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Legal News From Across The State
May 8, 2008
In The Detroit Free Press: "No benefits for gay partners, court says; Advocates call it 'devastating' signal."
"Public employers are barred from providing health care benefits to the partners of gay and lesbian employees, a divided Michigan Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday. There is likely to be no immediate impact from the ruling because public employers in Michigan who had offered such benefits already had changed their policies to ensure their employees' partners would remain covered. But lawyers and gay rights advocates said the ruling sends a 'devastating' signal about the state's attitude toward gays, lesbians and their children."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805080300/NEWS06/805080375
Also see The Detroit News: "Ban on same-sex health coverage upheld; Appeals court affirms Mich. public institutions can't offer gay couples benefits under Prop 2."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080364
Also see The Ann Arbor News: "Ruling on benefits weighed; U-M, city say partner policies may be legal."
http://www.mlive.com/annarbor/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-27/1210257688266880.xml&coll=2
Also see The Grand Rapids Press: "Michigan Supreme Court rules state can't offer gay partners health benefits."
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/05/michigan_supreme_court_rules_s.html
Also see the Lansing State Journal: "Same-sex benefits ruling might have minimal effect; Many packages already reworded to blunt state Supreme Court ruling."
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805080400/NEWS04/805080356
Also see The Kalamazoo Gazette: "Michigan Supreme Court says gay partners can't get health benefits."
http://blog.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/05/michigan_supreme_court_says_ga.html
Also see The Mining Journal/Marquette: "Same-sex benefits blocked."
http://www.miningjournal.net/page/content.detail/id/509694.html?nav=5006
Also see The Morning Sun/Mount Pleasant: "CMU to look into impact of state Supreme Court ruling."
http://www.themorningsun.com/stories/050808/loc_ruling.shtml
Also see The Muskegon Chronicle: "State high court rules gay partners can't get health benefits."
http://blog.mlive.com/chronicle/2008/05/state_high_court_rules_gay_par.html
Also see WKAR New/East Lansing: "High court strikes down domestic partner benefits."
http://www.wkar.org/news/page.php?fill=story&storyid=1
Also see WLNS-TV(6)/Lansing: "State Supreme Court Rules Against Same-Sex Benefits."
http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?s=8288397
Also see WILX-TV(10)/Lansing: "Health Care Ruling."
http://www.wilx.com/home/headlines/18734769.html
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Bridge work didn't need city's OK, high court says."
"The company that owns and operates the Ambassador Bridge had the right to install new tollbooths and a fueling station on the Detroit side without zoning permission from the city, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. In a unanimous decision, the court ruled that the Detroit International Bridge Co. project is immune from local regulations because it is a federal instrument to provide a free flow of traffic across the U.S.-Canada border."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805080300/NEWS06/805080376
Also see The Detroit News: "Detroit: Court allows bridge projects."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080372
Also see The Associated Press: "Ambassador Bridge exempt from local laws, Michigan Supreme Court rules."
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/05/ambassador_bridge_exempt_from.html
Also see The Grand Rapids Press: "Ambassador Bridge exempt from local laws, Michigan Supreme Court rules."
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/05/ambassador_bridge_exempt_from.html
Also see Michigan Business: "Michigan high court: Ambassador Bridge exempt from local control."
http://www.mlive.com/business/index.ssf/2008/05/michigan_high_court_ambassador.html
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Court: School threat not terrorism."
"A student who plotted a massacre at Chippewa Valley High School in Clinton Township won't be sentenced to a longer term for making terrorist threats, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. The case involves Andrew Osantowski, who as a 17-year-old in 2004 sent messages in an Internet chat room saying he might kill fellow students at Chippewa Valley. Osantowski was convicted of threatening an act of terrorism and using a computer to threaten terrorism. But a dispute arose over how to calculate his sentence -- and potentially future defendants who are charged with terrorist acts. The case was the first time the state's anti-terrorism law was used. The court ruled 5-2 that not all threats are acts of terrorism."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080452
Also see The Detroit News: "Osantowski terror sentence stands; Michigan Supreme Court refuses to increases prison time."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/METRO/805080375
Also see WLNS-TV(6)/Lansing: "Student Won't be Sentenced for Terrorist Threat."
http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?s=8288631
In The Detroit News: "Fieger's accuser grilled in court."
