Government

Two exceptions were made this week to St. Joseph County’s self-imposed hiring freeze. County commissioners Tuesday granted requests from district court and the prosecutor’s office to fill vacancies considered essential. District court was in need of a probation officer, a position vacant since the start of the month. Officials said the job is critical because a probation officer provides a …

St. Joseph County commissioners Tuesday agreed to the renewal of the county’s 2020 indigent defense attorney agreement. The county will pay nearly $570,000 over the 12-month period for attorneys taking on clients who are indigent. The nine-member pool of attorneys is comprised of John Bush, Christine Yancey, Jordan Yancey, Laurie Hines, David Marvin, Melissa Hallack, T.J. Reed, Timothy George and …

Century Bank and Trust in Three Rivers was robbed Monday, and a suspect has been arrested. Authorities said a man handed a teller a note, in which he demanded money. The man was wearing a blue sweatshirt, a dark Carhartt cap and blue jeans. The man was found following tips from the community.

The St. Joseph County Commission On Aging is close to reaching its goal set through a crowdfunding campaign to help create an outdoor park as well as a public space inside the former Three Rivers Inn. Above and beyond the $4.6 million in renovations to the hotel itself, which led to the creation of a senior center and 46 independent-senior …

Michigan drivers who want unlimited lifetime coverage for crash injuries will pay $100 per vehicle starting in July — a reduction from record $220 they are assessed now. The Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association announced the 55% fee cut Wednesday, months after the passage of a new law making the mandatory benefit optional beginning next summer. The state-created entity that reimburses …

An Elkhart man died in a single-vehicle crash last week in Cass County’s Porter Township. Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were called shortly before 4 p.m. Friday to an area on Bellows Road, near Idlewild Street. Chase Miller, age 28, was driving north on Bellows Road when his vehicle left the roadway and went into a pond. Miller’s body was …

Deputies from the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department last week arrested a man driving a stolen vehicle in Sherman Township. According to a department media release, deputies were called Thursday to a report of a man driving a stolen vehicle. They responded to an area near Banker Street and Shimmel Road and eventually found the vehicle in question. John Fox …

A Michigan man whose hobbies include ritualized combat with replica weapons from the Middle Ages says he wielded a battle ax he calls “my baby” to fend off an intruder. Thirty-six-year-old Ben Ball tells WOOD-TV he was playing video games at his apartment in Oshtemo Township late Wednesday when someone who once dated his ex-roommate kicked in his door. He …

Indiana officials say more baby boxes are coming to the state’s hospitals and firehouses. The Post-Tribune reports that Crown Point added one box last week at a firehouse, making a total of six boxes in Northwest Indiana. Baby boxes are padded, climate-controlled boxes where people can leave newborns safely and anonymously at hospitals or firehouses. Hospital officials say the boxes …

Michigan would become the fifth state to require that egg-laying hens be housed in cage-free areas under legislation approved by the state House and backed as aligning farms with where the industry is headed. The main bill is part of a broader update of the state’s animal industry law. The measure would change and delay confinement standards for hens. Each …