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Tuesday Morning State News Summary Tue, 09 Mar 2010 2:39:34 EST (Mi-Retail-Stimulus Helping) Michigan Retailers Are Encouraged With Sales So Far This Year, And Hopes That The Worst May Be Over For Them. The Optimism Follows A Better-Than-Expected Holiday Season, More Improvement In February, And Hopes That A Jobs Bill Passes Congress, Resulting In Better Numbers. Tom Scott, Of The Michigan Retailers Association, Says Recent Sales Success In The U-S Auto Industry Has Given Retailers Hope That The Worst Is Behind Them. Scott Says Some Of The Recent Success In Michigan Is From Long-Awaited Federal Stimulus Money That Has Finally Made It "Through The System," Creating Some Jobs And Giving Consumers A Little More Spendable Income. (Kilpatrick-More Allegations) Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy Has Filed Additional Allegations Against Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. The New Information, Released Monday Morning, Shows Several Friends And Relatives Helping With Restitution Payments. Meantime, As Of Monday Morning There Has Not Been A New Date Set For A Probation Violation Hearing For Kilpatrick Who Will Have To Return To Detroit For The Hearing. Kilpatrick And His Legal Team Failed On Friday To Persuade A Michigan Appeals Court To Overturn A Decision Requiring Him To Make Special Restitution Payments To The City. The Decision Clears The Way For Wayne County Judge David Groner To Hold A Probation Violation Hearing. The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office Is Accusing Kilpatrick Of Violating His Probation By Failing To Provide Complete Financial Records For Himself And His Wife, Carlita, Turn Over All Tax Refunds, Disclose Any Gifts Or Benefits, Surrender His City And State Pensions, Forfeit His $7,500 Bond And Give Up All Political Funds. Kilpatrick Failed To Fully Make A $79,000 Payment By February 19th. Several Money Orders Totaling About $40,000 Were Turned Into The Court. Kilpatrick Has Until Mid-April To Come Up With Another $240,000. (Wwj, Detroit) (Mi-Foster Care Numbers) The Number Of Children In Michigan Living In Foster Care Dropped By 13-Percent Over The Past Year. Officials From The Department Of Human Services Say There Are Now Fewer Than 16-Thousand Children In The State's Foster Care System. Dhs Data Released Yesterday (Monday) Also Shows That Adoptions Out Of The Foster Care System Rose Six-Percent, Making It The Fourth Straight Year That Adoptions Have Risen. "Gongwer News Service" Reports The Dhs Data Was Released Just A Day Before A Federal Monitor Of The State's Child Care System Is Scheduled To Release An Update To A Fall Report. The Monitor Is The Result Of A Lawsuit Settlement That Required Dhs To Find Permanent Placements For More Children In Foster Care, Provide Better Training And Support For Relative Foster Care Placements And Improve Investigation Practices To Better Identify And Prevent Abuse And Neglect. (Mi-Constitution Study) Most Michigan Voters Supported The Idea Of A State Constitutional Convention Until They Were Told How Much It Would Cost, According To A New Study. The Poll Conducted By Lansing-Based Epic Mra Found That 49-Percent Of Likely Voters Would Support Or Lean Toward A Constitutional Convention, While 35 Percent Oppose Or Lean Toward Opposing The Idea. But When Told A Constitutional Convention Could Cost As Much As 45 (M) Million-Dollars, Voters Change Their Tune With 71-Percent Opposing The Idea And Only 23-Percent Supporting It. The Poll Of 600 Likely Michigan Voters Had A Margin Of Error Of Plus Or Minus Four-Percentage Points. (Detroit-13th Congressional Seat) State Senator Hansen Clarke Has Officially Announced His Candidacy For The 13th Congressional District Seat. The "Detroit Free Press" Reports Clarke Will Face Off Against U-S Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick In Democratic Primary. The 53-Year-Old Clarke Says The Time Is Ripe For A Run For The Seat Because There Is Such Public Discontent With Congress. Cheeks Kilpatrick Is The Mother Of Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. In 2008, Cheeks Kilpatrick Faced A Tough Primary Election And Nearly Lost To A Far Underfunded Candidate In The August Primary. (MHSAA-Video Replay) The Michigan High School Athletic Association Has Decided To Allow Officials To Use Instant Replay Video To Decide On Questionable Shots During High School Basketball Tournaments. The Ruling Comes Two Years After Forest Hills North High School Lost To Flint Powers, When A Shot At The Buzzer Was Ruled A Two-Pointer, But Replays Show The Shooter's Foot