"The man who sparked a federal investigation of Southfield attorney Geoffrey Fieger received rough treatment on the witness stand in federal court Wednesday, confronted with documents that suggested he was behind on his rent, his taxes and his child support and he left his former Michigan State Police job under a cloud. Fieger attorney Gerry Spence also accused Eric Humphrey of trying to extort more than half a million dollars from Fieger and attempt to extract kickbacks from a law firm vendor when Humphrey handled information technology contracts for the Fieger law firm -- charges Humphrey denied. Humphrey, 52, a former State Police lieutenant, told jurors in Fieger's criminal trial that Fieger continued offering to reimburse him for political donations after he told Fieger it was illegal."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080384
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "Witness: Fieger policy not unusual; He tells jury other law firms do it."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080351
Also in The Detroit News: "GOP slows approval for judgeships; 3 Michigan nominees face tough questions from U.S. senators despite deal with Bush administration."
"Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday closely questioned the qualifications, driving record and tax-payment history of a Michigan judge nominated to the federal court of appeals that hears cases for Michigan and other Midwestern states. Republican Sens. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and Sam Brownback of Kansas asked for a closed-door session to be held after the tense committee meeting.... On the hot seat was Helene White, a Michigan Court of Appeals judge nominated by President Clinton in 1997 to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Republicans said she was too liberal, and blocked her appointment. The two other candidates are Raymond M. Kethledge, a Troy attorney also nominated to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals; and Stephen Murphy, a Detroit U.S. attorney up for the U.S. District Court bench in Detroit."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080341
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "WASHINGTON: Confirmation questioned." (second article)
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080387
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Evidence fee causes bickering; Lawyers for mayor, Beatty protest prosecutors' price."
"Prosecutors say there are 6,500 pages of evidence available for criminal defense lawyers for Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his former chief of staff, Christine Beatty. The cost: $1 a page -- a fee Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said is standard for criminal defendants who can afford a lawyer. Lawyers for the mayor and Christine Beatty say they've twice tried to obtain the documents and can't get them -- not for free, anyway. On Wednesday, Beatty's lawyer, Mayer Morganroth, said the cost is exorbitant and accused prosecutors of game playing."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805080300/NEWS01/805080412
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "Goodman tells council intervention not needed in mayor's criminal case."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880508049
Also see The Detroit News: "Council scraps plan to intervene in Kilpatrick criminal case."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/METRO/805080479
Also see The Detroit News: "Error slows bid to oust mayor; Man files petition for Granholm to remove Kilpatrick, but request cites wrong state law."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/METRO/805080374
Also see The Detroit News: "Remove Detroit's mayor or let courts decide?"
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/OPINION01/805080313
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Lansing man guilty of murder in deaths of 2 women."
"It took fewer than two hours for a jury to find Matthew E. Macon guilty of two counts of murder and one count of assault with intent to kill this afternoon.... Macon, 28, of Lansing, is charged in the deaths last summer of Sandra Eichorn, 64, and Karen Delgado-Yates, 41, as well as in the assault of Linda Chapel Jackson, 56."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/NEWS06/80508069
Also see the Lansing State Journal: "Macon guilty of murder."
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/NEWS01/305080002
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Man convicted of EMU killing gives apology."
"Orange Taylor III, convicted of killing EMU student Laura Dickinson, apologized to both her family and his own Wednesday before denying again that he killed her. 'One thing I am not is a murderer,' he said at his sentencing hearing. The Southfield man received an automatic sentence of life in prison without parole for first-degree murder. Taylor was convicted of killing Dickinson, 22, in her dorm room in December 2006. His first trial ended in a hung jury after Taylor's attorneys conceded he had been in Dickinson's room but argued she died of natural causes. In April, a second jury found Taylor guilty of the murder and other charges in five hours."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/NEWS05/805080402/1007
Also see The Detroit News: "EMU killer denies guilt, gets life."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/SCHOOLS/805080340/1026
Also see The Grand Rapids: "Killer of EMU's Laura Dickinson gets life sentence."
http://www.mlive.com/grandrapids/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-41/121025253930780.xml&coll=6
Also see The Kalamazoo Gazette: "Hastings woman's murderer sentenced to life in prison."
