Police

St. Joseph County has hired an additional community corrections staff member. During Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners OK’d the employment of Matthew Huff. He will work 30 hours a week to cover obligations related to Community Corrections in the absence of coordinator Erin Goff. Judge Jeff Middleton, chairman of the Community Corrections Advisory Board, said Goff is on medical leave. Middleton noted …

Authorities say they’re investigating the death of a woman whose body was found alongside a rural southwestern Michigan road as suspicious. The Kalamazoo County sheriff’s department says in a statement that the body of 32-year-old Gabrielle Irene Smith of Plainwell was found Tuesday afternoon in Texas Township. The cause and circumstances of her death are under investigation Thursday. Smith’s body …

A 50-year-old driver of a pickup truck that struck a group of bicyclists killing five of them was charged Thursday with five counts of second degree murder. Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeffrey Getting also charged Charles Pickett Jr. of Battle Creek on Thursday with four counts of reckless driving in the crash Tuesday that injured four others in Cooper Township north …

They called themselves “The Chain Gang” — a group of bicyclists drawn together by zest for their sport, physical fitness and love of the outdoors whose day trip in the southwestern Michigan countryside ended tragically as a pickup truck plowed into them, killing five and injuring four others. Stunned biking enthusiasts joined relatives and friends of the riders Wednesday in …

A former police chief in Constantine who previously worked for the Michigan State Police was laid to rest last week amid full police honors. Police representatives from Centreville, Colon, Constantine, Mendon, Portage and surrounding areas joined lawyers, judges and other public officials to pay homage to Det. Sgt. Jim Bedell at Trinity Missionary Church in Constantine. Rev. Dennis Smith, pastor …

Authorities in southern Michigan are investigating the shooting deaths of a Calhoun County Sheriff’s deputy and his wife. The bodies were found in Emmett Township, southwest of Battle Creek, about 7:50 a.m. Sunday. Emmett Township Police Chief Mike Olson tells the Battle Creek Enquirer the bodies of a man and a woman were found in the back yard of a …

Several garages and vehicles were entered and items stolen between evening hours Wednesday and early morning Thursday in Park Township. State police said numerous calls were fielded regarding the breaking-and-entering incidents. They occurred on the north end of Fishers Lake in the vicinity of Thompson Lane. Unlocked garages and vehicles were entered and a variety of valuables taken. State police …

A business in Mottville Township was broken in to Wednesday morning. State police said the breaking-and-entering incident occurred between 1:30 and 6 a.m. at Fresh Solution Farms, on Blue School Road. An unknown amount of cash was taken from vending machines. The business is offering a cash reward for information leading to the conviction of the suspect.

Three Rivers police this week arrested a man with a loaded gun after he was involved in a fight at a convenience store. Officers were called at 9:30 p.m. Monday to an area near East Michigan Avenue and Wood Street in response to a report of a fight involving a loaded gun. The suspect fled the scene on foot but …

A 28-year-old Three Rivers man was arrested for a number of offenses following a traffic violation early Monday near Mendon. Three Rivers police said the stop was initiated at Portage Avenue near Hoffman Street after a vehicle was observed traveling 60 mph in a 25 mph zone. The driver failed to stop and was apprehended after his vehicle was involved …