PHILADELPHIA — Federal appellate judges deciding if schools can discipline students for Internet speech posted off-campus have reached different rulings in two Pennsylvania cases.

One 3rd U.S. Circuit Court panel upheld the suspension of a Schuylkill County eighth grader who posted sexually explicit material along with her principal's photograph on a fake MySpace page.

But a different three-judge panel said school officials in Mercer County can't reach into a family's home and police the Internet. That case also involves a MySpace parody.

The American Civil Liberties Union represents both students on free-speech grounds.

ACLU lawyer Witold Walczak said the case law was already unclear — and now appears to be in chaos.

APOLLO — A 20-year-old man who shot his father while his parents were arguing was spared jail after his father asked prosecutors to drop the attempted homicide case against his son.Jacob Leonard instead pleaded guilty to terroristic threats and propelling missiles into a moving vehicle Thursday. He'll spend 5 years on probation, including a year on house arrest and also undergo mental-health counseling.Police said John Leonard was hit in the back by one of several shots Jacob fired at the family's vehicle July 28, 2007, from the second story of their home.Jacob Leonard was 18 when he told police he shot at the SUV to stop his father from driving away while his mother was trying to get in. The defendant said he feared for his mother's safety.His attorney said the rift between father and son is "patched up."

NEW CASTLE — A hearing on whether a 12-year-old boy can be tried as an adult on charges he killed his father's pregnant fiancee will resume March 12.Jordan Brown was 11 when authorities said he shot 26-year-old Kenzie Marie Houk in their farmhouse last February. Houk's unborn son also died.A defense psychologist testified today that an adolescent's brain does not control impulses in a "mature way."Lawrence County Judge Dominick Motto continued the rest of the hearing to allow the prosecution's psychologist to examine Brown. That doctor will testify when the hearing resumes.If Brown is tried and convicted as an adult, he faces life in prison. If convicted in juvenile court, he can only remain in detention until he is 21.

HARRISBURG — More grant money is available for the hundreds of thousands of low-income families seeking help paying for winter heat in Pennsylvania.State officials said Thursday there is now more money for both cash grants and crisis grants through the federally funded LIHEAP program.The amount of the cash grants to help pay winter heating bills for the most vulnerable families is being increased by $100 to an average of $426 for the current season.Also, many families will be eligible to receive an additional crisis grant, up to a maximum of $400. Crisis grants can help a family afford a heating emergency.