Government

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 …

A Sturgis man who played a substantial role in Michigan’s endorsement of Donald Trump for president will be a part of the inauguration-related fanfare today in Washington. Rob Weitt served as one of the state’s 16 electors when Michigan’s Electoral College representatives a month ago confirmed the nomination of Trump for the nation’s top post. Weitt, 58, said the honor …

An 18-year-old Constantine man was arrested this week on charges related to fleeing and eluding police in Constantine Township. Sheriff’s department deputies were called to Riverside Drive, near Mann Road, around 6:15 p.m. Wednesday in response to a vehicle fleeing from a deputy. The incident originated in Mottville Township, where deputies attempted to pull over a gray Pontiac for speeding …

A Western Michigan University basketball player charged with murder in the shooting death of a student during a robbery says his co-defendant pulled the trigger. Joeviair Kennedy testified Wednesday during a hearing about whether Jordan Waire would stand trial that the Dec. 8 robbery in Kalamazoo was planned by the two former high school teammates from Muskegon. Kennedy says he …

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 …

A 42-year-old Cassopolis man was injured after he was struck by a bullet from a gun fired by a neighbor conducting target practice. Cass County Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were alerted shortly after noon Monday that a Milton Township man had been accidentally shot. The victim, Justin Anderson, suffered a non-life-threatening injury. It was determined that a 46-year-old neighbor …

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 …