St Joseph County

Three Rivers City Commission members will welcome a new commissioner aboard the seven-person panel next week. Norm Stutesman was chosen Tuesday to replace Diane Clay as representative of the city’s Third District. Clay had to vacate the seat due to her move to another area of the community. Stutesman, 72, was chosen even though no applications for the position were …

A possible millage sought later this year by the county’s E-911 Central Dispatch agency is off the table. Central Dispatch Director Dennis Brandenburg broached the subject during the commission’s Jan. 11 executive committee meeting. The proposed millage, which would have appeared before voters in May, would have sought up to four-tenths of a mill. It would have generated up to …

Three Rivers Health is pleased to announce our Employees of the Quarter for the fourth quarter of 2016. The honorees are Charlie Shane, Chantelle Jepson, Sam Weddington, Jennifer Huyck, and Michelle Stewart. On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, the Pure TRH Team (Employee Engagement Team) hosted the Employee of the Quarter Celebration in the TRH Cafe. Over 115 employees gathered to …

The Michigan Supreme Court last week denied the final appeal of Andy Brown in the David Locey murder case. Brown was found guilty of second-degree murder in the October 2013 shooting death of Locey. Brown in August 2014 was sentenced to as many as 75 years in prison. Locey, a Sturgis CPA who had employed Brown, found evidence of embezzlement …

A 37-year-old teacher at Sturgis High School is on paid administrative leave pending a police investigation into allegations of criminal sexual conduct. The teacher was arrested Monday after a police investigation showed he allegedly had a sexual relationship with a student. A day later, St. Joseph County Prosecutor John McDonough charged the suspect with one count of distributing or promoting …

Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners approved two annual appropriations Tuesday. Commissioners allocated nearly $290,000, an amount it had budgeted, to the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency to finance a portion of the agency’s annual operations. Financial transfers will be administered quarterly. The motion also squared the annual $1-a-year rent the agency pays to the county for …

Anyone wishing to address the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners now has one fewer opportunity per meeting. Following brief discussion Tuesday, the five-member panel approved a revision to the rules that spell out protocol at the commissioners’ twice-a-month meetings. A bylaw approved in 1994 that allowed for citizen comment twice a meeting – once near the onset and again …

A 32-year-old Sturgis man was arrested last weekend following a high-speed chase that terminated in Burr Oak Township. The incident took place starting around 6 p.m. Friday, when a volunteer firefighter saw a Cadillac Escalade being driven recklessly on Stubey Road. Sheriff’s department officials said the firefighter began following the Escalade while talking with 911 dispatchers. A sheriff ’s deputy …

The return of an admired former administrator to Mendon Community Schools was, by all appearances, a reunion the district and community were more than ready to embrace. And, for about 24 hours, the idea of Chuck Frisbie coming back to help lead the 580-student district looked like it was going to happen. Interim superintendent Roger Rathburn will stay on board …

Colon village council members last week discussed the unreliable state of village hall’s telephone system, while village president Diane Downs said the office also needs a computer dedicated to village-related business. A general, unassigned office that Down uses in the village office does not have a landline telephone nor does it have a computer. Downs said with a search underway …