Wyoming Man Gets 70 Months For Bank Robbery

Act 1 Appeals Ruling That Prevents Group Home 
Appeal Calls Interpretation Of City's Zoning Laws Invalid

By JENNIFER LEARN; Times Leader Hazleton Bureau
 Thursday, December 22, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





SUGARLOAF TWP. -- Police say they'll need at least a few more days to
identify a female skeleton discovered by a Pennsylvania Department of
Environmental Resources surveyor near Tomhicken cq Road on Tuesday afternoon. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Law enforcement officials are treating the case as a homicide and will comb
at least an acre of land surrounding where the skeleton was found to look for
evidence, said state police Lt. William A. Shovlin. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "We don't want to miss anything, so this will take a long time," Shovlin
said Wednesday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The skeleton was lying in the woods near a dirt road about 300 yards from
Tomhicken Road. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The dirt road, along an old railroad track, leads to an abandoned mine and
a swimming hole. Several township residents say the isolated area is also a
popular spot for underage drinkers. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The remains were not buried and looked like they had been there at least a
few months and possibly years, Shovlin said. He knows the woman wasn't a child
but could not pinpoint an age until pathologists study the bones. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Although clothing remained on the skeleton, police won't discuss the type
and color of the apparel until they study them in a laboratory. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Police called in physical anthropologist Thomas Christ from the
Philadelphia area to help study the bones. Investigators will need a few more
days to determine the age and approximate date of death by studying cracks and
other bone characteristics, Shovlin said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Then police will search files on missing women and unfinished
investigations locally and nationwide, Shovlin said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A DER surveyor noticed the pelvis of the skeleton while working on a nearby
abandoned mine reclamation project around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. When the surveyor
brushed aside some leaves, he saw the skull. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 DER started the $986,000 project to fill in the strip pit this month, said
spokesman Mark Carmon. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Carmon said the surveyor was upset by the discovery and did not want to
speak to the media. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Luzerne County district attorney's office and county Chief Deputy
Coroner Joseph Shaver are also involved in the investigation. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER/FRED ADAMS &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Luzerne Chief County Deputy Coroner Joe Shaver makes his way through the
woods Wednesday after examining the skeletal remains of a woman found in
Sugarloaf Township. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

More Time Needed To Identify Skeleton Condition Of Bones Found In Sugarloaf Township Should Pinpoint Age Of Woman And Approximate Date Of Death