Seven Midwestern governors announced Thursday that they will coordinate on reopening their state economies amid the coronavirus pandemic, after similar pacts were made in the Northeast and on the West Coast. The latest agreement includes Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Kentucky. “We look forward to working with experts and taking a fact-based, data-driven approach to reopening our economy …

A Three Rivers man faces charges of assault with intent to murder and felony firearms after he was arraigned this week. Lee Andrew Parker, 20, was arrested following an incident in which he allegedly shot a 17-year-old girl in the head around 12:30 a.m. Thursday in the 500 block of Thomas Street. Authorities said Parker fled the scene but was …

Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners appear poised to go after a state grant that, if secured, would benefit one of its county parks. During Wednesday’s executive committee meeting, conducted through Zoom remote-conferencing platform, commissioners agreed to forward the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Trust Fund grant application to their board meeting Tuesday next week for a …

St. Joseph County commissioners on Wednesday heard the county’s 2020 equalization report, presented remotely by equalization director Josh Simmons during the twice-a-month executive committee meeting. He said this is the first year St. Joseph County has surpassed the $3 billion assessed-value mark. Overall, from the previous year to current, St. Joseph County’s assessed values increased 4.86 percent, which includes personal …

Sturgis police responded at 8:30 p.m. Friday to the 900 block of Progress Street in response to a suspicious man in the vicinity. The man, a 24-year-old Sturgis resident, fled on foot when officers arrived. He was eventually caught and charged with possessing of methamphetamine, stolen firearm, carrying a concealed weapon, fleeing and eluding, resisting and obstructing, assaulting a police …

Hundreds of flag-waving, honking protesters drove past the Michigan Capitol on Wednesday to show their displeasure with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s orders to keep people at home and businesses locked during the coronavirus outbreak. As snow fell, others got out of their vehicles and raised signs, one of which read, “Gov. Whitmer We Are Not Prisoners.” Another said, “Michigander Against Gretchens …

Wednesday, April 15th, is not “Tax Day”. We have until July 15th to file our returns. This gives us plenty of extra time to get our affairs in order. This is not the time to procrastinate. A cowboy friend of mine reminded me of a column I had written several weeks ago. It dealt with making some sort of extra …

The County Road Association of Michigan recently recognized the St. Joseph County Road Commission with an “IMPRESS” award. Issued during the CRA’s 2020 Highway Conference, IMPRESS recognizes county road agencies that demonstrate innovation with special projects in communications, operations and collaboration. The county was awarded in the “Operations” category for its combination tar distributor/plow truck usage. Budget constraints made it …

A breaking-and-entering incident took place at a business earlier this month in Centreville. Deputies were called at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday to Mill Race Storage Units on East Main Street. The incident occurred between 10:30 p.m. April 6 and 3:30 p.m. April 7. Property stolen from the unit includes cameras, two tablets, a laptop, a Nintendo DS gaming system, fishing poles …

Sturgis city commissioners last week accepted the resignation of vice mayor and third precinct city commissioner Mark Dvorak. In a letter to commissioners, Dvorak said circumstances in his personal life resulted in his move to a different home. Dvorak said he did not realize until he went to vote March 10 that his new residence is in the second precinct. …