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SCHOOL SHOOTING-MICHIGAN

Michigan school shooting suspect to pursue insanity defense

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (AP) — Attorneys say a teenager charged with killing four students at a Michigan high school will pursue an insanity defense. A summary of case filings says a notice was filed Thursday. The notice should lead to mental health exams of 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley, who is charged as an adult with murder and other crimes for the shooting at Oxford High School last year. The filing comes the same day as a new lawsuit alleging negligence by school officials and Crumbley’s parents over the attack. The lawsuit is on behalf of the parents of Tate Myre, who was slain Nov. 30, and other students who witnessed the shootings. The Associated Press sent an email seeking comment from the school district.

PROFESSOR-VIDEO

Judge won’t immediately put Michigan professor back in class

BIG RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan professor suspended for making a provocative video for his history students won’t be returning to class any time soon. A federal judge rejected Barry Mehler’s request for immediate reinstatement Wednesday and set a March 7 hearing on his bid for a preliminary injunction. The 74-year-old Mehler was suspended with pay earlier this month after making a sarcastic 14-minute video that included profanity and criticism of Ferris State University’s COVID-19 policies. His attorneys say the professor was wrongly punished for expressing free speech. Mehler says he was performing when he used salty language in the video.

MENINGITIS-MICHIGAN STATE

Meningitis case prompts antibiotic distribution in E Lansing

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan State University and health officials are distributing antibiotics to people who attended a fraternity party after a person at the party tested positive for bacterial meningitis. The Ingham County Health Department and the university are holding distribution clinics for the antibiotic tablets Friday and Saturday from 1-5 p.m. at the MSU Room on the third floor of the MSU Union Building in East Lansing. They recommend that everyone who was present at the party receive the antibiotic within 14 days of exposure. The Jan. 22 party was hosted by Sigma Beta Rho fraternity at Club Rush in East Lansing.

ELECTION 2020-MICHIGAN GOVERNOR

‘Quality guru’ is 13th in GOP to run for Michigan governor

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Perry Johnson, a “quality guru” who founded a company that certifies if businesses are meeting industrial standards, has filed papers to run for Michigan governor. The 74-year-old from Bloomfield Hills is the 13th Republican seeking the nomination to face Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. He plans to make a formal announcement in February, joining contenders such as Detroit Police Chief James Craig, businessman Kevin Rinke, chiropractor Garrett Soldano and Tudor Dixon. Johnson says residents would have a much better state government if there was a focus on improving quality with statistical methods. The Democratic Governors Association calls Johnson an “unknown, out-of-touch millionaire.”

PANDEMIC RELIEF-BUSINESSES

Michigan House approves more pandemic grants for businesses

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gyms, movie theaters and other businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic would receive state grants under a $185 million spending bill that has won initial legislative approval. The 96-6 vote in the House Thursday comes more than a month after the Legislature and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer enacted $409 million in aid for businesses that lost money. Applications for those grants are due by April 1 and must be disbursed by July 1. The next round of proposed grants would go to fitness centers, convention bureaus, community development banks, cinemas, and live music and entertainment venues.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-FREE MASKS

Michigan is distributing 10 million free KN95 masks

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The state of Michigan is distributing 10 million free KN95 masks to help protect residents from COVID-19. Health experts suggest stepping up protection against the highly contagious omicron variant with stronger masks such as N95s or KN95s. The state health department is sending the masks to community organizations, including county-based offices of the Department of Health and Human Services, local health departments, Area Agency on Aging offices and low-income health clinics. The masks are in addition to 400 million free N95 masks the federal government is distributing to pharmacies and community health centers across the country.

STATE OF STATE-MICHIGAN

Whitmer proposes tax cuts, more mental health workers

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Flush with surplus state revenues, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has called for a series of targeted tax cuts while outlining her legislative agenda and touting bipartisan accomplishments before she’s up for reelection. Delivering her State of the State speech virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she called for exempting retirement income from taxation and fully restoring a credit for 730,000 low- and moderate-wage families who on average would get an extra $350 annually. She proposed a $2,500 state credit for the purchase of an electric vehicle and charging equipment. Republicans support a tax cut, though may seek one that’s broader.

GEORGIA VAN CRASH

Fiery Georgia crash that killed 6 women leads to lawsuits

KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) — Family members of women in a sober living group home who were killed and injured in a fiery van crash last year are suing a car company and the group home. They say the 2002 Dodge Ram was prone to tipping over and was not properly maintained. Police said the van went out of control, rolled onto its side and slid across two lanes of a Georgia interstate, bursting into flames and killing six women inside. Ten other occupants survived. Many of the victims were part of a sober living community called We Are Living Proof. The organization referred calls Thursday to an Atlanta attorney who didn’t immediately return phone messages.

BUTTIGIEG-ROAD SAFETY

Buttigieg pledges help as car fatalities keep spiking higher

WASHINGTON (AP) — Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is pledging to tackle a rising U.S. epidemic of car fatalities. Buttigieg is pushing a broad-based government strategy released Thursday aimed at limiting the speed of cars, redesigning roads to better protect bicyclists and pedestrians and boosting car safety features such as automatic emergency braking. Buttigieg says he envisions cities and states taking interim steps with federal support. Buttigieg indicated to The Associated Press that new federal data being released next week will show another spike in traffic fatalities through the third quarter of 2021. The transportation secretary calls the magnitude of deaths unacceptable.

SCHOLARSHIP ERROR

Michigan school offers full tuition after scholarship error

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. (AP) — Dozens of prospective Central Michigan University students who were mistakenly told they had won full-ride scholarships that include room and board have received an apology from the school — and offers of the equivalent of full-tuition scholarships. School officials say 58 youths received messages last weekend while accessing the university portal telling them they had won a prestigious Centralis Scholars Award. But the university said Wednesday it was an error and the message went out “inadvertently” during testing of new messaging technology. However, university officials apologized for the error Wednesday night, and offered all 58 prospective students the equivalent of a full-tuition scholarship.