Police

Michigan State Police “Stuff a Blue Goose” event generated a considerable amount of holiday food and toys for less fortunate families in St. Joseph County. The one-day collection took place Dec. 2 outside Walmart stores in Three Rivers and Sturgis. Sgt. Todd Peterson said the 2023 drive netted nearly 900 pounds of food and about 1,400 toys at the Three …

Nine of the 11 drug-related deaths in St. Joseph County last year involved either methamphetamine or fentanyl, according to the county’s medical examiner, Joyce deJong. She said there have been six drug-related fatalities in St. Joseph County through the first half of 2023. In every case, meth and/or fentanyl were involved, deJong said. Eight men and five women were drug-overdose …

A 911 call center on Monday took some responsibility for an Amtrak train derailment last week in southwestern Michigan, saying it misidentified a crossing and contacted a different railroad to warn that a car was stuck on tracks. The train with 200 passengers crashed into the empty car and a tow truck Thursday night near New Buffalo. Six people on the train …

An Amtrak train heading to Chicago with 200 passengers derailed after striking an unoccupied vehicle and a tow truck in southwestern Michigan, authorities said Friday. “The engineer and approximately 10 passengers received non-life threatening injuries and were treated by local ambulance services,” the Berrien County sheriff’s office said. The train derailed but remained upright. The crash happened Thursday evening near …

Area police agencies seized more than six dozen illegally possessed firearms during a raid on a Sherman Township home Tuesday in the 25000 block of Hiawatha Drive, according to a release from Michigan State Police. No arrests were made but evidence will be forwarded to federal officials and the St. Joseph County prosecuting attorney for possible charges, investigators said. During …

A 79-year-old Union man died in a single-vehicle crash last week in Cass County’s Ontwa Township. Douglas Westrick, chief of the Ontwa Township Edwardsburg Police Department, said first-responders were called shortly before 4:30 p.m. Thursday to an area on Redfield Street, west of Adamsville Road. Witnesses told authorities a vehicle driven by Robert Lockmondy was eastbound on Redfield Street, crossed …

Two cars ended up in the mill race following an incident last week in downtown Colon. St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Capt. T.J. Baker said the county’s dive/rescue team was summoned after local authorities responded to the incident, which occurred around 1:15 p.m. Thursday. According to authorities, the driver of a car was pulling out of an on-street parking space and …

A western Michigan man was sentenced to decades in prison after pleading no contest in the 2021 slayings of his parents, whose bodies were found buried at a state game area. A Kalamazoo County judge on Wednesday sentenced Nicholas Johnson to spend between 29 and 69 years in prison. The Portage man must serve a minimum of 29 years before he’s eligible …

A southwestern Michigan sheriff’s deputy suffered a serious head injury and was hospitalized after a struggle with a suspect, authorities said Tuesday. The Allegan County deputy was responding to a complaint of a person driving back and forth in a neighborhood at high speed without headlights shortly before 10 p.m. Monday, the sheriff’s department said in a news release. While …

An Elkhart woman died last week in a single-vehicle crash in Cass County’s Newberg Township. State police were called Tuesday to the intersection of Corey Lake Road and County Line Road. Investigators concluded the driver, a 26-year-old man from Jones, lost control of the vehicle he was driving. The vehicle left the roadway and crashed into a tree. Both occupants …