Thursday News Summary 10-13-22Thu, 13 Oct 2022 12:11:03 EDT
(Stories Courtesy of Michigan News Radio)
GREAT LAKES DROWNINGS
Over 1-HUNDERD people have died in the Great Lakes in 2022. According to the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project, 101 people have drowned in the Great Lakes this year. Two people died this month in Lake Michigan bringing the total to 43 drownings there. There have been 6 drownings in Lake Superior, 12 in Lake Huron, 19 in Lake Erie and 21 in Lake Ontario. There were ALSO one hundred and one Great Lakes drownings last year.
FORMER PISTON ASSAULT
Former Detroit Pistons guard Ben Gordon is facing assault charges for allegedly punching his son at a New York airport. The alleged assault happened Monday evening at LaGuardia Airport. The Queens district attorney's office says witnesses saw Gordon yell at his son and punch him several times in the face after the boy dropped a book on the ground. Gordon confirmed to police that it was his son. He also allegedly assaulted officers as they attempted to handcuff him and put him in a patrol car. The district attorney's office says the child has an order of protection against Gordon dating from 2018. Gordon played for the Pistons from 2009 to 2012.
HIGH SCHOOL THREAT
Eaton County Deputies responded to Waverly High School for a threat on Wednesday. An unknown person used the AirDrop feature on a phone to send a message to several students threaening violence. The students who received the message advised a staff member and the school was put on lockdown while the threat was investigated. School officials and Eaton County Deputies were not able to determine where the threat came from right away, so Waverly School administration decided to dismiss school for the day. Eaton County Sheriffs Deputies remained on scene for the dismissal process and escorted the students to their vehicles.
CLEAN ENERGY BUSINESSES
Clean energy businesses in Michigan added more than 63-HUNDRED new workers in 2021. Clean energy now employs more than 119-thousand Michiganders across the state. Thats according to a new analysis of employment data released by the national, nonpartisan business group E2 and nonprofit Evergreen Climate Innovations. The report comes after Congress and the Biden administration passed the largest investment in climate and clean energy in history which is set to boost clean energy jobs and businesses across the state. After a mild downturn due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Michigan clean energy jobs grew 6 percent in 2021.
MCC HIRING EVENTS
Mott Community College is hosting a series of both virtual and onsite hiring events in October and November to fill open positions at the College. Positions include faculty, part-time faculty, and staff positions. The hiring event dates are : Thursday, October 27th (Part-time Faculty positions only) Saturday, October 29th Tuesday, November 1st You need to pre-register.
GRAND RAPIDS LOG GIVEAWAY
The City of Grand Rapids forestry division will host a log giveaway on November 4 and 5 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Citys yard waste drop off site. The giveaway is part of the Forestry divisions new Urban Wood Utilization Program aimed at reducing waste from City trees that have fallen or were removed due to damage and disease. The logs are approximately eight feet in length, one foot in diameter, and require a truck or trailer to carry. City staff will be on site to assist in loading. There is no limit to the number of logs an individual can take. The wood is best suited for firewood. However, the City plans to create future programs for woodworkers and local businesses to purchase high-quality wood.
CONSUMER PRICE INDEX
The governments consumer price index for September will be released at 8:30 this morning. Its a measurement of the financial pain we felt in the past month. We know that gasoline prices dropped last month. And that has an impact on just about everything we buy because everything has to be transported in one way or another. Analysts are expecting to see a very small drop in our total inflation rate from 8.3% to 8.1. Still too high for families to cope Still too high for the federal reserve to accept. This report will likely pave the way for more interest rate hikes in an effort to slow the economy down.
MSU NO CONFIDENCE VOTE
The faculty senate at Michigan State University has overwhelmingly approved a vote of no confidence in the board of trustees. The vote comes after faculty senate leaders sent a letter to the board last week -- demanding it to stop interfering with the academic management of the university. The letter also referenced the forced resignation of business school dean Sanjay Gupta following title nine concerns. Last month, some trustees attempted to remove President Samuel Stanley due to his handling of Title IX reports... including Guptas. Even though the no confidence vote passed overwhelmingly, the faculty senate has no role in appointing trustees.
