Murder in the courtroom and Esports

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What to look for on Smart Talk Friday, August 10, 2018: 

On a hot, August day in 1955, Lulu and Percy Haines met in a Cumberland County courtroom to receive the judge’s order finalizing their domestic case.  

Percy Haines responded violently when Judge Mark E. Garber ordered him to pay Lulu $50 month in support and according to press reports, he pulled a .22-caliber handgun out of his shirt pocket and opened fire.    

Haines first shot his estranged wife in the abdomen, then moved on to her attorney, George Black and local attorney, John Faller, Jr.  Haines then approached the judge’s bench and shot Garber, before he was tackled by the court reporter, ending the rampage.  

Attorney Faller died of his wound, while the other three victims survived. To this day, Faller is only member of the Cumberland County Bar Association to be shot while performing his duties.  

On Friday, August 17, the Cumberland County Bar Association is reenacting this event, featuring local members of the association playing the real-life courtroom participants.  

Event organizers Ron TuroEsq., and George Faller, Esq., and nephew of the murdered lawyer, are in the studio to talk about the event.  

The reenactment begins at 3:00 pm in the Historic Cumberland County Courthouse, Carlisle, PA, and is free and open to the public.  

Also, on Smart Talk, Harrisburg University of Science and Technology is making history as the first Pennsylvania University to assemble a varsity esports team.  

The team, called The Storm, is comprised of 16 full-scholarship players and will compete against other National Association of Collegiate Esports teams beginning in September. The University has invested nearly three million dollars establishing the program. 

Harrisburg University President Eric Darr and Chad Smeltz, program director, are in the studio to talk about the program and the team’s competition preparation.