Thursday marked one year since three Northern York County Regional Department officers— Detective Sergeant Cody Becker, Detective Mark Baker, and Detective Isaiah Emenheiser—were killed in an ambush, while serving an arrest warrant in North Codorus Township.

In a Facebook post to mark the anniversary of that tragic event, the NYCRD said “Cody, Mark, and Isaiah were far more than police officers. They were husbands, fathers, sons, brothers, friends, mentors, and trusted partners. They were men who dedicated themselves to their families, their fellow officers, and the communities they proudly served. Their personalities, their laughter, their friendship, and their presence remain deeply missed throughout the Northern York County Regional Police Department.” 

York County Sheriff’s Department Lt. David Godfrey was also on the scene when 24-year-old Matthew J. Ruth opened fire on the officers.

Tucked behind the driver-side wheel well of his police cruiser following the initial barrage of gunfire, Godfrey remembered lying on the ground bleeding profusely after being shot, his ammunition spent, waiting for Ruth to finish him off.

In what Godfrey believed were his final minutes alive, he called his wife, a nurse on duty at WellSpan York Hospital.

She didn’t pick up. And so he left a message.

“I don’t think I’m coming home tonight,” Godfrey told his wife via voicemail. “Love you, bye.”

One year after the fateful day that changed Godfrey’s life and the lives of countless others, the officer speaks in depth about his long road to recovery in this story.

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Fall visitors pick apples at Linvilla Orchards in Philadelphia. (Hope Daluisio/Visit Philadelphia)

With fall (officially) arriving Tuesday, we’ll be highlighting some of the great things to do around the state this time of year, like visiting apple orchards.

Apple orchards can be found all across the state, as apples are grown in every county in the commonwealth. After all, Pennsylvania ranks fourth in the nation for apple production, with our farmers harvesting more than 400 million pounds of apples each year.

Many of the orchards in Pennsylvania are open for apple picking, where visitors can fill their baskets with popular varieties like Honeycrisp as well as Pennsylvania heritage apples like the Nittany, which was developed at Penn State.

But many orchards in the commonwealth offer much more than apple picking. Some have become agritourism destinations, where you can spend a fall day not only picking apples and other seasonal produce, but also grabbing farm-fresh baked goods (like apple cider donuts), getting lost in a corn maze, eating warm festival fare, taking a hayride, and more.

Our food and travel writer Kalena Thomhave has put together a list of some of her favorite orchards in Pennsylvania for fall fun.

• Conflicting information about a recent incident at the Geisinger Medical Center campus in Danville, Montour County, where more than 40 construction workers were reportedly detained in a major ICE operation, shows how difficult it can be to get timely and accurate information on immigration enforcement activity at this phase of the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign. Learn about the incident here.

• After a recent report from CBS News, US Rep. Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-Luzerne) is again under scrutiny for owning millions in data center investments while campaigning to regulate them. Get the story here.

• Rolling blackouts would happen more than 13 days a year in a “worst case future” scenario, where data center growth is unrestrained and electricity supplies remain tight, according to a report commissioned by Pennsylvania utility regulators. Get the details here.

• Government employees and community advocates warned state lawmakers Wednesday that the commonwealth can’t build itself out of the housing shortage, but needed to also focus on preserving existing homes and keeping homes affordable for low-income Pennsylvanians. Learn more in this story.

(Paul Devine)

Paul Devine from Blue Bell, Montgomery County, shared this photo of a waxing crescent moon, typically the first visible lunar phase after a new moon, earlier this week over the Blue Bell Country Club.

We want to see Pennsylvania through your eyes! Send us your photos with your name, location, and a brief description of what you’re sharing.

Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Patrick Berkery with stories from Kalena Thomhave, Sean Kitchen, USA Today via Reuters Connect, and Whitney Downard, Peter Hall, and Ian Karbal of the Pennsylvania Capital-Star. It was edited by Crystal Niforos.

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