UNIVERSITY-OF-MICHIGAN-DOCTOR-ASSAULT

Abuse victims see inequity in payouts at 2 Michigan schools

Two former University of Michigan football stars who stand to receive as much as $500,000 each through the school’s sexual abuse settlement with more than 1,000 students say the per-victim payouts should be much higher. They point to a similar case at rival Michigan State, also involving a sports doctor. Dwight Hicks and Jon Vaughn, both former NFL players, told The Associated Press that the $490 million settlement the Ann Arbor school announced this week is another example of Black victims receiving less than white victims in big-money payouts. An attorney says the majority of the claimants are Black men. A settlement at Michigan State led to average $1.2 million payouts to women and girls, mostly white.

MISSING STUDENT

Police find body of missing student who was visiting MSU

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A nearly three-month search for a young man who was visiting Michigan State University is over. A body was found Friday in the Red Cedar River. Police believe it's 18-year-old Brendan Santo, who was last seen leaving a residence hall on October 29. Police say foul play is not suspected nor do they believe that the Rochester Hills man intended to harm himself. Santo was a student at Grand Valley State University. Police say the body was found 1 1/2 miles from where Santo was last seen. He disappeared on the eve of a big football game between Michigan State and Michigan.

MICHIGAN REDISTRICTING

Republicans sue to block Michigan's new congressional map

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Republicans have sued to block the state’s new congressional map, saying it's constitutionally flawed because of population deviations, too much splitting of municipal lines and the carving up of “communities of interest.” The lawsuit was filed Thursday in federal court. It alleges that a commission that drew the map arbitrarily and inconsistently applied redistricting criteria in the state constitution. It contends counties are “Michigan’s true communities of interest” and proposes a new map that would leave more counties intact and increase compactness. It's the second lawsuit challenging the U.S. House map. The first was brought by Black officials in the Detroit area.

JUDGE-APOLOGY

Judge apologizes for wishing jail on man with weedy yard

HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (AP) — A Detroit-area judge has apologized for wishing that she could send a 72-year-old immigrant with cancer to jail for a weedy property. Alexis Krot is a judge in Hamtramck’s District Court. Krot says she acted "intemperately" on Jan. 10 and is “very embarrassed.” Krot had ordered Burhan Chowdhury to pay $100 for failing to tame weeds and other vegetation at the rear of his property. The judge’s apology this week followed a TV report about the case and criticism about how she treated the man. Chowdhury, a native of Bangladesh, explained that he was weak with cancer. A son says said he helps his father with the yard but was out of the country at the time.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-RESTAURANT

State fears confusion over COVID ruling at 'perilous moment'

DETROIT (AP) — The Michigan health department is concerned that the public might be confused by the impact of a court ruling in a COVID-19 dispute. An Otsego County judge last week overturned a fine against a Gaylord restaurant that had defied orders and continued to serve indoor diners in 2020. The judge says a portion of a public health law used to ban indoor dining at that time was unconstitutional. The health department wants Judge Colin Hunter to suspend his ruling or at least publicly clarify the impact. The ruling is limited to the Gaylord area. But the state fears it will cause confusion and resistance toward its ongoing orders statewide.

OBIT-TARNOW

Detroit federal Judge Arthur Tarnow dies at age 79

DETROIT (AP) — Arthur Tarnow, a federal judge in Detroit for nearly 24 years, has died. Tarnow was 79 years old and had been under treatment for heart issues. Tarnow spent much of his law career in criminal defense and appeals before President Bill Clinton nominated him to U.S. District Court in 1997. He was confirmed by the Senate in 1998. He was one of the most liberal judges in the Eastern District and lately was known for releasing prisoners because of the risk of COVID-19 behind bars. Prosecutors, however, won appeals in some of those cases.

GENERAL MOTORS-ELECTRIC VEHICLE PLANTS

GM to spend $6.5B, add 4,000 jobs at Michigan EV factories

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — General Motors is poised to announce next week major electric vehicle investments in Michigan. It plans to spend $6.5 billion and create up to 4,000 new jobs at two plants in the state. According to a meeting agenda, Michigan's economic development board is expected to approve an incentives package on Tuesday. The Associated Press previously reported the Detroit automaker’s plan to partner in a joint venture to build a $2.5B electric vehicle battery factory in the Lansing area and add as many as 1,700 workers. GM also plans to spend $4 billion and create up to 2,300 jobs by designating an existing plant in Orion Township as its third electric-vehicle factory.

ELECTION OFFICIAL CHARGED

Court reinstates charges against clerk over 2018 election

LANSING, Mich (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals has reinstated four criminal charges against a suburban Detroit elections clerk over her handling of absentee ballots in 2018, overturning a lower court judge’s decision to throw them out. The court issued the unanimous decision Thursday, allowing the case against Southfield City Clerk Sherikia Hawkins to move forward. She faces a total of six charges involving the 2018 general election. According the Michigan Court of Appeals, the state presented evidence that someone with the username “SHERIKIA@74900” altered 193 voter records to reflect that there was either no absentee ballot received or that there was not a signature by Election Day. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has said no races would have had a different outcome.

WOMAN IDENTIFIED

Woman identified 27 years after remains found in Michigan

WRIGHT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — The body of a woman found in a western Michigan ditch has been identified 27 years later. The Ottawa County sheriff's office says DNA and genealogical tests helped solve the mystery. The remains were Shelly Rae Kephart, also known as Shelly Rae Christian. Christian was 29 years old in 1993 when she went missing from Hennepin County, Minnesota. Rabbit hunters discovered the remains in 1994, about 12 miles northwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Christian was the victim of a homicide. Anyone with information is urged to call (877) 887-4536.

AP-US-GREAT-LAKES-INFRASTRUCTURE

Long-sought Great Lakes projects get funding under new law

The Biden administration's new infrastructure package will pump more funding into two high-profile Great Lakes projects. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it will devote $479 million to construction of a new shipping lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The money will be enough to finish the long-sought lock, which will boost passage of cargo vessels between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes. An additional $226 million will help complete preconstruction and design work at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Illinois. Technologies are being installed there to prevent invasive carp from reaching Lake Michigan.

News from © The Associated Press, 2022