News

A tough season for maple-syrup production didn’t seem to faze an estimated 300 people who attended an open house Saturday and Sunday at Butternut Creek Sugar Shack in Mendon Township. The event was organized by maple-syrup producer Terry Moyer, and his family and friends. The third annual event was part of a statewide observance of Michigan Maple Syrup Weekend, to …

M-51 near Niles in southwest lower Michigan had to be closed on Thursday morning after a crash involving a truck that was hauling an excavator machine. Michigan State Police say that the boom of the excavator was up too high to be able to clear the US-12 overpass on M-51, causing the boom to strike the bridge. It spilled diesel fuel …

St. Joseph County Circuit Court Judge Paul Stutesman announced Thursday the appointment of Lindsay Oswald to the position of county clerk/register of deeds. The choice was made two days after Stutesman and a panel of county officials convened Tuesday to discuss the appointment. Second interviews were conducted last week with finalists Oswald and Tabitha Wedge, a 28-year county employee and …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a breaking-and-entering incident in Leonidas Township. According to a department media release, force was used at some point in the past three weeks to gain entrance into the residence in the 32000 block M-60. The residence was unoccupied at the time of the incident. A department media release does not indicate if …

St. Joseph County Friend of the Court would like to remind the public that it has started using the so-called Denver Boot as a manner of collecting delinquent child-support obligations. The vehicle-immobilization device has been available to the agency for two years but was introduced for the first time over the winter on two separate occasions, according to Friend of …

Officials say manure that was spread as fertilizer on a Kalamazoo County farm field has been washed away by melting snow, creating a big mess. WWMT-TV reports the manure was spread on the field near Fulton last week. Bruce Washburn, an analyst for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, says temperatures warmed up Sunday, causing manure to be washed off …

Three Rivers Community Schools Superintendent Jean Logan issued a media release Wednesday, assuring that the school’s yearbook program will result in a publication in which the students who have worked on this year will be proud. Logan’s comments came a day after it was reported that yearbook advisor Sara Freeman was being investigated and will be charged for embezzlement. Freeman, …

Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz said alert police work during a routine traffic stop led to a felony methamphetamine conviction of a Sturgis man Wednesday. Fitz said sheriff’s deputy Clint Roach was on patrol in Porter Township when he observed David Greene, 46, driving a vehicle with expired license plates. Greene was stopped and cited for expired plates and no …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department is accepting registration for its boater-safety class. Offered to prospective participants 12 years of age and older, the class will be offered on four different occasions this summer. The one-day course runs 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and is slated to take place on consecutive Saturdays: June 6, 13, 20 and 27. The course …

Two Marcellus residents were hospitalized after they were involved in a single-vehicle accident last week in Flowerfield Township. State police said Jerry Altimus, 40, was driving west on M-216 when his vehicle crossed the centerline, drove off the road and struck a tree. The incident occurred around 4 p.m. March 5, about a mile west of U.S. 131. Altimus and …