[naviga:h3]Boys say they put black doll in a noose as prank[/naviga:h3]

PHILADELPHIA — Two pre-teen boys say they pulled a prank by putting a black doll hanging from a noose above a playground that partly sits on top of a burial site for 5,000 black Philadelphia residents.

The doll’s discovery prompted Mayor Jim Kenney to call it “a despicable act.”

The boys, one black and one white, told WCAU-TV they put the doll there because they thought it would scare people, and that it wasn’t about race.

The city has plans to put up a memorial to those buried beneath the playground.

The 19th century burial ground was established by Richard Allen, a freed slave who founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Its existence had been forgotten until a historian began researching the site about a decade ago.

[naviga:h3]Ex-borough manager gets 1 to 2 years in theft[/naviga:h3]

WAYNESBURG — A former Western Pennsylvania borough manager who pleaded guilty to using her position to steal nearly $75,000 has been sentenced to one to two years in state prison.

The (Washington) Observer-Reporter reported that former Carmichaels borough manager Brandi Lea Wydo-Streit was also ordered to pay at least $250 a month in reparations during her five years of probation following release.

The 44-year-old defendant pleaded guilty in June to 89 counts of misdemeanor theft as part of a deal in which prosecutors withdrew 89 felony forgery charges.

Greene County Judge Lou Dayich said the defendant “abused a position of great trust” and was motivated by greed.

Wydo-Streit apologized to borough council members who attended Friday’s hearing, saying she never anticipated her theft spiraling out of control.