A jury has awarded more than $14 million in damages to the family of a 49-year-old southwestern Michigan man killed in an accident involving a garbage truck. The Kalamazoo County Circuit Court jury decided Friday that Republic Services, City Star Services Inc. and William Ormerod III will pay nearly $14.5 million to the estate of Lary Blahnik. The Plainwell man …

Amber Christine Warner, 32, of Three Rivers, passed away on Saturday, March 28, 2015. In accordance with family wishes, cremation has been conducted and memorial services are pending at this time.  Arrangements by Hohner Funeral Home.

Felton L. Cullifer, 63, of White Pigeon, died Tuesday, March 31, 2015, at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo, following a short illness. He was born Feb. 26, 1952, in Bonifay, Fla., a son of Buron and Eulene (Halford) Cullifer. He was a resident of the White Pigeon and Sturgis area most of his life, with his early years spent in …

Charlene Heard, 62, of Three Rivers, passed away on Sunday, March 29, 2015.  In accordance with Charlene’s wishes, cremation has been conducted and there will be no public services held at this time.  Arrangements by Hohner Funeral Home.

James Francis “Jimmy” Hull, age 81, died Wednesday, April 1, 2015 at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. He was born near Constantine on Sep. 20, 1933 the son of Harry and Bertha (King) Hull and was a lifetime resident of the area. He attended Roystown Country School and worked at Kellogg Nursery. He later worked at Clifton Engineering and was …

Tax Day is coming. Both state and federal income tax returns are due on April 15. The Michigan Department of Treasury is reminding taxpayers that all state forms and instructions they need to finalize their 2014 tax returns are available on Treasury’s website at michigan.gov/incometax. Officials say E-filing income tax returns has become a preferred method of filing for millions of taxpayers, …

A new poll from the Lansing-based polling firm EPIC-MRA shows very little support for Proposal 1 on the May ballot, which would increase the state’s sales tax by one-percent to pay for roads, schools, and local governments. Roger Martin is part of the Safe Roads YES! Campaign pushing for adoption, and isn’t too worried about the numbers because he says there …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency is reporting its third flu-associated death this year, as the number of flu cases caused by Influenza B strain increase. The adult who died last week was under the age of 65 with underlying health conditions, said Steve Todd, the tri-county health department’s health officer. The agency declined to state the victim’s gender and …

A driver and passenger in a vehicle involved in a police pursuit remain at large after the suspect’s car was found crashed in Kalamazoo County. The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said deputies began pursuing the vehicle shortly before 7 p.m. Sunday on M-60 near U.S. 131. The pursuit continued north into Park Township and the vehicle was found wrecked …

An Indiana man was arrested on drug and weapon charges following a traffic stop last weekend in Sturgis. State police said a vehicle the man was driving was stopped for an equipment violation at 5:30 p.m. Saturday near the intersection of Clay and John streets in Sturgis. The 27-year-old driver, an Elkhart man, was found to be in possession of …