Pennsylvania First in Nation to Adopt New Driver License Security Feature

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation today deployed a new security hologram that makes it easier to spot fake drivers' licenses and identification cards. Pennsylvania is the first state in the nation to use this enhanced security feature.

"A driver's license or identification card has always been a trusted source for establishing a person's true identity," said PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch. "We are steadfast in our resolve to combat counterfeit forms of identification, which ultimately jeopardize lives and hold great potential for harm to our national security."

The new hologram suppresses the "rainbow" colors normally associated with holographic images. The result is a hologram that appears to switch between white and black as the image is moved. Also, because the new image is of a much higher resolution, it is clearly visible in bright, moderate and even low-light environments.

This state-of-the-art technology is added to an array of security features including a holographic overlay of county names and keystone outlines already embedded in current license and ID cards.

PennDOT Announces 21 Winners of Aviation Art Contest Winning Entries on Display in State Capitol Dec. 12 – 16

News for Immediate Release
Nov. 23, 2011
PennDOT Announces 21 Winners of Aviation Art Contest
Winning Entries on Display in State Capitol Dec. 12 – 16
Harrisburg – Twenty-one students from across the state have been selected as
division winners in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s aviation art
contest. The contest theme was “Aviation’s Value to My Community.”
“These students came up with very creative ways to show why aviation is important
in Pennsylvania,” said PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch. “Considering we
received more than 900 entries this year, these winners should be extra proud to
be chosen as the best. I thank all of the students, parents and teachers who made
this contest a success.”

Governor Corbett Signs Execution Warrant for Allegheny County Killer

Harrisburg – Governor Tom Corbett signed an execution warrant Tuesday for Kenneth Hairston, who was sentenced to death for killing his wife and autistic teenage son. Hairston, formerly of Allegheny County, was convicted of two counts of first-degree

murder for the death of his wife, Katherine, and their son, 14-year-old Sean, in June 2001. Following the trial in 2002, the jury sentenced Hairston to death. Firefighters found the two badly beaten victims inside the family’s smoke-filled home. Mrs. Hairston was pronounced dead at the scene and Sean died a short time

later at the hospital. Hairston, who was also rescued from the burning home, later confessed to beating his wife and son with a sledgehammer and then setting the house on fire. Hairston, now 60, is a prisoner at the State Correctional Institution at Greene. His

execution by lethal injection is scheduled for Jan. 18, 2012.

This warrant, one of two signed Tuesday, is Corbett’s 10th execution warrant.

Judge tosses Harrisburg bankruptcy

A federal bankruptcy judge on Wednesday threw out a petition by the City Council of Pennsylvania’s debt-choked capital of Harrisburg, saying it had been legally barred by state law from seeking bankruptcy protection and, in any case, had no authority to file it. Judge Mary D. France issued the ruling after hearing more than two hours of arguments by lawyers as to whether the bankruptcy petition, filed last month by a divided City Council, satisfied various legal issues and could move forward despite the objections of the city’s mayor, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett, Dauphin County, bond insurers and others.