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/05/hastings_womans_murderer_sente.html
Also see The Oakland Press: "Southfield man to serve life sentence."
http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/050808/pol_20080508265.shtml
Also in The Detroit News: "Bloomfield libraries resume usage fee talks."
"Conversations about library services between Bloomfield Township Library and Bloomfield Hills have resurfaced five years after the two parted ways. Bloomfield Hills residents' library privileges were revoked in November 2003 when officials couldn't come to financial terms after a 39-year relationship. The library wanted to double the city's annual flat rate of $226,460 to make usage fees more equitable with township household fees. Controversy continued when the Michigan Supreme Court rejected Bloomfield Hills resident George Goldstone's argument in July 2007 that the state constitution entitled him to the nonresident library card the township library denied him in 2005."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080308
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Court is now in session -- in the school auditorium; Oakland County judge takes system of justice, and advice on making right choices, into schools."
"If a life saved really is a debt owed, then Oakland County Judge Kimberly Small has repaid hers several times over. For more than a decade, she has been giving back the only way she knows how to, via the law. Several times a year, Small takes her courtroom on the road, into schools, resolving real cases straight from her docket at the 48th District Court, where she's chief judge."
http://freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/OPINION02/805080347/1068/OPINION
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "State foster care could get boost; Republican lawmakers call for support from private sector."
"Michigan's strained foster care system might get some support from the private sector under a plan soon to be introduced in the state Legislature. The bills outlined Tuesday by two Republican lawmakers would create a state foster care advisory board to propose improvements and help educate people about how they can help support the system. The panel also would help foster children who are getting older and soon will be on their own to transition out of the system.... The advisory panel -- whose members would include leaders of various state departments and the chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court -- would help identify and promote those options."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080358
Also see The Detroit News: "GOP bills seek to bolster state foster care; Proposal touts advisory panel to facilitate help from public and private sector for strained system."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805080337
In The Ann Arbor News: "Regent saw bias in search firm; Packet of articles prompts response."
"Eastern Michigan University Regent Jim Stapleton sent a strongly worded e-mail to fellow regents last month to complain that EMU's presidential search firm was biased against one of the candidates and had wrongly implied Stapleton had an improper business relationship with the candidate. Stapleton fired off the e-mail on April 7, complaining that a packet of articles sent to the regents regarding candidate Kenneth Burnley seemed to be weighted against the candidate. Stapleton lashed out at Paul Czamanske of the search firm, Compass Group, saying the consultant was trying to steer the search away from Burnley and two other finalists, Washtenaw County Circuit Judge Donald Shelton and Michael Flanagan, superintendent of public instruction for the state of Michigan."
http://www.mlive.com/news/annarbornews/index.ssf?/base/news-27/1210257665266880.xml&coll=2
Also in The Ann Arbor News: "Shelton's smart, effective service shows he's right for EMU."
Don Ferris and Heidi Salter-Ferris write "We were delighted to see the recent Ann Arbor News announcement that Judge Donald Shelton is a finalist for president of Eastern Michigan University. We can only hope the next announcement we read will be that he has been chosen as its president. Judge Shelton is exactly what EMU needs at this critical time in its history. He has excelled at everything he has done, as a businessman, mayor of Saline, chair of the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), and circuit court judge."
http://www.mlive.com/annarbor/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1210257622266880.xml&coll=2
Also in The Ann Arbor News: "DDA pledges bond money; It'll pay $500,000 a year toward police-court financing."
