GAY COUPLES-ADOPTION
Michigan settlement lets faith agencies deny LGBT adoptions
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Faith-based adoption agencies that contract with the state of Michigan can refuse to place children in LGBT homes under a settlement filed in federal court, months after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled for a Catholic charity in a similar case. The state Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday the high court’s ruling against Philadelphia is binding on the state and limits its ability to enforce a non-discrimination policy. Michigan, like most states, contracts with private agencies to place children from troubled homes with new families.
MICHIGAN GOVERNOR-KIDNAPPING PLOT
Judge won’t dismiss charges before Whitmer kidnap plot trial
DETROIT (AP) — A judge has rejected claims of entrapment and declined to dismiss charges in an alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Judge Robert Jonker says it will be up to the jury in March to consider key issues of credibility. Five men are accused of conspiring to kidnap Whitmer, a Democrat, in 2020, because of their disgust over COVID-19 restrictions. Some are also facing weapons charges. The men claim they were illegally influenced by rogue agents and informants. A sixth man, Ty Garbin, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to slightly more than six years in prison. Prosecutors say he will be a star witness at trial in federal court.
XGR-DISTRACTED DRIVING
Michigan House passes stricter distracted driving bills
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A bill package passed by the Michigan state House would mean stricter rules on drivers using phones and other electronic devices. Current law prohibits drivers from reading, typing or sending messages manually on devices being held in one’s hand or lap. The package passed Tuesday would include restrictions on social media usage. One sponsor is Democratic Rep. Mari Manoogian, who testified that the bills look to modernize the state’s law to keep up with modern technology. The bills now head to the Senate.
AP-US-GENERAL-MOTORS-ELECTRIC-VEHICLE-PLANTS
GM to spend nearly $7B on EV, battery plants in Michigan
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — General Motors is making the largest investment in company history in its home state of Michigan, announcing plans to spend nearly $7 billion to convert a factory to make electric pickup trucks and to build a new battery cell plant. The moves were announced Tuesday in Lansing. They will create up to 4,000 jobs and keep another 1,000 already employed at an underutilized assembly plant north of Detroit. The automaker plans to spend up to $4 billion converting and expanding its Orion Township assembly factory to make electric pickups and $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion building a third U.S. battery cell plant with a joint-venture partner in Lansing.
PARKING TICKETS-TIRES
Chalk it up: Michigan parking dispute could cover thousands
DETROIT (AP) — Lawyers who argued that a Michigan city violated the U.S. Constitution by chalking tires have successfully turned the case into a class-action lawsuit. It could affect thousands of parking tickets written in Saginaw. A judge twice dismissed the unusual lawsuit against Saginaw but was overturned both times by an appeals court. The case began in 2017 when Alison Taylor sued to protest her tickets. Her lawyers argued that Saginaw was violating the Fourth Amendment by marking tires with chalk without a search warrant and then returning to write a ticket if a vehicle was parked too long. Saginaw will get another opportunity to argue that tire chalking was legal, though the judge says the city’s position after two losses doesn’t seem “immediately compelling.”
MAILBOXES DESTROYED
Driver arrested after 50 mailboxes damaged or destroyed
WILLIAMSTON, Mich. (AP) — Police arrested a driver they believe was responsible tor damaging or destroying dozens of mailboxes in a mid-Michigan subdivision. Officers found the vehicle involved after responding to a reckless driver complaint about 10:50 p.m. Monday in the Plymouth Landing development in Williamston. About 50 mailboxes were damaged or destroyed in Plymouth Landing and the Williamsburg subdivision, they said. The driver was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and other charges. The Lansing State Journal reports no information about the driver was released. Police asked that anyone whose mailbox was damaged call them with a repair cost estimate.
POLICE DOG RESCUES MAN
Michigan police dog rescues man who got lost in frigid woods
ROSCOMMON, Mich. (AP) — Police say a northern Michigan police dog rescued a Pennsylvania man who got lost Sunday in a densely wooded area during frigid temperatures. The Roscommon County Sheriff’s Office says Ghost and his handler, Deputy Dakota Darsow, were called Sunday night to Gerrish Township following a report that a 58-year-old man had not returned several hours after going for a walk in temperatures that were around 11 degrees. The sheriff’s office says Ghost and Darsow tracked the man for about a half-mile through thick woods before finding him. The man, who told officers he had gone for a walk and got lost, was treated at a hospital.
AP-US-SLED-DOGS-COLLISION
Musher out of Iditarod after crash killed 1 dog, injured 3
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A rookie New Hampshire musher has decided against running in this year’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog race after her team of sled dogs veered onto a busy Alaska highway and collided with a pickup truck. The collision killed one of the dogs and injured three others. Anchorage television station KTUU reports Jaye Foucher withdrew Monday from the world’s most famous sled dog race and the shorter Willow 300 race. Foucher’s team was struck about 75 miles north of Anchorage on Jan. 19. Foucher says one dog died at the scene and three others are still recovering from their injuries. Two of her dogs that ran off have returned.
SCHOOL SHOOTING-MICHIGAN
Oxford High School reopens nearly 2 months after shooting
OXFORD, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan high school where four students were fatally shot has reopened for the first time since the Nov. 30 tragedy. More than 90% of students were at Oxford High School on Monday, greeted by dozens of therapy dogs and even puppies. Superintendent Tim Throne calls it a “strong return.” The students had been attending classes at other buildings since Jan. 10. Four students were killed and others were injured in the November shooting. Ethan Crumbley is charged with murder and other crimes. His parents also are facing charges. Oxford Principal Steve Wolf said in a video that “we are reclaiming our high school back.”
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MICHIGAN
6th Michigan hospital to get federal medical team amid surge
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A sixth Michigan hospital will receive staffing assistance from a federal medical team to help treat COVID-19 patients during the latest surge. Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, where 96% of beds were occupied a week ago, will be supported by as many as 25 additional personnel for 30 days starting Feb. 7. Michigan’s coronavirus-related hospitalizations hit new highs two weeks ago before beginning to dip last week. State health officials project that infections and hospitalizations may peak by month’s end. More hospitals are reporting critical staff shortages than at any point of the pandemic.
The Associated Press
