Yo, Philly in the News

• Milton Street's court-appointed lawyer in his corruption trial (not his NJ traffic ticket trial; try to keep up!) couldn't come to an agreement with her client on how to handle his case, so she's withdrawing from the case. Street can't afford to hire his own lawyer (what's he been spending his money on? Not paying traffic tickets, that's for sure), so he's being appointed a new one, although the judge pointed out he probably won't allow another change in counsel. Street's not sure how much this whole thing will cost, but as far as his campaign is concerned he's very upbeat; when asked about it, he said it's "going great." Good old Milt!
• Villanova heiress Susan Tabas Tepper was sentenced to a year of probation, $2,800 in fines, mandatory anger management classes, and community service on Monday for assaulting Xiomara Salinas, her nanny and housekeeper, in the summer of 2005. Apparently Tepper got angry about a messy refrigerator and, in the grand tradition of both crazy rich bitches and kung fu masters, she used whatever was nearby as a weapon, throwing carrots at Salinas, and then striking her with a telephone handset, before pulling her hair, breaking her glasses, and even trying to push her down the stairs.
• Five of the mayoral candidates (and not necessarily the five you'd think; the Republican guy, Taubenberger, showed up, but Dwight Evans couldn't make it) attended a student-run forum at Central High on Monday, answering questions - sometimes during quick lightning rounds - that ranged in importance from how Philly schools should be governed and how they'd grade John Street's performance as mayor, to who makes the better cheesesteaks and which pro sports team will bring the city its next championship.
• Although Dwight was absent from the mayoral forum, he is now present on your TVs in his new television ad, described and analyzed by the Philadelphia Inquirer in their AdWatch column.
• The School Reform Commission is holding a series of community meetings on "the performance of the six school-management organizations hired five years ago to operate 45 low-performing schools." The first one was last night, but they continue tonight and tomorrow night. The public is invited to attend and present their opinions, so get to opinionating, if you've got 'em.
• The Daily News has put together a special 12-page report (which translates to 10 separate articles online) on the role that employment plays in reducing violence. It's called Philly Has Work to Do, and is under the rubric of Rethinking Philadelphia.

Image Credit: Flickr user Lasagna Boy