Police

The Three Rivers Fire Department responded shortly after 10 a.m. Monday to a structure fire. Crews were dispatched to 509 Thomas Street, Apt. 4, where they found smoke coming from the lower level of the three-story apartment building. Crews had the fire under control in less than 10 minutes. Three occupants were displaced due to the fire, which was contained …

The man accused of setting the fire that destroyed a Kalamazoo adult store was arraigned Friday. 41-year-old Mitchell Hapner has been charged with one count of arson and one count of fleeing and eluding police. Hapner has told police he torched Hollywood Nights in an effort to eradicate  pornography from his neighborhood. Bond for Hapner was set at $250,000. Owners of the store …

Cass County Sheriff’s deputies responded this week to a collision between a passenger vehicle and a plow truck. The incident occurred at 12:12 a.m. Thursday on U.S. 12, just east of Cassopolis Road in Mason Township. Deputies said an eastbound car driven by 39-year-old Erek Szymanski, of Mishawaka, crossed the centerline after the driver fell asleep. His vehicle struck a …

University of Michigan officials say they’ll take action against six fraternities and sororities involved in the vandalism of two ski reports in Gaylord and Harbor Springs. Members of the campus community are condemning the events that took place Jan. 16 to 18 at Treetops and Boyne resorts, where students collectively caused nearly $125,000 in damage. They say the students’ poor …

A suspect is in custody after an adult bookstore was burned down in Kalamazoo. The Hollywood Nights store caught on fire late Wednesday afternoon and was largely destroyed. After the fire was deemed suspicious police began looking for leads and tracked a vehicle from the scene to Comstock  where a chase began at around 8:30 Wednesday night. The 41-year-old male suspect crashed …

Police say a 55-year-old southwestern Michigan woman who died after accidentally shooting herself in the head in January was adjusting a handgun in her bra holster at the time. The St. Joseph Public Safety Department is awaiting a full autopsy report in the death of Christina Bond, but Director Mark Clapp on Wednesday released details about the circumstances surrounding the …

All of Ken Bennett’s Tuesday morning barbershop customers wear orange jumpsuits. The owner of the Hair Shed in downtown Battle Creek has spent every Tuesday for the past 20 years cutting the hair of inmates at the Calhoun County jail. In a one-chair shop deep inside the facility, Bennett trims hair, beards and mustaches and doesn’t talk about crime. “I …

One of two Kalamazoo men charged with home invasion at a Schoolcraft Township residence last weekend was arraigned Tuesday. Meanwhile, the other suspect remains hospitalized after he was shot by an occupant of the residence. Kyle Wilson, 27, was arraigned in Kalamazoo County District Court, while 26-year-old Allen Palmer will be arraigned later as he recovers from being shot in …

Approval of a sheriff’s department personnel change was the most noteworthy matter of business during Tuesday’s St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners meeting. In advance of Capt. Tim Schuler’s impending retirement, commissioners OK’d the department’s request to fill his position. Subsequently, the commission agreed to hire Kitty Buchner to succeed Schuler. Buchner, who has served as administrative secretary and is …

A Dowagiac man died Sunday after being pinned by a skid-steer loader he was using to plow snow. Police say they were called Sunday afternoon to Cass County’s Wayne Township after 53-year-old Paul Williamson become pinned by the loader while clearing snow. Officers say Williamson was reaching out of his skid steer when his foot hit the hydraulic pedal to lift the …