Cops: He killed tot with Drano

A North Philadelphia man was arrested yesterday and charged with killing a 20-month-old boy he was baby-sitting with Drano cleaner, police said.

Last Tuesday, police responded to a call from a home on 18th Street near Wingohocking and found the boy, Suliaman Orrell Kirkland, with burns on his skin. He was taken to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, where he died of his injuries Sunday afternoon. Detectives determined that the boy's baby sitter, Aaron Pace, 33, had doused a rag with the cleanser and rubbed the child's skin, police said.

40G fine for Web drug sales

A Philadelphia-area doctor has agreed to pay $40,000 in fines over the next three years to settle federal civil allegations that he had prescribed diet drugs and sleep aids over the Internet without speaking with patients. Authorities said that Mark C. Jackson improperly wrote more than 3,300 prescriptions in April and May 2004. Jackson did not admit fault as part of the settlement.

Hatboro parish school to close

The Rev. Martin T. Cioppi, pastor of St. John Bosco Parish in Hatboro, announced at Masses over the weekend that the recommendation to close the parish's school has been accepted by Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia. Enrollment at the school decreased by more than 30 percent over a five-year period - from 222 in 2003-2004 to 152 in 2009-2010. The parish was projected to incur significant debt, as the money it generates was insufficient to cover the school.

More money for LIHEAP users

Gov. Rendell has directed that additional federal funds be used to provide a $100 increase in grant amounts for the most vulnerable households enrolled in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program: those over 60, with a disability or with children aged 5 and under.

The federally-funded LIHEAP helps low-income households stay warm in the winter months by paying for heat. Applications are available at county assistance offices, local utility companies and community service agencies, such as Area Agencies on Aging or community action agencies. Applications for LIHEAP cash grants will also be available online at www.compass.state.pa.us.

Principal in accident not charged

Prosecutors in Bucks County have decided that Margaret Kantes, principal of Pennridge North Middle School, won't be charged in a predawn accident that injured a student walking to school. Prosecutors say that Kantes could not avoid 15-year-old Ricardo Smith as he crossed in front of her. They believe that the 66-year-old Kantes had a green light and was driving between 17 and 22 miles per hour.

Smith's family filed a lawsuit over the Jan. 4 accident that accuses Kantes of speeding and perhaps running a red light. Smith, now 16, is recovering from head, spinal, and other injuries.

- Staff and wire reports