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3 killed in Pennsylvania town hall shooting; suspect ID’d

Posted at 7:00 PM, Aug 05, 2013
and last updated 2013-08-06 00:17:17-04

(CNN) — Three people were killed and several more were wounded in a shooting at a town supervisors’ meeting in eastern Pennsylvania, officials said Monday night.

Earlier, Pennsylvania State Police said four people were killed, but later revised that number.

The shooting broke out around 7:30 p.m. ET at the Ross Township building in Saylorsburg, about 75 miles north of Philadelphia, Monroe County Emergency Management Director Guy Miller told CNN.

Police identified the suspect as Rockne Newell of Saylorsburg. Newell was among those shot and was being treated at Pocono Medical Center Monday night. Police said exactly how he was shot is under investigation.

State police Lt. Robert Bartel said Newell had an onogng dispute with officials involving the condemnation of his property and issues with his sewer. Bartel said it’s not clear whether Newell knew any of the victims shot.

Ross Township’s three-member Board of Supervisors meets the first Monday night of the month at the township’s municipal building. Monroe County Commissioner Suzanne McCool said it was “the quietest township in Monroe County.”

“They are never in the newspaper,” McCool said. She said she knew of no controversial issues before the supervisors.

“They are the only township in Monroe County that hasn’t had a tax increase in many, many years,” she said.

CNN’s Rick Martin contributed to this report.

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