BOYNE CITY FACILITY
Daifuku Manufacturing opened their doors in Boyne City Tuesday, making a $26 million commitment. This plant is the manufacturing hub for airport baggage handling products and automatic guided vehicles. Its also bringing more jobs for northern Michigan. Senator Wayne Schmidt applauds their commitment to northern Michigan and their use of subcontractors to build the plant, add employees and bring a new product line to Boyne City.
SCHOOL BUS CRASH
A Kalamazoo Public School bus driver has been cited in a crash after her bus ended up in a ditch. The driver, a 62-year-old woman, was cited with careless driving. Over a dozen Woods Lake Elementary students were on-board when the bus ended up in a ditch in the area of the Canterbury Homes Apartment complex. No one on scene was injured. The driver will be on leave until the investigation is complete.
PATRIOT GAME
Tickets are now on sale for this years edition of the Annual Traverse City Patriot Game. Every Patriot Game is a competition between the Traverse City West and Central High Schools honoring veterans, active-duty military, first responders and area heroes who have died while serving our country. Proceeds from this year's t-shirt sales will support Mid-Michigan Honor Flight whose mission is to transport United States veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit the memorials dedicated to honor their sacrifices.
WEST MICHIGAN HEART SURGERY
Patients in the Grand Rapids area now have an option for open-heart surgery. This is a major advancement for the Cardiovascular Network of West Michigan, a joint operating agreement that leverages the clinical expertise of three existing heart programs in the region - the open-heart surgery program at Trinity Health Muskegon, the cardiovascular programs at Trinity Health Saint Marys in Grand Rapids, and UM Health-West and the nationally ranked expertise of UMs Frankel Center in Ann Arbor.
ART COMPETITION
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is seeking entries for the annual Ray and Nancy Loeschner Art Competition. Celebrating its 21st year, the annual competition welcomes artists from around the globe to respond to the beauty of Meijer Gardens in their work. The winning entries will receive $5,000 purchase awards in addition to becoming a part of the renowned Meijer Gardens permanent collection. The competition is open to all artists 18 years old and older who are working in a twodimensional format. artists may register online at meijergardens.org/award by Friday, November 11th.
GOVERNOR DEBATE
It'll be a big night in Grand Rapids if you follow state politics. Governor Gretchen Whitmer will debate her republican challenger, Tudor Dixon, in the first of two debates before the election. Topics expected to be discussed---abortion and the Covid-19 pandemic. Polls show Whitmer with a double digit lead over Dixon.
DEARBORN SCHOOL BOARD
A fiery Dearborn school board meeting will resume tonight at a new location... with a special set of new guidelines. The topic of the meeting -- six books the district is considering banning due to concerns over sexual content. The meeting will pick up where it left off at 7 o'clock at Stout Middle School... not Fordson High School as previously announced. Posters and signs will be banned from the meeting -- some of the ones displayed during Monday's portion of the meeting expressed anti-LGBTQ views.
CAR THIEF JUMPS OFF BRIDGE
A police chase ended last night when a man jumped off the River Rouge bridge in Detroit. The man made the jump after he and other suspects allegedly stole three Ford Mustangs from the Flatrock Assembly Plant. The mustang driven by the man ran out of gas while on the bridge -- forcing the man to jump onto I-75... injuring himself before being arrested. There's no word yet if the other suspects were caught.
GOVERNOR TRIAL FLIRT
A juror in the third Gretchen Whitmer kidnap trial is being accused of flirting with one of the defendants. The defendant -- 22-year-old Paul Bellar of Milford -- is the youngest person charged in the plot. Jackson County Circuit Judge Thomas Wilson told Bellar's lawyer he's watching a woman in the jury... frequently seen looking at Bellar and smiling at him. Wilson says he hasn't made a decision on whether to dismiss the juror. A prosecutor has also raised issue with the juror -- accusing Bellar of smiling and nodding at her during the trial. Testimony continues this morning.
