News

Constantine Village Manager Mark Honeysett this week presented the council with a proposed collective bargaining agreement between the village and Fraternal Order of Police Labor Council, representing the Constantine Police Department bargaining unit. There are few changes to the current contract, Honeysett said, noting that it calls for a 2.5 percent wage increase for all full- time police officers in the …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department is appealing to the public for help in solving a missing-persons case. Sheriff Brad Balk said deputies are still investigating a case involving Brittany Nichole Shank, a 23-year-old white female. She is described as standing 5-foot-1 and weighing about 100 pounds. Shank has brown hair and hazel-colored eyes. She was last seen shortly before …

State Rep. Aaron Miller was ceremoniously sworn into his third and final term of office Wednesday in Lansing. The event was led by Michigan State Supreme Court Justice Stephen J. Markman. Joining Miller at the event were his wife, Alexandria; daughters Jael, Anna and Leah; and mother-in-law Tonya May. Miller, a Sturgis resident, represents the 59th District, which covers St. …

Three Rivers police said it appears all people involved in a shooting incident last month have been taken into custody. Agency officials said names of those apprehended have not yet been released while the investigation continues. Officers responded Dec. 29 to Meadow Lanes Village trailer park at 13th and Madison streets in response to multiple shots fired. A caller to …

State Police troopers are investigating the theft of a trailer taken sometime between 12:30 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. Tuesday from the 10000 block of Lucas Road in Fabius Township. The 16-by-7-foot enclosed trailer is black in color with tandem axles. There were four ladders, two 23-foot aluminum poles on top and it was loaded with tools, according to authorities.

The oncology treatment center at Sturgis Hospital will remain open, hospital officials announced Monday. Oncology services had been among those expected to close in Sturgis as part of a restructuring announced last month. Hospital president and CEO Rob LaBarge said the opportunity to keep the service open is possible through a cooperative partnership with Ascension Borgess Hospital. Ascension Borgess will do …

State Sen. Kim LaSata has announced she has opened her office in Lansing and is ready to serve her constituents in the 21st District. LaSata, who was elected to succeed term-limited John Proos, said she welcomes comments from the district’s constituents and encourages anyone visiting Lansing to stop by her office. Her Capitol Building office is S-310 and its phone …

St. Joseph County 3-B District Court is staging a ceremony at 3 p.m. Friday to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of the Michigan district court system. Among the guests expected to take part in the event are judges Jeff Middleton and Rob Pattison, retired Judge William Welty, and retired administrators David Recher and Carol Frohriep. The post was originally filled by …

Briah Stevens, a second-grader at Wenzel Elementary School in Sturgis, gave up her own Christmas gifts so one of her classmates could receive presents. Back in early December, Stevens heard one of her friends say she wasn’t going to have a Christmas this year because her family couldn’t afford gifts. Stevens explained the situation to her mother and asked that …

Additional revenue from the state has given St. Joseph County Road Commission a fund balance of more than $6 million. As a result, the agency is planning to do extra work in the upcoming year. Included in budgeted expenses are work on the Kalamazoo Street Bridge in White Pigeon at $2.2 million and at least $3.5 million on 22 miles …