"Ann Arbor's Downtown Development Authority on Wednesday agreed to provide more than $500,00 a year toward paying off construction bonds on a new police-court building at city hall. Those payments will continue for the 30-year life of the bond that city officials expect to issue to help pay for the $47 million project. The plan calls for the construction of a five-story, 102,000-square-foot building on Fifth Avenue. The project is controversial and could face another hurdle if a petition drive aimed at forcing a citywide vote on the borrowing succeeds. But since Mayor John Hieftje and the City Council appoint the DDA board and - in recent years - have reined in the quasi-independent agency, the financial support was never a real question."
http://www.mlive.com/annarbor/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-27/1210257686266880.xml&coll=2
In The Eccentric Newspapers: "Cold case prosecutor to go nationwide."
"It was, according to Macomb County Assistant Prosecutor Steve Kaplan, the 'perfect crime.' There were no witnesses or video footage and investigators couldn't find physical or forensic evidence. Yet, nearly 18 years after the death of Barbara George, her husband Michael George faces a mandatory life sentence for fatally shooting her in their Clinton Township comic book store."
http://www.observer-eccentric.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080508/NEWS23/805080409/1040
In The Grand Rapids Press: "Conflict cancels embezzlement hearing."
"A pretrial conference scheduled for today in Barry County Circuit Court for former county deputy clerk Jamie Holtman was canceled because of a conflict of interest. The hearing will be rescheduled after an outside judge is assigned. Holtman, 38, is charged with embezzlement of a public office. She and former deputy clerk Elizabeth Lapekes, 28, resigned in February. Authorities allege they stole nearly $60,000 from the county by manipulating funds paid to jurors. Lapekes pleaded guilty to the same charge April 18."
http://www.mlive.com/grandrapids/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-41/121025252630780.xml&coll=6
Also in The Grand Rapids Press: "Funds sought for program that pursues court costs, deadbeat payments."
"Circuit Court officials are trying to get $46,200 to continue a pilot program begun last year to hold accountable those owing restitution or court costs. Chief Circuit Judge Paul Sullivan said officials began the program last fall with six delinquent cases where special hearings were held that cost the county about $13,200 and garnered more than $76,000 in past due judgments. Officials began with more recent cases from 2006 in which delinquencies were at least 90 days past due, court finance manager Paula Taylor told the county's Finance and Physical Resources Committee on Tuesday. The committee recommended the full county board approve the added funds when it meets May 22."
http://www.mlive.com/grandrapids/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-41/121025254230780.xml&coll=6
In the Lansing State Journal: "Justices hear Mercer case; Time since woman's death at issue in arguments before state Supreme Court."
"An attorney for Charles William Mercer, the osteopathic surgeon from Okemos who is accused of killing his wife with a lethal dose of pain medication 40 years ago, told the Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday that too much time had passed, too much evidence lost or destroyed for his client to get a fair trial. And that should be the fundamental test for whether the trial should go forward, said the attorney, Chris Bergstrom.... But Joseph Finnerty, representing the Ingham County Prosecutor's Office, told the justices that dismissing the case before it was tried would be an 'extraordinary remedy.' "
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805080400/NEWS01/805080337
Also see The Associated Press: "Michigan Supreme Court hears 'cold case' arguments in 38-year-old murder."
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/05/michigan_supreme_court_hears_c.html
Also see The Grand Rapids Press: "Michigan Supreme Court hears 'cold case' arguments in 38-year-old murder."
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/05/michigan_supreme_court_hears_c.html
Also see WKAR News/East Lansing: "Supreme Court hears 'cold case' arguments."
http://www.wkar.org/news/page.php?fill=story&storyid=3
Also see WILX-TV(10)/Lansing: "Mercer Cold Case Arguments Heard At Supreme Court."
http://www.wilx.com/home/headlines/18744929.html
In The Saginaw News: "Attorney: Judges may impose fines, fees after convictions."
"Saginaw County has the right under state law to impose additional fines and court fees on the convicted, a lawyer advising the county says. Members of the Saginaw County Board of Commissioners pulled a proposed countywide 'reimbursement ordinance' off the table when Chairwoman Cheryl M. Hadsall, a Birch Run Democrat, said District Court Judge Kyle Higgs Tarrant questioned the legality of the proposal minutes before commissioners were expected to vote on it last month, Hadsall said.
http://www.mlive.com/saginaw/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-26/1210256455215160.xml&coll=9
In The Traverse City Record-Eagle: "Editorial: Meijer hadn't counted on Acme's Bill Boltres."
