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Thursday Afternoon State News Summary Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:08:49 EST (Mi 2009 Traffic Deaths) Traffic Deaths Continue To Decline In Michigan. In Fact, The Number Is Going Down Nationally As Well. The Michigan Office Of Highway Safety Planning Says A Preliminary Analysis Shows 871 People Were Killed In Traffic Crashes Statewide Last Year, An 11-Percent Decline From 2008. O-H-S-P Spokeswoman Anne Readett Told The Detroit Free Press That The Number Is Provisional But Isnt Likely To Significantly Change Before The State Puts Out Its Official Tally In About Two Weeks. Officials Say The Number Of Deaths Has Declined In Recent Years, Due In Part To More Seat Belt Use, Fewer Alcohol Related Crashes And Fewer Miles Driven During The Slow Economy. In The Meantime, Federal Officials Say Their Preliminary Fatality Count Was Just Under 34-Thousand, The Lowest Figure Since 1954. (Det Kilpatrick-Judge Stays) The Judge Overseeing The Case Of Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick Will Stay On The Case. Kilpatrick's Attorney Michael Schwartz Had Filed A Motion Claiming Judge David Groner Had Violated Judicial Ethics. Schwartz Claimed The Judge Had A Secret Meeting With The Prosecutor's Office Stemming From A Probation Violation Complaint. Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Timothy Kenny Denied The Request Today (Thursday) After Reviewing Documents In The Case. At The Heart Of The Issue Is Kilpatrick's Failure To Pay 79-Thousand Dollars In Restitution In February As Ordered By The Court. (Help From Wwj; Metro Source) (Kilpatrick Subpoenaed) U-S Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick Of Michigan Has Been Subpoenaed By Federal Officials To Testify In U.S. District Court In Detroit. The "Detroit News" Says The Detroit Democrat Sent A Letter To U.S. House Of Representatives Leader Nancy Pelosi On March 1st Notifying Her Of The Order. The Subpoena Does Not Reveal What The Grand Jury Testimony Will Cover. Cheeks-Kilpatrick's Office Manager Andrea Bragg Has Also Been Ordered To Testify. Neither Of The Women Has Commented On The Matter. (Help From: Metro Source; Wwj) (Kentco-Mother) Kent County's Prosecutor Will Not Charge The Woman Who Gave Up Her Baby Into State Government Custody, Even Though The Child Was Three-Months Old By The Time The Woman Decided She Could Not Be A Proper Mother. Michigan's "Child Safety Act" Allows A Parent To Surrender Custody Of A Newborn Baby --No More Than 72 Hours Old-- At A Hospital, Police Or Fire Station If It Is An Unwanted Pregnancy. Authorities Say The Woman's Actions Were Outside The Law, But Kent Prosecutor Bill Forsyth Was Impressed That She Honestly Tried To Do Her Best For The Child. Meanwhile, Wood-T-V Reports This Is The First Time In Michigan's History With New Law, That Anybody Has Given Up A Baby More Than A Few Days Old. (John Bry, Wood, Grand Rapids) (Det-Courtroom Fight) A Brawl Broke Out In A Detroit Courtroom Today (Thurs), During The Sentencing Of A Woman Who Had Been Convicted Of Driving Her Son To A Recreation Center To Shoot And Kill Another Teen. Wayne County Circuit Judge Daniel Ryan Is Quoted By The Detroit News Describing It As "A Riot." Ryan Told The Newspaper He Had Just Sentenced 35-Year Od Taranisha Davis To Serve 22 To 40 Years In Prison For Her Conviction When She Attacked A Deputy. Family Members Then Joined In And Security Was Summoned To The Courtroom Before Peace Was Restored. The Woman's 15-Year Old Son Tremaine Davis Had Also Been Sentenced For Shooting And Killing 19-Year Old Demitry Jackson, Who Had Been An Innocent Bystander At The Recreation Center. (Monroeco-Stabbing Death) Police In Monroe County Have Three People In Custody Following The Fatal Stabbing Of A Man At A Strip Club Early This Morning (Thurs). Investigators Say The Victim Was Stabbed In The Parking Lot Of The Alcatraz Club Around 3:00 A.M. Monroe County Sheriff's Deputies Are Looking For Two Other Suspects In The Stabbing Which They Say Was Not A Random Crime. (Metro Source) (Capitol-Feral Pigs) Legislation Allowing The Shooting Of Feral Pigs In Michigan Has Been Approved By The State House. Officials Say Feral Swine Will Sometimes Grow To More Than 600 Pounds And Five Feet