Government

The last Adopt-A-Highway pickup along state roadways is about to get underway. Participants in the Michigan Department of Transportation program will be collecting litter along highway roadsides from Saturday through Oct. 2. There are three scheduled Adopt-A-Highway pickups each year: one each in the spring, summer and fall. Every year, Adopt-A-Highway crews collect about 70,000 bags of trash. The volunteer …

State Rep. Aaron Miller has issued an invitation for constituents to join him during three office hours next week. Miller said he will host the meetings 7 to 9 a.m. Monday at Dawn & Phil’s Café in Colon; 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Yoder’s Country Market in Centreville; and noon to 2 p.m. at Town Fryer in Constantine. Miller called …

Michigan’s new Amber Alert-like system to quickly warn people of mass shootings, terrorist attacks and other nearby threats is operational. State police on Thursday announced the update about the system. Following activation by law enforcement, the system can be used to interrupt radio and TV broadcasting in the affected area. A wireless emergency alert can also be issued through mobile …

Two White Pigeon residents were arrested this week after leading authorities on a pursuit between Three Rivers and White Pigeon. According to the Three Rivers Police Department, officers were called at 9 p.m. Monday to the 200 block of East Michigan Avenue in response to a larceny report. Officers discovered a residence had been ransacked and several items stolen, including …

Children of St. Joseph County parents who are undereducated, live in poverty and might be involved with methamphetamine are at risk of becoming a dubious statistic in the county’s juvenile court system. The conclusion was offered Tuesday to St. Joseph County Commissioners by Tom Robertson, director and referee of the county’s family court juvenile division. Robertson’s appearance was a scheduled …

The bodies of two young children and two teenagers were found at a Detroit-area home early Wednesday after a man called 911 to report that he had killed them, police said. Two girls, ages 4 and 5, were asphyxiated in a car using exhaust, while a 17-year-old girl and a 19-year-old male were fatally shot, Dearborn Heights police Lt. Michael …

St. Joseph County Clerk Lindsay Oswald said a new law goes into effect Oct. 1 regarding the fee for documents from the county’s register of deeds office. The law states that a fee of $30, regardless of the number of pages, will be charged. The only exception will be if the document assigns or discharges more than one instrument. In …

Two out-of-state residents were arrested last weekend after attempting to cash a fraudulent check at a Three Rivers business. Police were called Saturday to Triple Creek convenience store on South Main Street regarding a person from Ohio attempting to cash a suspicious-looking check. Officers eventually searched the suspect’s vehicle and found two handguns, money, multiple counterfeit checks and a large …

A Niles man was arrested last week on several charges following an incident during which he allegedly used a machete to threaten deputies. Cass County Sheriff Joe Underwood said Marty Ray Gipson, 44, was charged with two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, and three counts of resisting police. Deputies were called at 1:15 a.m. Sept. 14 to a …

A 55-year-old Lake County, Ind., man drowned last week in Fabius Township’s Clear Lake. According to the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department, deputies were alerted shortly before 4 p.m. Friday to a report of a person who had fallen out of a boat and struggled while in the water. Witnesses attempted to reach the man but failed, and efforts by …