The editorial states "Every uprising begins with one man or woman standing up and saying 'enough.' In Acme Township, that was Bill Boltres. The 72-year-old township treasurer lit a fuse back in 2006 when, after suffering two heart attacks and numerous sleepless nights over lawsuits filed against him by Meijer, Inc. and the Village at Grand Traverse, he fought back."
http://www.record-eagle.com/opinion/local_story_129095555.html?keyword=topstory
Press Release: "MICHIGAN SUPREME COURT TO HEAR CASE IN HISTORIC BARRY COUNTY COURTHOUSE FOR 'COURT COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS' PROGRAM; At issue: Was group plea bargain for family coercive? Defendant seeks to withdraw plea."
http://courts.michigan.gov/supremecourt/Press/May14BarryCountyoral.pdf
May 7, 2008
In The Detroit Free Press: "Court: Gay marriage ban affects partner benefits; Mich. Supreme Court says public employees can't share health care with same-sex partners."
"An amendment to the state constitution approved by voters in 2004 to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman also prohibits public employers from providing health care and other benefits to the same sex partners of employees, a divided Michigan Supreme Court ruled today. The court, on a vote of 5-2, found that language in the amendment prohibiting recognition of other unions “for any purpose” includes a ban on the extension of benefits to gay and lesbian partners of public employees. By providing benefits to same sex domestic partners, employers recognize those relationships in a way indistinguishable from the way marriage is recognized, the court found."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880507064
Also see The Detroit News: "Michigan Supreme Court says gay partners can't get health benefits."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080507/METRO/805070446
Also see The Associated Press: "Mich. high court says gay partners can't get health benefits."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/news-53/121017504644810.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
Also see WDIV-TV(4)/Detroit: "Court: Gay Partners Can't Get Health Benefits."
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/16187257/detail.html
Also see WXYZ-TV(7)/Detroit: "Court: No Health Benefits for Gay Partners."
http://www.wxyz.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=8ce19741-4426-4bf7-9c17-6b08e807fe71
Also see WWJ-AM 950/Detroit: "Mich. Supreme Court: No Same-Sex Health Insurance for Gov't, State Universities."
http://www.wwj.com/pages/2143270.php?
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Court: Detroit can't halt Ambassador Bridge work."
"The City of Detroit does not have the authority to block construction of Ambassador Bridge projects intended to ease the flow of international commerce, a unanimous Michigan Supreme Court said today in reversing a lower court ruling that toll booth and other construction at the bridge violated city zoning."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880507069
Also see The Detroit News: "State Supreme Court sides with Ambassador Bridge in dispute."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080507/METRO/805070452
Also see The Associated Press: "Mich high court: Ambassador Bridge exempt from local control."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/business-16/1210179241224970.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
Also see WXYZ-TV(7)/Detroit: "Ambassador Bridge Exempt from Local Control."
http://www.wxyz.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=c6772c52-6f2d-406d-b06c-3dddddea8c95
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Lawyer feared Fieger prosecution; Staff bonuses worried him, he testifies."
"A lawyer in Geoffrey Fieger's firm told a federal jury Tuesday he was concerned about keeping within campaign contribution laws because he believed his high-profile boss would be nailed for any violations.... Also Tuesday, the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati upheld a lower court decision to toss Fieger's complaint about a state probe into his funding of an ad campaign against state Supreme Court Justice Stephen Markman in 2004. The judges also said Fieger's legal team is liable for Markman's attorney fees because the complaint was frivolous."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070340
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "Former employee says he warned lawyer of impropriety."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880507058
Also see The Detroit News: "Fieger's defense lawyer accuses ex-employee of extortion."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070437
Also see The Detroit News: "Fieger didn't tell him to hide memo, attorney testifies."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070392
Also see The Associated Press: "Court upholds sanctions in Fieger suit against Mich. judge."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/news-53/1210086549191900.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
Also see WWJ-AM 950/Detroit: "Court Upholds Sanctions in Fieger Suit against MI Judge."
http://www.wwj.com/pages/2138343.php?
