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AP-US-MICHIGAN-GOVERNOR-KIDNAPPING-PLOT

Jury hears man discuss plan to abduct Mich. Gov. Whitmer

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Prosecutors have played covertly recorded audio for jurors in which a man charged in a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer specifically mentions abducting the Democrat. In the recording made in mid-July 2020 in Wisconsin, Barry Croft Jr. describes the possibility of using explosives to “rain down” fire on law enforcement “with a team standing by” to grab Whitmer. He adds without providing details about any plan, that they should execute “a quick precise grab.” Four men are on trial in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for the alleged plot. Prosecutors say they were angry about pandemic restrictions Whitmer imposed. Defense attorneys say the men were big talkers who were entrapped by government informants and FBI agents.

WIND-BLOWN-ICE-SHANTY

2 men rescued from Saginaw Bay for 2nd time this week

FRASER TWP, Mich. (AP) — Two men have been rescued from the icy waters of Saginaw Bay for the second time this week after falling through unstable ice. The Saginaw News reports the two were trying to retrieve items they had to abandon during their first rescue Sunday when they needed to be rescued again Wednesday. Bay County Sheriff Troy Cunningham says deputies were dispatched after being alerted to two men being in the water after their boat capsized. He says “the two men were trying to retrieve equipment they’d been forced to leave on the ice from their previous ice rescue.” The two were taken to a hospital.

PRISON-DOG HANDLERS

Ruff news: Dog handlers at Michigan prisons get pay cut

MUNISING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan prisoners who are trusted to train dogs are getting a 42% pay cut to $1.54 per day after a mistake was discovered by the Corrections Department. Prisoners already receive low wages for their work behind bars. Now a pay cut from $2.65 per day hurts, especially when the job requires special skills. The Detroit Free Press says a Corrections Department official made a mistake by approving the higher pay rate around 2011. Men who train dogs at the Alger prison say they must have a good record and complete an eight-week training program to get the jobs. Louise Reichert of Escanaba says her Pomeranian was trained by prisoners. She says he’s been a great pet.

KENNEDY LIMOUSINE-COMPANY CLOSING

Armored vehicle maker that retrofitted JFK’s limo is closing

CINCINNATI (AP) — An armored vehicle maker that customized the limousine in which President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 is shutting down its operations. The company near Cincinnati filed a notice last week that it will layoff all 200 of its employees in Fairfield, Ohio, and close permanently. The company was known as Hess & Eisenhardt in the 1960s, when it reinforced Kennedy’s presidential limousine after it was built by Ford Motor Co. in 1961. Among the modifications added were removable transparent roof panels, a hydraulic rear seat that could elevate the president and steps for Secret Service agents.

ELECTION BILLS-MICHIGAN

House OKs banning online absentee applications, SOS mailings

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Republican-controlled Michigan House has voted to prohibit digital signatures on absentee ballot applications and to ban unsolicited mailings of applications to voters, advancing more election bills that are unlikely to be signed by the Democratic governor. In 2020, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson began enabling voters to apply for a ballot online. They can authorize the state to send their stored signature to their local clerk. They also must provide their driver’s license or state ID number, their birth date, eye color and the last four digits of their Social Security number. Democrats says the bills would suppress voting, while Republicans said they would make it more secure.

EMERGENCIES-PISTOL PERMITS

Bill would require concealed gun processing in emergencies

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Legislation headed to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer would require county clerks to keep processing concealed pistol licenses during state-declared or locally declared emergencies. The Republican-sponsored bill is a response to what happened when the coronavirus pandemic struck. It was approved Thursday by the House largely on party lines. Supporters say Second Amendment rights cannot be infringed even in times of emergency. Opponents say activities sometimes must be stopped to prevent the spread of disease. The House also passed bills to reduce the penalty for not renewing a concealed pistol license, and to keep gun stores open during future emergencies.

MICHIGAN GAS TAX-FREEZE

Michigan Legislature starts voting to pause state gas tax

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Republican-led Legislature has started voting to lift, for six months, Michigan’s 27.2-cents-a-gallon gasoline and diesel taxes amid pump prices that exceed $4 per gallon. Republican leaders announced the plan Wednesday, after Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer urged Congress to suspend the federal 18.4-cents-a-gallon gas tax and 24.4-cent diesel tax. Her office has not embraced temporarily halting state fuel taxes, saying it would hamper road repairs. The state legislation would save drivers approximately $725 million. The federal legislation would transfer general funds so transportation funding to states is not cut. Republicans said they would do something similar in Michigan.

DEPUTY SHOT-MICHIGAN

Michigan sheriff’s deputy stable, suspect killed in shooting

BROWN CITY, Mich. (AP) — Police say a man who shot and wounded a Michigan sheriff’s deputy serving a felony warrant was fatally shot by a second deputy after the suspect opened fire. Michigan State Police say 47-year-old Charles Raymond, of Imlay City, was pronounced dead at the scene in Brown City, while the wounded deputy remained in stable condition. Preliminary findings indicate that a homeowner allowed Lapeer County deputies to check the premises Wednesday morning for Raymond, who was wanted on a felony criminal sexual conduct warrant. Police say Raymond fired on the deputies, striking one multiple times, as the door to a detached outbuilding was opened. The second deputy retired fire, fatally striking Raymond.

OBIT-OBATA

Gyo Obata, famed St. Louis-based architect, dies at age 99

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Gyo Obata, an architect whose designs included sports and entertainment arenas, airports and a presidential library, has died. His family says Obata died Tuesday in St. Louis at age 99. A cause of death was not announced. Obata was born in 1923 in San Francisco and earned a master’s degree at Cranbrook Academy of Arts in suburban Detroit. Obata, George Hellmuth and George Kassabaum opened Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum in 1955. St. Louis-based HOK is now among the world’s largest architecture and engineering firms. HOK’s notable designs include the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, Camden Yards baseball stadium in Baltimore, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois, and the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.

HEALTH CARE FRAUD

Dozen doctors get prison in health care fraud, opioid scheme

DETROIT (AP) — A dozen doctors are among 16 people in Michigan and Ohio sentenced to prison for a health care fraud that included the distribution of 6.6 million opioid doses and $250 million in false billings. The Justice Department says Wednesday that a multi-state network of pain clinics participated in the scheme from 2007 to 2018 in which doctors refused to provide patients with opioids unless they agreed to expensive, unnecessary and sometimes painful back injections. Authorities described the clinics as “pill mills” and said they were frequented by people suffering from addictions and drug dealers seeking high-dosage prescription drugs like oxycodone. The injections were selected because they were among the highest reimbursing procedures, rather than based on medical need.