? Want this daily digest emailed to you? Sign up for the free Billy Penn newsletter and it’ll land in your inbox every morning.

Why haven’t Johnny Doc and Bobby Henon been sentenced?

Former Councilmember Bobby Henon and labor leader John Dougherty were convicted of conspiracy 5 months ago, but both are still out on bail.

  • Sentencing was originally set for February, and the most serious charges for each man carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Henon’s sentencing is now set for next week — likely forestalled by his resignation from Council, BP’s Lizzy McLellan Ravitch reports. Doc’s sentencing, meanwhile, is delayed indefinitely as he awaits two additional trials.

Bars fill up on weekend mornings with Premier League fans

If you see people streaming into Center City bars super early on Saturday and Sunday mornings, thank/blame the English Premier League.

When you grow up in Brazil, “futebol” is a way of life. But once you’re in Philadelphia, Marília Rosa writes, the local teams have a way of taking over.

RECAP: What else happened?

$ = paywalled 

  • Across Pennsylvania, just 28.5% of municipal workers are women, ranking the commonwealth 36th among all states for proportion of women in the local gov workforce. [Axios]
  • The federal government rested its case in the bribery trial involving Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson. Defense attorneys have listed more than 40 witnesses, who begin testimony next week. [WHYY’s PlanPhilly]
  • At Mayor Kenney’s urging, the city lifted the rule that required police recruits to live in Philly for a year before applying. After being in place for decades, the requirement ended in 2008, but was reinstated in 2020 during nationwide protests against police killings. [Inquirer$]
  • A new $900,000 fund in Philadelphia aims to help developers of color build capacity by offering capital at below-market interest rates. [NextCity]
  • NJ Transit officials rerouted five bus lines that used to run into Philadelphia to Camden, because of what they say were “unsafe” changes Greyhound made to its Center City terminal. [WHYY]
  •  ̶I̶f̶ When the Phillies hit homers as they take on the A’s for their home opener today, the mechanical Liberty Bell at Citizens Bank Park should be swinging in celebration — it got fixed after being broken for the past few years. [ABC27/@Paul_CasellaMLB]
  • Now that there are plenty of choices, what’s the best vegan cheesesteak in the city? [The Whit]

MAYOR WATCH

Mayor Kenney congratulates the graduating class of recruits from the Philadelphia Police Academy (10 a.m.). Like many government departments, the PPD has been struggling to fill its ranks, which is one of the reasons given for removing the city residency requirement.

ON THE CALENDAR

?️ The first of Chestnut Hill’s Second Saturdays kicks off this weekend. Stroll down quaint Germantown Avenue for samplings from local restaurants and peeks at new work from the area’s up-and-coming artists. ( 12 – 5 p.m. Saturday, April 9)

? A Bloody Mary is basically like boozy soup. That’s the inspiration for Musi Philly’s “Hard Soup Night,” a $50 tasting menu filled with liquid deliciousness you can spike with spirits if desired. Reservations required. (8 p.m. Sunday, April 10)

? Learn the history and basic techniques of creating traditional Ukrainian Easter eggs (“Pysanky”) using wax and dye at a workshop hosted by Space 1026 on North Broad. Tickets are $25. (6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday or Wednesday, April 12-13)