Also see WOOD-TV(8)/Grand Rapids: "Court upholds sanctions in Fieger suit against Mich. judge."
http://www.woodtv.com/global/story.asp?s=8279887
In The Detroit News: "Tough questions for Michigan judges in Senate hearing."
"A Senate Judiciary Committee hearing ended tensely Wednesday after two Republican senators questioned the qualifications, speeding tickets and tax-payment history of a Michigan judge nominated to the federal court of appeals that hears cases for Michigan and other Midwestern states. Sens. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and Sam Brownback of Kansas asked for a closed-door session later Wednesday for Judiciary Committee members. The dramatic step signaled that a deal worked out last month between Michigan's senators and the Bush White House to end a stalemate involving Michigan judicial nominations hasn't quieted simmering tensions between Republicans and Democrats over judicial nominees."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070439
Also see The Associated Press: "GOP sens. question confirmation of 3 Mich. judicial nominees."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/news-53/1210176551112560.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
Also in The Detroit News: "City Council favors ouster or censure for Mayor Kilpatrick; Detroit officials may soon make decision on Kilpatrick; governor gets formal request for ouster."
"Detroit City Council President Kenneth V. Cockrel Jr. said Tuesday that a majority of members are leaning toward censuring Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, asking Gov. Jennifer Granholm to oust the mayor or both. The council could decide which course to take next Tuesday, but Granholm could be forced to weigh in on the text-message scandal sooner than that. A spokeswoman for Granholm confirmed the office received the first formal request late Tuesday asking the governor to invoke a little-used state law that gives her power to remove public officials for misconduct. The request came from Douglas Johnson of Sterling Heights. A man by that name filed paperwork in early March to recall Kilpatrick, but Wayne County elections officials invalidated his petition because of claims that he no longer lives in the city."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070359
Also see The Detroit News: "Judge orders pager records in dancer suit; City lawyers scolded for not providing text message lists for use in Tamara Greene lawsuit."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070394
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "City council weighs 3 options to punish Kilpatrick; Censure, asking Granholm oust him among them."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070374
Also see The Detroit Free Press: "Council OKs ordinance to approve legal pacts; 6-2 vote eliminates $25,000 threshold."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070378
Also in The Detroit News: "Sterling Heights: Freed inmate sues for wrongful imprisonment."
"Lawyers for a 29-year-old Detroit man who was freed last month after spending 11 years in prison have filed a $75 million lawsuit in federal court against the cities of Detroit and Sterling Heights; Macomb County; Sterling Heights and Detroit police officers; and Macomb County prosecutors. The suit alleges authorities fabricated his confession; failed to disclose evidence; arrested him without cause; and engaged in unconstitutional activity. Prosecutors dismissed all charges April 14 against Nathaniel Hatchett after his case had been reviewed by the Innocence Project at Cooley Law School in Lansing."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070350
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "EMU student's killer gets life sentence."
"Orange Taylor III, the Southfield man who killed Eastern Michigan University student Laura Dickinson, will spend the rest of his life behind bars. He will not be eligible for parole. The sentence was prescribed by law because Taylor was convicted of felony first-degree murder. Washtenaw County Circuit Court Judge Archie Brown formally ordered the terms during a sentencing hearing today in which the prosecutor read victims’ impact statements."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200880507049
Also see The Detroit News: "Man sentenced to life without parole in slaying of EMU student."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070440
Also see The Ann Arbor News: "At sentencing, Taylor denies slaying; He'll spend life in prison for killing EMU student."
http://www.mlive.com/news/annarbornews/index.ssf?/base/news-27/1210171270182080.xml&coll=2
Also in The Detroit News: "Ex-refugee earns master's at WMU; One of Lost Boys of Sudan achieves dream at WMU."
