News

A federal judge on Thursday stopped Michigan prosecutors from seeking new no-parole sentences for potentially hundreds of prisoners. U.S. District Judge John Corbett O’Meara signed a restraining order at the request of lawyers for 360 so-called juvenile lifers who were convicted of first-degree murder when they were teenagers, some decades ago. The lawyers said action was needed because of a …

A 6-year-old Three Rivers boy drowned over the holiday weekend in Kalamazoo County. According to Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s deputies, Carvell Johnson was found unresponsive in about three feet of water at 4:30 p.m. Sunday in Crooked Lake. The 162-acre body of water is in Texas Township. Family members told police Johnson was aboard a pontoon boat with adults and other …

A former Centreville teacher averted trial on more than 100 charges of criminal sexual conduct Tuesday. Terry Miller, 47, pleaded no contest to one count of attempted fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct before St. Joseph County 45th Circuit Court Judge Paul Stutesman. As part of the plea agreement all other charges will be dismissed. The prosecution also recommended no up-front jail …

A Constantine-area man was cited for domestic violence and possession of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol this week. State Police were notified around 10 p.m. Tuesday about a 60-year-old man allegedly armed with a rifle and threatening to kill his wife and himself at a residence in the 62000 block of Lutz Road in Constantine Township. The …

A 14-year-old girl driving a golf cart was injured last weekend after the vehicle was struck by a pickup in Cass County. Deputies were called around 6:30 p.m. Saturday to the intersection of Wayne Street and Hilltop Drive in Porter Township. Investigators said it appears the girl drove from Hilltop Drive onto Wayne Street but failed to yield the right-of-way …

A Montcalm County woman has been accused of taking four fawns from the woods and giving them to family friends as pets. Authorities say the woman called the Michigan Department of Natural Resources May 18, and said she discovered a fawn whose mother wasn’t around. DNR Sgt. Ron Kimmerly says the woman was told to put the fawn back where …

A WWII bomber recovered from Lake Michigan has arrived at the Air Zoo in Portage for restoration. The Kalamazoo Gazette reports that the restoration process for the U.S. Navy Douglas SBD-2P Dauntless Dive Bomber is expected to take three to five years to complete. The restoration will be done mostly by volunteers. The plane is the third Lake Michigan-recovered aircraft …

A rupture released steam at a nuclear power plant in southwestern Michigan, forcing a utility to shut down one of the two units. Indiana Michigan Power says the steam was not radioactive but it damaged a wall at the Cook Nuclear Plant Unit 2 early Wednesday in Bridgman. There were no injuries. The utility says there were no other complications …

A Sturgis man suffered injuries after the vehicle in which he was a passenger was struck in the rear last weekend in Burr Oak Township. Sheriff’s deputies said a truck driven by 55-year-old Kenelm Digby, of Otsego, was northbound on M-66 at 5:30 a.m. Saturday, when it hit a trailered boat hitched to an SUV waiting to turn westbound onto …

Last month’s Three Rivers Water Festival received high marks from its organizing committee, whose members assembled last week for a wrap-up meeting. Committee member Barb Stutesman said numbers in most activities were higher than in previous years. The opening-night parade featured more than 1,000 participants in 126 units, while the inaugural Car Cruise drew 36 vehicles. The annual, final-day car …