppy with the lottery ticket yet but that's just because I ain't prayed good enough on it.
Zira
(1,054 posts)TipTok
(2,474 posts)Skittles
(152,964 posts)Hardly representative if you're into the whole math thing.
In_The_Wind
(72,300 posts)atreides1
(16,046 posts)"Briggs had been a Pennsylvania trooper for 26 years, when he retired in 2012 with an honorable discharge. The former officer was assigned to turnpike patrol during his tenure as an officer."
MMTampa
(82 posts)I am a retired florist, the thoughts and prayers thing is the "go to" phrase. Take it as is offered, some believe the phrase offers solace to the bereaved.
My father was born and raised in a burg off the Fort Littleton Exchange (Google it). The gun violence in that area of the country is unbelievable. Domestic violence, child abuse and alcohol abuse statistics are staggering as is the poverty of that part of our nation. Really! Who robs a toll booth.
Divernan
(15,480 posts)The gunman was age 55; state troopers' retirement age is 50.
As of July 2014, the starting salary for Pennsylvania State Police graduates is $55,853.
State Trooper (2) (from pdf for state employees)
(somewhat contradictory re starting salaries from another source)
Total Pay $51,628 - $95,097, pay range for state troopers.
http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Employer=Pennsylvania_State_Police_Department/Salary
In either case, a conservative estimate of annual income for last 3 years on the job for this gunman would be minimally $70,000 per year salary times 26 years times multiplier of 2.5. and this gunman was pulling down a pension of 65% times $70,000, i.e., $45,000 per year.
The gunman, identified as retired Trooper Clarence Briggs, 55, of Newville, Cumberland County about 36 miles from the scene retired in 2012 after more than 26 years of service, according to Cain.
http://triblive.com/news/regional/10179035-74/turnpike-exit-shooting
The multiplier is 2.5 times the average salary of the 3 highest paid years.
Under the state's two major pension plans, the retirement benefit is a function of end-of-career salary, years of service and a critical little factor known as the multiplier.
The multiplier is essentially that portion of final salary a retiree earns with each year of service.
In Pennsylvania, the current multiplier for most state workers and public school teachers - as of the 2001 formula change now targeted for a rollback by GOP senators - is 2.5.
Public employees don't just get that benefit, they pay in all through their careers with payroll deductions currently set at 7.5 percent for most teachers, and 6.25 percent for most state workers.
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2015/05/how_to_figure_a_state_employee.html
Retirement age for state police troopers is 50 years and includes medical and dental coverage.
http://sinewsweb.com/news/Pennsylvania-State-Police-Retirement-Age
Sunlei
(22,651 posts)modrepub
(3,467 posts)Briggs then shot and killed one of the toll collectors, Danny Crouse, who had been on the job less than three months, and Ronald Heist, a retired York police officer who was employed by a detective agency and was working as turnpike security, Capt. David Cain said.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20160321_Three_dead_in_robbery_attempt_on_Pa__Turnpike.html
Sad. Wondering if Briggs (the killer) had a substance abuse problem. It's all weird and sad. That particular toll booth is one of the least used on the turnpike. Probably the reason why it was targeted.