National Roundup

Pennsylvania
Man charged with murder in store stabbing that killed security guard
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A man accused of stabbing two security guards who stopped him from stealing merchandise from a department store in Philadelphia — killing one and critically injuring the other — has been charged with murder and several other counts, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Tyrone Tunnell, 30, was being held without bail and a preliminary hearing in his case will be held within two weeks. Prosecutors said they did not know if he has an attorney.

The stabbings occurred around 11 a.m. Monday at a Macy’s store. Police said the security guards — Eric Harrison, 27, of Frankford, and Christian Mitchell, 23 — saw Tunnell attempting to steal some hats and took back the merchandise.

Tunnel then left the store but returned a short time later armed with a knife, authorities said. He confronted Harrison and stabbed him in the neck, and stabbed Mitchell in the face and arm when the guard tried to help Harrison. Both guards were unarmed, authorities said.

Tunnel fled the store after the attack and got on a Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority train, tossing the knife on the tracks in the process, prosecutors said. He was spotted by SEPTA cameras during this time and was soon captured at another SEPTA station in the city.

Harrison was taken to a hospital after the attack and was pronounced dead there a short time later. Mitchell underwent surgery for his injuries and remained hospitalized Tuesday in critical but stable condition, prosecutors said.

Tunnel, whose last known address was in Philadelphia, was charged with murder in Harrison’s death, and attempted murder and aggravated assault in the stabbing of the other guard. He also faces weapons counts and charges of reckless endangerment, tampering with evidence and retail theft.

Florida
Family sues Panera, saying its caffeinated lemonade led to cardiac arrest
FLEMING ISLAND, Fla. (AP) — The family of a 46-year-old Florida man has filed a wrongful death and negligence lawsuit against one of the biggest fast-casual restaurant chains in the U.S., claiming Panera Bread Company’s caffeine-filled lemonade drink led to his death.

David Brown had high blood pressure and didn’t drink energy drinks, but the lawsuit said he believed the Panera Charged Lemonade was safe since it was not advertised as an energy drink. It was offered in the same place as the restaurant chain’s non-caffeinated or less-caffeinated drinks, according to the lawsuit filed Monday in Superior Court in Delaware, where Panera Bread Company is registered.

The lawsuit states that on Oct. 9, Brown had the drink three times during a visit to the Panera Bread Company location in Fleming Island, Florida. On his walk home, he suffered cardiac arrest and died a short time later. He had ordered a Panera Charged Lemonade at least seven times over the course of two weeks in September and October, according to the lawsuit.

“Defendants knew or should have known that the Panera Charged Lemonade, as designed and formulated, once consumed, could injure children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and people sensitive to caffeine by causing catastrophic injuries and/or death,” the lawsuit said.

No one from Panera’s corporate offices responded to an inquiry seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.

Brown had a chromosomal deficiency disorder, developmental delays, some blurred vision and mild intellectual disability, the lawsuit said. He had worked for 17 years at Publix Super Markets and would regularly go to the Panera restaurant after work for meals, as many as three times a week, because the lawsuit said he felt the chain advertised as being a healthy alternative to other restaurants.

Another wrongful death lawsuit was filed in October by the family of 21-year-old Sarah Katz, a University of Pennsylvania student with a heart condition who died in September 2022 after consuming the drink, according to media reports.

Colorado
Frontier Airlines settles lawsuit filed by pilots who claimed bias over pregnancy, breastfeeding
DENVER (AP) — Frontier Airlines has settled a lawsuit filed by female pilots who accused the airline of discriminating against pregnant or breastfeeding employees.

In the agreement announced Tuesday, Frontier will let pilots pump breast milk in the cockpit during “noncritical phases” of flights.

The Denver-based airline also agreed to let pilots who are breastfeeding reduce their flying time and treat pregnancy and breastfeeding the same as other medical conditions if they make pilots unable to fly.

The settlement was announced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The agency lodged charges against Frontier in 2018, after several pilots sued the airline.

Aditi Fruitwala, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union, one of the groups that filed the lawsuit, said the settlement should send a message to airlines and other employers about making reasonable accommodations to pregnant and breastfeeding employees.

“We’re hopeful this will inspire more change and stronger protections for workers across the airline industry,” Fruitwala said.

Frontier’s vice president for labor relations, Jacalyn Peter, said the airline is “at the forefront of accommodating the needs of pregnant and breastfeeding mothers in the airline industry.” She said advances in wearable lactation technology made it possible to reach a settlement that maintains safety.

Last year, Frontier settled a similar lawsuit by flight attendants. The employees said Frontier forced them to take unpaid leave for pregnancy-related absences and didn’t let them pump breast milk while working.

Frontier did not admit liability in settling the lawsuits. In the case involving Denver-based pilots, the airline also agreed to comply with a current union agreement letting pregnant pilots fly if they have medical approval.
The airline also agreed to continue to let breastfeeding pilots reduce their schedules to 50 hours of flying per month, and to update and make available a list of lactation facilities at airports.