"Twenty years ago, the odds of William Chol reaching this day would have been long indeed. One of the Lost Boys of Sudan, he was fleeing civil war in a march for survival that took him through death and starvation to Ethiopia and eventually a refugee camp in Kenya. Chol, 25, is getting a master's degree in social work from Western Michigan University. He may be the first of his peers in West Michigan to earn that honor.... He was awarded a scholarship for the Congressional Foster Youth Internship program, which affords college students who spent time in foster care an opportunity to intern in congressional offices for the summer."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070345
Also in The Detroit Free Press: "Protect children, and parents: Rewrite state rules for removing children from their parents."
Donald N. Duquette writes "Michigan's child protection system should not only protect our children, it should also protect our liberty. And the story of 7-year-old Leo Ratte, who was placed in foster care for two nights after a Tigers game because his father didn't know Mike's Hard Lemonade contains alcohol, should give us all pause. This could happen to any one of us. I know how hard it is to be a child protective services worker; I used to be one myself. Life, death or serious injury to a child can hang on CPS decisions. But the seriousness of their work and their good intentions do not excuse them from the duty to be careful, thoughtful and professional."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070332
Also in The Detroit News: "Ind. nuns denied ballots over lack of ID; Case of fellow sister turning them away is among cases of people not meeting photo rule."
"About 12 Indiana nuns were turned away Tuesday from a polling place by a fellow sister because they didn't have state or federal identification bearing a photograph. Sister Julie McGuire said she was forced to turn away her fellow members of Saint Mary's Convent in South Bend, across the street from the University of Notre Dame, because they had been told earlier that they would need such an ID to vote. The nuns, all in their 80s or 90s, didn't get one but came to the precinct anyway. 'One came down this morning, and she was 98, and she said, "I don't want to go do that," ' Sister McGuire said. Some showed up with outdated passports. None of them drives."
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008805070373
In The Associated Press: "Michigan court says school plotter won't get longer sentence."
"The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that a defendant who plotted a massacre at his Detroit-area high school won't be sentenced to a longer term for making terrorist threats. The case involves Andrew Osantowski, who in 2004 sent messages to an Internet chat room saying he might kill fellow students at Chippewa Valley High School near Mount Clemens. Osantowski was convicted of threatening an act of terrorism and using a computer to threaten terrorism."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/news-53/1210183759101660.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
Also see WDIV-TV(4)/Detroit: "Court: School Plotter Won't Get Longer Sentence."
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/16189875/detail.html
Also see WXYZ-TV(7)/Detroit: "No Terror Charges for Macomb Co. Student."
http://www.wxyz.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=d54ae17d-f95a-4d48-9145-259e892e39b2
Also in The Associated Press: "Mich. appeals court hears arguments in absentee ballot suit."
"The Macomb County clerk says roadblocks to voting should be eliminated, and she's doing her part by mailing applications for absentee ballots to all senior citizens in the county. But the Michigan Republican Party is suing to block Carmella Sabaugh from mailing unsolicited applications for this year's remaining elections, claiming the practice is outside county government's authority. A Michigan Court of Appeals panel heard arguments on the issue during a Wednesday hearing attended by about three dozen Macomb seniors who traveled to Detroit by bus."
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/michigan/index.ssf?/base/news-53/1210174158323530.xml&storylist=newsmichigan
In The Grand Rapids Press: "Mish hired as Grand Rapids city attorney."
"Just minutes after she was elected Grand Rapids' city attorney, Catherine Mish left no doubt she is serious about the job. After accepting brief congratulations from colleagues, Mish sat in the city attorney's chair in the City Commission chambers Tuesday and took notes as commissioners spent three hours poring over the budget. Breaking the news to family would come later, she said.... After law school, Mish worked for the Grand Rapids law firm of Miller Johnson for two years. She then worked 3 1/2 years as a clerk for the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court before joining the City Attorney's office in 2002."
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-41/1210166147242350.xml&coll=6
In The Kalamazoo Gazette: "5 attorneys seek district court seat."
"Five attorneys are vying for an open district court judge seat in Kalamazoo County, while three have filed to run for an open judgeship in Cass County. In addition, one attorney is running against incumbent Circuit Judge William A. Baillargeon in Allegan County, according to listings of candidates on the Michigan Department of State Web site. Other incumbent circuit, district and probate judges in Allegan, Barry, Cass, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph and Van Buren counties are running unopposed. The deadline for judicial challengers passed last week. Incumbents were required to file re-election notification in March."
