Top 10 stories of 2020: Countdown begins with a center, a statue and a standoff

Dec. 29—Here's a look back at 2020 with our top 10 stories ranked by the newsroom staff of the Standard-Speaker.

10. The end of a center?

The White Haven Center in Foster Twp. is moving toward its closure.

It was August of 2019 when the state Department of Human Services announced its intention to close the center — along with a similar facility for people with intellectual disabilities in Venango County — within three years.

Earlier this year, Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed a bill that would have postponed closings until after he leaves office. State lawmakers, including Rep. Gerald Mullery, whose district includes the White Haven Center, had unsuccessfully tried to override the veto.

When the plans were announced, the White Haven Center had 112 residents and more than 400 workers. The state's goal was to move the residents to community settings such as group homes or life-sharing programs.

Families of residents — many who need constant care — said their loved ones won't be able to adjust to their new surroundings.

Family members and 13 residents of the White Haven and Polk Centers filed a federal lawsuit in January to stop the closure, alleging the plan violates the residents' right under the Americans with Disabilities Act and other federal laws.

Area business owners said closing the center will be devastating to them and the community.

Wolf said the state will have to spend $5 million a year to maintain the buildings and grounds at White Haven Center — if it closes — until the campus is sold or put to other use.

Erin James, press secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, said the state expects to save $18.8 million annually from closing White Haven and $25.6 million by closing Polk.

— Jill Whalen

9. Columbus stays put — for now

Christopher Columbus, with a hand raised to his brow, surveyed Hazleton from Memorial Park for 68 years.

But, he was not excused from a national movement aimed at removing statues and plaques that honor controversial historical figures.

Some have said the bronze relic of the explorer honors history, a way to symbolize their own journey to the New World. Others have said he's a historic disgrace who destroyed native civilizations with land theft, genocide and slavery under the premise of world exploration. Others saw a middle ground, a chance to educate people about the good and bad parts of history.

An online petition to remove the statue and rename another recreation area — Columbus Court Playground — began making the rounds on the internet in the area while a group of people countered, vowing to sit at the statue to prevent it from being destroyed. At the same time, Mayor Jeff Cusat, seeing the nationwide call to tear down controversial statues and others championing for them to remain, presented an ordinance to city council that he said would allow the majority of citizens to make the call.

City council approved that ordinance, which they said would give citizens the right to protect history while creating a process for removing statues, plaques and other structures that are more than 20 years old from city-owned property. Approved in July, it requires notarized signatures from at least 75% of the population and a super majority vote of council.

— Amanda Christman

8. Beech Street standoff

It began with a traffic stop on a tractor-trailer entering Interstate 81 north at the Frackville exit in Schuylkill County. The U.S Marshals Service believed a wanted man from Indiana was in the passenger seat.

When the suspect ordered the driver out and slid into the driver's seat, a 20-mile pursuit that would cross through Carbon and into Luzerne counties would begin.

Wade R. Meisberger, 48, of Whiteland, who ditched the trailer at some point in Schuylkill County, according to police, traversed heavily traveled state and local roads, drove through construction zones, quiet residential areas and busy commercial territory on Monday, June 29.

Multiple police departments joined in the pursuit, which involved Meisberger speeding and swerving at police and other vehicles, state police at Hazleton said. Though they tried stopping him several times, including with spike strips, he refused to pull over. He hit one vehicle as he swung the tractor cab onto Beech Street from South Church Street (Route 309) in Hazleton. One man in the other vehicle was taken to a hospital with unspecified injuries.

At the end of the street, Meisberger got stuck in the mud at the Beech Street Playground.

Still refusing to surrender, a standoff ensued that lasted several hours. Troopers said Meisberger sporadically fired a gun at officers until he was shot and killed while inside the cab by a member of the PSP Special Emergency Response Team.

The state police Troop N Major Case Team investigated the officer-involved shooting, sending their findings to the Luzerne County District Attorney's Office.

Meisberger had served time in Indiana after being charged at age 19 with beating his childhood friend to death in 1991, according to published reports. He was convicted in 1993.

He was released on good behavior into probation in 2007. But he allegedly violated probation and was on the run in 2012. Despite trying to elude them by faking his death, Indiana authorities said Meisberger was apprehended.

On this day in June 2020, he was on the run again, but for the last time.

— Amanda Christman

Contact the writer: jwhalen@standardspeaker.com; 570-501-3592.

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