Mom Charged With Son’s Murder In Court: 5 Must-Read PA Stories

Good evening, Pennsylvania Patch readers! We've assembled some of the most share-worthy stories from the state for today, just for you.

Here are the top five stories from Pennsylvania:

1. A former Pittsburgh resident and self-proclaimed “reverend” of a white supremacy movement has been detained after officials say he threatened witnesses and a juror in the recent trial of Tree of Life synagogue shooter Robert Bowers. The man made threatening social media posts, website comments, and emails towards the jury and witnesses during the trial, court documents show. (Read more on Patch.)

2. Wawa is offering educators free coffee throughout September, as the “Cheers to Classrooms celebration returns in Pennsylvania and around the East Coast. All teachers and school administrators need to do to get the free coffee is share that they work at a school at the register, the chain said. (Read more on Patch.)

3. True love can be found at any age – and one Pennsylvania woman is hoping to win a rose from ABC's first "Golden Bachelor." Susan, of Delaware County, is one of 22 bachelorettes looking for a lasting love in a later chapter of their lives. (Read more on Patch.)

4. Police launched a homicide investigation after a 12-year-old boy was found dead inside a trash can in the back of a dump truck last week. The boy's body was discovered by Philadelphia Housing Authority sanitation workers. (Read more on Patch.)

5. The Montgomery County mother accused of strangling her 11-year-old son to death appeared in court Thursday morning for her preliminary hearing. Ruth Dirienzo-Whitehead said that she strangled the boy with her husband's belt after he had been "upset and crying off and on all day" over the family's financial difficulties, according to an affidavit. (Read more on Patch.)