STORAGE UNIT BREAK-INS=W MI
A couple from Cedar Springs..north of Grand Rapids...has been arrested for allegedly breaking into at least 15 storage units. The Kent County Sheriff's Office says they searched the couple's home and found 40 guns and thousands of dollars worth of stolen items. The Sheriff's Office says it's working to get stolen property back to its owners.
LOTTERY
Lottery players across Michigan still have a shot to become a multimillionaire overnight. NO player won the Powerball jackpot last night... growing the grand prize to 454 MILLION dollars ahead of Saturday night's drawing. There's a small break in the lottery action tonight... the next major drawing isn't until Friday night -- when players will vie for a Mega Millions jackpot of 494 MILLION dollars.
NEW POLITICAL POLL
Just as Governor Gretchen Whitmer and republican challenger Tudor Dixon are about to have their first debate tonight, a new Epic-MRA polls shows Whitmer has an 11 percentage point lead over Dixon. A poll in mid September had Whitmer leading Dixon by 16 percentage points. The poll shows attorney general Dana Nessel and republican challenger Matt DePerno in a statistical dead heat with 43-percent for Nessel and 39-percent for DePerno. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson leads her republican opponent Kristina Karamo by 10 percentage points in the poll.
GAS PRICES
For the first time in days -- there's good news at the gas pump. The average price for a gallon of regular gas has dropped 16 cents compared to this time last week... now sitting at 4.15. The price also declined five cents overnight. Despite the decrease, today's average price is still 23 cents higher than this time a month ago.
TODDLER MURDER
In Alcona County, the mother of a dead toddler and her boyfriend have been bound over on murder charges. At a court hearing yesterday, 22-year-old Adrienne Pavelka, of Tecumseh, and 31-year-old Aaron Trout, of Glennie, are charged in the murder of Pavelka's two-year-old daughter, Jayde McDonnell. It was disclosed during the hearing that she died of blunt force trauma to the head. The couple are each charged with first degree murder and child abuse charges. They face up to life in prison if found guilty.
SUIT AGAINST U-M WEST
A former employee of University of Michigan Health West has is suing, claiming the health system violated her religious rights when she wouldn't provide referrals for gender reassignment surgeries and procedures. Valerie Kloosterman was fired and her attorney, Kayla Toney, claims her first amendment rights were violated after the system became part of the University of Michigan health system and she was required to go through diversity and inclusion training. Toney says when she asked for a religious accomodation, she says they insulted her religious beliefs and called her evil. University of Michigan Health-West says it's committed to providing appropriate medical treatment to all patients and respects the religious beliefs of its employees, but would not comment further.
TRAVERSE LIGHT-FIBER
In Grand Traverse County, federal funding, supply chain and labor issues could delay the rollout of Traverse Light and Power's fiber network citywide, although staff told board members this week they are geared up and ready to move forward as soon as the U.S.D.A. releases funds for a $14-point-seven million dollar loan it has approved for the expansion.
APPLE FEST -CHARLEVOIX
Charlevoix's 43rd Apple Fest is happening this weekend. Events are scheduled Friday thru Sunday including: live music, an apple pie eating contest and the Kiwanis Apple Fest Run.
EQUITY FUND CEO FRAUD
An equity fund CEO... formerly from Metro Detroit ...has been charged in connection with a scheme that defrauded investors of more than 27 MILLION dollars. 30-year-old Andrew Middlebrooks -- who now lives in Texas -- was charged with one count of wire fraud in a criminal information. While in charge of a Dallas-based investment firm, Middlebrooks allegedly lied to his clients... claiming their portfolios were performing well... when they were actually suffering catastrophic losses. Middlebrooks faces 20 years in prison if convicted.
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