News

St. Joseph County Treasurer Judie Ratering issued a media release Monday, offering support and prayers to the family of her Cass County counterpart. Ratering said she was saddened to find out Monday that Cass County Treasurer Linda Pruett had passed away Sunday evening from an undisclosed illness. Pruett had been Cass County treasurer since 2002.

A Sturgis man was issued a citation after the semi tractor-trailer he was driving overturned last week in Colon Township. The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said 25-year-old Ryan Allen was driving south on M-66, when the load of liquid manure in the trailer he was hauling shifted and caused the rig to overturn as he was attempting to head …

Two people were injured following an accident last week near Edwardsburg, in Cass County’s Mason Township. Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were called shortly before 10:30 p.m. Friday to Old 205, east of Redfield Road. Investigators said 23-year-old Vincent Sallee, of Niles, had turned onto Old 205 and in front of a southbound vehicle driven by Gregory Taylor, 67, of …

Two Kalamazoo County residents were arrested after a retail-fraud incident last week in Sturgis. According to a Sturgis Police Department media release, a 31-year-old woman and 28-year-old man, both from Kalamazoo, attempted to leave Walmart at 1 a.m. Thursday without paying for $1,500 worth of merchandise. During their investigation, officers found a vehicle in the parking lot with personal items …

Police in southwestern Michigan say a 24-year-old man was killed in a high-speed crash that happened while he was fleeing from a sheriff’s deputy. The Berrien County Sheriff’s Office says a deputy tried to stop a suspected drunken driver in Niles when the vehicle fled Saturday evening. The department says the vehicle sideswiped another vehicle and then topped 100 mph …

Authorities say a fire that killed five children and their mother at a Michigan motel appears to have been an accident. The Berrien County sheriff’s office says experts found no evidence of an accelerant that would have started the deadly blaze early Saturday at the Cosmo Extended Stay Motel in Sodus Township. The precise cause still is under investigation. The …

Public schools in Michigan can ban visitors from carrying guns, even if the owner has a permit to possess a concealed pistol, the state Supreme Court said Friday. Under state law, local governments must defer to the Legislature on gun policy. But in a 4-3 decision, the Supreme Court said the law mentions cities, villages, townships and counties — not …

St. Joseph County’s board of commissioners last week renewed its grant-writer agreement with James Hissong. The employment agreement centers on Hissong providing his services on a part-time basis through June 30, 2019. Commissioners approved a salary of $35,000, and stipulated he provide monthly activity reports at the end of the month and an annual report by the end of June. …

Sturgis City Commission members appointed Travis Klinger to fill the board vacancy created by the resignation of Ina Taulbee. Commissioners took action on the issue Wednesday. The second-precinct term expires in November 2020. Klinger, employed as an RV painter at Coachmen RV, has been associated with the Sturges-Young Auditorium Board and Steering Committee the past two years. Kurt Esseltine, Brandon Kinsey …

The murder trial for Zachary Patton, originally scheduled to begin next week in St. Joseph County 45th Circuit Court, was adjourned Tuesday. Patton was scheduled to stand trial for the July 2017 murder of Shane Richardson. The proceeding was delayed so a psychiatrist could evaluate additional medical records to see if Patten is competent to stand trial. No new trial …