Clearly Behind The Three Point Line. Officials Say They Will Have As Many As Three Angles To View Plays, Which Will Be Reviewed By A Experienced Courtside Analyst, Should The Situation Arise. (Metro Source) (MSU Football-Fight) Two Players On The Michigan State University Football Team Have Received 180 Days Of Probation For Their Involvement In A Fight At A Fraternity Event Last November. Wide Receivers Mark Dell And B-J Cunningham Pleaded Guilty In January To One Count Of Misdemeanor Assault And Battery. They Were Sentenced Monday In East Lansing District Court. The Two Players Are Among Eleven Current And Former Players Who Pleaded Guilty To Charges Related To The Altercation. The Remainder Will Be Sentenced Later This Month, According To Reports In The Detroit Free Press. (Mi-Blue Cross Merger) A Subsidiary Of Blue Cross Blue Shield Of Michigan Has Opted To Abandon A Plan To Acquire Sparrow Health Systems' Physicians Health Plan Of Mid-Michigan. The Blue Care Network Announced Yesterday (Monday) That Both Parties Decided That The Extended Period Of Time And Substantial Cost To Get Regulatory Approval Weren't In The Best Interest Of Either Organization. Bcn President Kevin Klobucar Says It Was Not A Desire Of Either Organization To Continue To Focus Our Time And Resources To Litigate This Matter. Shortly After Bcn Made The Announcement, Attorney General Mike Cox Issued A Press Release Saying Blue Cross Dropped Its Plan After His Office Found Such A Merger Would Be Anticompetitive And That He Would File A Civil Antitrust Lawsuit Jointly With The U-S Department Of Justice. (Mi Gas Prices) The Price Of Gas Went Up Significantly During The Past Week. Triple-A Michigan Says Prices Went Up Seven-Point-Two Cents Per Gallon Over The Past Week, Putting Michigan's Statewide Average Price At Two Dollars And 72-Cents Per Gallon. That's 71 Cents Per Gallon Higher Than Last Year At This Time. The Lowest Prices Among The Markets Surveyed Were Found In The Metro Detroit Area, At Tw0-Seventy Per Gallon. And The Highest Prices Were In Marquette At Two-Dollars And 77 Cents. (Grapids-Murder) A Woman Who Allegedly Drove Her Car Onto A Sidewalk And Into Crowds Of People Outside Of A Grand Rapids Bar Early Friday Morning Has Been Charged With One Count Of Open Murder, Attempted Murder And Other Felony Counts. April Juarez Is Accused Of Deliberately Driving Up And Down A Crowded Sidewalk In Order To Run People Over With Her Car After A Fight Broke Out At The "Tap House." Nineteen-Year-Old Tifanee Crews Was Struck And Killed By The Car, And Five Other People Were Injured. (Help From: Metro Source) (Detroit-Conyers Sentence) Federal Prosecutors In Detroit Are Asking A Judge To Consider Other Acts Of Alleged Corruption When He Sentences Former Detroit City Councilwoman Monica Conyers Wednesday Afternoon. Conyers Will Be Sentenced For Conspiring To Take Bribes In Connection With Her City Council Vote Supporting The One-Point-Two (B) Billion-Dollar Synagro Waste Treatment Contract. The Conspiracy Also Involved Conyers' Work As A Member Of The General Retirement System, A Pension Fund For City Workers. The 22-Page Sentencing Memorandum From The U.S. Attorney's Office Says Conyers Should Also Be Punished For Alleged Schemes Aired During The Recent Trial Of Ex-Aide Sam Riddle. His Case Ended In A Mistrial Last Month. The Government Says That Would Boost Conyers' Sentencing Guidelines To 46 Months To 57 Months In Prison. In A Court Document Unsealed Monday, Prosecutors Say She Deserves A "Substantial Sentence Consistent With Her Conduct.'' Conyers, Who Is The Wife Of Democratic Congressman John Conyers, Pleaded Guilty Last Summer And Resigned. Her Attorney, Steve Fishman, Declined Comment. (Wwj, Detroit) (Powerball Fever) Lotto Fever Is Hitting Michigan Once Again As No One Matched All Six Numbers In Saturday Night's Drawing. Wednesday's Jackpot Is Now Estimated To Reach 170-Million Dollars. Saturday's Numbers Were: 0-29-33-41-59, Powerball: 15, Power Play: 2. (Mon-Lottery) Tonight's (Tue) Mega Millions Lotto Game Jackpot Is Worth $12 (M) Million Dollars. The Winning Numbers For The Midday 3 Lottery Were: 6-0-0. The Winning Numbers For The Midday 4 Lottery Were: 1-8-7-2. The Winning Numbers For The Evening 3 Lottery Were: 0-7-3. The Winning Numbers For The Evening 4 Lottery Were: 0-5-6-0. The Winning Numbers For The Fantasy 5 Lottery Were: 13-17-19-26-37. The Winning Numbers For The Keno Lottery Were: 05-06-07-08-16-18-31-36-42-43-47-50-51-54-58-63-65-67-70-72-79-80 . Wednesay's Classic Lotto 47 Jackpot Is Worth Two-Point-Five Million Dollars. |
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