Month: October 2023

Josh Kruger, a freelance journalist and former Philadelphia city employee, was shot and killed in his home early Monday. Police responded at about 1:30 a.m. and found Kruger shot seven times in the chest and abdomen. He was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. There have been no arrests in the shooting, andno weapon has been recovered.

The 39-year-old Kruger lived in the city’s Grays Ferry neighborhood was previously employed by the Philadelphia City Paper and Philadelphia Weekly. Kruger also previously worked in communications for the city, first in the mayor’s office and then for the Office of Homeless Services and Department of Health. He had recent worked as a freelance journalist, with bylines in the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Philadelphia Citizen.

District Attorney Larry Krasner said in a statement: “Josh deserved to write the ending of his personal story. As with all homicides, we will be in close contact with the Philadelphia Police as they work to identify the person or persons responsible so that they can be held to account in a court of law. I extend my deepest condolences to Josh’s loved ones and to all those mourning this loss.”

According to Krasner, Kruger was openly queer and often wrote about LGBTQ+ topics, as well as drug abuse and homelessness. The district attorney’s LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee added in a statement: “Many of us knew Josh Kruger as a comrade who never stopped advocating for queer Philadelphians living on the margins of societ. His struggles mirrored so many of ours — from community rejection, to homelessness, to addiction, to living with HIV, to poverty — and his recovery, survival, and successes showed what’s possible when politicians and elected leaders reject bigotry and work affirmatively to uplift all people.”

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney wrote on X: “Shocked and saddened by Josh Kruger’s death. He cared deeply about our city and its residents, which was evident in his public service and writing. Our administration was fortunate to call him a colleague, and our prayers are with everyone who knew him.”

Editorial credit: Tupungato / Shutterstock.com

North Dakota state senator Doug Larsen, his wife and their two young children were killed when the small plane they were riding crashed in Utah. Republican Senate Majority Leader David Hogue confirmed the fatalities on Monday in an email sent to his fellow senators which was obtained by The Associated Press. Hogue wrote in his email: “Senator Doug Larsen, his wife Amy, and their two young children died in a plane crash last evening in Utah. They were visiting family in Scottsdale and returning home. They stopped to refuel in Utah.”

According to a Grand County Sheriff’s Department statement posted on Facebook, Larsen was the pilot of the plane that crashed Sunday evening, shortly after taking off from Canyonlands Airfield, located about 15 miles north of Moab.  The sheriff’s office said all four people on board the plane were killed, and said in a statement later Monday that the county’s “dispatch center received a report of an isolated incident involving a single aircraft taking off from the Canyonlands Regional Airport and then crashing into the ground.”

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a post on social media that the crash of the single-engine Piper plane was being investigated.  Sheriff’s deputies, Moab County Fire Department personnel and paramedics responded to the crash after a medical aircraft spotted the downed plane, the sheriff’s office said.

An NTSB spokesman earlier said a board investigator was expected to arrive at the scene Monday “to begin to document the scene, examine the aircraft, request any air traffic communications, radar data, weather reports and try to contact any witnesses. Also, the investigator will request maintenance records of the aircraft, and medical records and flight history of the pilot.”

Larsen was a Republican first elected to the North Dakota Senate in 2020. His district comprises Mandan, the city neighboring Bismarck to the west across the Missouri River. Larsen chaired a Senate panel that handled industry and business legislation. He was also a lieutenant colonel in the North Dakota National Guard, and he and his wife, Amy, were business owners. District Republicans will appoint a successor to fill out the remainder of Larsen’s term, through November 2024. His Senate seat is on the ballot next year. Republicans control North Dakota’s Legislature with supermajorities in the House and Senate.

Editorial credit: Philip Pilosian / Shutterstock.com