Long. They Travel In Packs, Can Be Aggressive, Carry Disease And Their Activities Can Cause Serious Erosion To River Banks. It's Estimated That There Are More Than Five-Thousand Of Them In Michigan. The Measure, Approved This Week, Is Pushed In Part By Farmers Whose Livestock Can Be Endangered By The Swine. The Bill Now Heads Ot The Senate. Specifically, It Would Permit Anyone With A Valid Hunting License Or Concealed Pistol Permit To Kill The Animals On Sight. (Help From: Wsjm, St. Joseph) (Forbes: Ann Arbor Best) Forbes Magazine Says Ann Arbor Is The Number One College Sports Town In The Nation. The Magazine Says It Studied All College Towns Based On The Diversity And Success Of The School's Varsity, The Quality Of Life In The Community, Afforability Of Housing, Quality Of Public Schools And Crime Rates. According To The Magazine (Quote) "The Town Of 114,000 Has It All: A Top-Notch Public School System, A Low Crime Rate And Very Affordable Housing. Museums And Good Restaurants Abound. And Even Though Its High-Profile Football And Basketball Teams Have Struggled As Of Late, The School's Other Teams--Like Golf, Rowing And Softball--Have Excelled, So Much So That Michigan Finished Fifth Overall In The Learfield Sports Directors' Cup Last Year," A Ranking That Consideres All Varsity Sports. --Dash-- According To Forbes, The Top Five College Towns Were As Follows: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- 1. Ann Arbor With The University Of Michigan. 2. Chapel Hill, North Carolina With The University Of North Carolina 3. Norman, Oklahoma With The University Of Oklahoma 4. Palo Alto, California With Stanford, University 5. College Station, Texas, With Texas A And M University. (Romney Book) A Book By Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney Will Debut At The Top Of "The New York Times" Bestseller List. C-N-N Reports Romney's Book, "No Apology: The Case For American Greatness" Will Be Number-One On March 21. The One-Time Republican Presidential Candidate Is Currently Swinging Through His Native State Of Michigan On A Book Tour. More Than 400 Packed A Borders Bookstore In The Detroit Suburb Of Birmingham Wednesday. Romney Is In Grand Rapids, Michigan Today (Thurs) And Will Continue The Book Tour Friday In Sacramento, California. (Metro Source) (Cox: Top Consumer Complaints) Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox Has Announced That The Department's Top Consumer Complaint For 2009 Involved Credit And Financial Issues. The Complaint List Is Compiled From More Than 17,000 Written Complaints And More Than 77,000 Calls The Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division Received In 2009. And This Year, The Bad Economy Keeps Financial Scams At The Top Of The List. Cox Says That Because Of The Economic Crisis, It Is No Surprise That Credit And Financial Concerns Topped The List, Adding (Quote) "Especially In These Tough Times, Scam Artists Are Looking For Any Opportunity To Put Your Money In Their Pocket." (Governor Google) Governor Jennifer Granholm Was In California Wednesday In An Effort To Urge Google To Test Its New High Speed Fiber Network In A Michigan City. She Was Also There To Urge Venture Capitalists With Michigan Connections To Invest In The State. Google Recently Asked Local Communities Across The Nation, With Populations Of At Least 50-Thousand, To Submit Applications For The New Fiber Network By March 26th. In Michigan Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids And Lansing/East Lansing Are Writing Up Proposals. In The Meantime, The Governor Also Met In California With Venture Capitalists Who Are Michigan Natives Or Have Other Ties To The State, To Urge Them To Bring Their Companies To Michigan. (Capitol-Comm Coll Cuts) A State Senate Subcommittee Has Approved A Three Point One Percent Cut In The State Appropriation For Community Colleges, Because Of Lagging State Revenue. The Proposed Community College Appropriation For 2011 Totals 290- (M) Million Dollars, Almost Nine-And-One-Half (M) Million Dollars Less Than What The Governor Had Asked For. The Governor Earlier Said She Would Not Sign Any Budget That Cuts Education. The Community College Spending Plan Now Goes To The Full Appropriations Committee. |
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