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-29/1210171833217100.xml&coll=7
In the Lansing State Journal: "Expert: DNA a link in killings; Police scientist ties Macon to evidence from 2 women's slayings."
"The prosecution bolstered its case Tuesday by presenting DNA evidence linking suspected serial killer Matthew E. Macon to the slayings of two women. A work glove found in the house where 64-year-old Sandra Eichorn was stabbed more than 30 times contained Macon's DNA, a Michigan State Police forensic scientist testified. A clump of Eichorn's hair was still in the palm of the glove, he said. DNA tests also showed that blood found on a basketball shoe seized from the home of Macon's girlfriend likely came from Eichorn."
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080507/NEWS01/805070346/1001/NEWS
Also see WKAR News/East Lansing: "DNA evidence links Macon to crime scenes."
http://www.wkar.org/news/page.php?fill=story&storyid=1
Also in the Lansing State Journal: "Bills seek to boost foster care system; GOP plan creates advisory board, trust fund for kids."
"Michigan's strained foster care system might get some support from the private sector under a plan soon to be introduced in the state Legislature. The bills outlined Tuesday by two Republican lawmakers would create a state foster care advisory board to propose improvements and help educate people about how they can help support the system. The panel also would help foster children who are getting older and soon will be on their own without family support to transition out of the system."
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080507/NEWS01/805070336/1001/NEWS
Also see The WKAR News/East Lansing: "GOP lawmakers call for foster care fund, advice panel."
http://www.wkar.org/news/page.php?fill=story&storyid=2
In The Muskegon Chronicle: "Employees now face security screenings at county courthouse."
"Two months ago, Muskegon County Administrator Jack Niemiec recommended that most people entering the Michael E. Kobza Hall of Justice go through security screening, including hundreds of county employees who currently pass through the security checkpoint without question. Starting Monday, that recommendation will be enforced, meaning it may take longer for the public to get into the hall of justice, particularly at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. when the 300-plus employees report to work and return from lunch."
http://www.mlive.com/news/chronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-14/1210171516203850.xml&coll=8
In The News-Herald/Southgate: "Pupils flock to 33rd District Court."
"In honor of Law Day, roughly 500 elementary school students learned at 33rd District Court on Thursday about the importance of the justice system. From viewing police attire and equipment to petting a police dog and seeing how firefighters dismantle a wrecked car, rescue a child and more, the students had a daylong insight into law enforcement. The court invited students from the seven communities it serves for its annual Law Day celebration. The communities are Flat Rock, Gibraltar, Rockwood, Trenton, Woodhaven and Brownstown and Grosse Ile townships. Former Judge Gerald McNally started the tradition."
http://www.thenewsherald.com/stories/050708/loc_20080507002.shtml
In The Traverse City Record-Eagle: "Contractor pleads guilty in condo scam; Man bilked condo owners out of thousands."
"A contractor who scammed the owners of a Suttons Bay condominium pleaded guilty to a criminal charge. George D. Newpower pleaded guilty last week to one felony count of making false sworn statements as a contractor in excess of $20,000. Prosecutors dropped a habitual offender charge in exchange for the plea. The habitual offender charge would have increased the prison time potentially faced by Newpower when Circuit Judge Thomas G. Power sentences him May 27."
http://www.record-eagle.com/local/local_story_128095036.html
In The WKAR News/East Lansing: "U of Detroit Mercy assists Lansing area veterans."
"Law experts and students from the University of Detroit-Mercy were in Lansing Tuesday to help low-income veterans trying to collect disability benefits. The team is using a state grant to travel to several Michigan cities to help veterans track their claims. University of Detroit Mercy clinical programs director Michael Bryce says just four years ago, an estimated 572,000 veterans in the U.S. were unaware of the benefits for which they qualified."
http://www.wkar.org/news/page.php?fill=story&storyid=3
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