A Mendon man died over the weekend in a two-vehicle accident in Leonidas Township, where rescue personnel said heavy fog played a role in the incident. Sheriff’s deputies were called at 5:30 p.m. Sunday to the intersection of Summit and Pleasant roads, just west of Leonidas. Investigators said Mark Russell, 60, was driving a Jeep west on Pleasant Road. Meanwhile, …

A Three Rivers resident was arrested after attempting to leave the Sturgis Meijer without paying for merchandise. Sturgis police said the 26-year-old man fled the store around 7 p.m. Saturday despite an attempt by store personnel to stop him. Sturgis K-9 officer Tucky was brought to the scene and successfully located the man in a nearby field. He was charged …

Medics from the Tri Township Fire Department and Lifecare Ambulance personnel treated two Coldwater children who were overcome by exhaust fumes over the weekend in Fawn River Township. According to the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department, deputies were called at 11:50 a.m. Saturday to Sweet Lake Trailer Park on U.S. 12 in response to two children who had stopped breathing. …

A Michigan doctor who came to the U.S. from Poland as a young child was in jail Monday, nearly a week after immigration agents arrested him at his home. It’s not clear why Lukasz Niec, 43, was taken into custody last Tuesday. Niec is a legal U.S. resident who works at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. He has two misdemeanor …

An effort is underway to allow Michigan voters to cast an absentee ballot for any or no reason. A coalition that includes civil libertarians and political activists filed ballot language Monday with the state. If approved, the next step would be a campaign to collect 316,000 signatures to get the issue on the fall ballot. The proposed amendment to Michigan’s …

Mark R. Russell, age 60, of Mendon, died Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018 from injuries received in a motor vehicle accident. He was born in Kalamazoo on Feb. 9, 1957 the son of Ivan G. and Helen K. (Reed) Russell. He graduated from Portage Central High School in 1975 and later attended Kalamazoo Valley Community College. Mark has been employed as …

Constance Joan (Topp) Kidder, age 84, of Three Rivers, went to be with the Lord on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. She was born near Coldwater  on Feb. 2, 1933 the daughter of Alvis and Estella (Nevil) Topp. She was preceded in death by her parents; five brothers, Robert, Raymond, Vincent, Herman, and Anthony Topp; five sisters, Mary Agnus, Rosella Delorse, …

Elizabeth “Betty” Jean Roberts, age 82, of Three Rivers, passed away peacefully on Sunday, January 21, 2018 at her home surrounded by her loving family. She was born in Munger, MI. on July 6th, 1935 the daughter of the late Nicholas and Ethel (Orosz) Pless. Betty has been a long time resident of Three Rivers. She enjoyed quilting and cross …

Rex Lane, age 94, of Three Rivers, and formerly of White Pigeon, died Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018, at Heartland Healthcare Center in Three Rivers. He was born March 15, 1923, in Bronson, one of seven children born to Earl and Nettie (Moon) Lane. There were five boys and two girls in the family. His father was hurt in a farming …

Bernard D. Carter, age 74, of Fish Lake, Sturgis, passed away Thursday, January 18, 2018 at his home. He was born in Three Rivers on January 25, 1943, a son of Chester and Marguerite (Hoyt) Carter. Bernard attended Schoolcraft and Centreville Schools. On June 1, 1962, he married Annabelle Keckler in Centreville; she preceded him in death on September 25, …