Government

Lockport Township has appointed an interim supervisor. Paul Bungart will serve in the capacity until the November election. He fills the void left by Ray Signorello, who decided last month to step down due to work-related commitments. Bungart had served on the township board as treasurer for more than 27 years before he gave up the post in 2014. Bungart …

Searchers have recovered the body of a man who drowned while trying to rescue his 15-year-old son in a lake northeast of Kalamazoo. Danyelle Phillips jumped into Gull Lake on Saturday. Another person grabbed his son and got the boy back to a boat, but the 39-year-old Phillips disappeared. The sheriff’s office says his body was recovered Sunday night. Relatives …

A 32-year-old Union City man was arrested last week on alcohol-related charges in Branch County. State police said a trooper attempted to pull over a driver at 11 p.m. Thursday on Athens Road, near Mendon Road, in Sherwood Township for an equipment violation. The driver, a 32-year-old Union City man, continued driving north on Athens Road and a subsequent road …

St. Joseph County sheriff’s deputies responded this week to a report of larceny from a motor vehicle in Fabius Township. According to a department media release, deputies were called Tuesday to the 57000 block of Gearharts Landing, where power tools were stolen from the back of a pickup. Investigators concluded the culprit broke into the cab of the truck and …

Sturgis city commissioner Jon Good wants to investigate whether the municipality should impose restrictions on the public’s use of some herbicides, as a means to protect groundwater. Good said he has done preliminary research on communities that have set restrictions on the use of chemicals that can pose health hazards when concentrations are found in groundwater supplies. Barry Cox, city …

A parole absconder was arrested by Three Rivers police this week. According to a department media release, the Michigan Department of Corrections Absconder Unit notified local authorities about the likely location of a man, whose name and age were not included in the media release. Officers and the department’s K9 unit converged upon a residence on Constantine Street and found …

Students at Sturgis High School took part in a safe driving campaign recently and their collective effort paid off. The group of students who ran the campaign won first place out of 55 schools in Michigan during the competition. Strive for a Safer Drive is a public-private partnership between Ford Driving Skills for Life and the Michigan Office of Highway …

A U-Haul car dolly was reported stolen this week from a location in Park Township. State police said the incident took place between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Monday in the 20000 block of Heimbach Road. The victim said the trailer was being rented at the time of its theft.

President Barack Obama has scheduled another visit to Elkhart. During the June 1 visit, the president will participate in a town hall meeting to discuss the economic progress Elkhart and the nation have made, the remaining economic challenges and decisions that must be made, the White House said in a statement Tuesday. It will be Obama’s third trip to Elkhart …

Some drivers who are late renewing their license plate could have the $10 late fee waived under legislation heading toward Gov. Rick Snyder for his signature. The Senate unanimously approved the bill Tuesday after the House passed it in February. The legislation would require the secretary of state to waive a late fee if the motorist presents proof of storage …