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Thirty-five people took advantage of a free ride home New Year’s Eve and early New Year’s Day in St. Joseph County. Thanks to the St. Joseph County Transportation Authority and a number of sponsors, the fifth New Year’s Eve Free Ride Home program saw a 13 percent increase in ridership from a year ago, when it attracted 31 participants. The …

The city of Sturgis has announced its ice rink is open for the season. Open-skating hours are noon to dusk Sunday through Thursday, and noon to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Open hockey is available 8 a.m. to noon seven days a week.

Three people were treated for injuries suffered in a one-vehicle accident earlier this week in Constantine Township. St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department officials said 30-year-old Kristina Steele told investigators she fell asleep Monday while driving north in the 10300 block of North River Road. The vehicle went off the roadway, injuring passengers Cory Hughey of Three Rivers and Bryan Cook …

The Sturgis Fire Department was dispatched to a structure fire early Wednesday at 204 North Centreville Road. All occupants were outside the home when firefighters arrived, with flames and heavy smoke in the front half of the residence. The structure appears to be a total loss due to heavy heat, smoke, and water damage. The cause of the fire is …

The parents of a 12-year-old boy who died following a southwestern Michigan crash where his 14-year-old friend was behind the wheel say the two had had sneaked out in the middle of the night for a joy ride. The Cass County sheriff’s department says the 14-year-old boy was speeding along a snow-slicked road about 2 a.m. Tuesday in Milton Township …

Michigan wildlife officials say 23 wolves were killed in the Upper Peninsula during the state’s first wolf hunt in four decades. That’s well short of the quota, and experts blame frigid conditions. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said Wednesday that one additional kill was reported on the hunt’s final day Tuesday. The department had a quota of 43 for …

A question of whether to remodel or build a new animal-control facility has been researched by county administrator Pat Yoder. Though Yoder has not yet reached a definitive answer, he said input from animal-control officer Tom Miller has helped him consider suggesting a remodel job. The issue was discussed during the county’s December committee-of-the-whole meeting. Yoder said there seems to …

The idea of St. Joseph County commissioners using iPads was a matter of discussion during the commission’s December committee-of-the-whole meeting. Commissioners agreed the proposal should be tabled until the full allocation of iPads approved for purchase in April. The nine iPads commissioners approved last spring were to be distributed to officials with the prosecutor’s office as well as members of …

St. Joseph County Commission Chairman John Dobberteen said the county might consider employees work a four-day, ten-hour-a-day work week as an option. Dobberteen raised the idea earlier this month, when he said the option would be on the table since the county can’t always afford to increase compensation. The concept is in place at the sheriff’s department as well as …

This is my final column for the year. It’s been a great year so far, so I really don’t have anything to complain about. Tomorrow is a new day and a new year, and like many of you, I’ve made a few resolutions that, hopefully, I’ll follow through on. Time will tell. One thing I will attempt to do is …