VIRUS OUTBREAK-MICHIGAN-DETROIT MAYOR

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan tests positive for COVID-19

DETROIT (AP) — Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan has tested positive for COVID-19. Duggan says in a release that a COVID test Sunday morning “came back positive.” He said he awoke Saturday with a cough, but a home COVID test was negative for the virus. He then took another COVID test Sunday. Duggan said his symptoms are mild, “much like an average cold.” Duggan has been a proponent of vaccinations for the coronavirus and said he also received a booster shot. Detroit’s Health Department has reported more than 124,200 confirmed virus cases and more than 3,300 deaths since the start of the pandemic. State health officials have reported more than 2 million confirmed cases and over 32,800 deaths across Michigan.

GUN IN SCHOOL-STUDENT CHARGED

Teen charged after gun found at suburban Detroit high school

CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A student has been arrested after a handgun was found at a suburban Detroit high school. Prosecutors announced Saturday that the 15-year-old was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, receiving and concealing a stolen firearm and possession of a dangerous weapon on school grounds. The student was being held at the Macomb County Juvenile Justice Center. A parent and another student told school administrators Friday that the 15-year-old had a gun on the campus of Chippewa Valley High School in Clinton Township.

WOLF ATTACK-HUNTING DOG

DNR: Hunting dog bitten by wolf near UP trail

MARQUETTE, Mich. (AP) — A hunting dog has been bitten by a wolf in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources says the dog and another beagle were being trained Tuesday by their owner near a trailhead in Marquette when the attack occurred. The dog was baying at a rabbit about 200 yards off a trail when the wolf bit it on a hind leg. DNR spokesman John Pepin described the wolf’s behavior as normal. The dog was expected to recover. Pepin says the wolf did not act aggressively toward the hunter. The wolf is part of a known pack that has been in the area more than 15 years.

MICHIGAN GOVERNOR-KIDNAPPING PLOT

Jury gets case of 4 men charged in Gov. Whitmer kidnap plot

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Jurors have heard closing arguments and will begin deliberations Monday in the trial of four men charged with conspiring to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The jury decided to start fresh next week rather than begin discussing the case Friday afternoon. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nils Kessler summed up the evidence on the 15th day of trial. He traced the group’s secretly recorded words as well as testimony from agents, an informant and two star witnesses who pleaded guilty. Defense attorneys put a harsher spin on the evidence. They said there was no agreement to kidnap Whitmer and that the four men were manipulated by rogue investigators.

AP-US-MILEAGE-STANDARDS

New vehicles must average 40 mpg by 2026, up from 28 mpg

DETROIT (AP) — New vehicles sold in the U.S. will have to average at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026 under new rules unveiled by the government. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback enacted under President Donald Trump. For the current model year, standards enacted under Trump require the fleet of new vehicles to get about 28 miles per gallon in real-world driving. They’re expected to decrease carbon dioxide emissions — but not as much as some environmentalists want — and raise new vehicle prices in an industry already pressed by inflation and supply chain issues.

COLD CASE SLAYING CHARGE

Detroit man faces murder charge in 1997 slaying of woman

DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit man was charged with first-degree murder Friday in the fatal strangulation of a woman nearly 25 years ago. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy charged 51-year-old Johnny Joseph Yenshaw in connection with the slaying of 33-year-old Sonya Dockery of Detroit. Detroit police found Dockery unresponsive on the morning of Dec. 1, 1997,with strangulation marks and lacerations on her neck. Medics pronounced the woman dead. Worthy says an investigation of the case by Detroit police led to Yenshaw’s arrest on Wednesday. Yenshaw was arraigned and remanded to jail on Friday.

GIRL KILLED-GYM

Court reinstates lawsuit over girl’s death at school gym

GWINN, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan Supreme Court has overturned a decision and reinstated a lawsuit by the family of a 4-year-old girl who was accidentally killed at an Upper Peninsula school. Civil immunity can sometimes apply to schools under Michigan’s personal-injury law. But the Supreme Court says there still are questions of fact to be sorted out in Marquette County court. Amarah Filizetti died when a 325-pound panel fell on her at Gwinn High School in 2015. Staff were in the process of putting the panel in place to shield a portable stage. The state appeals court had dismissed the lawsuit, saying the panel wasn’t part of a building defect. But the Supreme Court says a reasonable jury could conclude that the panel constituted a ‘dangerous or defective condition.’

DIVISION 1 ALL-STATE GIRLS

Forest Hills Central’s Hallock AP Division 1 top player

Forest Hills Central’s Theryn Hallock has been named The Associated Press player of the year for Division 1 girls’ basketball. The Michigan State University commit averaged 26 points, 11.4 rebounds, 6.5 steals, 4.8 blocks and shot 54.3% from the floor this season. Hallock finished her career with a school-record 1,589 points. This marks the second consecutive year that Hallock has been voted first-team all-state, having averaged over 23 points last season. Coach of the year is Kyle Theisen of Midland Dow. The Division 1 girls’ basketball All-State team was selected by a panel of eight sports writers.

AUTO SALES

U.S. auto sales fall in Q1 as chip shortage slows factories

DETROIT (AP) — U.S. new-vehicle sales fell about 12% in the first quarter compared with a year ago, as the global computer chip shortage continued to slow factories amid high consumer demand. General Motors reported Friday that its sales were down 20% for the quarter, while Toyota sales were off 15%. Stellantis sales were down 14%, while Nissan was off almost 30%. Honda reported a 23% decline, and Hyundai sales were fell just 4% from January through March. Many automakers expect improvement during the year, especially in the second half.

HOMELESS MAN SLAIN

Three people charged in slaying of homeless man in Pontiac

PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) — Three people have been charged with murder in the slaying of a homeless man whose body was found near a lake northwest of Detroit. The Oakland County sheriff’s office says Brian Bonner, Alice Anthony and Romaro Wilson were arraigned Thursday in Pontiac District Court and ordered held without bond. A passersby found Tobby Farrington’s body after seeing an arm and leg protruding from beneath a bed comforter Friday in a grassy area near Terry Lake in Pontiac. The 50-year-old Farrington had been beaten, stabbed and strangled with a rope. A plastic bag was over his head. Detectives say Farrington was slain inside a Pontiac home where he had been staying and receiving drugs for performing odd jobs.